Conflagration

Chapter 10: Fish to Fry

Location: Jhankar Dance Bar, Tilak Nagar

Jaggu stole a glance at the hard profile of ACP Rathore as they waited in the dance bar for his boss. The man scared him, he admitted to himself. He looked so cool and unruffled in his pathani black on black kurta pyjama sharing space with the cut throats and the scum of Delhi's seedy underworld, as if he was one of them. There was an aura of power and restrained violence that emanated from the him, enhanced by the fake dagger scar that cut across his left cheekbone. Even the bar enforcers had steered clear of questioning him much, waving him through without any fanfare. He sat nursing a glass of neat whiskey which hadn't touched his lips even once and looked as if he was enjoying the show being put on by the dancers but Jaggu was certain, he was actually cataloging everyone and everything in the bar.

Aryan scanned his surroundings, tamping down the urge to grimace. This place was like hell. Young women in barely there clothes gyrated to tacky Hindi and Bhojpuri numbers inviting seedy patrons to dark corners for quickies. Fluorescent lighting did nothing to conceal walls grimy with the stains of things he didn't want to think about and the smell of sweaty bodies mixed with heavy perfume and cigarette smoke permeated the air almost choking him.

Once Jaggu's entire ring was caught, he would shut down this place for good he promised himself. Right now he had bigger fish to fry.

"Saala (Scumbag), where have you been?" a large hand with gold rings on all the fingers smacked Jaggu on the back of his head. "How many times have I been calling you? If Big Boss had his way you would be minced meat for our pig farm by now."

"Sorry boss, phone died on me and I couldn't call. Raja and Brij also disappeared after I delivered the product and I tried to look for them but couldn't find them."

"Who is this new guy with you? Don't you know Kaka doesn't like new guys? Do you want to die?" the big beefy bald man asked indicating Aryan. 

His face inscrutable, Aryan raised his scarred brow and in a perfect imitation of Mumbai underworld dialect said "I am not new, my name is Krishna. I just moved here from Mumbai. I would like to join Kaka's business. I have a lot of experience with moving product, and for the right price murders."

He rubbed the prosthetic scar stretching from high on his left cheekbone to under his hairline "I used to work for Pasha before he was arrested by police and sentenced to death. Jaggu knows me from when he came to Mumbai last year right, Jaggu?"

"Uh..yes Boss, I know Krishna from when he worked with Pasha...he is..um..very good. Plus since we lost Raja and Brij, we need more people" Jaggu swallowed as he uttered the lie. He had no choice, ACP Rathore had somehow found the one weak link in Jaggu's life and proceeded to ruthlessly exploit it. His heart patient mother who lived in a nursing home was now under police custody. Knowing that her only son was a street drug dealer would kill her and Jaggu couldn't afford to lose the one person in his life who cared about him.

The beefy man narrowed his beady eyes at Aryan, unconvinced. "Pasha was a good man but whether you are or not remains to be proven. You will not join Kaka's world until you have proven your worth."

Aryan shrugged as if not worried. "Whatever you want boss, you give me the money I will murder my own mother" he said mentally apologizing a hundred times to his mother.

Boss grinned at that showing yellowing teeth, "I like a man who knows his priorities" and patted him on his shoulder, letting his beefy hand linger there.

Aryan stilled like a cat ready to spring. He shot a glance at the hand still on his shoulder before turning his cold, flinty gaze on the boss. Getting the hint, Boss hastily dropped his hand and wiped his suddenly sweaty fingers on his pants. If a look could promise a thousand deaths in one, it was that one. For some reason this man made him nervous.