Bint of Gilgit ~ Pakistani Love Story ~ ONGOING ~

Respite

Recap: Nazli and Shahrazad are two girls living in a small village in the state of Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan. Asadullah along with his right-hand men Fahad and Imad has been sent on a mission to acquire the land that is owned by Shahrazad's father, Shah Zaman. For unknown reasons, despite gaining ownership of the land, Asadullah returns the land in exchange for marrying Shah Zaman's niece, Nazli. Shahrazad and Nazli are taken to a hotel in the main city, Gilgit where a mysterious hotel worker helps them to escape. 

Part II

Four months later

The pale fresh cream moon captured Imad's attention as he stood under the star-studded midnight sky atop his cousin's lavish rooftop in Islamabad. It cast a silver aura on the vast grounds that were once used for Asadullah's recreational hobbies, but now laid abandoned. Perhaps this was a reflection of the state of his own heart - the depth and vastness of it that had never been fulfilled. 

In the distance, a dog barked once, its sound rising into a mournful crescendo then disappearing with the wind. His heart shivered with the sound, but his body only clenched with worry that had become a frequent partner of his. Distance and time were mere fragments in his perception for they had done nothing to remove her from his heart. Instead, she had completely preoccupied his thoughts that sometimes he wasn't able to distinguish his priorities anymore. 

When black entered his peripheral vision, Imad had a sudden urge to close his eyes and drift away from the figure. His cousin stood beside him, leaner than he remembered him, but onyx eyes glistening with a danger more so than before. And while Imad's attention was fixed on the land before him, it was not missed upon him the fact that his cousin had not looked away from him even as he lit a cigarette - a habit that he had picked up recently. 

"Now I know why that old man smoked." Small talk - Asadullah's traditional technique to appear harmless. The smoke circles that were fanning across his pale face spoke a different story, however. Asadullah was aware that he despised cigarettes with a passion so much so that his own brother, Fahad had bared the brunt of his anger. Yet his entire demeanour was inviting or rather warning for an incoming conflict. 

"Are you well, cousin?" The dripping concern in his baritone voice had Imad meet eyes with him. However, the cruel smirk that was etched on his face spoke volumes about his insincerity and for once Imad's own anger flared. 

"Why do you ask?" It took so much effort to not spit those words in his face, but he wasn't able to stop his fists from clenching that rested on the railings of the roof. Asadullah, the keen-eyed mafia leader raised a perfect brow at it. 

Almost as if the temperature had dropped a few degrees, so did any hint of playfulness in his cousin's eyes. They fixed on him, the lack of anything human in them reminded Imad of all the cold-blooded enemies they had once faced together. Yet now, it seemed that they were each other's enemy and the battle and its outcome had already been written in his cousin's favour.

"You tell me." Stillness for a few moments, and then he stood to his full height. Imad was still slightly taller, but his actual height did next to nothing to make him feel any more powerful right now. Walking a little along the roof as if to provide some fake respite, Asadullah blew the final smoke with the air and placed the used butt of his cigarette on the corner. "Remind me to pick this up before I leave." 

But whether Imad would have the chance was suddenly in question when his cousin stalked fast in his direction and cold metal pressed against his neck. 

"Why?" 

The simple question was spoken with such tranquillity that had it been for anyone else they would have not taken him seriously. Yet Imad detected something else in his voice - pain. It was so slight that only a bond of many years like theirs could give away such a weakness.