Missing

by Mian Mohsin Zia

  “That’s OK,” the woman said and remained there silently. Z looked around and spotted the Silk Bed Hotel almost straight across the road from the Gmet Restaurant.

  That could be the right place to check-in, he thought, and headed toward it with his bag.

  *******

  In his hotel room, Z took out paper and pen and made notes, so he could better understand everything. Immersed in thought, he murmured, “Johnson, you were right. Joseph is also right. Both scenarios make sense. If this is how it is, then what shall I do? What shall I do? What shall I do…? Maybe finding Lena won’t be the biggest hurdle after all, but proving her presence in Pakistan might be?”

  He slipped the tip of the pen between his lips while he carried on thinking and talking to himself. “I can’t take any official or unofficial help from Johnson or have the SIA intervene, because this isn’t a national issue and isn’t related directly or indirectly to the US or any American. This is my matter — but it’s complex, due to the various limitations and how everything’s set up.”

  Z looked at his notes and sketch of the main road with the payphone and continued thinking and murmuring, “Lena said at Dubai International Airport that a woman was sitting next to her with a cute baby. Did that woman do something to her? When Lena called from the payphone, didn’t anyone notice her?”

  “The day Lena called me, if I try to figure that out, it would have been about 2:10 am here in Pakistan.” He wrote “1:10 PM IN LA & 2:10 AM IN LAHORE” on the paper in upper case and circled it. “There won’t be crowds on the streets at 2 am. I might have to look for some answers on my own because something needs to happen — and needs to happen soon.”

  *******

  Z stood outside the payphone and looked at both sides of the road. Over the road, he could see the Silk Bed Hotel with houses, a bank, and a few shops. Looking to his left, he could see a set of traffic lights on an intersection that was about 60 to 70 steps away, past the Gmet Bakers, houses, shops, a pharmacy, and a bus stop. Looking to his right, he could see the Gmet Restaurant, houses, another restaurant, more houses, and a bus stop right in front of a school. First, let’s check out the left side as far as the intersection.

  While he was walking to the intersection with the crossroad, Akbar Chowk, and back again, Z noticed a couple of women standing away from the bus stop in the shadow of some trees, their faces covered with veils. A motorcyclist stopped near them. As he was passing by them, he noticed both women chatting with the motorcyclist, and, eventually, one of them got on behind him and went off. The other one remained there until a rickshaw came — a three-wheel vehicle for hire that’s very popular in Asian countries like Pakistan. She got in without any discussion and departed. That’s a bit weird, he thought to himself.

  Z set off in the other direction along the footpath between the main road and the parallel service lane to inspect the right side as well. The edge of the footpath next to the service lane was edged by a green belt of trees — as it was on the other side of the payphone. About fifteen to twenty steps along the footpath, he spotted the woman he’d just seen going off in the rickshaw. Again, she was standing in the dark and away from the bus stop. This time, she was in front of the school. She was talking to someone in a car. What’s going on? he wondered.

  He walked past the woman and stood alone at the bus stop. There was no streetlight, as the bus stop was entirely in shadow from the overhanging trees. Only the headlights on passing vehicles enabled him to see if anyone was on the footpath next to the road beside him. He looked over at the other side of the road and spotted a bank a bit further along from the hotel where he was staying.

  “Excuse me!” Z heard someone say, as he looked to his left and saw the woman in the veil yet again.

  “Yes!”

  “Could you tell me the time, please?” she asked, looking straight into Z’s eyes and continuing to look there until he took his eyes away to check the time.

  “It’s 7:17 pm,” Z said as he looked at his wristwatch, and when he looked back, she still had her eyes on him.

  “Thanks!” the woman said, still looking at him, while he noticed people walking past looking in their direction.

  “You’re welcome,” Z said and looked away again so he could imprint into his memory the road with its bus stops, school, restaurants, pharmacy, houses, and bank facing each other on either side. Before he could say something, he noticed a car come nearby and stop, but when the driver saw Z was already standing next to the woman, the car moved on.

