11 Hours

by Daniel Paul Singh

  “He could have gone around Prabhu”

  “He is not around, not in my car, Rob and not now.” Prabhu looked worried, when we heard that horn blare right behind us. It was Prabhu’s car with the mechanic in the driver’s seat. He put his head out through the window as he waved at us.

  “Took a test drive saar, your car is perfect condition. Drive now. Raja make it perfect”

  “Test drive? Was it even needed now man? I thought you stole it. I almost registered a complaint against you. Why did you close your shop for heavens’ sake?” Prabhu questioned.

  “Steal ah? saar. Trichy people are not like that. What you think? No one to see my shop, so I closed. If you here na… I would have opened shop and gone. You no here, so I closed and went” the visibly upset mechanic responded. He couldn’t take the word ‘steal’ lightly.

  “I am sorry, forgive me. Here have it.” Saying Prabhu handed him a 500 rupees note.

  “Saar, you first customer today morning, give 300 change saar” he said.

  “Keep the change” Prabhu said and smiled. The mechanic grinned ear to ear. “Thanks saar”

  Prabhu got into the car and started it as I got in as well. It was 5.30 am by then. Trichy was an hour’s drive from there. Prabhu pressed the accelerator as fierce as he could and we reached Thillainagar 5th cross by 6.15 Am.

  It was a nostalgic moment for me, but I was in no mood to enjoy the warm memories the drive took me through. The streets and houses hadn’t changed, however I didn’t exactly remember where her house was or how it looked like. I knew one thing that it was in the 5th Cross and was painted in Orange.

  We slowly drove through 5th cross and kept inquiring the bystanders on where Mr. Krishnan’s house was. No one knew. I didn’t even know how he looked like or his full name. As we came near the 3rd Street of 5th Cross, I had a strong gut feeling that her house was somewhere in that area. I remembered following her to her house, after one of the Aspire tuition classes. She knew I was behind her and didn’t mind me pursuing.

  “Left or right” Prabhu asked.

  “Left, I remember she walking through this”

  “Oh, when?”

  “Some 11 years ago. Look for a large Orange house” I said and we slowly drove our car in, through the street. I was observing each and every house. We went through the entire street and came to a dead end, but there was no Orange painted house.

  “Are you sure it was painted orange? Not peach or pink or purple?” Prabhu questioned.

  “Bright orange, like in an orange fruit. But that was 11 years ago. They might have changed it now”

  “I know one thing for sure Rob. I am having a very bad day” Prabhu said in a dejected tone.

  “I am pretty sure it’s in this street. I have been here, I know it for sure. I also faintly remember it to be one of those large houses”

  “Every single house here is large, Rob”

  “Cut the crap Prabhu, allow me to think.” I said and played back that incident in my mind. It was the same street, I had indeed visited this street, I remembered her granddad coming near the gate and opening it for her. It was the orange house, think, think. Wait – Yes, neem tree protruding from the compound wall.

  “Prabhu, look for a compound wall where a tree is protruding through the compound wall”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes, I remember it well” I said enthusiastically.

  We took a U-turn and swifted through the street again and within minutes found a house whose compound wall was obtruded by a tree.

  “Prabhu, this is it”

  “Is this orange? As far as I know it is elephant green”

  “They might have changed the color. This is her house, Prabhu. That’s what my conscience is asking me to believe. Let’s go check with her parents” I said and got down.

  It was 6.30 Am; Too early a time to wake up and disturb someone. I went inside the compound wall and pressed the calling bell. After a minute, a 60 year old man opened the door. He should have been taken aback by my appearance.

  “Yes?” he asked.

  “Mr. Krishnan?” I questioned.

  “Krishnan?” he repeated.

  “Yes, you are Krishnan, right? You work in Bangalore, have two daughters?” I was puzzled.

  “I am Perumal.”

  “Your brother, or son is named Krishnan?”

