Cold Love (22 page)

“Best of luck Arjun!” Krish continues,
“I salute you, you are a hero! Now the decision is in your hands.” He places a
memory card from his inner pocket on the table, “Here are the geo-location
codes of all Pakistan’s arsenals. Trust me on this.” He taps the desk next to
the memory stick. “The file is encrypted but I know only you are capable to
decrypt it. Whatever you decide, Arjun, just make sure that truth and
righteousness do not end up on the losing side.” He puts his hand on Arjun’s
shoulder, “If you need anything, this life is dedicated to my country and to my
friends. I’ll take your leave buddy.” He goes to the door.

Just as he is about to open the door,
Arjun calls him back, “Krish!”

Krish turns back. Arjun raises his hand.
Krish walks back to clasp it and hug him.

“All the best Arjun. Riya, I am really
sorry I got you involved in this. I didn’t know that you loved Arjun. I have
wronged you; if possible please forgive me.” Krish walks away as Arjun enters
the code into the security system to let him through.

“Arjun, what happened with Krish?” Arjun
doesn’t respond. “Please tell me Arjun, what is Krish’s story?”

“Krish was the guy who broke the
narcotics ring called the golden triangle that operated between Kabul, Karachi
and Mumbai. Dawood Ibrahim and ISI worked very closely at that time. But he had
to pay a very heavy price.” Riya listens intently, feeling nervous about what
Arjun has to say, “He had a beautiful wife. I have seen her pictures from the
files. She looked… just like you!”

“Me?”

“Yes… They were at a restaurant, to
celebrate the news that she was pregnant with their first child... They had a
lovely dinner but when they came out, the bullets that Dawood’s men had planned
for Krish ripped into his wife instead. She died on the spot.” Riya gasps,
holds her hand on her head, very distressed. “After that incident, Krish turned
into RAW’s covert operations specialist… a killing machine! He worked
everywhere in the world that the department asked him to. He is the sharpest
shooter in the department, and you know as well… the most intelligent
strategist in our department!”

Riya gently nods affirmatively, agreeing
with him.

“Arjun, remember you had promised me on
the night of Puja’s engagement. Can I ask you for something?” Arjun remains
expressionless as he listens intently “Fulfill your promise for our country,
Arjun!” She picks up the memory stick lying on the desk and raises it up for
him. “For God’s sake, eliminate those evil nuclear weapons! End this cold war
forever!”

Arjun takes the memory stick from her
hand. He also picks the guns lying on the desk and pockets the guns and the
memory stick.

“Riya, it’s the evil mindset that we
need to eliminate first.” He shakes his head and continues in a stern tone. “I
cannot fulfill the promise I made. Because you are not the same Riya I made
that promise to.”

Tear droplets roll down Riya’s eyes upon
hearing these harsh words.

“It’s best that we never meet again,
Riya.” Arjun continues, “Just forget everything! Perhaps we were meant to go
this far only. Tell uncle aunty that we were discussing Rakesh’s incident. I’m
sure they must be concerned by now. Take care of them Riya.”

Arjun gives her a hug as Riya wraps her
arms around his neck. She cannot think what to say or do next. Arjun walks to
the door and stops there to look back at her.

“Bye Riya!... Goodbye.”

Arjun walks out of the house, leaving
Riya on her own. She stands there for a while and then slowly starts walking
back home.

The
Gateway- Stealing Away

The Gateway of India is a popular
tourist spot and tourist helicopter rides have become a popular attraction in
recent times amongst those wishing to get an aerial view of the beautiful city.
A couple of days later, at the Gateway of India, a large well-built man and a
smaller man are waiting in the queue amidst the other tourists for this ride.
The big man is constantly looking around in all directions.

“How many tickets?”, the clerk asks
them.

“Two… No…Uhh… six. We want the whole
helicopter to ourselves.”

They make the payment and move forward
in the queue. A security person scans the tourists for metal items. “What is
this?” he asks the small guy.

 “Oh! Just a Swiss knife, for cutting
fruit.” He smiles. 

“You cannot take it. I’ll keep it here
at the counter,” he hands the small guy a coupon to collect it after the
helicopter ride. The clerk then scans the big guy. The machine beeps loudly
because of the large watch that he is wearing. The man takes off the watch, and
the scan works fine. The clerk gives the watch back to him and they get into
the helicopter. Soon the helicopter takes off and swirls over the Gateway of
India.

After a while, the big guy in the
helicopter fumbles with his watch, swiftly taking out a long metal wire from
its edge. He throttles the pilot in one clean move. He then unclasps his big
watch and turns it inside out to form a long metal dagger. The short guy,
meanwhile, has taken over the controls of the helicopter and they swoop down to
the edge of the water, flying very low over the sea, back towards the Gateway
of India and into the city.

An hour later, Arjun’s mobile rings in
his new home outside the city. It’s Rakesh. He starts speaking as soon as Arjun
picks up the phone.

“Arjun, I need to apologize to you. I
have thought it through and I’ve decided there’s no way I can live without
Puja. I want to speak to her.”

