She Lived Twice

2 || How Anika Maheshwari Came to Life

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Rajesh vividly remembered the day that Anika came into his home as a new daughter. But before that, he remembered her coming into his life as an unconscious stranger with a broken heart.

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"Driver, go faster. I'm running late," Rajesh Maheshwari instructed.

He was on his way to the hospital for an important discussion with his patient.

Rajesh was checking the email from the nurse on his iPad when the car screeched to a stop, tossing Rajesh to the front and resulting in the iPad slipping from his hands.

Rajesh picked up the now-shattered iPad with a deep frown on his face. If there was anything he hated, it was incompetency. "What the hell is wrong with you?" he scolded the driver.

"Sir, I'm sorry. They're just now closing the road," the driver said. Rajesh looked ahead to see the police officers closing off the road. From behind the trees, there was a thick black column of smoke, rising to meet the clear blue sky.

Rajesh got out of the car and approached the officer overlooking the placement of the roadblock. "What is happening?" he demanded to know.

"There's an area of trees around here that caught on fire. It's spreading quickly, and we can't control it. Right now, it is better that no one enters the area. Safety reasons, sir."

Rajesh nodded understandably, when he remembered a small town area located just a little ways away from there. "Wait, officer, there is a place of residency just down the road!"

The officer's eyes widened, and he looked over at the fire, which was starting to take over the trees further north as well.

"How big is this town you speak of?" he asked. Rajesh looked at him in anger. "What, are you planning to leave those people to die if they don't meet a certain quota?"

"Government rules, sir. It isn't safe to go past this area as it is. If there are only ten-twenty people, why should we worry so much?" the officer said, further fanning the flames of Rajesh's anger. "Listen, I don't care if there are ten thousand people living there or if there are only four. It is our duty to save them. I'm a doctor. I took an oath."

The officer frowned. "If you're so worried, why don't you head in there to save them yourself? Don't tell me how to do my job, doctorji."

"I think I'll take you up on that offer, sir!" Rajesh said, looking over at the road ahead of him. The officer scowled, and gestured for the roadblock to be opened just enough to fit Rajesh's car. Rajesh smiled and went back to tell his driver to go forth.

When Rajesh reached the townhomes, it was already too late. The fire had beaten him there, and the homes were already burning. Rajesh quickly called for the nearest fire station to arrive as quickly as possible. In twenty minutes, they were there.

The firefighters bravely fought against the flames, others running into the burning homes to save the people that lived there. Rajesh felt helpless as he saw mothers sobbing for their children, and families leaving behind the only place they had to call home. It was then that his attention fell on the leftmost house, which had almost been reduced to ash. "Gautam!" he called his firefighting friend over.