BALI 100 KM (Book 1) ✔

Chapter 54

The injured man responded to Bandu's question.

"Bandu...it's me...Rajput," the man groaned, and he went limp again.

"Oh my God!" Bandu exclaimed in horror, "Mr. Rajput, how did you get involved in all this? Are you hurt badly?" Bandu asked impatiently and at the same time confused.

"No...But my..., head throbs a bit. Are..., you..., alright Bandu? Is..., Miss..., Sakhi with you?" he inquired, trying to clear his head.

"I am here," Miss Sakhi spoke up, "How do you know me? Are you from the police?" she asked before Bandu could speak.

"Glad to hear...that...both...of you...are alive. I am..., not..., the police," Ravi replied with some difficulty, "Miss Sakhi...I am Ravi Rajput...your assistant..., Pooja's brother," he continued with a stammer.

"Pooja!...," Sakhi grunted through her sobs, "Dear Pooja. I remember she mentioned about you very fondly," she continued recalling from memory, "I am sorry about her...please accept my...condolences," she wailed.

"Condolences!!" Ravi responded pointedly, "Why condolences...Miss Sakhi? She is very much..., alive!" He asserted.

"What?!! By the grace of God, that's a miracle!" her wet eyes rounded in surprise, "But..., but the goon here claimed he had killed her," Clarifying her actions.

"Who was it...?! Who did..., it?! I will kill that b*****d!." Ravi swore and struggled to get up, but the ropes constrained him. However, he managed to move closer to them where they could see him more clearly.

"The leader, the one who ordered you to be tied up, he is after my papers' too," She informed him.

"For over a year now, I have been looking for him to avenge my sister. She was lying on the bed beside you in the ICU at Goriyon for over a year now. She was paralyzed from the neck down in an accident. She related the tale to me, and so I was following Bandu and the case to trace the culprit." This revelation was both confusing and puzzling for Bandu, who was listening intently to the conversation.

"There was another Rajput in the hospital?!" it was Bandu's turn to interrupt.Noises outside the door stalled their discussions mid-way. They could hear people shouting and even vehicles screeching to a halt. There was a sudden flood of lights into the room from the closed glass window. The door to the room suddenly thrust open, and the leader barged in, his face twisted in an angry ferocious scowl and a pistol aimed at Bandu.

"You have betrayed me! I will kill you all before I escape!" he bellowed, looking at the three of them in the room. He walked a few paces towards Bandu, aiming the pistol at him.

"You will die first. You brought the police here," the leader leveled an accusation at Bandu.Sheer terror left Bandu's body paralyzed, and his look froze on the metal pointed at him. His eyes followed the finger that slowly curled over the trigger. Many actions converged simultaneously at this point. There are two gunshots; the shattering of glass; the lone bulb in the room blows up, followed by a scream in the darkness. When all eyes adjusted to the light pouring into the room from outside, they saw a bounded Mr. Rajput, with the chair atop the notorious leader, struggling under the weight.

A groan escaped Bandu's lips, and it grabbed the attention of the other hostages. They turned to look at him and froze in horror. Bandu frowned as he became aware of a searing pain near his right shoulders. His body gave a jerk. Another groan left his lips when he tried to move his right shoulder. His eyes searched for the source of the pain. On his right shoulder, there was a big blob of red on the jacket. It felt wet and was getting bigger and bigger at a fast pace. The bullet had found its target.

"Ahhhhhh......." Miss Sakhi shrieked her heart out.