From Dawn To Dusk - A Rajveer Naina Short Story

Chapter - 6

"Absence is to love what wind is to fire; it extinguishes the small, it inflames the great." 

 

"Tum dono sote reh gaye aur Phoolan infirmary se nikal bhi gayi. Kya isliye yahan ruke the tum dono?" Huda glared at Pooja and Yudi.

"Wo Huda... aankh lag gayi thi. Ab pata thodi tha ki Naina ki need itni jaldi khul jayegi." Pooja was almost in tears.

While Huda shook his head in frustration, Aalekh simply left the infirmary to look for Naina. His first stop was Captain Shekhawat's room. But there was no sign of Naina there. He looked throughout the academy and then made his way out into the courtyard and dashed against a body which came barrelling towards him.

Aalekh controlled himself quickly and stopped her as well.

"Naina... tu kidar gayi thi."

Naina was panting badly. And Aalekh was gratified to see that the earlier madness and grief were nowhere there in her eyes. Instead, she was bubbling with a strange sort of intensity. Her eyes spoke volume... there was a quiet grief in them mingled with determination. He knew this Naina well. She had found out something and she was determined to pursue it.

Naina cut into his thoughts with her hurried words.

"Captain Chauhan apne kamre me hain?"

"Haan hain. Apun abich unse milke aaya hai."

"Chal unke paas."

"Par kya baat hai Naina... wo..."

"Tu chal na Aalekh." And she dragged him along with her. He followed her anticipating a tense fight and willing themselves to be anywhere but there.

An hour later, Aalekh was glad that he had listened to Naina.

@*@*@*@*@*@

It had not been much difficult to extract the voice recorded in the mobile. Once Naina had talked to Abhimanyu and asked him to extract the recorded message, she had been met with blank stares. But Abhimanyu trusted her instincts because Raj had always made it a point to say that Naina was the best cadet of the group. And though Raj had a personal reason to feel for Naina because of Navin, Abhimanyu also knew that Raj was a good judge of character and if he had said that Naina had good instincts and a sharp mind at strategy, he believed his now deceased friend.

So he had gone ahead and asked his junior, Lt. Chaubey to do the work. True to Raj's prediction, the man was not only reliable but highly efficient. Half an hour later, Abhimanyu and the six cadets were listening to the recorded one-sided telephonic conversation And they could recognize Major Nair's voice without fail.

"Yani, agar Rajveer Sir wahan jaate to wo trap me fas jate." Ali spoke after the tape had been played the second time.

"Wo to trap me ja hi rahe the, Usool."

"Haan Aalekh bhai, hum sab wo jante hain. Par humne ye socha tha ki unko jaan ka khatra ho sakta hai. Ki Rajveer Sir ko marne ki koshish ki jayegi. Lekin yahan to use bhi bada plan tha. Rajveer sir ko fasane ka, unke career ko barbaad karne ka."

"Par Rajveer Sir to..." and here Yudi's voice broke.

And that was where Naina spoke up.

"Guys, stop crying. Rajveer Sir zinda hai. Kuch nahi hua hai unhe."

"Phoolan... hum sab ye manna chahte hain ki rajveer Sir zinda hon. Par humne khud uss jalte hue jeep ko dekha tha." Huda tried to point out.

"Haan... dekha tha. Par kya lash dekhi thi?"