No Safe Zone

by Adite Banerjie

  Back in the lobby of the main hospital, she collapsed into a chair while Mary rushed to get her a glass of water.

  Kathputhli Nagar

  Kabir dived into a chemist shop which stood amidst other run-down outlets. The battery on his cell phone had died and there was no way he could contact Qiara.

  ‘Do you have a landline I could use?’

  The salesman pointed to a phone placed next to the cashier counter.

  Kabir dialled Qiara’s mobile phone but got no response. After several tries, he called up the number at the bungalow. Bahadur picked up the line at the first ring.

  ‘Bahadur, is the memsaab who came with me at the house?’

  ‘Abhi nahin, Saheb, she was here but around six p.m., she went out again. She left a note for you.’

  ‘Read it out.’

  The guard read it out in halting, Rajasthani-accented English. After thanking him, and paying for the phone call, Kabir emerged on to the street where Bholu was waiting for him.

  ‘We need to get to Phulera.’

  ‘My friend will take us there. Let me call him.’

  In minutes, a beat-up Santro arrived and they were on their way to Phulera.

  Kabir used Bholu’s phone to reach Qiara, feeling more and more frustrated as the call failed to connect. Thoughts of Qiara wandering around in a remote suburb of Jaipur were more chilling than the desert wind that blew in through the open windows of the car. What was she doing in a nursing home in Phulera? What had prompted her to set off without waiting for him? Anxiety turned into a hard knot in the pit of his stomach, taking him once again back to the old days when he’d blamed himself for not being there for Qiara when she needed him. Frustration made him snap at the driver.

  ‘Can’t you make this old junkheap move any faster?’

  Garima Nursing Home

  The crowds in the lobby had begun to thin out. Mary had given her a small bottle of water, which she had gulped down gratefully. Her thoughts were a tangled mess; leaping from questions about the helpless babies to worries about Reshma and fears regarding her own situation.

  Right now, she felt as if she was hurtling down into an alien universe and had lost all her bearings. If only Kabir was with her, she could turn to him for directions, or even hold his hand till the world stopped spinning crazily and righted itself. She squeezed her eyes tight and his image floated up in her mind’s eye. Kabir and his kisses that had driven her wild with desire seemed to be part of a dream her fevered mind had thrown up. She was drifting further away from him as she tried to untangle the knots of her own complicated life.

  ‘Qiara!’

  Her eyes snapped open as soon as she heard her name. Lost in her thoughts, it took her a few seconds to recognise the man standing in front of her. When she did, her heart lurched in alarm.

  ‘You? What are you doing here?’

  Rishi Mathur looked incredibly put out.

  ‘Madam, you were supposed to meet me at Mithapur Haveli. You didn’t show up.’

  What was this guy doing here and where was Kabir? The tension made her almost scream at him.

  ‘How did you find me here?’

  ‘If you know what’s good for you, hand over Khanna’s tablet to me right now.’ He took a quick look over his shoulder and lowered his voice. ‘That’s the only way you can be safe.’

  ‘Safe? Do you realize how unsafe you are making me feel right now? If you don’t leave me alone, I promise I will scream so hard…’

  ‘Go ahead, do it,’ he sniggered. ‘If you have any brains in that pretty head of yours, you will give me the tablet and I’ll let you slip away unnoticed.’

  Ripples of fear spread through her in tight circles as his tone became increasingly threatening.

  ‘It’s either you or me.’ Rishi could sense her fear. ‘If they don’t get that tablet, I’m as good as dead. I have nothing against you but if it is a question of you versus me, you know who I’ll choose.’

  She shook her head. ‘First tell me where Reshma is.’

  ‘I have no clue who you are talking about. Rathod’s men are here right now looking for you as we speak. If you don’t do…’

  ‘How do they know I’m here?’

  ‘You really are stupid, aren’t you?’ he laughed. ‘You may have given the slip to the man who was on the train but then you fell straight into their trap by visiting the tattoo shop in the bazaar.’

  She gave herself a mental kick for being such a sucker. She had no time to waste – she had to do something. Right now. She started walking towards the reception counter.