  “No, no, I am. Errr. Wait, I get it. Krishnan is the previous owner of this house. We bought it from him. His family vacated this house six months ago. Who are you, his relative?” he said without removing his focus from the blood stains in my shirt.

  ₪ ₪ ₪

  Chapter 20 A Long Journey It took some time for me to heed and comprehend what I had just heard.

  “His family vacated this house six months ago.” sounded like the last death bell.

  “Why?” I almost cried.

  “I have no clue. May be check with that neighbor there, they might know” he pointed to his right and kept his other hand near the door, readying to shut it close.

  “But you bought this house from him, don’t you have his address?”

  “I don’t”

  “Can you check?”

  “Can you leave? I have some work to do” he was ridiculously unapologetic.

  “Hmmm. Alright. Sorry and thanks” I said and rushed towards the neighbor’s house he had pointed. The compound gate was locked. I shouted, but there was no response from the inside. I decided to breach into the house and jumped over the gate and rushed to their door. The calling bell was inviting and I pressed it as hard as I could. Four rings and I heard someone say “I am coming”, I waited.

  After seconds an old fat lady in a sleepy state opened the door.

  “Mr. Krishnan, they used to stay next doors, where are they?” I asked in a hurry.

  “Who the hell are you?” she was shocked to see my pathetic state.

  “Aunty. I am a friend of. I mean my father is a friend of Mr. Krishnan. I know that he was here. It’s an urgent matter, we need to meet him. I heard that you would know where he is. Could you please help?”

  “Are you alright? You want some water or something?” she was concerned looking at those bandages, Trichy people I say.

  “I am perfectly fine, but do you know what happened to these folks? Mr. Krishnan and family? It’s urgent. Where are they now?” I was restless.

  She looked at me with doubting eyes and asked.

  “Whats your name?”

  “Robin. Aunty, trust me. See here is my ID card. Can you please tell?” I asked. The questions the neighbors ask!!

  “Well, they had some financial trouble and the girl of the house also ran away with some guy. So they sold this house and have moved to Srirangam”

  “Ran away? Do you know with whom? When?”

  “I don’t know with whom, but that Kamala in the next street keeps saying that the girl ran away with a rich guy. For these generation people only money is important. Do you know Kamala? She herself is a jealous bitch, always backbiting.”

  I didn’t want to know of any Kamala, only Brindha.

  “Do you have their new address, please?” I insisted.

  “I might have. Wait, let me go in and check. Do you want to come in?”

  “No, I will wait here, thanks”. I said and waited for her.

  She came back after five minutes with an address note book and asked me to note it down. I texted the address in my mobile and saved it in drafts. She also gave me the mobile number of Mr. Krishnan.

  “Thanks a lot aunty” I said and rushed back towards the gate and started to climb it.

  “Wait wait, did you jump over that to come in, you scoundrel, you thief!” she started to scream.

  I jumped over as quickly as I could and moved towards the car and signaled Prabhu to start it. He pressed the accelerator and we vanished from 3rd street of Thillai nagar. I hoped the lady would not contact the cops.

  “Hi thief” Prabhu extended his left hand for a hand shake.<
br />
  “Stop it stupid. Dial to this number. This is her dad’s. He will know where she is” I showed him the number.

  Prabhu called to the number immediately and heard a ‘number does not exist’ automated voice.

  “Good news for you. The number doesn’t exists.” He said.

  “Damn! May be he changed that too. How many obstacles should we be facing today? Alright, let’s go and check in person.” I told him and he drove towards Srirangam.

  It was a 15 minutes drive. We entered into the main agraharam and with the help of a few locals there, it was easy to locate the address. It was a very small house with blue wooden door or was it plastic? Wondering, I tapped on it. An old man in his fifties opened the door.

  “Mr. Krishnan?” I asked.

  “Yes, and you?” he replied. I gave a sigh of relief and looked at him, my one final hope. He was lean, dark skinned, had less hair on his head and whatever was present had already turned white.

  “I am a friend of Brindha. I have come to meet her.”

