Secret of the Himalayan Treasure

by Divyansh Mundra

  ​ “He was a fine man, your father. Invested in one of my earliest ventures. That’s how I knew him. He was like my mentor. He was always there to help me; like he was watching over me. Turns out, he actually was watching over me”, she spoke as she took a sip from her glass and pulled her hair back over her shoulders. “I was devastated when I saw his interview. When he spoke about the Ring of the Seven, and about somebody trying to kill him, I was scared. I had sensed that something was wrong, that something was amiss with our society, but I didn’t understand the gravity of the situation till I got your call. How many masters did you say have been murdered?”

  ​ “Three”, Aanya replied.

  ​ “Dear god!” Shayna exclaimed as she again went for her glass. “This is bad. This is very, very bad.”

  ​ “Can you tell us about the master you are supposed to watch over?” Aarav asked Shayna.

  ​ “Before we talk about me and my duties with the Ring; I would like to know why treasure hunters are being allowed to intrude in our organization. What is your play here? What is your end goal? Are you planning to find the treasure yourself? If that is the case, then I don’t know what the difference is between you and the man who is trying to claim it.”

  ​ “We are not murdering people, for one. That’s quite a big difference from where I am standing”, Aarav started with his smart talk.

  ​ “You are on your way towards the greatest treasure in the world, without even being a part of our secret. You seem like quite a gold digger from where I am standing.”

  ​ Aarav lifted his left eyebrow and stared at Shayna. “I am not a gold digger. I don’t care about the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. I seek the thrill in the journey behind reaching there.”

  ​ “Ms. Shayna. Look. We are not chasing the treasure”, Aanya lied. “If it was up to me, I wouldn’t have even given a second thought about the Ring of the Seven and all the myths and mysteries associated with it. But the truth is, that someone is killing people for the treasure. Someone out there forced my father to commit suicide. And he can murder anyone of us to get what he wants.”

  ​ “I concur”, Rehann joined in the lie. “The truth is, that four of the seven masters are dead. It means that one of the other two masters has to be the one who is behind it. Our end goal here is to find him and stop him. It doesn’t matter if we get to the treasure or not. We have to get to him first.”

  ​ “The master whom I am supposed to watch over is not the killer. Trust me”, Shayna spoke as she took another sip, her lipstick embossing the glass.

  ​ “What makes you say so?” Aarav asked her after he sneaked a peek at her glass.

  ​ “Clever. But I am not revealing anything about that master to you”, she continued with a relaxed smile.

  ​ “So are you not going to help us?” Aanya asked.

  ​ “I want to. I really do. But I am a master of the Ring of the Seven. I have some responsibility towards keeping our secret alive.”

  ​ “I don’t think you realize that there is now no seven in the Ring”, Aarav raised his voice a bit.

  ​ “And that increases my responsibilities even more.”

  ​ “By letting some psychopath kill everyone and destroy the Ring?”

  ​ “No. By standing up to protect our legacy, our secrets from treasure hunters like you”, she spoke as she looked at an incoming call on her mobile phone and declined it.

  ​ “And what legacy are you trying to protect? Have you even seen the treasure with your own eyes? For all we know, some British explorer who was scouting the Himalayas would have uncovered it in the 19th century and took it all for his queen secretly while the Ring was busy trying to infiltrate the company.”

  ​ Shayna again declined the call and she texted someone before continuing. “You don’t like us, do you?” she added a smile as she went to refill her glass. “Ever since you came here, you haven’t exchanged a word with Aanya. She has been largely ignoring you. I’m guessing that you had a falling out with one of the masters and are trying to get on the nerves of another one.”

  ​ Aanya looked at Aarav briefly as he continued. “What happened between us is irrelevant to this quest. We are still on the same page when it comes to the bigger picture. It doesn’t matter if I am not speaking with one of the masters.”

  ​ “I don’t think so”, Shayna replied mischievously.

  ​ “I’m speaking to you.”

  ​ “Does that make me special?”

  ​ “No. But I can tell that you are enjoying this”, Aarav spoke getting angrier.

  ​ “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interfere”, Shayna continued as she declined another call. “It was probably the liquor talking. I have to try and cut it off.”