“That’s great Rakesh, and thanks for
that!” Arjun is overjoyed, “I’ll arrange for Puja to call you. Listen, I will
have to speak to you later as I’ve an important call coming through.” Arjun picks
up the other call and speaks.

“Hi Krish.”

“We got the news about the hitman,
Arjun! It is Azhar!”

“Azhar?”

“Yes. He is the one who shot your dad.
He is now in Mumbai for you.”

“Thanks for letting me know Krish. I’m
waiting for this moment as well!” Arjun puts the phone down.

A moment later it rings again. It’s the
number from the security man at Riya’s house. He blurts out nervously, “Sir, a
terrible thing happened just now. A tourist helicopter entered our compound. At
that very moment Riya madam had returned from a trip outside. There was a big
guy holding a knife to madam’s neck and before we could do anything, the
helicopter flew away with her.”

“What! What are you saying?” Arjun ends
the call and immediately calls another number. At the same time, he logs into
his laptop and turns the video conference unit on. Lt Gen Khanna is already
there.

“Arjun, I was about to call you. Azhar
has kidnapped Riya in a Virgin V52 tourist helicopter and was last reported
flying north west from your home. We are tracking every radar unit. However,
they are flying very low and are difficult to trace. I suspect he may try to
fly to the border. I’ve requested the Air Force for two MIGs to be deployed
immediately. The codename is Eagle. They should be authorized in the next
couple of minutes. Arjun, I’ve sent a Cheetah helicopter for you as well. Krish
will fly in with you.”

“Thank you Sir. I really appreciate it.”

“Don’t worry Arjun. Go get him!”

Arjun walks nervously about the room. He
clenches his hands. A visual on the workstation glows and there’s a dial tone
sound.  Arjun switches on the radio.

“Eagle reporting Sir.”

“Arjun here. Go on Eagle.”

“No sightings yet, Sir. Eagle 1 flew
north west of Mumbai but seems like they are not on this route. Same report
from Eagle 2 off the Bombay high.”

Krish enters at that very moment and
asks curiously, “Hi Arjun. Any update?”

“No. If they fly low then they won’t be
seen on the radar and with each passing minute,” he draws concentric circles
around Mumbai with larger diameters and an arrow pointing out towards the sea,
“Our chances are getting slimmer.”

“Yes Arjun. We need to act fast.”

“There’s one option!” Arjun suddenly
beams. “Satellite!” He

sits
down at his workstation and immediately starts typing frantically on the
keyboard. The screen shows a message- “
Entering US Geostationary Satellite
System
”.

“Isn’t that the US Star Wars Satellite
program? The one that President Regan had started, but was canned after the end
of the Cold War?”

Arjun nods, “Only officially canned! The
US spy satellite system!” he continues to type vehemently. An hourglass figure
dial is revolving on the screen and the next moment a message reads “
Login
Authenticated
”. 

“Yes!” Arjun clicks on the earth icon,
and then on the button that reads, “Enter search area”. He quickly zooms on an
area covering Mumbai and the sea around it.

 “So, can this spy down to the local
level?”

“Yes. As they say, Regan was building it
to be able to spy down to even read a car’s number plate if visible. The
challenge, though, is speed. If the search area is too big, naturally the
search takes a while to get down to.”

“Interesting.”

Arjun continues to type vehemently.

“Ok. I have now logged on to the
geostationary satellite just above Mumbai.”

The next message reads “
Enter search
object
”.

Arjun types in, “Virgin V52 Tourist
helicopter” and drags the icon of the image that appears to drop it onto the
search area- from Mumbai and the Arabian Sea till the edge of Gujarat. The
system shows a refresh icon for a few seconds, and then shows a live satellite
video of a helicopter flying on the shores of the city towards Gujarat few
miles south of the Rann of Kutch. Arjun immediately switches on the radio.

“Arjun calling Eagle and Cheetah. Note
location 21N 75E, all units intercept! Now! Use threat but do not shoot down.
Repeat, do not shoot as we have a hostage situation. Go get them Eagles! Over
and out!”

Both dash out immediately to board the
Cheetah helicopter and immediately fly off as well, eager to intercept the
enemy. In a few minutes the radio beams again. Arjun turns it on. 

“Eagle calling Cheetah. Target in my
view Sir. 24N 70E. We saw two parachutes bail out when challenged by Eagle2.
The helicopter has just crashed. But they are in the neutral no fly zone, the
Rann of Kutch. We had a message from the Air Chief Staff saying that Pakistan
Air Force has requested Indian headquarters for an immediate de-escalation.
They have threatened engaging their F32 jets. Awaiting orders, Sir.”

“Ok. Wait for instructions. Keep within
our borders. Over and out.” 

Arjun suddenly gets a message on his
mobile. “Arjun, Call me on radio- Frequency 1458. Azhar.”

Arjun picks up the radio and adjusts its
knob.

“Arjun Sahib. You are coming aren’t you?
I’m on the ground and you are sending MIGs after me? Take your MIGs back
because our F32 jets are getting ready as well.”

“What do you want?”

“You. Alone. Note the drop-in location-
24 degrees 30minutes N, 70 degrees E. Take your MIGs back. And yes, don’t try
to bring any weapons or knives else your friend here… will be slashed in a
minute. One wrong move and she’s dead! From now on until we meet keep the radio
always on and order your MIGs to go back now.”

