The Time Traveler

by Tej Pratap Singh

  “What is it?” she said.

  “Oh, nothing,” said KC realizing that he was staring at her laptop. “I just wanted to check my account.”

  “Your Facebook account?” said Jasmine.

  “Ah, no,” said KC.

  “Then your mail?“

  “No, Jazz. My bank account,” said KC.

  “I thought all your accounts were frozen by the US Government?” said Jasmine.

  “Yeah, but apparently I have got a new one. Just got a text from Lurton with the details.”

  “What are you saying?” said Jasmine. “Let’s check it out”

  Jasmine quickly accessed KC’s account online, “Oh my God! KC you got over 50 lacs in your account. Why do you need this kind of money?”

  “You know, to buy hardware,” said KC. “A few automatics and all.”

  “Hardware for like a decade,” said Jasmine sarcastically.

  “Jasmine, Lurton wants me to take out Lu Pin,” said KC.

  “Take out, as in for a ride?” said Jasmine.

  “No, Jasmine, not for a ride,” chuckled KC.

  “Kenneth, are you seriously out of your freaking mind?” said Jasmine. “You are thinking of killing Lu Pin, the gangster from Hong Kong? That too on your own?”

  “I guess I have to,” said KC. “That’s the only way to keep all the agencies and all the people who are after me off my back and this way I get time to think, to figure out how to get out of this mess. And, of course, I am sure no one is going to miss Lu Pin when he is not around.”

  “KC, he is a gangster, not some mediocre thug. He practically has his own army. You can’t take him out on your own. You stand no chance in front of him.”

  “Jasmine, you seriously underestimate me,” said KC smiling. “Better to try and fail than give up without trying. Don’t you agree?”

  “KC, if you fail you pretty much are going to die. Anyway, I know you are not going to pay any heed to my concerns about all of this. When are we leaving?”

  “What?” said KC. “No, no, no! There is no ‘we’ here. I am leaving tomorrow.”

  “I think I deserve an outing after all,” said Jasmine, “and Hong Kong is not a bad place for a vacation.”

  “No way, it’s not your fight. Besides, it’s much too dangerous and you have a life here,” said KC.

  “Who said anything about fighting,” said Jasmine. “Think of me as your cover. No one will doubt you even if you venture close to Lu Pin as long as you are with me, we will just be a couple out there having fun. I get to see the place and you get to do your work.”

  “That sounds like a plan,” said KC, “but you have got to promise that you will do exactly as I say. Things could get pretty ugly out there.”

  “Well, I’ll go pack now, see you tomorrow morning,” said Jasmine as she folded her laptop and left for her room.

  KC opened Jasmine’s laptop, he looked at the time. It was 11 p.m. He had seven hours until the morning. He looked up whatever information was available online on Lu Pin. He wanted to know as much as he could about his target. He was going to get Lu Pin!

  * * *

  It was five in the morning; Jasmine came out of her room as excited as ever. She found KC sleeping on the couch with her laptop. She knew it right away that he had been up the whole night surfing the net for Lu Pin. KC fascinated Jasmine. She had not seen anyone quite like him, ever. He was different. He was neck deep in trouble and yet he moved around as if everything was under control. Even in the worst condition he never panicked. Calm and composed and cool as ice, he was too good to be true.

  Although, he had not told Jasmine anything about himself, she knew he was hiding something deep, but she didn’t want to push him into telling her anything. She was enjoying her time with KC, which was a break from her otherwise boring routine life.

  She made some coffee for both of them and kept his coffee mug on the coffee table in front of the sofa. “Good morning,” she said trying to wake him up. KC woke up with a start, immediately standing straight he said, “Inisesta tejchalo.”

  He almost fell on the table, as he was still sleepy and unsteady on his feet. He steadied the table just in time and saved the coffee from spilling over.

  “Wow! What was that?” said Jasmine. “I didn’t know you wake up with such a bang. Next time, I will stand a feet away when I have to wake you up.”

  “Oh crap! I was dreaming, Jasmine,” said KC, still in shock.