  “You see, he went because of you,” the woman commented.

  “Pardon?”

  “I have a place if you don’t have one, and it’s not far away. I see you don’t have a vehicle. It won’t cost much, just 2000 rupees upfront including the room,” the woman said, as she uncovered her face, so Z could better evaluate her — which cleared the situation for him.

  Unexpectedly, there was a power cut on the side of the road where Z and the woman were, and it got darker. “Better to have a power cut than not be spotted,’ the woman reacted bitterly. “And if you’re in a hurry,” she said, “for 1500 rupees, we can just go into the garden behind the school and find some bushes.”

  “Sorry, you’ve misunderstood. I ain’t here for that,” Z said, noticing simultaneously that the light on the other side of the road was still on.

  “As you wish. I’ve offered you a discounted rate, only because I haven’t had any luck yet tonight. Normally it would be 2500 rupees with the room and 1800 rupees in the bushes,” she went on.

  “If I’m not wrong, aren’t you the woman who met me yesterday outside the payphone?” Z asked as he could now identify her voice and eyes.

  “Uh… now I get why I was also wondering if I’d seen you before,” the woman said as she covered her face again with her veil. “You wasted time last night, and you’re wasting it again tonight. Come on, honey, don’t be shy. You’re way too shy. You seem to be an experienced player, so why are you shy?” she asked, while she looked at him from head to toe.

  “That’s something I strongly deny,” Z said and looked around. A rickshaw came, stood at some distance, and turned off its lights.

  “OK, you don’t have to act smart. I know why you’ve been roaming around like a vagabond and standing here. I noticed you walking past me earlier toward the traffic lights as well. The best and final offer is 1500 rupees with a room and 1000 rupees in the bushes, and only because I don’t want to return empty-handed— ” Her phone rang before she could finish. She answered it, saying, “Just a minute, then I’ll let you know.”

  “How do you know that I walked past you on the other side of the payphone earlier on?” he asked in surprise.

  “That’s why we stand on the streets — to see when a client’s coming. I noticed you first when you went past heading toward Akbar Chowk and then returned. On both occasions, some motorcyclists had engaged me, so you kept walking, and now you’ve followed me here. So now, don’t waste time, and let’s get into the rickshaw before someone comes. I have one waiting for us, honey,” she said, taking a step closer to him and signaling toward the rickshaw Z had spotted earlier.

  “No, no, no!” Z said, stepping back. “You’ve misunderstood. I didn’t follow— ” but he stopped, as she was walking away to the rickshaw. She’d realized Z was a waste of time. The rickshaw arrived, she got in and departed.

  *******

  “Mr. Z, thanks for coming,” Joseph Best said politely, as they sat in the Police Station, where Z had met him previously.

  “No problem! You mentioned on the phone you wanted to share a few details about the case. Have you found something?” Z asked curiously.

  “Yes, you’re right, but it doesn’t take us anywhere and doesn’t prove anything, unfortunately.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean that we checked — and checked thoroughly — not just for February, but for the last three months and confirmed that Lena Volikova had not entered Pakistan. Here are the
supporting documents from the respective departments with details about all the passengers entering and leaving Pakistan by air, sea, and road. There’s no record proving Lena Volikova’s presence in Pakistan.” Joseph presented the documents to Z while he spoke.

  “Moreover, we cross-checked with the MO National University and the conference you mentioned. They confirmed that Lena Volikova was supposed to participate in the conference, but didn’t. The problem is that half of your claim is supported, but the other half isn’t. We have no substantial evidence for basing an investigation on,” Joseph said. His phone rang, and he excused himself.

  While Joseph was talking on the phone, Z looked through the documents and went deeper into his thoughts. What shall I do, if they’re not gonna acknowledge Lena’s presence in Pakistan?

  “Sorry… I was telling you that we can’t find Lena, because there’s no proof of her being in Pakistan.”

  “What about the phone call? I told you about the phone call Lena made to me?” Z pressed to prove his point.

