The Black Emperor

I was in the hospital treating my patients when my nurse Suhana came to me and said, "Some girl is waiting for you at the waiting room." I looked at her and said, "Don't you see I'm treating a patient. Tell her to wait." She silently nodded and went out. I continued my work and after fixing the patient's ailment and prescribing medication, I looked at the screen and saw Ankita waiting for me. I took my coat and went to her. As soon as I reached there, Ankita rose from her seat and forwarded a heavy tiffin towards me. Everyone looked at us and gave their respective responses. Some were smiling, some looking at me and Ankita and some were just shocked. I pulled Ankita to the parking lot as everyone looked my way. I heard a faint voice, "She is so gorgeous, definitely Dr. Harsh must have proposed her." This words were of the old nurse, Mrs. Chakrabarti who always pokes me to find a girl for me. She must be quite happy and soon she will spread the news.

I pulled Ankita to my car and asked, "What are you doing here? Ankita replied with a pout, "I thought you were hungry from day long work and specially made lunch for you." She opened the tiffin and soon fresh aroma filled the air. We went to the canteen which was fortunately empty due to the cook being ill. She opened the tiffin and placed every part on the table and then took out two plates and spoons for us. I suddenly was feeling married and absurdly was happy. I looked at her serving me rice, lentils and a boiled egg on my plate along with a little pickle and a fresh cut piece of onion. She looked at me and said, "Eat. It will become cold." I took the first morsel and chewed it perfectly and swallowed it. She asked politely, "How is it?" I replied warmly, "It is so tasty, I feel like kissing your hands." She looked at me and smiled. She said, "My husband never loved my food and always insulted me. I wished I had met you before." I silently ate the food and soon we finished our lunch. She brought two freshly baked muffins as dessert and we savored it with pleasure.

I was about to say something when she asked, "When will your shift be finished?" I replied, "5pm." She said, "Perfect. We will reach the docks by 7pm then." I asked curiously, "What's in the docks?" She slapped her head and said, "I forgot to mention the real motive of my visit." I was sad she had other motive than bringing me lunch and spending time with me. I asked, "What's the matter?" She started, "Last night, my sources saw some suspicious activity in the outskirts of Mumbai. Some unknown cars were spotted running towards Dombivli. Some say they spotted an infamous villain in the car." I asked puzzled, "An infamous villain?" She replied, "I don't know his name but he is involved in some serious criminal acts. His appearance signals to some high level turmoil in Mumbai. Moreover, another baddie is to arrive today in Mumbai and we need to eliminate him." "Eliminate him?? I'm no assassin, girl. Nor are you, I think." Ankita replied, "Well, I'm not much of an assassin but can handle enough men to keep us alive and you shoot much accurate than an average grade B assassin." She rose and assembled the tiffin and said, "See you at 5, then. Doc." She came near me and lightly kissed my cheek. She said, "This will lessen the awkardness." She went outside and rushed to her car and drove off.

Mrs. Chakrabarti didn't gossiped too much and so the day went away without any unnecessary queries. At 4.55pm, Suhana entered my cabin and said, "Sir, ma'am is waiting for you." I asked, "Who ma'am?" Suhana replied, " The one who brought tiffin for you." I said, "Call her Ankita." I rose and took my coat and was about to leave when Suhana asked, "Where's your tuxedo?" I said, "Maybe in the car." I went out and saw Ankita dressed in a shimmering red lehenga along a Patola blouse. Her beauty attracted every lustrous eyes of men and envious eyes of women. I went near him and then we went to the car. I told Ankita to wait near the car as I have to sign some papers before exiting the hospital. I reached the counter and signed the paper. The boy pushed a condom towards me and said, "Doc, play safe." I took the condom and went out.

Ankita saw the condom and said, "Looks like the lion is eager to hunt." I shoved the condom in my pocket and asked, "You brought the weapons?" She said, "This is an unorthodox mission. We have to use their weapons." I phoned Jaspal and told him my plea. He said, "I can only give three Colt Python and three pairs of dynamite sticks." I replied, "It will do the work." Ankita told me to start the car and met her at the docks. I asked, "Aren't we going together?" Ankita laughed, "Idiot, first get the weapons and moreover there is still three hours left." I went to my car and went off to my house, while she went her way.

Alphonso was sitting on his lavish armchair, smoking his favorite Cuban. Tarun came and sat near him, "Tell me something about this Syman Rocco?" Alphonso laughed, "Haven't you heard about his "spectacular" adventures?" Tarun replied, "Yeah, a little here and there but not much to believe myself." Alphonso said, "Well he is very much like what you have heard but a little lighter. He is insane, ruthless and unpredictable. Being the nephew of Ivan Rocco has given him both immunity and strength to do what he wants to do. He is a frequent taker of drugs and does much of his crime being stoned. A parasitic disease and a lethal drug, he is a big sore for me." Tarun laughed, "Still we want that sore to save us." Alphonso sighed, "Necessity both adores and destroys. Syman would have been dead long ago if he wasn't Rocco's nephew." Tarun finished his glass of vodka and said, "It's time. Let's go." Alphonso stood up and took a last sip and said loudly, "Let's take the bull by the horns."

