2 - The Revenge Plan
Back to 1 - The Injustice
“Who is this taxi driver?” Sisaudia held up his hand, holding the cigar, tip smouldering, midway in the air and asked Jaichand.
“Last week Limousine had broken down and could not pick up baby from school so she herself took a taxi. It was raining heavily and seeing her waiting for a taxi this old taxi driver dropped baby home…..”
“Dropped her home? Didn’t he take money?” Sisaudia interrupted Jaichand “…and why was the car broken? Have I kept these drivers for free? This is not an orphanage. Next time this happens, I shall fire all of them”
“Sure Sir” gingerly Jaichand continued “…so this old taxi driver was going to submit taxi back but seeing baby in distress he came off route to drop her here. Since then baby seems to like his services for pick and drop for school. We tried to explain baby that she doesn’t need the taxi anymore but….…”
“You were trying to reason with whose daughter Jaichand?” Sisaudia seemed to have a liking to interrupt people “After all she is my daughter.”
Jaichand had to smile. So he did.
“But keep an eye on this taxi driver.”
“We have done a background check already. Quite harmless, slow old man, 75. Lives alone in a rented single room house. Kukreja follows the taxi daily anyway.”
“Fine. Soon Nikita will be fed up of this oldy. Then we shall easily persuade her to go in the Limousine.” Sisaudia abruptly focused all his attention to the cigar, puffing it heavily, thus signaling Jaichand that he was finished with him.
Jaichand, already familiar with this gesture, left.
“Who? My friend Sushi?.........Umm….she is fond of purses.”
“So, on her birthday why don’t you gift her one? If you trust me then I have an advice” Old man smiled below his thick snow white moustache.
“Tell me”
“I drop you home and then buy a purse for your friend. Meanwhile you get ready for the party. I shall pick you and give you the purse. I am sure you would like my choice.”
“Oh, great. I’ll sure like your choice dada.” Nikita had become the fan of this old man in a few days
“But how much would it cost?”
“Don’t worry I’ll buy it, later you pay me.”
“Fair enough.” Nikita agreed.
He had told Jaichand that it was not necessary to follow the old man from his home back to bungalow but Jaichand had instructed Kukreja strictly to keep an eye on the old man. Nikita’s father never interfered between his only young daughter and her fancies. If she was happy going in that taxi she was allowed to do that but under constant vigil.
There was one respite for Kureja out of this routine. Old man, daily, used to take a break at 1 pm exactly. He used to park the taxi in front of Babloo Restaurant to eat something. Kukreja too used to buy the lunch from the restaurant and saw the unsuspecting old man inside engrossed in eating his lunch followed by a special tea. Exactly after 30 minutes, the old man would return to his taxi to reach Nikita baby’s school to pick her up for home.
Yesterday, it was a little change in old man’s routine. He had bought a ladies’ purse from a big shop then he picked up Nikita baby up from home again and dropped her to her friend Sushma’s place.
Kukreja parked his car on the other side of the road at some distance. He, then, got down from his car and entered the restaurant. He reached the counter and ordered a cheese jumbo sandwich. From the corner of his eyes he saw old man reading newspaper, apparently waiting for his ordered lunch. He started waiting for his sandwich to be packed. Meanwhile he saw the old man getting up and going into the back side of the restaurant where probably kitchen and toilets were situated. After a while his sandwich was packed, he paid for it and returned to his car. He unlocked his car and settled in his river’s seat. He unwrapped the sandwich.
A hungry Kukreja, salivating over the warm delicious smell of the fresh sandwich, could not bite into it. He was hit so hard with the iron rod on his temple that even before seeing any constellations he slumped into the seat, unconscious. Sandwich dropped off his hand. Kukreja would later discover that this was necessary to be done to him since the “slow and quite harmless” old man did not want to be followed anymore by anybody to execute his plan further.
Suratgarh Present Time
“Who is this taxi driver?” Sisaudia held up his hand, holding the cigar, tip smouldering, midway in the air and asked Jaichand.
“Last week Limousine had broken down and could not pick up baby from school so she herself took a taxi. It was raining heavily and seeing her waiting for a taxi this old taxi driver dropped baby home…..”
