THE HARBINGER OF NOR'WESTER

The Wishful Lie

"So let's begin with where you were coming from that night?" Vaibhav crossed his hands over the desk.

"Court More crossing, Siliguri."

"From the Terai regions? Taking that truck to the foothills is dangerous!" Vaibhav took a moment, "what was in the cargo?"

"Some kind of machine, I was just told to deliver it." Saikat deeply breathed twice after speaking.

"Where!?" Bimal pitched in.

"My comrade knew that!" Saikat raised his voice and immediately added, "but you killed him!"

"I did not do that!" Bimal tried to maintain his calm for the sake of Vaibhav.

"Tell me about this!" Vaibhav pulled out a piece of paper from his assortment of things, "tell me about the how a manifesto meant for Gorkha rebellion ended up with you!"

"All of our tribes have them!" Saikat did not get Vaibhav's line of questioning, "It is a document that Master da insists us on keeping with ourselves. It has come down to words now. Action is the next step...maybe then we'll all move on to the final stage then, throughout!"

Bimal cringed his lips and turned to Vaibhav to find him looking back, "Master da as in...?"

"Their leader," Bimal put on his right hand to lean in, "trying to hunt the bastard for years!"

Saikat gritted his teeth and suddenly raised his hands with all force to strangle the inspector. He apparently forgot he was chained to the desk and just got pulled back. Bimal backed up and smiled teasingly.

"I remember now!" Saikat suddenly seemed full of life, "the manifesto was changed, we used to have a different one! It was around the time he played hide and seek in Hatighisa!"

"What is he talking about?" Vaibhav turned to the inspector.

"Yeah he doesn't tell a lot of things," Saikat's voice got colder, "he went undercover to catch our Master da..."

Vaibhav turned to the inspector and raised his brows and then turned back to Saikat, "so your leader changed the manifesto after the inspector was caught!"

"Words can transcend revolution and periods!"

Bimal got up and Vaibhav immediately stopped him. He turned to Saikat again, "you knew there would be an ambush in the forest! Did you plan to get back and plant a mole in the police!"

"No...," Saikat began.

"NO!!" Bimal shouted looking angrily at Vaibhav.

Vaibhav turned to Bimal and raised his hands. Then he was about to take off when the dim light inside the room shined on Saikat's right leg. Vaibhav noticed a black scar on the lower portion slowly turning purple.

"How long have you been hurt?"

"Oh it's nothing we gave him first aid!" Bimal said abruptly.

"I cut myself on one of the cargo, while getting out of the truck." Saikat answered calmly.

"Inspector he has osteonecrosis!" Vaibhav kneeled to his leg. Saikat did not move, he just followed Vaibhav's gaze. Vaibhav lit a torch, shining it at the wound, "his skin has healed but the muscles inside are bleeding. Blood is clotting and his Bones are dying inside. He will be paraplegic in a few days if the clot is not removed!"

"Seriously?" Bimal clearly not any less angry to consider the seriousness of the matter.

Vaibhav took out a tin-blade from his pocket and put on gloves. He looked at Saikat for permission.

"Just do it!" Bimal said quickly without waiting for Saikat to reply. Saikat nodded in agreement.

Vaibhav incised the wound and blood pooled into his glove. Then he applied the bandaid with his other hand on the wound. Vaibhav stood up and immediately arched his eyebrows looking at the blood on his glove.

"What?" Bimal was getting impatient.

"It's shinning," Vaibhav took up his bag and walked out of the room absent-minded.

Bimal breathed heavily and followed Vaibhav out of the room and caught his shoulder, spinning him around, "Don't you dare accuse any of my officers like that!"

"There is no mention of an undercover work in the files you sent me!" Vaibhav lowered his cupped hand to his chest.

"Oh, Bite me!" Bimal wiped some sweat of his forehead, "It was barely any kind of cover! There are no tribes or divisions within, it just some people who are against peace. All these Gorkha and Naxal, all of them are the same!", Bimal looked away from Vaibhav.

"What did you do?" Vaibhav detected the guilt in Bimal's eyes.

"I just went in as the Milkman! The nearby village Hatighisa. I delivered milk to everybody trying to find out about a Naxal cell. I came this close, but unfortunately...to this day they don't allow me inside Hatighisa unless I go with all personnel but that still doesn't compare to your accusations!"

"Inspector, his truck was reinforced!" Vaibhav stated, "he knew of the ambush. He knows you didn't kill his friend, yet he lied to give the impression that you did, there is something he's hiding, and whatever that is he is more afraid of them than us!"

"His 'shining' blood tell you that!"

"Inspector, I have this guy on smuggling charges! Do you want to know what he was smuggling? then yes his shinning blood will tell me that!"

Vaibhav made his way into the makeshift morgue. Bimal followed him down to the basement. He washed his glove on the basin and dabbed the remaining blood away. Then held up the glove to brighter light.

"What is it?" Bimal enquired.

"Silver.", said Vaibhav, un-surprised.