  “There is no one by that name here”

  “But you are Krishnan right, your daughter is Brindha. This is the address that they gave” I was puzzled.

  “I don’t have a daughter by that name now. She is dead for me six months ago” he said and slammed the door.

  “What? Uncle? Hello? Open the door” I kept banging on the door.

  He opened the door after a few thumps and kept staring at me. Prabhu came to the rescue. He asked me to move aside and talked to Krishnan in whispers. Krishnan’s face reaction changed and then he looked at my state. I pleaded him with my eyes. He then let us in.

  “Thanks uncle” Prabhu said.

  “Want to have something?” he asked the two of us.

  “No uncle. We are fine. Btw, I am her school friend” I started. I wasn’t sure if I could tell him the truth or lie to him. I looked at his frame again. I didn’t want to scare him with the truth and told a random lie that came into my mind to get her contacts.

  “We are planning for a tenth year reunion of our school friends. We contacted everyone, except her. Can I get her contact number, please?”

  He looked at my torn shirt with disdain.

  “We met with an accident on the way. Hence the blood stain and this condition… Could you please give her number?”

  He was fragile and had deep, sunken eyes that were on the verge of getting wet.

  “I don’t have any number of hers”

  “Sir, your daughter’s mobile number sir” I repeated.

  “I don’t” he repeated looking endlessly at the wall above my head.

  Prabhu held my hand before I could ask something.

  “The last I know of her is that she is in Chennai, but no other contacts. It’s been six months. She has changed her number. I don’t have it. No one in my family has it. We don’t talk to her and she hasn’t taken the effort to contact us either. She is no more a part of this family”.

  With the tone he said, I understood that he wasn’t lying. It was easy to guess. Brindha’s parents whould have refused her wedding with Ganpath and they should have eloped, but I wasn’t sure why she settled in Chennai and not in Bangalore. Why should Ganpath kidnap Diana!

  “Not even an address or any other number?” Prabhu questioned him.

  “She eloped!! She ran away with him. We were not important for her, only him. Why should we have contacts with her or him? None of us have.” He finished. Her mom also came to the hall and stood in a corner trying to wipe the tears from her eyes. She looked exactly like Brindha or was it the other way around.

  I shouldn’t have made them cry on an early morning but they looked like they were used to the routine for the past six months. I wondered why Brindha did such a thing. She had always valued her parents more than anything. Love was indeed blind, blind of emotions, blind of parents’ love for us, blind of every other priority on earth.

  “Thank you sir and sorry for disturbing you” Prabhu said and urged me to get up and leave. Mr. Krishnan went in to his room without saying anything. I felt that there was no further use in staying there and started to leave when her mom came near and stopped us. She gave me a mobile number in haste and said.

  “That’s her number. She had called me several times from that. I know it’s her. I haven’t picked or talked to her though. May be if you want, give it a try. And in case she picks, tell her I love… tell her… I mean, hope she is leading a happy life” she said and went in like nothing happened, closing the door behind.

  I kept looking at the door. Brindha of all people shouldn’t have done such a thing. I dialed her number from Prabhu’s phone. Her phone was ringing and no one picked it. However, her number was working and I was happy for that. I had to get content with such small positives on an already fucked up day.

  “Prabhu, should we trace this number?”

  “I think yes, I will send this to my dad”

  “Fine. Its 7 am now. Chennai is a 3 hour drive from here. If we start now, we will reach by 10. We will have an hour within which we could reach her and then take her to the LOSER. Hope the traffic isn’t bad today” I told him my plan.

  “Sounds like a plan, Rob” saying he started the car and it soon broke wind in NH-45.

  Several thoughts ran in my mind. I wished the thought detector could record all of it and I could play back and watch it someday. On second thought, I was glad that it didn’t record any of it.

  Prabhu’s mobile received a call. He picked it and put it on speaker. “Yes dad, tell me”

  “Prabhu, the registration number belongs to some Darshan and

  the address is given as Ashok Pillar. I will send you the address” saying he kept the phone. Prabhu’s dad was always like that. He talked to-the-point and before we could react, he would cut the call. He told us what we wanted to know at that point of time.

