Even in the dark, I could see, the end was near, death was throwing open it’s arms to me. I could feel my pulse ticking, my heart was drumming in my ears,” any minute now” I thought to myself.

“Chikne!! table saaf kar” the man in blue loongi yelled at me.

I hurried to dutifully do the same, after all Anna bhau’s eyes were on me. I had come to Mumbai a day back, the last train from the village left at 3 am, I with the unerring logic of a 15 year old knew that this was my flight to freedom. Mumbai was a city of dreams and I was going to make it big. He needed a waiter in his canteen and I needed work.

‘’I had no choice but to kill him” said the man in the blue loongi.”I found 4 crores in the trunk of the car, it is parked behind,” My heart was beating faster now, almost instinctively my head rolled behind to see the car. With nimble feet I crept behind and perched myself in the trunk of the car. I woke up to the chirping of the birds. And soon realized I had been in there for 7 hours now. I panicked, I could barely feel my feet.” Open the trunk” shouted a man, my heart leapt in my throat .I felt the latch release, and with one swift motion the man in the blue loongi lifted the door open. His eyes opened wide, and t“Bang!!!”he fell, his chest bleeding on the trunk of the car.

I could hear gunshots. There was a dead man on the roof of the trunk, I was cradled with four crore rupees by my side.” I don’t want any proof of any of this,” said someone in a rough voice.” Throw the car in the water” My heart leapt in my throat, as I felt the car move, from the tiny crack I could see the cliff approaching, I could see the sun setting, my last, I assumed. I mustered all the courage and started banging frantically on the roof of the trunk.”Stop!! There is someone inside, open it”. As the trunk was opened, I felt the gush of fresh air fill my lungs, my head felt fresher.” Who are you? How did you get in the trunk?” asked the policeman in the khakhi uniform.

I started crying, the policeman looked quite convinced and nerved. “These men kidnapped me from the Dhaba and forced me into the car”. From a distance I could see the policeman talking to a man in a white suit, he looked like an important man. The policeman was walking towards me with a small white packet in his hands.” The minister is very happy with you, he has awarded you with fifty thousand rupees, for your bravery” said the policeman.” But you have to promise to return to your village for a month” he said.

I could not believe my luck that was the fastest buck I had ever made. As I ran I felt something in my pocket, on removing it I found an ID Card, it had a photo of the man in the blue loongi. The card read Dalbir Singh, Officer, Central Bureau of Investigation, CBI, and Mumbai.

* * * *

Vijeta Gawdi: I am a confectioner and owner of Date A Chocolate.I love to spin tales and that’s what I am doing now.

Here are some more short contest stories.