House of Tales… Episode 11

#Houseoftalesepisode11

#houseoftalesepisode11

Links of earlier episodes: #Houseoftalesepisode1

#houseoftalesepisode1, #Houseoftalesepisode2,

#houseoftalesepisode2, #Houseoftalesepisode3

#houseoftalesepisode3, #Houseoftalesepisode4

#houseoftalesepisode4, #Houseoftalesepisode5

#houseoftalesepisode5, #Houseoftalesepisode6

#houseoftalesepisode6, #Houseoftalesepisode7

#houseoftalesepisode7, #Houseoftalesepisode8

#houseoftalesepisode8, #Houseoftalesepisode9

#houseoftalesepisode9, #Houseoftalesepisode10

#houseoftalesepisode10

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#rhituparnachakraborty

Author: Rhituparna Chakraborty

#Disclaimer: This is an original work of fiction with no relation to any person/organism living or dead. Every episode, every character is a work of imagination. Any resemblance to any person, organism, place, character or situation is purely coincidental. There is no intention to hurt or rebuke anyone or any profession through this work. This story/episode cannot be copied, published or reproduced without the permission of the author RhituparnaChakraborty.

After some time Rohan came to see Mushtaque. Seeing him Mushtaque smiled and said, ‘Hello Doctor!’ Rohan smiled warmly and asked, ‘How are you feeling?’ Mushtaque said, ‘Fit as a fiddle.’ Rohan laughed and said, ‘You do look fit. But I will need to check and then tell you.’ Mushtaque asked, ‘When will I be discharged from hospital?’ Rohan said, ‘I would suggest you stay here for one more night in observation. We will discharge you tomorrow.’ Mushtaque said, ‘But, I have work…..’ Saahil immediately interrupted, ‘Mushtaque, you are listening to what the doctor said. That’s it.’

Rohan said, ‘Yes, you should be in the hospital, under observation for at least one day. We will discharge you tomorrow.’ Mushtaque nodded, ‘Fine.’ Rohan left. Saahil told Mushtaque, ‘What’s the hurry of getting discharged so soon. You should rest well.’ Mushtaque said, ‘Do you know resting is rusting?’ Saahil replied, ‘No! Nothing like that. Now get some rest. I will go back to the Choudhary residence and check on Sonal and Deepika.’ Mushtaque replied with concern, ‘Yes, you should. Also, could you please tell Sonal to keep an eye on Deepika. I mean I want to know if someone meets Deepika secretly or she is close to someone or is there someone suspicious who is in touch with Deepika through out.’ Saahil asked, ‘You found some clue?’ Mushtaque said, ‘Well, I think I have but then I need to know more. Please do this favor for me.’ Saahil said, ‘Oh come on. Don’t call it a favor. You order and it will be done.’ Mushtaque laughed.

Saahil reached the Choudhary residence. It was lunch time. Sonal was at the dining room. Deepika was yet to arrive. Rest of the members of the family arrived one by one. Ranvijay asked Sonal, ‘Where is Deepika?’ Sonal answered, ‘Deepika said she is coming.’ Saahil said, ‘But Sonal, you should not have left Deepika alone. Go and get her.’ Devi Choudhary immediately said, ‘It’s fine. Deepika must be tired. I will send Reshma to get her.’ Ranvijay said, ‘Dad, it’s okay. I will go get her.’ Devi Choudhary said, ‘You already had a long day my son. Sit and have lunch. Someone will call Deepika.’ Devi Choudhary called Reshma and asked her to get Deepika. After some time Deepika came. She looked okay. Yes, she did have dark circles and she was tired but she did not look depressed. Seeing that Saahil breathed a sigh of relief.

Everyone began eating quietly. Devi Choudhary asked Saahil, ‘How is Mushtaque, son?’ Saahil said, ‘He is better.’ Devi Choudhary then asked, ‘When will he be released from the hospital?’ Saahil said, ‘Tomorrow, that’s what the doctor said.’ Devi Choudhary replied, ‘That’s nice. Anyway it’s Holi day after tomorrow. We will celebrate it.’ Samarth looked at Devi Choudhary and said, ‘But dad, with so many things happening around, do you think we should celebrate?’ Devi Choudhary smiled warmly and said, ‘Son, we should look at the bright side. All of us are fine. Mushtaque is fine. He will be coming home tomorrow. We should celebrate.’ Ranvijay said, ‘I think dad is right. It has been a long time since there had been any celebration in this house.’ Ranvijay then looked at Deepika and said, ‘After years, we will get an opportunity to celebrate Holi with Deepika. Isn’t it Deepika?’ Deepika smiled and said, ‘Yes.’