  ​ Suddenly a plump woman came rushing into the lounge. She was dressed in business formals, but they were spoiled as she was sweating profusely. It looked like she had been running for a while and it took her some time to grab her breath before speaking.

  ​ “Ms. Maheshwari”, she couldn’t speak further as she stopped to inhale deeply.

  ​ “What is it now Raksha? I’m in the middle of a meeting.” Shayna asked her, least concerned.

  ​ “I tried calling you”, Raksha was panting hard. “I tried to reach you.”

  ​ “Grab your breath. Is everything okay?”

  ​ “No ma’am. Some armed men have entered the tower. They are shooting their way past the security.”

  ​ “What?” the four of them uttered almost simultaneously as they stood up.

  ​ “Yes. I think they killed the security in the lobby and are headed up. We need to get you out of here ma’am.”

  ​ “You don’t think they are here for us. Right?” Rehann asked only to get no reply from anyone as they all stood frozen.

  ​ “The book. Is it here?” Aarav asked Shayna.

  ​ “I can’t tell you”, she replied, trying to compose herself.

  ​ “Ms. Shayna please.” Aarav went near her. “This is not the time. Is it here or is it not?”

  ​ “My security is outside. They will tackle those men. We can go to the fire exit and take my chopper from the helipad on the floor above.”

  ​ “Those are killers, Ms. Maheshwari. They went past the security on the ground floor. Do you think they can’t get past a few guards who haven’t even fired a bullet?”

  ​ Shayna thought something for a moment. “We will be fine”, she said as she picked up her glass and emptied it in a single gulp before rushing towards a drawer of a table in a corner. “Raksha call my chopper right now”, she ordered her as she took out a handgun from the drawer.

  ​ “I don’t think that will be enough”, Aarav blurted.

  ​ “There is a door behind the bar that leads to a fire escape. We will get out from there”, she continued speaking as she further stomped ahead and pulled the fire alarm. The lights suddenly dimmed and an earsplitting noise enveloped the towers. Water sprays suddenly started showering over them and it almost became hard to see in the dim red and white lights. Aarav went ahead, held Shayna by her hand and turned her towards him.

  ​ “Is the Book of Finance here?” he shouted at the top of his voice, trying to shroud the shrill sound of the fire alarm.

  ​ Shayna looked into his eyes for a moment, analyzing if it was right to trust her secret on a treasure hunter. She appeared to be unfazed by the attack, imitating the persona of a powerful and charming woman that she carried. But from the inside, she was anxious. She doled her blue eyes into Aarav’s dark brown ones for a moment before she moved her head into the slightest of nods.

  ​ “Then go get it. Now. We cannot let them have it”, Aarav continued speaking as he let go of her arm. “Aanya, save your book from the water of the sprays. Rehann, find and open the door towards the fire exit. And Shayna, get your book while I’ll handle them”, he continued speaking as he moved his hands down Shayna’s wrists and slowly pulled the handgun from her fingers.

  �
�� “The chopper will be here in a few minutes”, Raksha spoke to them.

  ​ “That would be too late”, Rehann reasoned. And he was right.

  ​ The glass of Shayna’s office door was shattered as four men barged inside. One of them aimed his gun at the fire alarm and shot, cutting off the shrill noise from that end of the floor. They were all dressed in a black and red attire, while golden masks covered their faces. The masks were distinct, with a single glass panel covering both of their eyes, while protruding outwards like gas masks, from below the nose. Two curved horns raised from the sides of the masks, giving them the appearance of a bull. The men soon plodded ahead and entered the lounge where all the others were present.

  ​ “Put your hands up. Nobody moves. Or we’ll put a hole in your brains”, one of the masked men shouted. To his surprise though, a bullet made home into his own brain instead as Aarav fired thrice, one of his shots hitting the mark. That man went down as the bullet penetrated his thick mask and made home inside his brain, killing him instantly.

  ​ “Take cover”, Aarav yelled at the top of his voice as he grabbed Shayna by her waist and pulled her behind a pillar in a corner. Aanya, Rehann and Raksha, who were standing on the other side jumped behind the bar counter, luckily in time as the others opened fire.