I was waiting at the backside of the docks. The night was quite cold and my bones were shivering with both cold and nervousness. I was holding my gun in my right hand which was tucked in my pocket and my eyes were keenly observing every action in the docks. I called Ankita and she picked up and said, "Don't call. I'm in position and you should be too. Now, buckle up, lad we have a mission to do." I silently thrusted the phone in my pocket and went to my requisitioned position and took out my binoculars. There was no suspicious activity and the waters were still and silent. I sat at my position and waited for any chance. I was in deep thought to why even I'm doing this, Ankita isn't my relative nor is engaged with me in any relationship. Jaspal already started to turn down Ankita's calls and moreover decided to went to his hometown, Amritsar. Jack is happy with Aung's daughter and is supporting Aung in his news agency. My parents for some reason don't ask me much about my daily life and Dr. Ashutosh is quite helpful to me. He helps me to maintain my doctor image and seldom bothers me. Ankita strangely romances with me nowadays which frightens me and sometimes barges into my house to avoid attention. In the past one month, I got to know much about Ankita Grewal. She is a great cook, brilliant chess player and an outstanding friend. I was in deep thought when my phone rang. It was Ankita's call. She rebuked, "They have arrived. Pay attention to them." I looked and saw an Alto K10 stopping in the docks. A muscular man came outside and looked here and there. He was Irish by his looks and definitely a bodyguard by his physique. He lit a cigarette and started waiting for someone. I took out my gun and creeped my way near him. After sometime, a SUV stopped and a man came near him. I took a look and was shocked. He was Tarun Mohan, the youth leader of Dombivli and with him was a tall, well built man who was in his hoodie and jeans. Tarun shook hands with the man and then exchanged a bag with him. The man came with three large bags and gave them to Tarun. The man went inside his car and rode off. Tarun opened the bag and took out two Desert Eagle and gave one to the man. Then, Tarun looked at his watch and took out his phone. He dialled a number and after some time a large yacht came near the docks.

Ankita said through the microphone, "It's his yacht. Get ready." I ran to my car and brought a huge suitcase to my spot. It was a sniper gun case which Ankita surprisingly bought from somewhere. I took out the parts and assembled them and then loaded the gun. I looked through the scope and marked my target. There were so many people who were descending from the yacht and it was hard to identify the target amongst them. I asked, "Who's the target?" Ankita replied, "The man who will shake hands with Tarun." I sighed and murmured, "Ankita isn't that smart as she shows herself." A man finally came with some ladies by his sides and shaked hands with Tarun. I set my red dot and took my shot. The man had an instant death.

Tarun and the unidentified man started running towards their car but Ankita had different plans for them. She threw a grenade near Tarun's car whose blast threw Tarun and his companion a few yards away. Ankita started shooting at them and Tarun and the man somehow managed to escape death. I sniped down some of the men and cried, "Let's go. We have eliminated the target." Ankita replied, "We have to kill the traitors too." I ran from my position and reached Ankita. I pulled Ankita to the car and started the engine but a bullet pierced my elbow. I managed to escape the docks and soon were out of the territory. I tipped the police and then went to my house. Ankita was scolding me all the time, but was also holding my injured hand to avoid excessive bleeding. I stopped the car and went inside the house. Ankita rushed and brought the first aid box and applied antiseptic on my wound. She then slapped me hard and then kissed me hard. I was shocked to see her sudden mood swings and asked nervously, "Was that some kind of medicine for bullet injured people?" She started laughing and poked my head, "You and your jokes." She continued, "The slap was for stopping my mission and the kiss was for caring for me." I asked, "Mission?" She laughed awkwardly and said, "You take rest, we will meet tomorrow morning." She rushed out of the house immediately.

The police rushed to the docks but only met dead bodies of some bodyguards and a well dressed man. The police called ambulance to retrieve the dead bodies and went to their work.

Tarun and Alphonso were rushing to their place in a hijacked car. Tarun had a broken arm and two bullets pierced Alphonso's thigh and the blast managed to give both of them a burn scar on their bodies. Tarun was very angry as he thinks Charan must have done this and is scolding Alphonso for leaving his work incomplete. Alphonso replied in a weak voice, "We can still take our revenge as we are still alive." Tarun asked, "What do you have in mind?" Alphonso laughed, "Politics. Damn dirty politics. We are gonna use that moron's death as our advantage and then strike and destroy the Khatri brothers once and for all." They reached their house to find Tarun's bodyguards dead and his house seized. They were met by the Irish man who distributed them guns earlier. Tarun asked angrily, "Who are you?" The man laughed, "The boss is waiting for you." They went and saw Tarun's wife tied with the pillar. Tarun was furious and charged towards his wife. But, a bullet pierced his head and he fell on the ground dead. Alphonso looked and saw his worst nightmare, Syman Rocco aka "The Black Emperor". Syman came near Tarun's dead body and saw his wounds. He laughed, "Death comes and comes surely. Not there maybe but here surely." Alphonso asked, "Why killed him?" Syman went near Tarun's wife, Vasudha and forcefully kissed her. He replied, "Because he failed to please me. He wasted my money and weapons and also my patience." He looked at Vasudha and smiled, "I saved you from this pesky man and you ain't even thanking me." Vasudha spitted on his face and Syman licked it happily. He tore her blouse and pressed her breast and started licking it. Alphonso silently went to his room. After an hour, Syman came to Alphonso's room and asked, "You wanted something?" Alphonso replied, "Some manpower and dominance over the High Table." Syman laughed, "I will certainly do it but first I need a favor." Alphonso asked, "What favor?" Syman took out a photograph and gave it to Alphonso, "Her name is Ankita Grewal and she is irritating me." Alphonso said, "She won't see the New Year." Syman patted his shoulder and went out. Alphonso asked, "What happened to Vasudha?" Syman replied, "She enjoyed till her last breath." Alphonso sighed and went to his bed. The night went on silently...