Sonal and Saahil were happy to see Deepika smiling. However deep down Deepika was feeling sick. She felt a hollow deep inside her soul. She smiled but her smile was fake. In Holi, amidst color clad faces, perhaps she could go the place where she would find peace.

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Mushtaque stretched and dialed Saanchi’s number. Saanchi answered the call immediately:

Saanchi(Fuming):How are you? Where were you? Did you know how worried we were?

Mushtaque: Sorry, very sorry. I was stuck in some work, hence….

Saanchi(cooling down): How are you????

Mushtaque: I am fine. Absolutely fine. And how is my wife?

Saanchi: Now that you are fine, your wife is fine too.

Mushtaque: Now, that’s like a good girl. How is Mehek?

Saanchi: Good. Very happy spending time with her grandparents.

Mushtaque: Great. I will call Mom and Dad too in some time. You take care.

Saanchi: Yes. You too. When are you coming back?

Mushtaque: Very soon. I am almost very close to solving the case.

Saanchi: Awesome! All the best. See you soon. Love you.

Mushtaque: Love you too.

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Mushtaque yawned. His dinner arrived at his room. It was a plate of boiled veggies, two boiled eggs, lentil soup, steamed rice, two plain soft flat breads. The food was good. The hospital was very neat, clean and well maintained. It was hard to find such a hospital in a remote place. Rohan and Sohum had always wanted to make a nice hospital for the villagers here so that the villagers don’t have to rush to the city in case of any emergency. Best part is, the government had also provided funds for this project.

After dinner, Mushtaque wanted to go for a walk. Rohan had told Mushtaque that he could walk around. Mushtaque had other plans though. He wanted to take a look at the guy who had attacked him. That guy was in coma. If only this guy came out of coma, things would be great. Mushtaque would know who is behind all these. Mushtaque spoke with a nurse on duty. The sister said sternly, ‘Only 15 minutes of walk and then please get back to your room.’ Mushtaque nodded, ‘Yes Ma’am.’

Mushtaque casually walked around. He knew the patient was in ICU. He would not get permission to go inside. There were security guards, nurses and couple of doctors for emergency. Masks were mandatory for hospital staff. There were couple of ward boys and nurses walking in the hallway, going upstairs and downstairs, doing their duty. And suddenly, there was a power failure. There was power backup at the ICU though but the hallway went entirely dark.

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Mushtaque was about to walk back to his room when he heard someone bumping into someone in the dark. He heard someone saying, ‘Sorry…’ Before Mushtaque could think anything, the head nurse came with a huge flash light and told Mushtaque to go back to his room and in 15 minutes the power resumed. Power failure was common here in this village usually at this time. Hence the major areas of the hospital had power back up. Mushtaque went back to his room, looked out of the window and stretched his arms. A nurse came to Mushtaque’s room to check the medicines. She was mumbling something to herself. Mushtaque asked, ‘What happened Ma’am, are you okay?’ The nurse replied, ‘What’s there to be okay in a hospital. Just now someone died.’ Mushtaque asked, ‘Oh! Who? What ailment?’ The nurse replied, ‘That guy who had slipped into coma. We informed Rohan Sir and Sohum Sir. They are on their way.’ Mushtaque rushed out of the room to the hallway. The nurse tried to stop him but he could recall the voice and the accent of the ‘Sorry’ he had heard at the hallway. Damn! But now he needed evidence. Mushtaque had hit that guy who just died, for self defense. So now that the guy was dead, the case will be an open and shut case. There is more to this case. No, he can’t let it happen. There has to be a proper post mortem and yes, he would need Deepika to cooperate for something. He will talk to her tomorrow.

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Rohan and Sohum came. Mushtaque was waiting for them. Mushtaque waited for them patiently. He did not ask them any questions. He did not want to disturb them. He knows he will get all the details. The case could become complicated if the press sued the hospital. However, what mattered most now was the criminal and evidence.

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To be continued……………