  ​ “How many bullets does this one have?” Aarav asked Shayna hurriedly.

  ​ “Six”, she replied, panicked. “How many did you fire?”

  ​ Aarav pulled her down as the bullets started coming their way. “Three”, he spoke, concerned.

  ​ “Did you just kill that man?”

  ​ “I don’t know. I didn’t see.” He threw his right arm out from behind the pillar and fired two more shots without even looking. But that didn’t deter the volley of bullets that were being showered upon them by the men in golden bull masks.

  ​ “What do we do now?” she clung on to him as she panicked.

  ​ “Whatever may happen, don’t give them your book”, he spoke as pieces of broken tiles started raining upon them due to the impact from the assault.

  ​ All of a sudden, the assailants stopped firing. The lounge, which had been lit up by the sounds of gunfire finally fell quiet, only the echoes of fire alarms going off on the rest of the floors were audible. Shayna and Aarav looked at each other, both standing nervous and scared and panting hard as they curled in a corner behind the pillar. The dim red lights of the lounge were flickering and the noise and chaos of the people who had rushed out of the tower could be faintly heard. Police sirens were going off in the distance. But neither Aarav nor Shayna were able to think of a way to escape the place.

  ​ “Aarav”, they heard Aanya’s voice. “Shayna”, she spoke again as she shivered.

  ​ Aarav closed his eyes and grunted in frustration.

  ​ “Come on now. We are not playing hide and seek the entire night”, one of the men spoke out loud.

  ​ Aarav was the first one to come out with both his hands held up. Shayna followed him next as she stared at the masks of her assailants. The three men had each of their guns on the heads of Aanya, Rehann and Raksha, who were all forced out from hiding and were made to sit on their knees, while the dead body of the fourth assassin drowned in his own blood before them.

  ​ “You”, the masked man continued speaking to Shayna. “Bring me the other book. Now”, he muttered as he showed off the Book of Alchemy in his hand. “Did you not hear me?” he barked while knocking his gun on Rehann’s head. “I said, bring me your book. Now.”

  ​ “I can’t. It is not here”, Shayna lied.

  ​ “I’m not interested in playing this game. Bring me the damn book.”

  ​ “But it is not here. I’m telling the truth. Believe me.”

  ​ The man slowly closed his eyes inside his mask before speaking again. “F, I’m going to count till five. If by that time she doesn’t agree to bring me her book, shoot whoever you are holding.”

  ​ “The book is not here”, Shayna uttered in frustration.

  ​ “Five”, the man yelled.

  ​ “But I don’t have it.”

  ​ “Four.”

  ​ “God! Believe me please.”

  ​ “Three.”

  ​ “She’s speaking the truth. Don’t be absurd. Stop this. Now”, Aarav defended her.

  ​ “Two”, he fired a bullet at Aarav, barely missing him by inches.

  ​ “It’s not here”, she yelled.

  ​ “Oh! I’m ready to believe you. One.”

  ​ “I don’t have the book. Please. Stop it”, she shrieked at the top of her voice.

  ​ The man stopped counting. He looked at Shayna’s blue eyes for a few seconds before speaking again. “Do it.”

  ​ A loud bang echoed in the lounge and suddenly everything went silent. The man called F didn’t hesitate in pulling the trigger of his gun, which he had kept to the side of Raksha’s head. Pieces of her brain and bones sprayed on Rehann’s face, who was held next to her, along with a shower of thick, warm blood. He stood frozen. They all did. His eyes grew wide as he looked to his left and saw Raksha’s body slowly falling down on the floor. The bullet never passed through her head. Or maybe it did; it was hard to tell. Her eyes were still open as her body hit the floor, staring at Rehann hauntingly. Aanya and Shayna held their hands over their mouths and closed their eyes at once. Aarav looked at Rehann, his eyes widening with the same horror.

  ​ “That’s tit for tat”, the masked guard holding Rehann spoke again.

  ​ “Who is behind you? Who is paying you to do this? Who is that master?” Aarav shrieked.

  ​ “You are in no position to question me. I, on the other hand have three more people to kill if the pretty lady doesn’t bring me what I want. F, why don’t you go ahead and give this blabbering baboon a taste of your medicine?”

