Chapter 2

September 2009, Gurgaon

The noise was unbearable. Well, for Tanishk it was. The MG Road of Gurgaon was filled with big shopping malls here and there. All these people were very happy, an emotion Tanishk couldn’t comply with. In his childhood, he used to live in a rural area, where there was no noise. His family weren’t law abiding citizens. His father and brother were thieves, which wouldn’t come out as a surprise to anyone now. The question is what events led him to follow his family when he was a genius and could have easily earned millions if he took the right path? Intelligent criminals, they all are indeed very complex creatures.

This was the time when Tanishk was innocent, and hadn’t been converted into a thief. Tanishk had come to Gurgaon for meeting some friends of his, who studied in the same school Tanishk did. Tanishk was a man of his word and very punctual. That is astounding for a thief. Tanishk’s life was set. He was in high school. He was a genius, so he didn’t care much about school. This was his last year in school, after this he would figure out something to do in his life, primarily because he had no funds for any university.

Tanishk was raised by his mother, because his elder brother and father both died. His father died in 2000, when Tanishk was only 8 years old, whereas his elder brother died in 2003. Kind of a tragedy, isn’t it? His mother was the only person he truly had affection for. She always supported him.

Fighting his way out of the crowd, there came a guy. When he glanced at Tanishk, he instantly recognized him. He then greeted Tanishk, and they headed towards Pizza Hut, where they rejoiced a little.

“So tell me how your studies are going on?” asked that guy.

“You are talking as if you are older than me! Even you are in 12^th, you know how this is!” From his tone, it was clear that he was lying but the other guy never noticed. Tanishk was a genius. He was a prodigy! He started solving university level equations since he was 8 years old! The truth was Tanishk never took school seriously. Maybe this time he would?

“Yeah I understand! It is damn tough!” said the other guy, as he took a sip of his coke.

“Yeah, so which movie would we see today? When are Ragini and Rohini coming?”

“They are coming. Don’t you know that girls take time in getting ready? They are on their way. I talked to them a while ago.”

“OK! Remind me to come half an hour late the next time we set up a get-together.” Tanishk said, and they soon shared a hearty laughter.

Tanishk was having fun. He was about to see a film with his friends. But his life wasn’t that easy. A very bad thing was going to happen. Something no one had expected. Something that was going to alter his destiny.

Tanishk’s phone rang the next instant. He picked it up and received the call. He then heard-

“Tanishk….Tanishk please save me son. Your mother needs you. These people have kidnapped me and are torturing me. I need you. Help! Help. H…” Tanishk was taken by surprise. He held back his tears, and suddenly went towards the restroom.

The voice which was coming now was of a different person. It was hoarse-“You listened to your mother, right? You know how this works. The money or your mother’s body. I will give you 48 hours. I need 50 lakh rupees by then. If I don’t receive the money, then get prepared for your mother’s funeral. No tricks! If you go to the police, I will kill your mother and bury her so deep that you won’t be able to find her. The choice is yours.”

Now, Tanishk couldn’t hold back his tears anymore. He let them flow out and they raced through his cheeks and fell on the floor. He then shouted and screamed. He wailed. His sadness quickly converted into anger and hatred. He now understood that those kidnappers were the real culprits and they had to die.

He now looked into the mirror confidently. He was going to kill those people at any cost.