Ishq-e-Watan

Chapter 33- The Ashes Settle

CHAPTER 33

THE ASHES SETTLE

Karan stared at the map. He tilted his head. He grabbed a pen, keeping a butter paper over it. He marked a spot. "Yahan par Laxman ki laash mili." He marked another spot. "Yahan par uske phone ka last location tha." He traced the roads idly. "Instant death... chloroform ke traces nahi, koi needle marks nahi, kuchh khaaya bhi nahi hoga... probably shot before he could do anything." He tapped the second spot. "Yahan par hi maara hoga. Jungle mein lekar gaye honge taaki ek dum detect naa ho."

"Kuchh mila?" Faizi asked, entering the room.

He shook his head. "Bas soch raha hoon ki kya hua hoga." He paused. "Jahan par hume Laxman ki body mili, woh jagah famous landmark ke bahut paas hai. Matlab, body recently dump kari thi wahan par, warna 3-4 din mein toh kisi na kisi ko dikh jaati. Matlab... use maarkar, pehle kahin aur lekar gaye and then, jungle mein." He frowned. "Kyun?"

"Evidence mitaane?" He proposed. He sat down on his bed, untying his shoes.

He hummed. "Ho sakta hai. Idhar aa." Faizi leaned over his shoulder. Karan tapped on the spot they had found Laxman's found in. "Iss jagah andar aane ke yeh chaar ways hain. Try kar ki aas paas ki kisi jagah ki raat ki CCTV footage mil jaaye. Kuchh shayad pata lag sakta hai."

"Hum karte hain."

Karan paused. He grabbed his phone, dialing Sanket's number. "Sanket, ek kaam karo, jis jagah par se hume Laxman ki phone ki location Delhi mein mili thi, dekho ki woh sunsaan jagah thi yaa busy?"

There was a slight pause. "Din mein thodi busy rehti hai par 10-11 baje ke baad, kaafi sunsaan ho jaati hai, Sir."

"Aas paas ke CCTV cameras nikaalo raat ke."

"Sir", he said.

"Kahin na kahin, kisi na kisi camera par toh capture hoye hi honge, na?" Karan said. He tapped the desk. He grabbed his phone again. "Ustaad ji, EFR ke against jitne operations kare hain, un sabki files dobara mere room mein bhej dijiye. Aur jitne bhi successful missions hain, unki files bhi. Aur jitne bhi known leaders ya associates hain, unke baare mein jitni bhi information hai, sab dijiye."

Faizi stared at him. "Karan, tum itni information kaise sort karoge?"

Karan's gaze lifted to him. "Usne mere informer ko maara hai. Jo ho sakta hai, woh karunga." He stood up. "Main abhi aaya."

Faizi kept a hand on his shoulder. "Tumhaari galti nahi hai."

He nodded a little. "Okay", he said simply. He turned away from him, walking out. He shoved his hands in his pockets.

'Laxman... tu theek hai? Kahin phas toh nahi gaya hai, na, tu?'

Karan closed his eyes. He should have seen this coming. He should have been able to predict this. He should have worked harder- gotten somewhere with something. Maybe... Maybe Laxman would still be alive.

---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---

Faizi fidgeted with the thread of the pillow. "Hum theek hain, Ammi", he said quietly.

"Kya hua? Tum thake hue lag rahe ho?"

"Haan. Bas... kaam hai, na."

"Karan kaisa hai? Theek hai woh bhi?"

He paused slightly. The words of the notes flashed in his mind. "Haan, Ammi. Woh bhi theek hai", he said. He sighed a little, turning on his back. "Ammi... hum shayad Diwali par naa aa paaye."