The First Trillionaire

Untitled Part 39

Bachchu Singh was waiting for Hamid and about half an hour when he pulled up his car outside the driveway of Bachchu's bungalow. He went outside and went toward the driver's seat before Hamid could get out.

"Have you found out?"

"Yes, bhaiji. I found out that a new company called the Rose Bud bid higher than you had, and they bagged the land," Hamid said as he got out of the seat and closed the door firmly behind him. He moved aside as Bachchu Singh kicked the tire of the car on hearing the information.

"What sort of company is that? Never heard its name."

"Not much idea about it, but I am sure that it has some rich foreigner behind it. The peon Jaynath said that the firm had opened an account with the bank recently, and what I am going to tell you will surely surprise you."

"Is it?"

"According to Jaynath, the account was opened at the behest of the girl who had confronted you on the road. And he also told me that before taking part in the auction, the Rose Bud Company had helped the bank in some way. Some sort of credit or something that he could not explain clearly," he answered feeling annoyed.

"So, was it her who was behind the result of the auction? She took the land away from me!" Bachchu Singh was boiling with rage and he kicked the car again.

"Maybe, Jaynath could not be sure because, as you know, he is not privy to such things. But if you ask me, then I think she has a greater role in it. And if you connect the whole thing that had happened there, right from opening the account to helping the bank, then bidding in the auction of the mortgaged land of Meenakshi Sharma is not really that far off."

"And the company? What about it?" Bachchu Singh probed impatiently.

"Nothing much except the vague idea that it may be run by some rich people who may not be in a mood to sell it, as Jaynath put it."

"What does she think of herself? I should have killed her that day itself."

"But bhaiji, we are not aware of her intentions, what is her motive behind all this? Because Jaynath told me that she was a fatherless girl, and she does not even look like she would have any connection to any big names."

"I don't care about her motive. I just will not tolerate her in my area anymore. She needs to go. I am going to teach her a lesson. You don't know, I wanted that land very much for Khan bhai's investment for a hefty return."

"So what do you think about it? What are you planning on?"

"I don't know. For now, just clip her wings before she flies higher. Kidnap her first and I'll tell you later on what to do with her. But be careful, don't make any mistake which will lead the police to us, and make sure you don't do anything before planning it all properly." Bachchu Singh was at his wit's end; stepping on his toes was not pardonable.

So, a proper plan was hatched. They would kidnap Shail and keep her in Anandpur Maran village which was in fact, a river island. Three rivers flowing around it made the place accessible by a boat, which made it highly isolated and dangerous. The place topped in the notorious list and no bank official from the Alauli branch would ever visit the place despite having to service the island. The plan took solid shape because of the update from some internal source of the bank that Shail had been assigned the duty of recovering something from the Alauli branch. Asit was her first visit to the place, Shail asked for support from the branch manager of Alauli branch to visit the river island village of Anandpur Maran along with the financial inclusion correspondent.

The result of the visit was that an unprecedented recovery was reported from the village a few days later, which followed the rather shocking incident, which would rock the area. Some miscreants kidnapped the bank official responsible for the recovery of bank debt. The place had certainly lived up to its name as Shail was kidnapped when she reached the mainland after crossing the river.

***

Shail was ecstatic after her visit in the company of the Alauli branch manager, Anshuman Yadav. And as they crossed the river in a boat and headed toward the mainland at sunset, they talked about the history of the place and the stories surrounding it. For a small island, it was infamous for a host of notorious stories."Sir, this place is so beautiful and it deserves respect instead of dreadful stories. I wish it changes so that the world knows all about its beauty."

"Yes, indeed. But I have to tell you, this place has been the same as it was years before when I was first posted in the branch. Although it has been more than 20 years, and I have been posted in a dozen other places since then, now I see that it's still the same. And you know what?" he looked at her with a guarded expression and said, "I am still just as afraid of the place as I had been the first time." He finished his ominous sentence with a laugh.

Shail smiled, wondering if the place was as dangerous even now. They stayed quiet for some time and as they reached the banks, lots of local people who were waiting for the boats, made a rush for it as soon as it docked. Anshuman was paying the boatman while Shail stood a little apart from the crowd surrounding the boat and the manager. They rushed all around her; people were pushing and pulling each other to get onto the boat as darkness began to envelope the horizon, when Shail felt someone behind her. A shiver ran down a spine. She was about to turn but strong hands closed on her mouth tightly, and before she could struggle, she lost her senses. A black cloud came across her eyes and she fell back. The branch manager searched for her frantically in the crowd then tried her number as he scanned the faces before him. He was starting to worry about her; the crime rate at the village was still high. She did not answer, and three rings later, he was about to dial the Begusarai branch office when he received a message from Shail's number which read "GOING HOME, NO NEED TO CALL. GOOD NIGHT." He found the text a bit awkward, then thought maybe some urgency had arisen which had made her leave in a haste. He still did not approve of her departure in such a rude fashion, but he put it out of his mind. Shrugging, he went home and it was only at 11.15 pm that he got a call. It was from the Begusarai branch manager.

"Yadav, where is our staff member Shail? She has not reached home till now and her mother is going crazy with fear and worrying about her. Is she with you now?"he asked.

Anshuman Yadav, feeling slightly worried now, narrated the whole incident. And when the police came to his house one hour later, he showed them the message sent by Shail. They tried to call on the number but it was not reachable, and the baffling thing was that even by 4.30 amthe next day, there was no call for ransom. They tried many times to call her number, unaware of the fact that her SIM card had been tossed into the river surrounding Anandpur Maran. She was long gone.

When Shail opened her eyes, she tried to move. She became aware of a stench that hung in the air, even inside the hut where she was kept.