Arjun switches knobs on the panel of the
helicopter, “Cheetah calling Eagle! Disengage and standby. Repeat disengage
immediately, return to the border and do not cross border. Standby for further
instructions. Over and out.”

The radio on panel beams again. Arjun
turns it on. 

Lt Gen Khanna is on the radio, “Arjun.
The Pakistan Air Force has asked us to disengage. They have two F32s now in air
by edge of our border. We suspect one of them is nuclear-armed. I’ve told the
Pakistan Head of Staff that there will be no border violations from our side.
The situation is very critical Arjun. We have put our missiles on red alert as
well. The PM’s office is on the red telephone line to their Pakistani
counterpart as we speak. The White House has been calling the PMO as well. I am
concerned we will have to pull back. I’m sorry, Arjun; we cannot let this
escalate.”

“Sir. I have asked the Eagles to
disengage. I request your permission for Cheetah to enter the neutral zone.
Cheetah has no heavy artillery. Please tell Pakistan HQ that I am dropping down
alone. Unarmed! This is a rescue mission only. Repeat, I’m unarmed and this is
a rescue mission only. Not an offensive or an exercise.”

Lt Gen Khanna waits for a while and then
responds, “Ok. I trust your judgment, Arjun. But remember… Your life is very
precious for the country son. Azhar has a dagger as far as we know. It is
possible he has a small gun, but it appears unlikely. I want you to know that
Azhar has a neurological disorder so that his muscles do not tire… I’m told he
is the fastest person in this part of the world… So move quickly but conserve
your energy. Get him son! I will take care of things here. All the best!”

“Thank you Sir”. Arjun turns off the
knob. All this while, Azhar had been listening to everything through his radio
that is continually on.

“Arjun Sahib. Are you still coming or
has your boss scared you away? But as I said… come unarmed!”

“Ok, Azhar! I am coming.”

Krish gestures to Arjun in sign
language. “I’ll drop off here…you,” he moves his hand ahead quickly, “you drop
ahead…I’ll run... shoot target down.” Arjun nods a yes, gives thumbs up to the
pilot and gestures the helicopter to go lower. Krish gets ready wearing his
parachute and jumps stealthily barely a few meters above the ground. The
helicopter continues further. Arjun jumps down with the radio in hand further
ahead at the location that Azhar had asked for. The parachute drops in the
midst of the white dry desert of the Rann of Kutch. About a hundred meters ahead
Arjun can see Azhar holding Riya with a dagger at her throat. Another small man
is standing nearby.

Arjun starts walking towards them. “I am
here, Azhar! Let Riya go.”

“Sure I will.” He chuckles
sarcastically, “But what do I say… this is the second time this beautiful
damsel has bumped into me. And you are looking even hotter on this occasion my
baby!” He moves the dagger just under her chin.

Azhar shouts at the small man “Eh! Go
check him.”

The small man walks up to Arjun, who
raises his hands.

“All clear.”

“Arjun! I have a principle,” Azhar
continues, “I never let go of a prey in hand. But your girlfriend here; I would
have killed her by now had she not been so beautiful. So I’ll do a deal with
you and give her some time to live. I will first kill you,” he points the
dagger forward, “and then,” he takes the dagger back to Riya’s breasts, ripping
a button off her t-shirt… “then I will rape your little birdie…!”

Riya spits upon him upon hearing this.
Azhar slaps her and throws her to the ground. “Hey grab her!” he instructs the
small man who holds Riya’s hands behind her back.

“Arjun, today only one of us will return
back home. And only one of us will have this girl!” He smiles showing a dirty
black tooth from under his unkempt beard.

Arjun doesn’t reply, and takes a stance
for the fight. Azhar bends low to take a stance too flashing his dagger. He
charges in at an amazing speed towards Arjun, who avoids numerous slices of the
dagger as they fight at high speed. The two men exchange numerous fast punches;
they duck, jump and dodge in a manner worthy of a Jackie Chan movie. After a
crazy set of swift punches and dodges, it ends with Azhar kicking Arjun with
full force on his chest; this sends him reeling a few meters back. Arjun skids
back on the ground, and puffs air out of his mouth.

 Riya gasps, her hand to her mouth,
amazed at their speed, “Oh my God!” The small man is spell-bound at the speed
of action as well and has let go Riya’s hand.

 “This is the first time I have met
someone worth a good fight. This is going to be fun!” Azhar takes a stance
again with a devilish smile on his face.

Meanwhile, Krish is keeping low, running
at top speed in the desert landscape, holding a sniper gun. In the hot dreary
desert of the Rann of Kutch, there is barely any cover, but Krish is still able
to move fast, bent over, unnoticed.

Azhar dashes towards Arjun again, who
decides to play dodge this time to keep avoiding Azhar’s dagger. After a few
moves, Azhar does reach him, and an equal fistful of jabs and punches are
exchanged, although Arjun is falling short because of being bare handed. Riya
spots a small aluminum rod on the ground by her feet. She runs to grab the rod
and bangs the small man’s head, as he falls down on the ground.