Chapter 3

September 2009, Gurgaon

“Hmm…. So they have kidnapped my mother? I am going to make sure that they die. A very painful death. I don’t care about the law! What was the police doing when my mother and I went to them some years ago? They humiliated us.” Tanishk spoke quietly to himself.

He had now wiped the tears off his face. He knew that crying couldn’t do anything. He had 2 days to save his mother…..or to watch her die. He headed out of the restroom and rushed out of the restaurant, without explaining anything to his friend. He knew where he had to go – back to his home, where all this had started. He made his way out of the crowded mall and headed towards the auto-rickshaw stand.

“Where do you want to go?” asked the auto-driver.

“Badshahpur.” Replied Tanishk.

“200 Rupees.”

“If you make me reach there within 30 minutes, I would give you double of what you are asking me.” He said. Although he was poor, but he still offered this much money because money was the least thing that mattered to him right now.

Tanishk entered the little yellow auto rickshaw and seated himself. Before he could even say something, the driver started the auto rickshaw and sped it up as if it was a Ferrari.

Now Tanishk fell into deep thought. This was one of his specialities. He could take off his mind from the surroundings at any time and start thinking, whatever the conditions be, because to think deeply in an auto, you need a lot of concentration, and patience.

“What can I do to avert such a disaster? I can’t possibly gather so much money in such a short period of time. Well, even if I had more time, I still couldn’t earn that much money! I have to formulate a plan now. I have to think of a plan fast.” Thought Tanishk.

He peeked outside and saw businessmen, who were wearing suits, holding briefcases. He smiled, as he noticed something. He then pondered over the issue of money, and figured out that he didn’t need to bring real money. He did think of that as a risk because the kidnappers could have figured that out.

“Hey! Wait a minute! If these kidnappers are as smart as I am thinking them to be, then in that case, why kidnap someone they know is poor? Even if they threaten a poor family, they wouldn’t get anything! There is more to this kidnapping.” Thought Tanishk.

Soon, the auto-rickshaw stopped. As promised, Tanishk awarded the driver with 400 rupees and rushed towards his little home. By the time he reached his home, he had already formulated a plan that would save his mother as well as kill the kidnappers.

As he was entering his room, his phone rang. He now knew who was calling. He received the phone and listened.

“47 hours remaining. Amount is 50 Lakh Rupees. No tricks. No police. Your mother will be safe if you give us the money. Or else…”

“I know…. I know” Tanishk shuddered.

“And by the way, how was the auto ride?”

After this moment, the phone was disconnected.

“How did they know? Now that I know who I am dealing with, I have to be careful. I can’t afford any unnecessary risks. They are monitoring me, eh? I’ll make sure that they don’t get to know what I’m up to. For that, I would have to be very discreet, and minimise my going out for these 2 days. You don’t scare me with all your big guns.” Thought Tanishk.

“All I need to do know is close the doors and windows.” Said Tanishk to himself.

“Wait! If they tell me that they’re monitoring me, then it would only be obvious for me to make sure that no one can peek in my house, but the question is, why tell me that at all? Ahh! They expected me to do so. Then in that case….”

Tanishk eyes gazed upon a small dot in the wall and he now knew what was going on. He was surrounded by cameras. There was a possibility of microphones lying around too.

“So they want to make sure that I don’t play any tricks? Who are these guys? From the way they operate, they aren’t amateurs. They’re professionals. But who would spend so much money on a kidnapping they know is going to be unsuccessful? There is certainly more to this kidnapping. Now I have confirmed that. Now I need to act as if I am gathering money and crying, while in reality, I am thinking of every possible way to save my mother, and kill those kidnappers.” Thought Tanishk.

“I will always have the upper hand. You were giving me the countdown? Well, guess what? Start the countdown for your life!”