He didn't have the faintest idea how long he had been walking. He seemed to have travelled quite a distance since the nearby shop's name board helped him understand he was in some street in Royapettah now.
The street was narrow. So narrow that if a lorry or a big car entered the street, there would be no room for another vehicle to travel. Cycles maybe an exception, but only if the cyclist was comfortable enough to ride very close to the walls of nearby houses and shops. There were no lorries along the street at this point thankfully and there was enough room for Selva to hobble comfortably forward. He passed a three-wheeler truck followed by an auto, which were parked in an abysmal fashion.
Perhaps he could sit inside the auto to rid himself off the dreadful pain in his ankles. No, there was a uniformed driver inside it. He was lying on his back, arm under his head, sleeping cosily with his mouth open. The glaring warmth of the afternoon sun and the dusty air didn't seem to be disturbing him. Selva felt an immediate urge to cry.
Mechanically, he marched forward. Where was he going? He couldn't really think of any place to go.
He stopped as he was crossing a carefully arranged pile of bricks that were taller than he was. Beside that was a medium sized mound of sand that was shaded from the sunlight by the brick pile. He wondered if he could sit down on the mini sand dune and rest himself.
Just as he mentally contemplated the idea, a black stray dog climbed up the sand mound and urinated in a place of her choosing and sat down comfortably, slightly away from the place of her excretion. Selva was overcome with a desire to curse the dog loudly and throw a brick at it from the pile. However, it was immediately replaced with a stronger feeling of self-hatred.
He thought of petting the dog, only to see her drooling enormously from the mouth. She seemed to be a rabid one. Should he call someone? There didn't seem to be anybody except the auto driver. No, he couldn't wake that guy up. He was sleeping too peacefully to even consider that option. Who else can he inform about the rabid dog? His hand was digging into his pocket when he discovered that he didn't have his phone in hand. It was at his home, probably. Then his memory reminded him that it wouldn't have been of any use since the battery had been dead.
A sharp whip-like sound shattered the air!
Selva almost suffered a stroke upon hearing that.
He searched urgently in all directions to find the source. It was a woman in a balcony from one of the nearby houses. She was shaking some clothes out powerfully (Hence, the whip-like sound!) before she hung them to dry on a clothesline.
She shot a downward glance at him with furrowed eyebrows.
Without further ado, Selva put his face down and began walking fast.
YOU ARE READING
A Man among Wolves
Mystery / ThrillerWhen he attempts to switch his job, Selva ,a meek, young man in Chennai, finds himself working for a dubious gang of men. They are involved in activities that he doesn't wish to associate himself with but he is too afraid to back out. As he continue...