  ‘Hey, where are you…?’

  She hurried away from Rishi, calling out to no one in particular.

  ‘This man is harassing me.’

  People turned to stare at them. In his agitation, Rishi made a grab for her arm. No sooner had he made the move than a hospital attendant yelled at him. The room buzzed as a couple of staffers rushed towards Rishi. Seizing the opportunity, she made a dash for the exit.

  In her rush to get away she didn’t see the man who was waiting near the door. Her heart dived into her stomach as her gaze fell on him. Safari Suit. There was no time to think. Heart in her mouth, she ran straight at him, taking him totally by surprise. She slammed into him. As he fell heavily on the bleacher, it toppled over. The door swung shut as she pelted out. She knew she had to find somewhere to hide before he extricated himself and chased her down.

  Luckily, for her, apart from the bright lights at the entrance of the hospital, most of the area was poorly lit. Keeping to the shadows, she ran out of the compound, heading for the streets. A sense of déjà vu assailed her: was it only two days ago she had been running away from a pursuer and had crashed into Kabir? Could she be twice lucky? Would he be there to save her?

  She could barely see ahead, but dared not slow down. Suddenly, her foot struck a loose stone. She went sprawling across the pavement. She struck her hand out and grabbed the nearest thing, and to her shock, felt her fingers wrap around someone’s arm.

  Fear trammelled inside her as she was yanked up abruptly by rough hands. She cried out in pain as her arms were twisted behind her back and held by a vice-like grip.

  Turning around to address his unseen accomplices, her captor shouted, ‘I’ve got her!’

  Twelve

  Garima Nursing Home

  The Santro screeched into the driveway of the hospital and braked sharply near a bunch of people who were gathered right outside the entrance. The staff rushed about while a couple of security guards valiantly tried to prevent the people from crowding around a man who was lying on the ground.

  Kabir shot out of the car and pushed his way through to the middle of the ring of watchers. Blood was pouring out of a gunshot wound from the unconscious man’s neck. Hospital attendants made their way through the buzzing crowd with a stretcher and went about lifting him. As they carried him away, Kabir caught a glimpse of his face.

  Breath whooshed out of him as if he had been hit in the solar plexus. Rishi Mathur. What had just happened here? Had Qiara come to meet him? Was she hurt? Where the hell was she?

  He barged into the hospital and made a beeline for the reception area, ready to project his fear and anger on the universe. Twenty minutes later, after he had thrown his weight around and created enough ruckus to raise the dead, a babble of contradictory voices chimed in. Someone said he’d seen a woman with short hair talking to Mathur. Another person claimed he’d seen her being pushed inside a black SUV. Their descriptions left Kabir with no doubt the ‘woman’ was none other than Qiara. The security guard swore he’d seen nothing, heard nothing. The place was teeming with people, and not a soul had heard the gunshot that felled a man!

  Frustration tore through Kabir like a wild animal ripping into a chunk of raw meat. Pulling away from the crowd, he headed back to the spot where Rishi Mathur was shot. Breathing in the cold night air he tried hard to make sense of it all, desperately seeking sanity and failing miserably.

  Bholu
who had followed him out was equally perplexed. ‘This is crazy.’

  ‘It’s quite possible that Qiara has also been hurt.’ Kabir’s gut wrenched at the thought of her hurt and helpless. ‘Rishi might have been able to tell us something but given the condition he is in, that’s not likely to happen.

  ‘So, what now?’ Bholu asked.

  ‘First things first,’ Kabir ran his hands through his hair. ‘We need to get some reliable information out of those security guards. They must have seen something. You can charm snakes, for God’s sake. Surely you can make human beings talk?’

  ‘You overestimate my skills, my friend. Besides, snakes are not half as slimy as humans.’

  ‘Couldn’t agree with you more. But your task now is to make those guys sing. Do what you have to. Here…’

  Thrusting a bunch of notes into Bholu’s hand, he sent him off. Nothing like cash to loosen tongues.