  “Just to remind you. The day you mentioned the phone call, I asked about your phone verifying the number you received the call from. That would have served as evidence, but you said it’s not showing up in your call history anymore,” Joseph said, addressing Z’s point — to which Z had no answer and avoided eye contact with him.

  “What about the call record for that payphone?” Z asked when that idea struck him.

  “You must be aware,” Joseph began, “and if not, let me tell you. Two types of payphone technology are currently being used in the industry — one for old payphones and one for modern payphones. On the old payphones that are widely installed across Pakistan, calls paid by inserting coins are not recorded and can’t be traced. However, coin calls on modern payphones create the same call record as any other home or business phone, the call date, time, duration, and recipient. Unfortunately, the payphone you received the call from — according to you — could not be traced.”

  He stood up and walked around closer to Z, sat on the desk, and placed his hand on Z’s shoulder. “Rest assured, I never take things for granted. Even though you came a couple of days ago reporting a missing case with no substantial evidence or clue, I’ve supported your cause and investigated it personally. Without any evidence of what you’re reporting to us, how can we take action?”

  Joseph cleared his throat. “It would be just like me going to the US tomorrow and reporting a person who’s gone missing there, who lives in South Africa and flies to Canada… whereas I’m from Pakistan. How would that sound? Above all, if there was no proof of that person’s existence in the US, I’d have no evidence to support my claim.”

  Z was speechless and nodded his head. Joseph’s phone rang again, and he returned to his chair to answer yet another call. Z thought, I just want one breakthrough to prove your presence, Lena, but how? I don’t have any conclusive evidence. Johnson and I well know you were here — but the law always demands evidence.

  “Pardon, Z. This call was about your matter. I’ve had my team working on it,” Joseph said when he’d finished talking on the phone.

  “That’s wonderful. I hope they come up with some good news. Just to help you and your team, I’ve been through the area over the last couple of days and noticed CCTV cameras installed at the Gmet restaurant, the Gmet bakers, and some other spots like the bank and the pharmacy. They’re at a distance from the payphone because the laneway runs between them and the footpath the payphone is on, but still, could we check them, so that no stone remains unturned?” Z suggested optimistically.

  “I already had this in mind. That’s why when you called yesterday telling me you’ve got a number, the first thing I asked to confirm was the date and time when Lena called — according to you. I wanted to be sure about that so we could check the CCTV camera footage,” Joseph said, adjusting himself on his seat.

  “The call I just received was about the footage from all the CCTV cameras installed near the payphone. My subordinate collected it, and he’s bringing it here. You must sit with us while we scan through it to see if it helps,” Joseph said, sounding thoroughly confident.

  “That’s wonderful. Thanks!” Z felt enormously relieved to hear this.

  “Don’t mention it. I told you that you’re working with the best in the business, and that’s Joseph Best! In the meantime, let me get you some tea.” Joseph hit the bell and ordered tea for them both.

  CHAPTER 10

  “That’s all the available footage from the CCTV cameras now. We’ve seen it all and found nothing,” Joseph said, sitting with Z and another two officers.

  “I was hoping this would be helpful and reveal a stepping-stone into the investigation,” a deflated Z said.

  “I was hoping that too, but that’s all of it, Mr. Z. The two cameras I thought would have been most helpful, the ones outside the Gmet Restaurant and the Gmet Bakers, weren’t recording because of load shedding. Moreover, as it was 2 am, neither business nor its generator was operating. You must have observed the regular power cuts. They are a major issue in the country,” Joseph explained.

  “Yes, I’ve noticed that. Since I’ve been here, power cuts have happened at regular intervals in the area, day and night, an hour at a time,” Z acknowledged.

  “The cameras outside the pharmacy, the other shops, and the other restaurant had nothing either, because of the power cut on this side of the road — which is in D-Block. What we got from the cameras outside the bank and the hotel, you’re staying at, show nothing helpful,” Joseph further elaborated, as his officers nodded their heads too.

