Ishq-e-Watan

Chapter 107- The Showdown

CHAPTER 107

THE SHOWDOWN

The room was dark. Or maybe her eyes were closed. Monami couldn't be sure. She had just woken up half a second ago and everything was pounding. The surface she lay on was definitely not a bed- too hard, too smelly and too uncomfortable. It was a floor? She moved a little, pausing when something tugged on her wrists. Panic bubbled up. Was she having a nightmare? Why was she tied up? But no, if she was having a nightmare, she would not have the thought that she was having a nightmare. So, it was not a nightmare. Oh and now, she wanted it to be a nightmare.

A soft call of her name interrupted her rapidly spiralling thoughts and she lifted her head, peeling her eyes open. The room was barely lit- just a soft lamp in the corner of the room and the moonlight that filtered through the thin curtains. Parikshit was sitting up, his hands tied behind his back and blood appearing from his hairline. Just a little trickle, mostly dried. "Monami?" He whispered softly. She hummed lowly, trying to move. "Tu theek hai?" She let out another answering hum. Her mouth was dry, and she pushed herself up a little. There was something sticky on the side of her face. Her head throbbed. Dried blood. How long was she out for?

"Tu th-theek hai?" She eventually found the voice to ask.

He hummed. "Koel aur Sid", he said, nodding to something. Monami turned her head, and just barely visible was Sid's familiar curly hair and Koel's shiny shoes, reflecting the light of the soft lamp. Her heart dropped to her stomach. Oh. Oh, no! How did they get caught?

Oh no. What were they going to do?

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The cold wind snapped against his face aggressively, but that barely caught Karan's attention. Was Monami okay? Were the rest okay? Were these the terrorists from EFR? Was Nawaz there? Was Monami okay? Did they know they were their cadets, or was this all a pure coincidence? If Nawaz was there, did he recognize Monami? Was Monami okay? What was going inside the hotel? Was Monami okay? Were those four hurt?

He glanced down at the speedometer, slowing the speed down just a tad bit. The roads were slick with the pouring rain that had now slowed down to a drizzle, and with the speeds they were racing across, they could easily skid if they weren't too careful. That would be bad. Beside him, Faizi's bike revved and slowed, probably with the same subconscious effort to not speed.

The four of them stood in front of the hotel, under the shed of a shop, nervously pacing. Both the men slowed to a stop, hopping off and the cadets jumped up, racing to them. All of them were soaked wet, practically trembling- and it wasn't all from the cold, and Karan scanned them over. There seemed to be no blood, no awkward movements, no broken bones. Fine. They seemed to be fine. He breathed just a tad bit easily.

"Sir", Chitra sobbed out, and Faizi gently rubbed her back, letting her hug him, as the water from her dripping hair mixed with the salty tears on her face.

"Tum log theek ho?" Karan asked, and they all nodded, affirming them. "It's going to be okay. Saans lo, and tell me andar kya cha raha hai."

Sex trafficking, the rest of the four were inside, the plan they had formulated- of clicking pictures, of keeping an eye on the girls, of making sure none of them were dying, of knowing what their future move was- and everything they had discovered- the police's involvement, the injured girl. Karan relaxed just a bit more. Okay, so they were not going to engage. That was good. The plan didn't entail any combat, or fighting. Only keeping an eye, and collecting information. They should be fine.

"Okay, backup aa raha hai", Karan said. "Maybe in 5 to 10 minutes. We are going to go inside, get the rest of them, and things would be fine. Theek hai?" The four visibly slumped in relief, nodding happily.