  He scanned the area for some clues. A few cars and vans were parked near the gates of the hospital. The street outside was dark and deserted. Was Qiara on her way out when Rishi was attacked? What if she, not Rishi, was the shooter’s target? Was Rishi shot accidentally? The questions danced in his head making him squirm with guilt. She had dodged the assassin’s bullets not so long ago but at least he’d been there to protect her. He scuffed his shoe angrily at a small pebble. It bounced off, hitting something in a bush with a soft thud.

  Curious, Kabir groped around in the hedge. His fingers wrapped around the strap of a backpack. Goddammit! It was Qiara’s. Anxiously, he riffled through it, and found the cheap throwaway phone he had bought her. It was clear as daylight that she had been snatched. He shuddered at the thought of her being held prisoner by hardened criminals. Without getting the police involved, he had little hope of launching a successful manhunt for her. Once the police were brought in, everything would be out in the open. His mission, to keep everything under wraps until the whole business of Khanna’s murder was sorted out and suspicions about the PM’s son’s involvement were either confirmed or rejected, was now doomed. With Qiara’s capture, everything would be blown sky-high. Not only was his career going down the chute, the chances of him saving Qiara were becoming slimmer with every passing moment. He needed a breakthrough, and he needed it now!

  Reading the text messages she’d sent him he went through another round of self-flagellation. She had texted him almost two hours ago when he had been at Kathputhli Nagar.

  This is not the first time you weren’t there for her when she needed you!

  So wrapped up was he in his thoughts, he almost jumped out of his skin when he heard Bholu’s voice.

  ‘Boss! Your friend has been kidnapped.’

  ‘Tell me something I don’t know,’ he barked, waving Qiara’s backpack.

  ‘So you also know where they have taken her, don’t you?’

  ‘How should I…’ Realization beat inside him loud and clear like an insistent drum. ‘Sonagarh?’

  Bholu nodded. ‘Right-o!’

  ‘How do you know that?’

  ‘The security guard found his voice when I greased his palm,’ Bholu remarked wryly. ‘The SUV in which she was taken is one of the hospital’s vehicles. The driver of the SUV and the guard had shared tea and he had let slip he was on his way to Sonagarh. By the way, Rishi had tried to intervene and stop them from taking your friend; that’s when the driver’s accomplice shot him down.’

  ‘What the hell was Qiara doing here?’ Kabir mumbled to himself. ‘Why would she come here in the first place? Did she call Rishi Mathur and did he ask her to meet him here?’

  He crashed a fist into his palm, wishing he had some answers to his questions. ‘Goddammit! There has to be a reason.’

  Bholu said quietly, ‘I don’t know if this helps but apart from being a maternity hospital for the local population, it is also frequented by people from all over the country.’

  ‘Really? This doesn’t seem like a super-speciality hospital to me.’

  Bholu shrugged. ‘Most people in Jaipur know this is the place to come to if you want to buy a child.’

  Kabir’s blood turned to ice. ‘Buy a child?’

  ‘Yes, it is known as Baby Bazaar. Babies born to desperately poor parents are sold and bought here.’

  ‘Holy mother of God!’ Kabir exclaimed.

  Suddenly, one small piece of the puzzle snapped into place. Zayed had mentioned Rathod owned a string of hospitals.

  ‘The cops know what goes on here but they are paid to look away,’ Bholu added.

  Every nerve in Kabir’s body was taut like a wire pulled across two poles.

  ‘We have no time to waste. But we need to get some decent wheels. There is no way we can get to Sonagarh in your friend’s junkheap.’

  This was insane. The more he thought about it the more he feared for Qiara. He needed to keep Zayed informed about the turn of events. Whatever the consequences of his decision, he could not let Qiara fall into the hands of his unscrupulous brother and his accomplices.

  Sonagarh Jal Mahal Grounds

  The sound of a metal bolt clanking open jerked Qiara awake. Her eyelids felt heavy, as if they had been glued down, and she opened them with difficulty. She tried to raise her arm and felt a searing pain shoot through her wrists as the twine tied around them bit into her flesh. Her legs were bound too and she struggled to raise herself from the gravel-strewn stone floor. Every bone in her body hurt and her skin felt raw and bruised. The throbbing in her temples reached a crescendo with every tiny movement. She remembered being tackled to the pavement by a burly man outside Garima Hospital before a syringe in her arm had plunged her into a dark, numb void.