  “Who is this Darshan then?” Prabhu turned towards me and asked.

  “Me and Darshan were school friends. We used to sleep in the same bed when we were young” I replied sarcastically.

  “I didn’t know you were gay” he shot me an uncanny look.

  “How the fuck in the world would I know who this Darshan is? Check his address and we will have to know why he kidnapped my wife.”

  “Is Darshan the LOSER? Then where is Ganpath”

  “Prabhu, I am more confused than you are. Please, enough of your questions”. I said, as we received the address of the LOSER in Prabhu’s phone.

  Prabhu’s phone beeped again. This time it was a FB notification.

  “Not another of those stupid candy crush requests” he said.

  “What is it?” I asked him.

  “Wait, someone has commented on my FB post.” He replied.

  “What post?”

  “Post with Ganpath’s photo, asking if anyone know him, duh”

  “Oh ok. Let me check” I said and took his phone.

  Anandhi, my wife’s friend who had worked with her in RBS, had left a comment in the post which read,

  “This is Raj, he worked with me in RBS”.

  Ganpath is Raj? Confused, I immediately pinged her over messenger.

  “Is he still working there?”

  “Who are you?” she replied.

  “This is Robin- Rob, Diana’s husband, messaging from my friend Prabhu’s account. Trust me, it’s me. Now tell me, is Raj still working there? Is his full name Ganpath Raj?”

  “Which Raj?”

  “That Raj!! The guy whom you told you know. In that FB post.”

  “No, he is not. He is currently working in some other company in Siruseri. Forgot the name of it though”

  “What kind of guy is he - good, bad?”

  “He is a good guy only bro, why are you asking?”

  “How close were he and Diana?” I asked and waited in patience. The question should have upset Anandhi who was a good friend of my wife.

  “What are you asking? “

  “I am not doubting he
r. Oh come on, see, listen, just answer this. How good friends were they?”

  “They were Hi - Bye friends. I haven’t seen Diana talking to him much, in fact he hasn’t interacted with any of us much.” She replied.

  “And you haven’t answered this. Whats his full name? Ganpath Raj? Is he there on FB?” I asked her.

  “Yes, he is in my friends’ list. I will ping his link wait”

  After a few seconds she sent me the link.

  Rajasekhar Thirumalsamy read his full name. It was the same guy. It was the same guy who had taken Diana out of Ascendas last night. I saw all his pictures. He hadn’t protected his profile. He was smiling in all of them. I wanted to make sure that he would never ever smile again. If he was the one who had kidnapped Diana, then where was Ganpath involved or was he not involved? Were Ganpath and Raj brothers as they more or less resembled each other? My brain threw up complicated web of questions for which I had no answers. For the time being, I decided to have Raj as the kidnapper and not Ganpath, as Raj was a friend of Diana as well.

  “Prabhu, this Raj is the guy. He is that bastard. We have to find him” I screamed.

  “Wait, whom should we find? LOSER or Ganpath or Brindha or Raj”

  “Bloody all of them, but Diana, more than any other idiot. For that, we need to find this Raj now” I was having a nervous breakdown.

  “Isnt Ganpath the Loser? Calm down, calm down Rob. We will find him. Now find how Ganpath and this Raj are related, search with their names in Google” he advised me.

  I did as he said, but none of the results were matching.

  “Check in friends list, common friends, mutual friends, something” he said.

  I checked in Raj’s profile. I had four mutual friends with him, including my wife and a few of her ex colleagues in RBS. There was no Ganpath in his friends’ list.

  “What next?” I asked him.

  “Whats that Raj guy’s email ID? Let’s look into his mails and other online data.” Prabhu said, winking at me.

  Prabhu had become an expert in hacking emails. I gave the long email ID of Rajasekhar Thirumalsamy to him. Prabhu stopped the car, asked me to drive and got in the other seat and started to do what he was best at.