“Hold on, what’s going on?!” Riya asks herself, feeling confused and raises her hand as if questioning the mysterious man.
The very next moment, she wakes up on her bed, breathing heavily. She is sweating profusely. She gets up, walks to the bathroom, and washes her face. Her face in the mirror is that of a scared, perturbed, helpless girl. She recollects her dream but immediately wants to erase it permanently from her memory. She goes back to her room, and stands by the window as she stares at the distant moon outside. She can see Arjun’s room through her window; the light in his room is on. Obviously, he is also sleepless, probably suffering the same pain that she is going through.
Early the next morning, Riya walks across the garden to speak to Arjun as she had planned to do. Arjun is busy, as usual, on his laptop. He shuts it off immediately as he sees Riya at the door.
“Hi! Please come in Riya.”
“Hi,” Riya responds meekly, “How are you?” Arjun just chuckles, without a word, as he is somewhat surprised to see Riya.
“Arjun, I wanted to say something to you…,” Riya clears her throat and keeps it short, “Can we be… just as we were before?”
Arjun is confused, and repeats her phrase, “As before?”
“Yes, as we used to be.” Riya nods.
“Sure, I would love that!” Arjun responds with a faint smile.
“Me too!” Riya smiles back, “OK!”
“OK!” Arjun now has a broader smile on his face; he can read her body language and understands that she wants to forgive him. Riya stands there for a seemingly eternal moment, wishing to say so much more, but instead just smiles. Eventually she turns around, to walk back home, when Arjun calls her.
“Riya! I wanted to say something to you as well. I am really sorry for …”
Riya interrupts him before he can finish.
“Arjun! Did I say sorry to you about anything? Even though I know I spoke to you so rudely and treated you in such a bad way… I shouted at you in front of everyone at the school! Did I say sorry? Nor have I ever said thank you for so many wonderful things you have done for me… As I told you before, in friendship, there’s no sorry, no thank you! Right?” She ends her words with a big reassuring smile on her face.
Arjun reciprocates her smile, “Cool! I will definitely remember it this time!”
“Good for you! You better not forget it ever again then!... Friends? Just like old times?” She offers her hand.
“The pleasure is all mine!” Arjun grabs her hand and shakes it enthusiastically.
“Thank you Arjun! Oops… Sorry I mean… Oops again… No sorry, no thank you! Right!” Both of them laugh at Riya’s words.
What transpired as a tense few days leading onto and after the court day has left the two friends stronger, believing in each other and in their friendship. Moreover, they have realized that their special friendship of several years is too precious to be shaken off easily by a trivial incident.
Arjun and Riya’s friendship has stood through the storm …and emerged stronger after it.
ACT 4: PLANNING…EXPECTATIONS AND TARGETS
10 days ago
The Invitation
On a lazy Sunday afternoon at Arjun’s house, Riya and Puja are playing table tennis in the sports room in the ground floor. Arjun walks in, watches their game for a while, but is immediately bored by their slow pace. As the girls stop between one of their points, Arjun starts moving in slow motion like a robot, obviously making fun of their slow game.
“Very funny, Arjun!”, Puja speaks out.
“You girls used to play better! I know both of you can smash better but why aren’t you going for the kill when you have the opportunity? That’s what a good player should do. You are playing as if showing love and respect towards each other; as if you want this game to continue forever. In any game… you cannot leave opportunities for your opponent. You have to kill the shot to end the game.”
“C’mon bhaiyya, you are speaking as if it’s a war, not a game! And anyway stop lecturing like a coach!” Puja responds in a spiteful tone.
“Oh listen! Forget all this!” Riya puts her racquet on the table, and walks across to Arjun, “I have an important thing to say.”
“Yeah go on Riya! What is it?”
“I wanted to invite you this weekend to my party. I mean… invite all of you. Everyone!”
“Oh, yes, your birthday is next Saturday right?”
“And listen, you definitely have to come.”
“And what about me?” Puja deliberately teases her friend.
“Puja! You don’t need an invitation silly!”