  ​ F stomped on Raksha’s dead hands as he moved ahead. He increased the pace of his walk, almost ran as he neared Aarav and brought his knee up to meet Aarav’s abdomen. The blow was hard and it immediately threw Aarav back. He brought his hands up to defend himself but failed against the massive arms of F. A punch rocked the left side of his face soon, followed by another one, and another one, and another one, until Aarav was forced down on the floor. Then F decided to flex his legs as he stomped his shoes on Aarav’s chest again and again.

  ​ “Stop this madness. Now”, Shayna struggled as tears started welling up in her eyes.

  ​ But F didn’t. He went ahead, sat on Aarav’s chest and started punching his face again. “That’s enough”, the man in the mask ordered F to stop. “He killed C. I will have my fun with him later. But right now, I realized that since I have the Book of Alchemy, I no longer need the Alchemist in the equation. Do I?”

  ​ Shayna could imagine his devilish laugh from under his mask as he went past Rehann and crouched as he came closer to Aanya. He touched the tip of his gun on the temple of her head and slowly swiveled it down her long nose, only stopping on her lower lip.

  ​ “Oh it would break my heart to kill you”, he continued speaking. “I enjoyed following you for the past few days. Chasing you and your fancy cars, it was amazing. It was something new.” He went ahead and grabbed her by her neck with his other hand. “I also enjoyed questioning that old lady in the library. She was a tuff one, didn’t give anything away.”

  ​ Tears started rolling down Aanya’s eyes.

  ​ “I carved her face more beautifully than I had carved my mother’s”, the man continued speaking.

  ​ “Leave her out of this”, Rehann defended her.

  ​ “And who are you? Why are you even here? You have nothing to do with the Ring in the first place. U, teach him some manners, will you?”

  ​ U, who was holding Aanya, went ahead and landed a solid one on the back of Rehann’s head, making him fall down.

  ​ The man in charge however, pulled Aanya by her hair and started stroking his hand all across her face. “I saw your father killing himself,
you know. I saw him take out his pistol and blow his brains off. Poof. Just like that. I was there. I could feel him looking at me before he pulled the trigger. I think he knew that I was there to kill him.”

  ​ “You bastard”, Aanya yelled as she started hitting his mask with her hands.

  ​ “No, no, no, no. No. No. Calm down now”, he twisted her arm and forced her head down on the floor all of a sudden as he placed his gun on the side of her head. “Oh she’s a feisty one”, he spoke to Shayna. “Now. I will count to three this time. Bring me my book or I spoil her pretty face. One.”

  ​ “Stop”, Shayna broke. “I’ll bring it.”

  ​ “That’s like my good girl. F, bring the treasure hunter to U and then go with her.”

  ​ F dragged Aarav’s broken body to U, who was knocked out of his senses, and then went towards Shayna. Aarav looked into Shayna’s eyes and nodded his head slowly before touching his hurting face. Shayna understandably observed him before turning back and leading F to another room.

  ​ “Now. You. Aarav Kohrrathi. The famous treasure hunter. You killed one of my boys”, the man left Aanya and walked towards Aarav. He grabbed Aarav by his hair and pulled his face ahead towards C’s dead body. “Look at the mess you made. Poor guy. He had two little children you know. They are never meeting their father again. He also had a pretty wife; a city girl he met in a fair. She is quite fine you know. Tall, set in her manners and oh, her bosom is remarkable. I mean not as good as Shayna Maheshwari’s, but a fine one nonetheless. Sadly, even she won’t see him again. Maybe I’ll pay her a visit. I always wanted to know what it feels like to have a wife”, he laughed as he smacked Aarav’s head with the hilt of his gun. “I never liked him to be honest. Would have killed him myself someday probably. Glad you did it. But you still killed one of my men and you have to be punished.”

  ​ U, who was holding Aarav and Rehann, started hitting them hard.

  ​ “Stop it. You have what you want”, Rehann tried to speak up but was met with U’s fist.

  ​ “Oh! You men are pathetic”, the man in-charge continued. “So weak. So frail. In our days, we used to wrestle in pits of sand in our village. And instead of going for higher studies, we trained and served in the army.”