  “Okay, good for you,” said Jasmine. “Sorry I woke you up in that case.”

  “No, it’s not that, Jazz,” said KC almost stammering. “I don’t dream. I never dream!”

  “Are you serious?” said Jasmine surprised. “Everyone dreams. Come on, KC.”

  “No I am serious, I’ve never had dreams. Not that I remember of anyway,” said KC. “So, this is weird.”

  “So, what did you dream of?” asked Jasmine sipping her coffee and offering him his mug.

  “I don’t know, it was kind of weird, Jazz,” said KC keeping the mug back on the table.

  “Tell me, I would like to know,” said Jasmine.

  “Okay then,” said KC, “I dreamt that I was in a glass tube and that I was really hurt. I think I was bleeding and in pain, then some guys in weird outfits came and closed the tube…”

  “Then?” asked Jasmine.

  “Then I heard a voice. It was a lady’s voice, she said, “Inisesta tejchalo,” I think. That is when I woke up.”

  “What is inisesta tejchalo supposed to mean?” asked Jasmine. “You shouted it out loud when I woke you up.”

  “I have no idea what any of this means,” said KC.

  “Take it easy, KC, you think too much all the time. It was probably nothing. Maybe something out of a sci-fi movie you saw or something. Relax,” said Jasmine.

  “Probably,” said KC.

  “Well I am going to pack some more stuff and so should you,” said Jasmine smiling. “We have to reach Hong Kong today remember and I have a couple of new dresses that I have been waiting for an occasion to wear. I will get to wear them now.”

  “Swell,” said KC. “I have nothing to pack, I’m ready when you are.”

  * * *

  After reaching Hong Kong early next morning, they checked into a regular hotel. He didn’t want to attract any attention. He kept his routine simple and behaved like a regular tourist. Only exception being, he planned visits to all the clubs and hotels that Lu Pin frequented. Surprisingly Lu Pin was quite easy to find, he stepped out in the open often, of course, he always had an army of bodyguards around him. He had nothing to fear in Hong Kong, it was his turf.

  After a week of scouting, KC and Jasmine compared their notes, trying to find a weak link that would help them get close to Lu Pin.

  “KC, I am not able to find anything of significance, his security is tight as hell, maybe we should reconsider,” said Jasmine from behind the bundle of notes she had prepared on Lu Pin. “Did you know that there have been a hundred and fifteen attempts to kill Pin till today and not even one came close to succeeding.”

  “After following him for a week now and seeing his lifestyle, I actually have an idea that might work,” said KC. “I need to step out now, Jazz, to pick up the hardware that we need for this operation.”

  Hardware? Jasmine said to herself as KC left the room. Why not just call it what it is, guns and bullets.

  Jasmine in the meantime kept working on finding the right time to intercept Lu Pin. She thought that it would be best to target him in the afternoon when he has his lunch at his hotel. Usually, at that time, there are only five guards in the hall and the hall is full of other guests as well.

  Soon, KC walked into the room whistling calmly with his hand in his pocket.

  “What? You are back already?” said Jasmine. “I thought you were going to get the hardwar
e.”

  “Yeah, I did,” said KC, sitting down in front of Jasmine.

  “Where? I don’t see anything,” said Jasmine giving KC a dumb look and raising her hands up.

  “Oh, it’s in my pocket,” said KC as he put his hands in his pocket and took out an aspirin and tossed it on the table between them.

  Jasmine looked at the aspirin and then looked at KC. She waited for a second, she thought that it might be some kind of a secret spy gadget that only looked like an aspirin but actually was a bomb or something. She picked it up and examined it closely but could find nothing out of the ordinary with the aspirin pill.

  “What is this?” she asked.

  “It’s an aspirin, Jazz,” said KC.

  “Is that a joke of some sort?” said Jasmine rather seriously.

  “No, it’s not. We are going to use this to kill Lu Pin,” said KC.

  Jasmine got up from her chair and came to the side where KC was sitting with the aspirin in her hand.