  Where was this place? Had she been kidnapped by the gang Mary had told her about? Those involved in the sale of children? Fear bubbled inside her like a whirlpool in a swollen river.

  Another door clanked open, and this time the sound was much closer. A woman’s anklets echoed softly in the room as a figure, still obscured by the shadows, came towards her.

  Qiara cringed instinctively as the woman sat on the floor beside her and raised a steel tumbler containing some liquid to her parched lips. Though she was dying for a sip of water, she turned her head away. The woman said nothing, but raised the tumbler a little above her own mouth and drank some water. She nodded encouragingly at Qiara who looked at her suspiciously but decided the water was safe to drink.

  She angled her head as the woman held the tumbler to her lips, thirstily gulping down the cool water. After she had her fill, the woman gently wiped her mouth with the edge of her sari. The unexpected gesture took Qiara by surprise.

  ‘Where am I? Please…let me go.’

  The woman shook her head and gestured in sign language that she was mute. As she got up to leave Qiara stretched out her hands and pleaded, ‘Please, my hands are hurting.’

  For a moment the woman looked uncertainly at her and Qiara wondered if she understood what she’d said. Seconds later, she loosened the knot at her wrist but did not remove the twine.

  ‘Help me,’ Qiara begged, but this time the woman kept walking away. Before closing the door and clanking the bolt shut, she lit a candle in a niche in the wall.

  She could now make out the contours of the room. It was a small, bare room, almost like a cave, the walls were made of coarse reddish brown rocks, some of which protruded unevenly. There was a small opening near the ceiling of the room, like a window, which was the only source of ventilation. The stone floor was covered with dust and gravel. She shivered with apprehension at the thought of being imprisoned here for days, maybe weeks. She had no clue where she was and if her captors had any intention of letting her go.

  Trying to think positive, she reassured herself that at this very moment Kabir was looking for her. She’d no idea how much time had passed since she was taken captive but she was glad she’d left a note with the guard at the bungalow. Surely, Kabir would have made some inquiries at Garima Hospital and he may have gotten some clues. But what if no
one had seen her being grabbed? Pushing her knees up against her chest, she rested her head, trying not to give into the tears that were choking her throat.

  A soft rustle startled her. Soon after, she heard a strange chirping sound. Was it a rat? That nearly made her jump in fright. A snort escaped her lips at her own ludicrous reaction. How ironical she should be terrified of a tiny nocturnal creature when she was being held captive by a bunch of murderous human beings. She pushed herself away from the rock wall against which she’d been leaning and shuffled her bound feet in a bid to frighten whatever creature was lurking around. Seconds later, the sound was repeated, but this time it was louder and sounded more human than a rodent ferreting around in the dark.

  ‘Kaun hai?’ she called out.

  ‘Shh!!’ came the urgent reply. ‘Look behind you, there’s a small gap in the wall.’

  She looked behind her, and sure enough, at some height, there was a tiny hole between two unevenly placed rocks. She pushed herself against the wall and using her bound hands against it as leverage, pulled herself up so she could reach the opening.

  ‘Who are you?’ Qiara whispered.

  ‘My name is Meera,’ said the voice, ‘There are some other girls with me here. Are you alone?’

  ‘Yes, what’s this place?’

  ‘We are inside a baoli in Sonagarh Palace.’

  ‘Baoli…like a stepwell?’

  ‘Yes, I’m so scared.’

  The silence throbbed between them for a bit. Qiara failed to find words to console the girl when she herself was in no better condition.

  ‘We were at school,’ Meera said, ‘when our teacher told us we’d been chosen to go to Jodhpur for a field trip. Four of us. We were brought here in a bus.’

  Qiara’s heart beat fast and furious.

  ‘Is there a girl called Reshma with you?’

  The girl gasped in shock. ‘Yes.’

  Qiara couldn’t believe she’d actually found Reshma.

  ‘Yes, yes! But how do you know Reshma?’

  ‘I came to look for her. My name is Qiara. Is she with you right now?’