“Next weekend?”Arjun says, “Next weekend will difficult for me. I have a business trip. I am flying off later in the week to Delhi for four or five days.”
“I don’t know anything about it,” Riya responds firmly. “Just cancel your trip. You have to come and that’s it. Pinky promise if you don’t come!” She clips her little finger on to Arjun’s quickly. Both the girls giggle. “I won’t cut the cake before midnight if you don’t come!”
“Hey c’mon! You and your pinky promises!” Arjun chuckles.
“Then you know … if the promise is not fulfilled…”
“Yeah, yeah, I know… I know!”
“And I also know that you love cakes. There will be a nice chocolate brownie cake.” Riya tempts Arjun, with a big smile on her face.
“Riya, I really wish I could come, but this trip is really important. Sorry! I won’t be able to make it.” Riya didn’t expect that response and is suddenly taken aback. She was jocundly playing around and immediately feels very awkward having been so adamant with Arjun. Puja senses the sudden change in her best friend’s mood.
“Bhaiyya, what is this? You have to come,” Puja steps in to support her friend.
“Try to understand Puja; I cannot cancel the trip. I need to be in Delhi over the weekend for this important conference. I wish I could but…”
Riya’s face expresses her disappointment, which she desperately tries to hide. “That’s alright Arjun… It’s OK! Work is more important.”
An awkward silence replaces the fun and frolic of a minute ago, as the three of them look at each other, avoiding mutual eye contact, unsure of what to say next.
“I should go now,” Riya abruptly begins walking away, feeling silly for being so persistent with Arjun.
“Riya!” Puja calls as Riya opens the door. “Bhaiyya, you are impossible…,” she scolds her brother in a lowered tone of voice. “Is this how you talk to someone?”
Arjun responds in a low voice too “What did I do?”
“What did you do? Don’t you understand anything? She really wants you to come to her birthday. Can’t you see?... She likes you!”
“Now, c’mon, Puja don’t be silly!”
“You are… Uff! All boys are just so stupid!” She walks on briskly to catch up with Riya at the door; inaudible discussions between the girls continue as they walk out.
Puja turns around to look at Arjun. She shakes a fist at him, to express her anger and disappointment at her brother’s insensitivity. Arjun realizes that he may have disappointed Riya, as she was expecting him to make any adjustments feasible to accommodate her request. But he knows better. The work at hand is more important anything he could care about… including his family and friends. Although he had mentioned Delhi as his destination to everyone in the family, citing the context of an Internet security conference that he is attending, he is actually planning to travel to Jammu.
A few days ago, Indian intelligence intercepted a message regarding a planning session to be held near the Jammu border between a major terrorist outfit and Pakistan’s ISI agency. Intelligence reports suggest that the agenda of the meeting is to discuss an arms deal to support the terrorist faction. This would threaten the security of the country on a massive scale; unconfirmed reports from various sources claim terrorist plans to undertake coordinated strikes across the country at the same time.
&n
bsp; However, Arjun is optimistic that RAW can thwart the threats posed by the ISI and the terrorists. In fact, he sees it as a golden opportunity to capture the terrorist outfits and ISI red-handed and to bring them to justice. He cannot forgo his trip to Jammu; everything else has to wait!
In Jammu, Near the LOC
The next weekend, instead of flying to Delhi, Arjun flies secretly to Jammu. He walks in at the army post near the Jammu and Kashmir Line of Control. A signpost by the road reads: POK border, 20km. The clear blue skies and beautiful hills remind every new comer in this part of the world, “If there’s a heaven on earth, it is here… here… here!”
But the beautiful valley has been in an extremely grim state over the last two decades. Every year, insurgents from across the border have sneaked in, as this Muslim-majority state has served as the focal point of Pakistan’s sustained cold war strategy against India. A picturesque valley that should have been blooming with tourists, honey-mooners, lively markets and shoppers, is instead distraught with terrorism lurking invisibly at every nook and corner.
A soldier comes marching in and salutes Arjun. “Sir!” He hands him a sealed document.
“Is the news confirmed?”
“Yes Sir. Our boys are ready, Sir!”
