Being tired of the case he was working on, He turned towards the coffee machine for his everyday coffee; same bitter same strong and equally important for his functioning.It was clear he was sleep deprived, the case was near to a dead end, and he was hoping for a miracle, for a lead to appear. He moved from his chair to cross examine the pictures of the victim and his phone rings
236Please respect copyright.PENANAYZEKKUj3ro
236Please respect copyright.PENANA6f5V3tePbv
Annoyingly he answers it since he had to get up from his chair and move to the table across the room,"Hello, Inspector Nakuul Shetty speaking."
A long silence follows,but no one responds for a whole minute, Nakuul suddenly feels a dryness in his throat.
"Hello inspector Nakuul, I have a surprise for you".
Nakuul really knew who it was, this voice had haunted him for months, this voice was the reason he could barely get some sleep. But he was just afraid of getting the information, afraid if there was any new mutilated dead body, afterall this call only meant death.
"DID YOU MISS ME?" the voice said,in a childish tone interupting Nakuul's thoughts
Nakuul was lost for words, h236Please respect copyright.PENANALog9dZesuW
236Please respect copyright.PENANAWxF7pLqB3c
is fears were coming true, What was it he thought again, 'A new Victim?'
"Did you find your partner lately? Yes, I'm talking about Viraj, Where is he?'
A haunted silence follows.
Nakuul froze. He went out of his office back to the adjacent floor of building, eyes scanning quickly across the room but in vain, he decided to ask
"Has anyone heard from Viraj? Where is he?"He shouted right after pressing the mute button on his phone.
Other officers exchanged silent, puzzled looks and Nakuul knew the answer even before it came.
"NO!" followed by "We din't see him since yesterday"
Nakuul still kept running on every floor, opening the doors of every office, every room,hoping for this to be a joke, hoping to see Inspector Viraj in his cabin or in Canteen having his 17th cup of tea, and cracking a joke which everybody laughed on expect for Nakuul, Furiously he unmutes and gets back to his phone,
"Tell me where is he? What have you done to him?" Nakuul demanded in a firm voice
The voice spoke" Oh that's not optimistic of you my dear. And now that I have your attention"
A long pause follows
"But it's a surprise, Nakuul." and a laughter followed.
"But I'll give you a chance to make a difference. Maybe this time you'll put more effort into it. Be at the place where it all started, to the laundry room. If you bring back-up he dies. If you don't make it within an hour, he dies. And trust me, Nakuul, it'll be a very slow and painful death."
"No, Don't do anything to Viraj , I will.... " the line went dead even before he could complete.
Nakuul rushed out of his office grabbed his keys and ran towards his car, he started driving the fastest he could, to the hotel, the famous one in Mumbai- The Taj, he reached and enquired people around showing Viraj's picture hoping someone would know where he might be. He found a pathway right on the same lane which looked like it was not discovered by the locals.
The deeper he went, the darker and hotter it got. His shirt was covered in sweat, his tight shoes crushing his feet.
"Where the hell is this laundry room?" he whispered as he reached much further.
A glimmer of light was coming from underneath a closed door at the end of a dark corridor, it looked completely deserted. He ran towards it calling his partner's name.
"HELLO, Anybody there? Viraj?"
Silence.
He moved slowly and entered still expecting someone to answer. A muffled thud came from inside a room. He cocked his gun and took a deep breath.
"FUCK IT!"
With his back still against the outside wall, he pushed the door open with his right hand.An unbearable smell of urine and vomit forced him to take a step back coughing violently.
"Viraj..." he called again from the door
Silence.
From outside he couldn't see much. The light hung from the ceiling above a small wooden chair in the center, which was too weak to illuminate.
236Please respect copyright.PENANAAoOclzB8Gw
236Please respect copyright.PENANA8No8bXgsfl
236Please respect copyright.PENANAGCZl0nPzzD
He drew another breath and took a step forward, What he saw made his stomach churn.
"HOLY SHIT"
Viraj was pinned to wooden structure which was diagonal to each other in a cage. He was naked only with his underwear on.His hands and feet were stitched with pins and he had few needles embedded in his body,his head was tucked with bare wire with sharp pointed ends on them which was placed on his head piercing his flesh Blood oozing all around his body and face. It looked too painful.
I'm too late, Nakuul thought.
Approaching the cage he was surprised to see a heart monitor inside. It's line peaking slightly yet steady.Viraj was still Alive.
"Hang on buddy, I will get you out of here"said Nakuul.
He surveyed the room. It was large, the floor was littered with rags, used syringes, crack pipes and glasses. In a corner to the right of the entrance door he could see an old and rusty chair. On the wooden table besides it sat a small tape recorder and a single note that read PLAY ME FIRST' in large Red letters
He pressed the button and the familiar voice came blasting out of the tiny speaker.
" WELCOME INSPECTOR, I guess you've made it in time."
Pause.
"You've no doubt realised that your friend needs your help, but for you to be able to help him you have to play by certain rules.... My rules.This is simple game Nakuul. Your friend is locked inside a bullet proof cage, so shooting it won't help you. On it's door you'll find four coloured buttons. One of them opens the cage, the other three- don't. Your task is quite simple- PICK A BUTTON. If you press the correct one, the door will open. Free your partner and walk out. Simple"
One chance in four to save Viraj- definitely not great odds, Nakuul thought
" Now here comes the fun part" the recorder played on.
"If you press any of the other three buttons an uninterrupted high- voltage current will be sent directly to wire crown on your partners head. Have you ever seen what happens to a human being while being electrocuted?" the voice said with a chilling laugh.
