“You are wishing malaria upon me?”
“I am being practical and pointing out that malaria is known to relapse in susceptible individuals such as you.”
“Just because I have had malaria thrice in the last four years?”
“Every time in a particular season. Yes.”
“Who made you a doctor? You can’t even console a patient!”
“My patients were tough, stubborn bulls.”
Her eyebrows rose.
“Soldiers like Atharva.”
She grinned, suppressing a yawn. Samar glanced at the clock on her wall. “It’s late. Go to sleep.”
“Hmm…” she let the yawn tear her round mouth open, slits of eyes staring at him — “Are you in or out tomorrow?”
“Why?”
“No reason.”
“Mostly out.”
“Hmm.”
Samar stared at her, then scrunched his nose like her. Her mouth dropped open. He did not wait for the next chain of reactions, already appalled at this Romeo behaviour. He turned and walked away.
“Why did you come here, though?”
He only raised one hand and waved, trying not to smile to himself.
28. Life resumed normalcy…
Life resumed normalcy, for all intents and purposes. But inside him, two people lived. One — the man who couldn’t give up on his rage, his grief, his disappointment and disillusionment. The one who had held one of his friends captive and betrayed the other. The one who was compelled to hold Adil captive until either the recording was found or he cracked enough to hand them over. The one who couldn’t sell Atharva or his party, and was hence compelled to remain suspended in limbo, a double agent. If this was hell, then he had experienced it all here.
Because the other person inside him was… softening. Amid the world at war around him, this other part could not leave Amaal’s window alone. She did not always open it, because he did not always make noise. But Samar was now incapable of walking to his room without taking a round around to hers.
As he strode out of the outhouse that morning, without a jacket after a long time because the spring sun was warm enough, he saw Atharva run down the steps of the main house. Samar broke into a run — “What happened?”
Atharva did not hear him, pulling open the door of the first party Innova in the line. Samar reached in time to open the passenger door.
“What happened?!” He managed to pull the door shut just as Atharva raced it out of the porch.
“Connect.” He threw his phone at him. Samar connected his mobile to the car system.
“What is happening?”
“Adil is injured.”
His breath stuttered. Only for a second. Atharva was too attuned to body language. Samar controlled his own with superhuman effort — “Where? What happened to him?”
“Call Iram.”
“Why?”
“She found him.”
