STOLEN HEARTS

CHAPTER 2 - TRAWELL AND ARYAN

Outside the premises that served as a base camp for the adventurous business activities of TraWell Resorts, Clubs and Boot Camps, was a large gate, next to which was the effigy of an athletic woman with an Indian flag. The athletic woman bore a resemblance to Sonia and a sign under this effigy read - 'TraWell. Life is a journey, Travel well'.

This baseline defined the principles of this company and its founder and owner - the Colonel.

To enter the building one had to climb around twenty steps, so there was a bit of exertion even before one entered the TraWell premises. There were ramps for the handicapped but hardly anyone ever used them, not even the handicapped themselves, who didn't want to appear handicapped and weak.

This morning, like every other, the Colonel's car reached exactly on time, the door opened and the Colonel shot out like a bullet, or rather, keeping in mind his bulky physique, like a cannon ball. He was followed closely by the Secretary, and they climbed the twenty steps briskly, entering the office. More people joined following the Colonel and anyone who came in his path saluted energetically like they do in the army as the Colonel's entourage zipped through.

This was the TraWell Group, where the discipline and the dedication of an army unit existed at all levels. This was a disciplined organisation at its very best. At the peak of its performance.

TraWell had sections of yoga and aromatherapy, fat camps, sports hotels, recreational clubs, an Olympic city and even a boot camp where regular civilians could go through army training for as long as they could take it, without committing to a career in the armed forces. This training was just so that they could man-up, or rather, the more gender neutral word, toughen-up. The reason for TraWell's very existence in the world was to make the journey through life healthier and adventurous.

The Colonel, as we have seen first-hand, believed in healthy living. He believed that a man's health was his most valuable resource and such a man was better off than those who weren't as healthy. The Colonel wanted people to be tough and happy, instead of just gliding through life, just floating from day to day on high tension mode. He believed that a healthy life calmed one more than anything else. Mental health was mental wealth, and mental wealth was better than monetary wealth. The one who could jog on the open road, with the wind in one's hair and the world under one's feet, was better off than someone who could not. He was the CEO of a happy and fit organisation, and that pleased him no end.

And to make the organisation happy and fit the Colonel had created mini gyms all through the office. Wherever you were in TraWell's office you were close to a gym.

Each employee had to wear a fitness band on their wrist and they had to clock 7000 steps each day, which meant walking 5.33 kilometres daily. This was not an option. There were jogging tracks through the office and locker rooms with a change of clothes, and sauna and steam baths on each floor. The healthier a person was, the better his or her chance of getting a promotion and an increment in the TraWell group.

And as the Colonel walked through this awesome excuse for an office, an employee, a tall and lean executive, approached him with a smart salute. He started to follow the Colonel as he shared the excellent news that TraWell group had got the contract to train the employees of a large corporate company. They had to conduct a boot camp for all of the company's employees for a week each year. And the corporate had more than 700 employees which meant the boot camp would be conducted in batches and would keep that division of TraWell group fully occupied for months.

The Colonel nodded in agreement and was about to give further instructions when he stopped mid-sentence as he saw a man doing pull-ups at one of the mini gyms. The Colonel gestured everyone to keep absolutely quiet and started quietly counting the pull-ups, "22, 23, 24..."