“Get them in.”
The soldier talks inaudibly on his walkie talkie. An armored vehicle moves in from a distance and stops across the dusty road. Soldiers wearing black commando suits come out and march down quickly, forming a queue. Arjun moves in swiftly, shaking hands with each of them. At one point, he stops and goes back to look at the last soldier he shook hands with.
“Krish?”
“Hi, Arjun.”
“Hey, how are you buddy? So nice to see you after such a long time!” Arjun shakes his hand again, and pats Krish on the shoulder.
“Nice to see you too, Arjun!” Krish responds promptly.
“Gentlemen, it’s nice to see amongst us a long lost friend I knew from my training days. The best shot in the world as I know today!” he chuckles looking at Krish. “Right, you have all been briefed already but let me repeat what we have gathered here for!” He opens a large map of a building. “Our aim is to capture the ISI commander alive and we also want to record the proceedings inside the mansion. We will need to reach the chamber here.” He taps his finger on the drawing, “This is where the meeting is going to be held. If we reach there stealthily, we will be able to surround them both from inside and outside. Capturing our target won’t be difficult then. But before we reach that chamber, we do not engage with any of their soldiers. I repeat, we need the ISI commander alive! So we do not engage in any firing until we have reached the central chamber and we fire upon my order! Is that clear?”
All the commandoes reply back firmly, “Yes, Sir!”
They board the vehicle as it drives out into the valley. The combat vehicle meanders through the beautiful hills and after about ten minutes’ drive they stop some distance away from a large old mansion. The huge mansion is guarded by armed militants, holding AK-47s and automatic weapons. Arjun and Krish lead the units from two separate directions. The Indian commandoes seek their way through, stealthily neutralizing the guards using their daggers; then they sneak past the barriers, through the long stretches of garden, and finally into the mansion.
A few stealth killings take place as the Indian forces get rid of sentinels along the way. They eventually reach inside the mansion without raising any alarms. Arjun signals for commandoes to take positions across the building. Krish, Arjun and three commandoes approach the main chamber through an overhead duct, while the other soldiers surround the main chamber, covering all the exit points. Arjun and Krish record the proceedings in their camcorders, as it seems a multi-outfit terrorist meeting is going on with the ISI commander. Krish can identify the leaders of five major terrorist outfits sitting there across the table with the ISI commander. This is bigger than everyone thought! Krish and Arjun carefully record the ongoing discussions on their camcorder as some key operations, to be undertaken by these outfits in the coming year, are being discussed.
Over the years, Pakistan has been promoting cross-border terrorism, but in recent times, it has also started providing these terrorists with strategic planning expertise to orchestrate such complex activities. So, such secret meetings between the ISI and terrorist outfits had become common recently. A large selection of arms and ammunition lies on the large central table, with a huge carton of boxes full of more ammunition by the side. The supply from the ISI for both arms and resources usually comes just before the winter months, in time for the materials and resources to be sneaked across the Jammu & Kashmir border, before snow shuts off the mountain passes for a good four or five months.
Suddenly a loud bang, followed by a burst of gun-fire is heard outside. Krish and Arjun stop the video recording and stow their cameras safely in their rucksacks.
“All units, engage and fire!” Arjun shouts on his walkie-talkie; they dive down using carabineers attached to the ropes, with their semi-automatics bursting into action at the same time.
Meanwhile, a massive explosion is heard outside the mansion as the battle between the Indian forces and terrorists gathers force. Bullets and automatic weapons are flying around. Commandoes have captured a few terrorist leaders already as they are surrounded from all points of the compass. Arjun and Krish approach the ISI commander, who is now shielded by a few Pakistani commandoes and ISI agents.
Krish has been exemplary in the field, marshalling the troops with extreme precision to counter the terrorists, as they are falling like flies. His strategic mind has been critical in this form of combat, as Arjun and Krish are closing in towards the ISI commander. However, the Pakistani commandoes resist capture with an onslaught of firing from automatic weapons, guns and grenades. Krish aims at the ISI commander, careful to shoot only at his leg. Blood spurts out as the bullet hits his left shin. With further precise shots, Krish takes down the remaining terrorists, as the last few ISI agents desperately try to get their commander out from the scene.
