The Last Second

Sabari in a fraction of second tried to figure out whose voice it was. He was sure that he had heard it before, but couldn’t recollect. His mind couldn’t hold the suspense and he turned around. The moment he saw who it was, he got the shock of his life. In the opposite side, it was Abilash, standing leaning on the door with a grinned face. He looked annoyed and held a pistol in his hand. Sabari dropped the flower vase from his hand in the shock. Sabari exclaimed, “A..Abilash??” “Believe me… I didn’t want to make such an appearance in front of you and I tried my best to avoid it. But, fortunately or unfortunately, YOU made this happen. I cannot just watch my partners Prasanna and Pranitha harmed.” Sabari was out of words and stood silent. Abilash giggled. “Yes…. Prasanna and Pranitha are my partners and not siblings as how they were introduced to you. They are part of my bigger plan” “Plan??” “Yup… I will explain in detail…All this will end soon… First, get seated” Sabar...

The moment Sabari got a clue that the cops were not real, his mind went blank. His eyes were glued on the two cops. The other cop was waiting with a sarcastic smile. The cops who was chatting with Sabari said, “I can guess what is running in your mind. We are not the real cops” The confession from the cops gave him another tremor. “What do you guys want?” “You made our job simple… Appreciate it…Here is what you need to do. Get out of your car and walk backwards. There is a van parked to your right across road. You need to get into the van without throwing any tantrums.” “For what?” While the guy stared Sabari, in seconds, the other one came forward and gave a punch on his face. The blow landed on Sabari’s right corner of the mouth. For a moment, his eyes went blank and when he opened the eyes, his vision gradually became normal. His saliva tasted salty and he understood that it was the blood. Sabari wiped his mouth with his fingers to find blood in his hands. He decided t...

Sabari was taken aback after he heard the sarcastic comment from Prasanna over the phone. He moved the phone away from him, turned to Inspector Mahadev and whispered, “Sir… It’s Prasanna” Mahadev signaled him to switch on the speaker of the phone and Sabari obliged. Sabari continued the conversation. “I need to talk to Ananya right now” “Sure… After answering my question… “ “What was your question again?” “I asked why the hell are you roaming around with Inspector Mahadev without any concerns about your wife” “I’m actually concerned. Whatever I did so far are for her. You demanded me to quit from the Bionic Project. I accepted your demand and went to meet SIdharth to convey my decision to quit. When I went to meet him, I got the tragic news of his murder. I was shocked and depressed wondering what was happening around me. With multiple questions in my mind, I returned to the place where Ananya and myself met you. And then came to know that you vacated the temporary place al...

Inspector Mahadev asked, “Oh!!! We have just 5 more minutes for Vasudharini to call.. correct?” “Yes inspector.. She will call anytime from now” “But….”, Abilash dragged as he spoke. “What??” “I do have my own doubts” “About what?” “Vasu used to call twice or thrice in a day. Whenever she does, she always called me from anonymous landline numbers. I asked her for the reason and she replied that she lost her mobile. And that she had to call from one of the public phone”   “So.. What is your doubt here? Do you mean she is lying?” “Her mobile might have been lost or stolen... It can happen for anyone…I didn’t mean that” “What else?” “It is about the way she speaks…” “Is that not the voice of Vasudharini?” “No doubts about her voice… But the modulation and the tone… Something is not right” “OK… “ “I couldn’t come to a conclusion yet.. I’m confused and doubtful” “OK… Anyways.. she is going to call you anytime from now… When you speak, switch on the phone sp...

While Inspector Mahadev and Sabari were ready to leave the hall, security Rangaraj entered in along with a carry bag. He handed the carry bag to Mahadev. “Inspector… Here is the bottle from which I had the drink. “ “Ok.. I will get this checked by the forensic team. This will provide the sanity of the drink that you had” “Sir…. I didn’t do anything wrong…. All I had was just a drink and that made me intoxicated. Someone used this situation and barged into the residence. I don’t want this news to reach my owner. If it does, I may lose this job for sure” “You are worried about your job. But, I have my concerns on the incidents that happened behind the scenes. In this situation, all I would advise is not to get drunk for the next few days. “ Rangaraj nodded his head in acceptance for the advice. Mahadev and Sabari walked out of Shantilal’s Residence. Mahadev said, “Sabari…. Do you have your car?” “Yah..” “You can go straight to the hospital. I will follow you there… What i...

Sabari’s heart skipped a beat once he saw Inspector Mahadev outside Shantilal’s residence. His brain struggled and almost exhausted to find a reason to get over the situation. By holding the phone in his hand, he stood silent without uttering a word. Inspector Mahadev broke the silence. “Sabari!!! Let us start everything afresh. Let us sit together and can have an open interview once again. I’m gonna ask you a bunch of questions, may be, some might be repeated. I expect you to answer truly and I need ONE AND ONLY THE TRUTH. If you think that is not possible, we might have to sit in a different atmosphere, as a special guest, in the police station. Choose whichever will work for you..” “Sir… Please… Give me another chance to prove myself. I’m in troubled waters already. I will tell you all…” “That’s a wise decision. Let us do some talking. I will come over” Inspector Mahadev disconnected the call. He opened the front gate and walked through the portico. As the door was already...