“Dropped her home? Didn’t he take money?” Sisaudia interrupted Jaichand “…and why was the car broken? Have I kept these drivers for free? This is not an orphanage. Next time this happens, I shall fire all of them”
“Sure Sir” gingerly Jaichand continued “…so this old taxi driver was going to submit taxi back but seeing baby in distress he came off route to drop her here. Since then baby seems to like his services for pick and drop for school. We tried to explain baby that she doesn’t need the taxi anymore but….…”
“You were trying to reason with whose daughter Jaichand?” Sisaudia seemed to have a liking to interrupt people “After all she is my daughter.”
Jaichand had to smile. So he did.
“But keep an eye on this taxi driver.”
“We have done a background check already. Quite harmless, slow old man, 75. Lives alone in a rented single room house. Kukreja follows the taxi daily anyway.”
“Fine. Soon Nikita will be fed up of this oldy. Then we shall easily persuade her to go in the Limousine.” Sisaudia abruptly focused all his attention to the cigar, puffing it heavily, thus signaling Jaichand that he was finished with him.
Jaichand, already familiar with this gesture, left.
[][][][][]
“What does she like, Nikita?” Old
man asked in the usual low, gentle, warm but heavy voice while keeping his eyes
on the road and his wrinkled hands firmly on the steering wheel.
“Who? My friend Sushi?.........Umm….she is fond of purses.”
“So, on her birthday why don’t you gift her one? If you trust me then I have an advice” Old man smiled below his thick snow white moustache.
“Tell me”
“I drop you home and then buy a purse for your friend. Meanwhile you get ready for the party. I shall pick you and give you the purse. I am sure you would like my choice.”
“Oh, great. I’ll sure like your choice dada.” Nikita had become the fan of this old man in a few days
“But how much would it cost?”
“Don’t worry I’ll buy it, later you pay me.”
“Fair enough.” Nikita agreed.
[][][][]
For Anoop Kukreja it had become a
boring routine. For past almost a week he had to reach Civil Lines early
morning. The old man would take an auto to reach the North end of Civil Lines
where his master, the owner of the taxi, resided. He used to go pick up Nikita
baby from the bungalow by taxi.
He had told Jaichand that it was not necessary to follow the old man from his home back to bungalow but Jaichand had instructed Kukreja strictly to keep an eye on the old man. Nikita’s father never interfered between his only young daughter and her fancies. If she was happy going in that taxi she was allowed to do that but under constant vigil.
There was one respite for Kureja out of this routine. Old man, daily, used to take a break at 1 pm exactly. He used to park the taxi in front of Babloo Restaurant to eat something. Kukreja too used to buy the lunch from the restaurant and saw the unsuspecting old man inside engrossed in eating his lunch followed by a special tea. Exactly after 30 minutes, the old man would return to his taxi to reach Nikita baby’s school to pick her up for home.
Yesterday, it was a little change in old man’s routine. He had bought a ladies’ purse from a big shop then he picked up Nikita baby up from home again and dropped her to her friend Sushma’s place.
Right now he was following old
man’s taxi already knowing where he was going. Taxi, after a while, stopped
outside Babloo Restaurant. Old man alighted from the taxi and slowly went
inside the building.
Kukreja parked his car on the other side of the road at some distance. He, then, got down from his car and entered the restaurant. He reached the counter and ordered a cheese jumbo sandwich. From the corner of his eyes he saw old man reading newspaper, apparently waiting for his ordered lunch. He started waiting for his sandwich to be packed. Meanwhile he saw the old man getting up and going into the back side of the restaurant where probably kitchen and toilets were situated. After a while his sandwich was packed, he paid for it and returned to his car. He unlocked his car and settled in his river’s seat. He unwrapped the sandwich.
A hungry Kukreja, salivating over the warm delicious smell of the fresh sandwich, could not bite into it. He was hit so hard with the iron rod on his temple that even before seeing any constellations he slumped into the seat, unconscious. Sandwich dropped off his hand. Kukreja would later discover that this was necessary to be done to him since the “slow and quite harmless” old man did not want to be followed anymore by anybody to execute his plan further.
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