  “You are saying that you are going to kill one of the biggest gangsters that this world has ever seen with a painkiller?” confirmed Jasmine.

  “Well, that’s the plan,” said KC taking the aspirin from her hand and putting it back in his pocket.

  “KC, Lurton gave you fifty lakhs to buy guns to kill Lu Pin and this is your plan?” said Jasmine. “What’s your plan, to make him laugh till he dies?”

  “All right then, here is the plan,” announced KC. “After following him for a week now, I figured out that Lu Pin has a major drug problem, he regularly uses drugs…”

  “Yes, he does, he uses the local Chinese drug,” added Jasmine.

  “Correct,” said KC. “You are a doctor so you know what an aspirin contains?”

  “Sure,” said Jasmine. “It has acetylsalicylic acid which is a thrombolytic agent that helps remove blood clots.”

  “Well, that’s all we need, Jazz,” said KC smiling.

  “What does that mean?”

  “Well Jazz, tomorrow during lunch to Lu Pin’s bad luck, someone is going to mix some aspirin in his favorite dish. Lu Pin likes to have his local dish with curry and a dose of the drug which he thoroughly enjoys. But not tomorrow. Because tomorrow he is going to have his drug with aspirin in his food.”

  “And?” said Jasmine.

  “Lu Pin’s drug is going to react with the aspirin and is going to reverse the effect of the thrombolytic agent.”

  “We are going to clot the blood vessels going to his heart,” added Jasmine jumping up and kissing him.

  “Oh, I am sorry,” said Jasmine. “I got so excited, I didn’t…”

  “It’s alright, Jazz,” said KC bending forward and kissing Jasmine on her forehead. “We will be done by this time tomorrow.”

  “Okay, but how are you going to add the aspirin to his dish?” asked Jasmine.

  “I am not,” said KC looking at Jasmine.

  “What?” said Jasmine, realizing what that meant. “You want me to do it? No way, I am not going anywhere close to him.”

  “Come on, Jazz, you can’t pull back now,” said KC. “You can do it. Besides it’s going to be totally safe, trust me, I have planned it to the last detail.”

  “That guy is creepy,” she said in response.

  “Jazz, look at me,” said KC holding her by her arms, “I am never going to let anything happen to you. You have to trust me, no one will even touch you.”

  “Okay,” she said reluctantly. “What’s the plan?”

  “Here goes,” explained KC, “Lu Pin goes to his hotel, the Shang Fu, for lunch. He arrives at exactly 12:30 p.m. His lunch is made daily by only one cook, who prepares a special gravy dish for him. While he eats his lunch, five of his heavily armed men guard the area. No one is allowed to go in or come out of that specific section of the hotel where he eats while he is there. Now, the good news is that like most spoilt rich brats he has some royal habits, firstly he likes his dish to be brought in from the kitchen immediately after it is cooked in an open platter with its aroma filling up the whole room. This offers us the opportunity to drop the asprin into the open dish while it’s being carried to his table. The dish is hot, it will mix quickly and it won’t even be visible. Also, before he has his lunch, two food tasters first sample his meal just to be sure that the dish is not poisoned. Since they are not having the drug Lu Pin has, the dish will not have any negative effect on them.”

  “While, in Lu Pin’s case,” added Jasmine, “within half an hour of having the dish the anti-thrombolytic agent will start to take effect and he will begin to get clots in his blood vessels. By that time we are out of the hotel. Within 45 to 50 minutes his heart will start to receive lesser blood than usual. By that time we will be at the airport. By the end of the hour his brain will be deprived of oxygen and his heart of blood. And, by this time, we will be on our way to India.”

  “And, around one and a half hour later he will die of an unfortunate heart attack,” said KC. “The cops around the world will have one less man to worry about.”

  “KC, you are a genius,” said Jasmine hugging him. “Let’s do it”

  * * *

  Time - 1:00 p.m., the next day.

  KC and Jasmine caught a taxi from the Shang Fu Hotel in a hurry. They had one hour before their flight took off and the airport was 20 minutes away. Jasmine looked back out of the rear window of the taxi to make sure once again that no one was following them.

