Obscured Glimmer

14. The Sparks

NANDINI:

Sucking a sharp inward breathe, I gasped. My legs refused to move, my mind ceased functioning, and tears welled up in my eyes as I felt the pricking pain in my heart.

I wanted to go back to all the moments I had spent with him. The flashes of his smile, his tantrums, his care, his affection kept running in front of my eyes. Blinking vigorously, I tried hard to control the tears which were threatening to flow.

My cognition refused to believe what my auditory impulses had just carried to my brain. Those words were too much to handle but I had to be strong, at least for Navya.

"Officer Murthy, Will you come inside or you plan on standing at the door itself?", Tyagi sir's voice brought me out of my lamentable state.

Mumbling a sorry in my usual professional tone, I entered inside that meeting hall which I had once dreamt to be a part of. Ironically, the case which finally landed me there was very much related to my own life and I wondered what if I failed to fight for the justice

It was a typical meeting hall like the ones in the movies. A huge rectangular table with chairs aligned in two rows by the sides, dimmed lights, a projector, mics in front of every chair. It was a soundproof hall.

DSPs from all the other three Police Stations of Mangalore, except Navya, were sitting on their respective chairs. Some senior Inspectors were also present. I made my way towards an empty chair which I supposed was kept reserved for me.

Tyagi sir was sitting on a chair, behind him a projector screen was already set with a PowerPoint presentation.

When I was asked to report forthwith for an urgent meeting, I felt happy that they trusted me enough to let me join the high-level secret meetings. But when I heard the reason for the meeting; all I could feel was the pain.

They all conferred about different events of the case, I kept mum. I didn't know how to react. I was eminently perturbed knowing the fact that he was dead. He was no more. Aakaash Naveli was no more.

"Murthy, this isn't the first murder case in your carrier, is it?", Mr.Tyagi asked.

"No sir.", I muttered.

"Then, speak up something. Break the silence and participate in this discussion. That is what you are called here for. We are all here to act expeditiously, making a plan of action in order to capture the murderer who is responsible for the loss of one of our sincere Police Officers.", Superintendent sir remarked in an authoritative tone.

"Do we have any clue about the murderer?", I asked in my regular Police officer tone as I decided to fight for Aakaash's justice because Navya's brother did not deserve this.

"We know his name.", Tyagi sir nodded.

"What are we waiting for, then? Let's put him behind the bars.", one of the DSPs roared furiously. Maybe he was the one under whom Aakaash had worked.

"We just know the name. When Aakaash reached the port he had called me, it was only him who had seen Manik. He had told me that Manik Malhotra might shoot him any time.", Listening to Tyagi sir, I felt dead.

My heart flooded with an enormous amount of guilt. If Manik was the murderer, I was the one responsible for Aakaash's death.

I felt an extreme surge of hatred for him, knowing he had betrayed me, again.

"Maybe we can run a background check?", DSP Sahaani suggested.

"I already did. But, there is no information about Manik Malhotra in our records.", Tyagi sir confirmed.