The Red Dragon's Lair

No Contact

Anya

Her phone showed a few unread messages and missed calls from Andy. She had put her phone on silent mode during the fest and then forgotten about it. She scolded herself. Thankfully there were no calls from the station.

12.05 am Hi. Reached safely. Sorry to leave in a hurry. 

12.20 am Sleep well. Good night :-) (smile emoji)

2 am I have beaten up the bastard since you didn’t attend your call. What should I do next?

She immediately dialled his number. He attended the call in the first ring.

“Hi. Thanks for calling, “ he said. He sounded angry.

“I was asleep. Which bastard did you beat up?” She asked, pinching the bridge of her nose. She didn’t know why she even bothered to call him. This wasn’t her job and he was only an acquaintance. Yet she felt this need to be available for him.

“Sushant. That asshole hit Mia.”

“What the f**k Andy? Why did you have to hit him? It is illegal.”

“He was supposed to stay away from Mia. Yet he hit her when she was returning from the hospital.”

“You should have informed the cops.”

“That’s what I was f*****g trying to do. You did not attend your call. Mia was in pain. So I went over to his house and gave it to him. He doesn’t know that I did it. I had a balaclava on.”

“Why are you telling me then? “

“Because you asked and I trust you.” 

She took a deep breath, “I will see what I can do. Please don’t talk about this to anyone else.”

“Okay”

“Are you hurt?” She blurted.

“Less than him.” He chuckled.

“Don’t laugh. Your daredevilry could turn out to be expensive. How is Mia?”

“She is sleeping now,” he lowered his voice to a deeper baritone, “are you worried for me baby?”

The voice made her feel weak in the knees. What the hell? He was normal in the evening. What’s gotten into him? “Are you f*****g drunk? I am not your baby.”

“Might be! Might not be!” he laughed, “that’s for you to figure out”

“You should sleep now.” She disconnected the call.

Since Andy had beaten up the guy in the area of her police station she was sure that the complaint would be made at her station. That day Sushant didn’t turn up. She was worried about Andy killing him unknowingly so she visited Sushant’s house to check on him. She didn’t want Andy to be jailed for murder. Sushant wasn’t home but his maid was. According to her, he had left for his parents’ place in Mumbai and would be returning only after a month for his final exams.

Relieved she returned to work. 

*****

Andy

After Andy reached home he dropped a message to Anya. He was hoping to call her before going to bed but the message wasn’t read.

She must have fallen asleep, he thought. 

He had a spare key to Mia’s house so he let himself in. Mia sat at the dining table with a slit and bleeding lip and an ice pack pressed against her cheek. Her first aid kit was open on the table with swabs of blood lying on it. Her mom was trying to stop the bleeding from her lip.

He saw red, “MIA! What the hell! What happened?” He sat next to her and moved her hand from the ice pack. He got angrier seeing the bruise on her cheek.

“I was returning late from my ward duties. The railway station was deserted. I didn’t know that Sushant was following. He cornered me and tried to kiss.” She was smiling.

“Motherfucker!!”... “sorry auntie,” said Andy to Mia’s mom.

“That’s alright. He is an asshole.” Said Mia’s mom. 

“Why are you smiling?” Said Andy frowning.

“I hit him in the balls. So he hit me back as a knee jerk reaction. A split lip is nothing compared to the painful expressions on his face,” said Mia. Her eyes had a mirthful glint in them. 

“Way to go, girl! But that’s not enough,” he said, handing back the ice pack. He dialled Anya’s number but her phone continued to ring.

Seething with anger, he headed out to Sushant’s flat. Sushant opened the door reeking of alcohol. “Who are you?” 

Andy punched him in the face and he fell back. He entered the house, caught hold of the neck of Sushant’s T-shirt and landed a few more punches on his face. Sushant was knocked out within the first 2. Then he gave a few kicks In Sushant’s groin and headed back. ‘You will enjoy that in the morning when you pee, asshole,’ Andy thought. He walked to his bike which was parked in a different lane and headed back.

Mia and her mom had gone to bed by the time he returned. He was changing into his night clothes when he heard Mia’s painful cries. Her mom had given him the room next to hers. He rushed into her room. She was on the bed screaming in her sleep.

Andy woke her and hugged her, “ssh babe. It is just a dream.” He said as he rested her head against his chest. “Just a dream…”

He knew his presence would help Mia deal with whatever horrors she was witnessing. Mia slowly drifted back into her drugged sleep. 

Andy went into his room and poured himself a whiskey. It had been a long day! Today he really needed the respite. He felt like going back to Sushant’s and hitting him again. But his rational self stopped him. He was on his 4th peg when Anya called. 

Her sexy sleepy voice worked like medicine for him. He slept like a baby after that.

The next morning Andy woke up with a headache. Mia had left painkillers and water at the bedside table. He had the medicine and then messaged Mia.

Thanks, babe. Love you

managed to finally wake up?

yup. Had the meds. Will work on my assignments today. Will you be okay?

yes. Will be late tonight too. Sushant hasn’t attended college today. Do I need to worry?

no babes. You know how peace-loving I am ;-) (wink emoji)

(face palm emoji) I will talk to you in the evening. Mum is going for her kitty party after her boutique closes. So you need to manage the food.

yes!!! I am going to surprise you, sweetie.

I am counting on that! Bye

bye. (Hug emoji)

Andy waited for Anya’s call the entire day. With his martial arts training, he was very sure that he hadn’t done any lasting damage, but Sushant was drunk when Andy attacked him and bodies of drunk people could respond differently. 

He was worried that she didn’t want to stay connected with him anymore due to this impulsive act but he would hit Sushant a million times if he had to. The bastard had no right to hurt his best friend. 

He waited for almost a week. He couldn’t deny his feelings for Anya. He wanted the woman. This was the first time he was attracted to someone and he was going to make sure that his feelings got somewhere with it.

He called Anya. A man’s voice answered in a very strong local accent of Western India, “hello! Kon boltoy?” (Who is speaking?)

“Anand boltoy. Anya madam ahet ka?” (Anand- Andy speaking. Is Anya madam available?)

“Nahi. Kay kaam ahey?” (No. What is this regarding?)

“Me tyancha mitra ahey. Tyanchyashi contact nahi jhalay. Sarva theek ahey na?” (I am her friend. Haven’t been able to contact her. Is everything alright)

“Tya hospital la ahet. Ija jhaliye. Kadachit udya kinwa parva yetil. Mobile office la ahey.” (She is at the hospital. Has got hurt. Might return tomorrow. Mobile is in the office.

“KAY!! Kadhi jhalay? Kuthla hospital?” (WHAT!! When did it happen? Which hospital?)

“2 diwas jhale. KEM hospital la ahet. Room no. 204” (2 days back. She is at KEM hospital in room no. 204 )

He headed towards the hospital. It was a 15 mins ride from his college.

He had to wait until the visiting hours started in the evening at 5. Eknath Munde the 40s plus constable sat in the corridor, most probably guarding his PSI.

“Who are you?!?” He asked.

“I am a friend. Is she alright?” Andy was concerned and scared for her. He knew she was more to him than anyone had ever been.

“She is fine. No one has called or visited her in the last 2 days. We have been so worried.”

“It’s alright. I am here now.”

He passed a register to Andy. “Please write your name, contact details and your relationship with madam here. It is a standard safety procedure.”

He found her sleeping with a scowl on her face. ‘My cute baby,’ he thought. She was in a blue patient gown with her arm in a sling, resting on her chest. He wanted to embrace her. He wondered why no one was concerned with her well being, why no one had visited. 

Instead, he said softly, “Anya?”

*****