The news of the attack has already reached across the border by now, as the regular sound of bullets and grenades from outside is suddenly overshadowed by a mortar shell falling into the mansion’s compound. More mortars start pouring in, obviously from guns and tanks stationed a long distance across the border inside Pakistan. A few shells coincidentally land within the perimeter of the mansion, creating a big diversion along one of the walls. The ISI agents, shielding their Commander, sneak out of the mansion and get on board a jeep to crash through the fence. Indian commandoes in turn board their vehicles and chase the jeep in hot pursuit. Within minutes, an Indian helicopter from overhead is seen hovering over the mansion, supporting the operation.
A hot pursuit follows with the helicopter above providing aerial support. The jeep drives in through the thick hillside forests, rendering the aerial support ineffective. Eventually it’s all down to the Border Security Forces (BSF) to try and intercept the fleeing commander. Shells from Pakistan tanks are now falling with dangerous precision close to the mansion. Arjun decides that it’s time to get his team off the site, and he decides to retreat. to leave the rest of action to the army and the BSF.
“All units, retreat with your prisoners back to headquarters! I repeat, retreat immediately!” Arjun loudly issues the order on his walkie talkie.
“Arjun, I’ll take my team to follow the ISI Commander.” Krish responds.
“OK Krish, you follow them. I’ll speak to BSF for further support!” He picks up the radio, “Come in Head Quarters. Request BSF support to seal border with POK on highway 32 and neighboring areas. Target is ISI commander, last seen driving west with five ISI agents in black Mahindra Jeep. All units on red alert. We want the ISI commander alive! I repeat, we want the ISI commander alive at all costs! So please do not use heavy mortar to intercept the target! Over and out!”
Krish and three of his commandoes board another jeep and continue the chase. Meanwhile
Arjun and the rest of the team race past with the aerial helicopter giving them support as the core team returns to their headquarters with the captured terrorists. The operation continues for a few hours more, although Krish retreats to join Arjun at the base after an hour.
“Arjun, we gave it our best shot, but lost the bastard! The BSF boys are still hot on the trail, but it seems as if Pakistani commandoes crossed the border to provide support. There’s heavy firing going on in the forests, and I think they must have already sneaked their commander across the border.”
“Don’t worry, Krish; we have captured alive the leaders of five major terrorist outfits! Krish, you were amazing, buddy! You injured the ISI commander. It’s a pity he escaped else we could have shown him caught red-handed at this large terrorist outfit meeting.”
Krish and Arjun anxiously continue listening on the radio for any further news about the operations. Special units in pursuit continue to exchange fire, as it seems the jeep has already crossed the border, backed by heavy shelling from the Pakistani forces. The TV news channels based in Jammu are already broadcasting the increased shelling from the border. Phones have already started ringing in the high commissions of both countries and the Prime Minister’s office (PMO) has already called in the director of RAW and the commander in chief of the armed services to take stock of the situation.
Meanwhile at the Jammu headquarters, Arjun and Krish catch up on old times. Arjun tries to break the ice with his friend.
“I came to know about your family Krish… I was sorry to hear about it… After our training you always worked in covert operations… and I never got an opportunity to meet you in person to say this.”
“Don’t worry about it buddy! It’s been a long time now… I have already forgotten everything.”
Krish and Arjun completed their training together, though they took separate paths afterwards. Krish worked in covert operations and immediately went undercover in Pakistan and Afghanistan. He was instrumental in cracking the narcotics triangle that operated from Kabul to Karachi and onwards to Mumbai. Daewood Ibrahim was the mastermind of this drugs cartel and worked closely with the ISI at the time. However, Krish had to pay a heavy price for the success of his operation. His pregnant wife took the bullets shot by a mafia hitman and intended for Krish. After that incident, Krish was transformed into a killing machine; he became a sharp-shooter for numerous RAW operations across India and abroad.
Cold Love Page 8