  “Relax, Jasmine,” said KC holding her hand. “You did great. When you bumped into the chef, no one saw you drop the aspirin in the dish.”

  “But did it fall right in the dish?” she said, biting her nails.

  “Jasmine, relax, it was right on mark, and, before anyone realizes we will be midair, long gone,” he said in a comforting tone.

  They reached the airport and went through the checks, quarter of an hour later they were in the plane. Jasmine looked at her watch, “He would be having difficulty in breathing by now,” said Jasmine pointing to her watch. KC nodded.

  The air-hostess announced that the flight was ready for take-off. The lights were dimmed and soft music began to play in the background as Jasmine looked out of the window. The plane started to move on the runway and moments later they were in the air. Jasmine turned to look at KC and they both smiled at each other.

  “Well, I think it’s time to see what’s on the news,” declared KC smiling.

  He turned on the television and what he had expected was pretty much all over the news, “Lu Pin, the notorious underworld kingpin dies under mysterious circumstances.”

  Jasmine’s face brightened. KC looked at her, he couldn’t help but notice how beautiful she was. He wondered how come he had never noticed her big beautiful eyes before. He touched her cheeks they were so soft and her lips, so tantalizing and alluring. Jasmine leaned forward till their lips were close to each other’s and closed her eyes. KC bent forward, he wanted more than ever before to kiss her, but, he stopped halfway. After a few agonizing, miserable seconds he kissed her on her cheek cursing himself for not kissing her the way he should have.

  Jasmine opened her eyes. She had expected more! Pressing her lips against each other and trying to control the surge of emotions within her. She smiled at him and quickly looked the other way. She could now see the brilliant lights of the city below, numerous roads crisscrossing. From such distance, it was hard to tell where the roads were heading, much like the state of her mind. She wondered why he had not kissed her. It seemed like he was going to.

  Why, wondered KC, hadn’t he just kissed her? A few minutes had passed since that moment and by now he had gone over that moment in his head a few times. He all but knew the answer too well; Jasmine was a great girl and he simply didn’t want to ruin her life. At this point in his life he just couldn’t commit to her. What was he going to tell her, ‘Hi, I am KC. I am not from around h
ere and I am trying to get away as soon as possible. Also, I really don’t know anything about myself. What I do know is that I was in love with a girl called Jenny and I think she was my wife, but, I can’t actually remember any more than that as of now.’

  He looked at Jasmine as she was looking out of the plane. Just this once he would’ve liked to forget about everything else and do what he actually wanted to do, which was to turn her face towards his and kiss her passionately.

  He raised his hand and touched Jasmine’s shoulder, she turned around. God! She looked so beautiful.

  “What?” asked Jasmine in her soft voice.

  He looked at her and he got his answers. He couldn’t be selfish. He had to protect Jasmine, and that was from himself. Sooner or later, he had to leave and she would have to stay back. He couldn’t possibly get her emotionally involved and then leave her. It would be much too difficult for both of them. He was barely over the pain caused by Jenny’s absence; he couldn’t go through it again.

  “You want some water?” he asked, not able to think of anything else.

  “Nah, I’m fine,” she replied.

  “Okay,” he said, “ah… I was… just… asking… I thought.”

  “Oh yeah. It’s okay,” she said.

  The rest of the journey seemed really long. Both of them trying to strike up a conversation but unable to act normal. They were attracted to each other and were finding it hard to pretend like they weren’t. Jasmine couldn’t understand what was stopping KC, although she was pretty sure something was. She believed that she was fairly attractive, until now all guys around her had tried their best to catch her attention but she had never paid any heed to anyone. This was the first time she had taken the first step, she had felt so sure about KC.

  Six hours later, they landed in India. The moment they came out of the airport, Jasmine’s cell rang, it was Lurton.

  “Are they following us?” asked a zapped Jasmine.

  “He is really fond of me,” joked KC trying to lighten the atmosphere.

  “Really?” said Jasmine smiling. “I hate competition.”

  “Yes, Lurton,” said KC.