  “But I’m telling you, Officer, there must be something we’re missing!” Z exclaimed, looking fazed.

  “I don’t think so… but if there is, please do let us know. We want to ensure nothing is missed,” Joseph said, looking straight into Z’s eyes.

  “Sir, if you don’t mind, may I?” one of the officers asked, the one in his mid-thirties with the big mustache and black, curly hair.

  “Sure!” Joseph willingly permitted him.

  “As we know, this is a residential area, but there’s commercial activity on both sides of the road which we’ve already scrutinized. We all know about the power cuts,” and they all nodded.

  “Gmet Restaurant, Gmet Bakers and the pharmacy are in D-Block of Faisal Town, whereas the bank and the Silk Bed Hotel are in C-Block of Faisal Town. The main road separates them. When there’s a power cut in C-Block, there’s still light in D-Block, and when there’s a power cut in D-Block, there’s still light in C-Block,” the officer said, and they nodded again.

  “There was a power cut in D-Block when Lena Volikova somehow showed up from somewhere and called Mr. Z, but we found nothing helpful in the footages from the bank or the Silk Bed Hotel — and we shouldn’t have expected anything. The positioning of the cameras outside those buildings, and the green belt of trees on the inside edge of the footpath, make it difficult to see the main road and the buildings on the other side in D-Block,” he explained, and they all nodded their heads for the third time.

  “The dark of nighttime added difficulties as well. My point is that this is a residential area, and if Lena Volikova did call from that payphone, someone must have spotted her and chased her down, because she couldn’t finish her call before it got disconnected. Or perhaps she was being held captive in one of the houses in the area, and she didn’t catch someone’s eye,” the officer said, presenting a hypothesis in Z’s favor.

  “Yes, that’s possible,” Z said immediately.

  “Well put, Akbar,” Joseph added, appreciating his officer’s analysis.

  “Thank you, Sir.”

  “Let’s take your hypothesis a step further, Akbar. The thing is that Lena Volikova is a foreigner, and from her picture, her appearance would immediately catch attention, as she doesn’t look at all like a local. If she was held in this area, then someone must have noticed her, and we require a piece of evidence for that. Otherwise, we have nothing for lodging an of
ficial complaint and investigating further,” Joseph argued.

  Z nodded again, relieved that the analysis was finally grappling with Lena’s whereabouts.

  “Sir, Lena is a foreigner so that could go in her favor and help us find her,” the other officer said, a bald, overweight man of about fifty, with a bulging belly.

  “Good observation, Amjad, but if it could go in her favor, it could also go against her,” Joseph cautioned. “Let me explain.”

  “If Lena could catch someone’s attention because she’s a foreigner, she could also be a foreigner in danger. If those holding her captive, get to know we’re searching for a foreigner, they might try to get rid of her. We can’t let a foreigner be in trouble in our country. We must be vigilant about finding her. In this regard, if required, I can talk to my higher-ups for help, but we have to prove her existence in Pakistan before we can claim that she is actually missing. Until then, we can’t do anything,” Joseph explained, ending up at their sticking point again.

  “Shall we activate our network of local informers?” Amjad asked.

  “Yes, activate all the informers in this area and the areas near Faisal Town, Amjad. If extra help is required, I’ll personally talk to the SHOs from Johar Town and Model Town for their cooperation. Keep an eye out and monitor every nook and cranny in Faisal Town’s C- and D-Blocks, and if you find anything suspicious, let me know,” Joseph said.

  “Thanks, Mr. Joseph. I appreciate your attention to my matter enormously, and I’m pleased to see how efficiently you and your team are working on it. I request you continue keeping track of this matter personally, as I only trust you,” Z said.

  “You’re welcome. It’s my job, but let me tell you, we’re all doing this because we want to make sure we haven’t missed anything and to satisfy you. After all, you flew from the US to Pakistan for Lena Volikova, and we appreciate your gesture,” Joseph said, looking at Z earnestly.