One Rainy Night
Episode 2
Read the first episode of One Rainy Night here.
Just as he was about to lift the tile, a sense of doubt crept in. Why had the SUV sped away? As this thought was quickly passing by his mind, the rain had started again, and this time it was as intense as a cyclone. Roy’s shivering hands reached out for his mobile phone. The rain was so heavy that it took a while for his muscular arm to make its way into his long pant pockets.
A few screens were tapped in haste and a swipe was made against the name Jack. The call went through but there was no answer. Roy’s apprehension grew. Every ringing tone felt like a high voltage shock sent through his ears. Every second amplified the tension in the air. The time had come and just as he was about to retrace his path back down, he felt a vibration near his left thigh. It was a call from an unknown number. It was the least of the things that he had wanted to deal with at this point in time. The call was ended by a hard nudge, by Roy’s big thumb on the screen.
People were trying to play him and he had sensed it. However he still felt that the ball was in his court. A video call was made to his men who were in his hideout. Orders were given, instructions were repeated and just as he was about to terminate the video feed, he noticed one car out of place in his hideout’s garage. It looked like Jack’s SUV, the one that had dropped him and mysteriously sped away. “Wait”, he screamed, “is that your vehicle man?” he thundered at his men.
His men immediately rushed out into the open and surrounded the SUV. The number plate was read aloud by a rough and loud voice for Roy to hear. With every passing number Roy’s eyes grew wider, ears moved closer to the phone and mind leapt with an intense curiosity to hear the next. “It is Jack’s SUV” he yelled, his loud voice boomed through the pouring rain. “Look inside the vehicle” he ordered. It was empty, and all that could be seen from the dampened glass window was Jack’s iPhone 7 on the seat, with a few missed calls from a contact named ‘Elder Brother Roy’.
There was panic and within moments, an army of thugs had begun the vigorous man hunt for Jack. Alarms were sounded, doors were banged, cupboards were opened and closed violently, rooms were checked. In short all hell had broken loose at the Roy hideout. The tall, brightly painted house was turned inside out. Though Roy could see the chaos breaking out at his hideout through the video call, his mind had the superior ability to disconnect from the chaotic reality, pause and think. Just like a brilliant shooting star in the dark night sky, a flash of thought whizzed by his mind. He put the video call on hold and called the unknown number from which he had previously received a call. To his surprise one of his men picked up. He asked them why he had called. The man was surprised and said that he had never called and that the mobile was picked off the ground from near the rear side of their hideout. The mobile was taken to the technician of his team, an ex government officer, who could hack into anything from mobile phones to bank accounts, without leaving any trace of his work. The number was registered under the name ‘Jack’. Roy’s suspicion was confirmed. Jack had indeed played him and was now lurking around his territory. The call and the mobile phone were symbols used by Jack to send a message of warning to Roy.
Roy knew that Jack was a genius, who would look even for the narrowest of routes possible and work his way through it, but he would not choose a path unless it was absolutely necessary. Jack was as physically gifted as Roy was and moreover, he was an excellent reverse engineer. As Roy was thinking on these lines, the faces of Jack’s son and wife started to take shape. A shock wave went up his spine instantly and he ordered his men…