"Eyes burst, skin crinkles like meat, tongue recoils into their mouth choking them to death, blood boils, bursting vessels and arteries open. It's an exquisite scene, Nakuul.."
Nakuul's heart went into overdrive. He could see the line on the monitor peaking faster.
"And now for the really fun part..."
Nakuul knew that the electric trick wouldn't be the only twist in that room.
"Behind the cage I've placed enough explosives to obliterate the room you're in. The explosives are attached to the heart monitor and if it gets to read a flatline...' a longer pause this time.
Nakuul exactly knew what the voice on the recorder was going to say
"Boom.... The Room blows. So See you Nakuul, if you press the wrong button not only will you watch your friend die knowing that you've killed him, you'll get to die soon after."
Nakuul's heart was now beating viciously against his chest, sweat dripping from his forehead and stinging his eyes, hands shaky and clammy.
"But you have a choice Nakuul. You don't have to save your partner, just save yourself. Walk away now and leave him alone to die. No one will know. Can you live with that? Can you gamble your life for his? Oh and I forgot to inform- You've got 60 seconds." A loud beep came from the tape before it went silent.
Dead silence
"We are not dying today", comes the most optimistic statement Nakuul could make before dying breaking thr silence236Please respect copyright.PENANA8jZ58eO5t9
Nakuul saw a blue digital display above Viraj's head light up
236Please respect copyright.PENANAMngbu0rb4N
236Please respect copyright.PENANAjfAGJiqvrd
236Please respect copyright.PENANAW3QE9aP3xw
236Please respect copyright.PENANAafjVWvn9PY
236Please respect copyright.PENANAuQNbegj07y
59....
58.........
57.............
56....................
55..........................236Please respect copyright.PENANA6d2Td1wkTJ
236Please respect copyright.PENANA6uX0B3q5hn
236Please respect copyright.PENANAJqMZk7llq2
236Please respect copyright.PENANAPudhajJpgZ
236Please respect copyright.PENANAeU8zJZU89y
236Please respect copyright.PENANASSOdRuChKg
236Please respect copyright.PENANAoUSt2Fs7r3
236Please respect copyright.PENANAk6vZqomNJV
236Please respect copyright.PENANAakHrwAevcj
236Please respect copyright.PENANAizpjlyCU9b
236Please respect copyright.PENANA5R9JzH8tZr
236Please respect copyright.PENANAmmlzNMwwfq
236Please respect copyright.PENANAHku5Wee5ta
236Please respect copyright.PENANALFnXJMBhwh
236Please respect copyright.PENANAHYAoBwOlek
236Please respect copyright.PENANAXo4eX1vPkr
236Please respect copyright.PENANApsuVuthYgP
236Please respect copyright.PENANA0LoVUcvx7J
236Please respect copyright.PENANAly4ydaUvAB
236Please respect copyright.PENANA2yxh4sfFig
236Please respect copyright.PENANAJOiuJeS4xj
236Please respect copyright.PENANAgPAZvBG24B
236Please respect copyright.PENANAKzU3HDYFB3
236Please respect copyright.PENANAzKNmGzEMMY
236Please respect copyright.PENANAWK0MirgiWx
236Please respect copyright.PENANAJMWqeYYWQ6
236Please respect copyright.PENANAplKDvJogcj
236Please respect copyright.PENANA2ZrpBip68B
236Please respect copyright.PENANAeoH8Pq45vg
236Please respect copyright.PENANA1WZxmas4m3
236Please respect copyright.PENANAjCTq9sBkVn
236Please respect copyright.PENANAu3ngLsuTHM
236Please respect copyright.PENANA6ppC8TX1lJ
236Please respect copyright.PENANAxbl63IeYPR
236Please respect copyright.PENANA4ZtiBAK0P8
236Please respect copyright.PENANATfWK7kGNAF
236Please respect copyright.PENANAylJjvioBsX
236Please respect copyright.PENANAMEWQuchnNS
236Please respect copyright.PENANAbqkrXmIqmG
236Please respect copyright.PENANAEIuJrO8BdM
236Please respect copyright.PENANABxIpWrLFqy
236Please respect copyright.PENANAQ6msPHA8Rv
236Please respect copyright.PENANAJSt70jpkSV
236Please respect copyright.PENANAF2VbiYWdwt
236Please respect copyright.PENANAMhIRBFt0mH
236Please respect copyright.PENANAsVS1cN1uhv
236Please respect copyright.PENANA9WlLgr8zx2
236Please respect copyright.PENANAQz9xAViy9o
236Please respect copyright.PENANA4LOYJxM00v
236Please respect copyright.PENANAM7wpfveoHA
236Please respect copyright.PENANAcMTCMgntLy
236Please respect copyright.PENANArngJjnIF1W
236Please respect copyright.PENANAln8t33rYry
236Please respect copyright.PENANAh8cidY7Rzi
236Please respect copyright.PENANA0JfygBwbHu
236Please respect copyright.PENANA603dG3NVl5
236Please respect copyright.PENANAQUWpWIMSC6
236Please respect copyright.PENANAFVBIE9b5Fr
236Please respect copyright.PENANAtZ7Syq9TPY
236Please respect copyright.PENANAFiznjFZlfR
236Please respect copyright.PENANAf5casJ9Fj4
236Please respect copyright.PENANA0SwCUm96ha
236Please respect copyright.PENANAK46CgeD0xB
236Please respect copyright.PENANAWsWlD0sKS6
236Please respect copyright.PENANAT1xpnFQc22
236Please respect copyright.PENANANtxMKpY4cZ
Keep Reading, Critics are welcome!
ns 172.69.7.151da2