Bombay Romance ♡ COMPLETED

[ 19 ] The Perfect Partner ■

Bombay Samachar newspaper article:

Midnight raid in businessman's holiday home; Illegal weapons seized

In the wee hours of Tuesday night, the city's Crime Branch police conducted a surprise raid at a businessman's holiday home in Versova. They seized twenty-four AK47 guns and ammunition hidden away in the servant quarters.

The weapons are believed to have been smuggled from the Gulf nations through the Arabian Sea. The businessman claims to have been blackmailed by an anonymous source to store the weapons in his home. But the police department is affirmative that the weapons belong to the underworld's big name Suraj. A criminal case under section 25 has been booked against the businessman.

AK47, or Avtomat Kalashnikova, first produced in 1946, is a gas-operated assault rifle developed by the Soviet Union. It is known to be one of the deadliest weapons ever built in human history. The danger that had cast its shadow on the dream city of India seemed to have been evaded, at least for now. DCP Amarnath Duggal spearheaded the raid. 

"The Crime Branch has done a good job in protecting the city. The port entry and exit points shall be tightened with immediate effect" The Home Minister has stated in his Nariman Point residence.

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'I thought your Dad was coming,' Mrs. Kalpana says as she gets into the Ambassador and tosses her white coat into the backseat. Damodar is on leave; Gauri has come to pick her mother up from the hospital.

'He was about to. I said I'll go instead,' Gauri starts the car. 'Can we have an ice cream date?'

'Did your Ajji allow you to come out at this hour?' Mrs. Kalpana looks at her wristwatch. It is half past eight in the night.

'I sneaked out. She was busy watching Vikram Betal. Goddd, when is she leaving, Mom?'

'You know she isn't leaving until she meets your Amarnath.'

Gauri parks the Ambassador at the bustling K Rustom's ice cream parlour. The busy man behind the counter dishes nutty butterscotch ice cream in two porcelain cups. Gauri walks back to the car. She had told her mother that her Sunday date was disastrous, skipping the part about all the drama. It feels just too sickening to think about it, let alone the punishment of its narration.

'Now please don't ask me why we fought,' Gauri says beforehand. 'I can't say.'

'I won't. Have you read the Bombay Samachar article? Your Amarnath has seized twenty-fo-'

'Twenty-four AK47 guns and its ammunitions. Yes, I have the world-famous article' Gauri says drily. 'Roger kept waving the newspaper under my nose all day. He has cut it up and pinned it on the notice board too. And stop saying my Amarnath! He's not ... mine.' 

'And?'

'And nothing,' Gauri clarifies. 'He's such an ... ass!'

'I'll give you one if you talk like that! Mind your words' Mrs. Kalpana waves her hand.

Gauri pokes the spoon into her ice cream harder. 'Mom, there's something I need to tel-'

'Why, your Dad seems to think it is possible. He likes your Amarnath a lot.'

'Dad is acting weird these days. And you haven't even met him! It is only I who knows what he exactly is. He is a ... ' she halts her words.

They eat their ice creams in silence for a minute.

'I don't even know why he came in the first place. He wasn't even the least bit interested. He even didn't get me flowers. Like, who comes on a date without flowers? And he didn't even pull out the chair for me,' Gauri says bitterly. 'I was taken for granted on the very first date!'