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Srishti-2022   >>  Short Story - English   >>  SILVER WINGS OF INCLINED LIGHT

SILVER WINGS OF INCLINED LIGHT

 Its been almost midnight, Abraham is walking down a dark alley in a hood with his hands resting inside the pockets . There has been a lot going on in his life lately.Clouds drifted through the sky as doubts in his mind. He is in desperate need of money. The scene of him standing at the hallway of the hospital looking at his daughter's pale face through a tiny visible hole on the ICU door while the doctor saying" its already been too late"is flashing in loops in his head.  His young girl "Ruby", is  the only family he have, And now her  life is at stake. Rubi is diagnosed with a rare kind of heart disease. Abraham has to arrange Five lakhs before sunrise, otherwise his daughter's surgery cannot be carried out.Abraham had lost so much through the years and he can't afford to loose the only family he has.His mind is always filled with doubts and second thoughts but today its determined. 

He had asked for help to many, but none were willing. Abraham is rushing in the direction of his former employer's house hopping that john would understand his current situation. Abraham found himself standing at john's yard, suddenly doubts clouded his mind along with the fear of another turn down. The only thing he could ever loose now is in the hospital bed so he walked up to the door and rang the bell once.He couldn't wait for someone to hear it, rang the bell twice. His impatience has grown from the fear of knowing every second he spends  is a brick  to the wall which is rising in between him and his daughter. 

 

'Who is it' john's wife lily answered the door.

'Am abraham , i used to work for john, is he home? Abraham replied along with a question. 

 

'John",  someone called abraham is here to see you, he said he used to work for you' lily called out.

' Coming honey' john replied. 

On the next moment , doubts on lily's face vanished and she let abraham in. Lily's daughter is sitting on the cauch  playing with lego.Abraham sat on the cauch near nathasha and curiously watched her play.Rubi used to love building lego houses,  abraham was brought back to those memories .Rubi is only a little bit older than nathasha. john rushed through the stairs and when he saw abraham, he was surprised. Because he didn't had any follow up on abraham since he left the job without a word.

' What is it, what brought you here, if its about the job we are not having this conversion'. Said john with a bumby voice. 

'No, its my daughter, she is in the hospital bed'. With a slightly fractured tone abraham continued 'She needs surgery, and i dont have the money for that'.while abraham was explaining, he was rudely interrupted by john

 'So, thats your problem not mine infact you don't even work for me anymore '.

Abraham couldn't contain those self centered words of john.

 'Don't say that, i used to work for you for years and you owe me money that come of the allowances '.said abraham with a hard tone.

' I don't owe you shit, there are no legal closure for you to get that money' said john impatiently. 

Abraham knew john was right.lily's face is getting wrinkled and she is not happy with abraham's appearance on this peaceful evening.abraham had to step down as he is the one who in need of help.

'sorry john, i know i wasn't there for you when you needed me and i couldn't alarm you about my resignation either but try to understand, you are my last chance, the only hope to get my daughter out of that hospital bed alive ' said abraham in a pliable manner. 

'Maybe i can but i won't, go learn how to talk to your ex-boss and come back after, then i may consider your fund sanctioning ' said john with edginess.Maybe john is just irritated by abraham's dominant voice or maybe its because he is guilty of bankrolling abrahams fund illegally thinking abraham would never come asking for it.

' Am sorry john for being rude but my daughters life is at stake, lend me money, give me a loan and i will repay you with interest'...'just let me save my daughters life' abraham begged .

 But john has already taken it up to ego' i don't have any money with me and legally you can't get that pf too'.Suddenly lily's voice dominated the room.

'John, can i talk to you for a minute'.john looked at lilly and then abraham.lilly walked into the dinning room and stopped beside the door.john followed her scraching his head because he knew exactly what's going to happen next. 'John", i want that man out of our house now, give him his money or what ever you do i don't care, am not letting you have this conversation anymore infront of our daughter '.john just stood still, didn't spell a word.when lily came back to the leaving room the site she show was shocking. John is holding a gun to natasha's head. Lily didn't knew what else to do, she called out for john with a tremulous voice.john rushed to the living room and he was dismayed and furious at the same time by the sight of abraham pointing a gun at his daughters face.

'You should have understood john, Am a desperate father who would do anything to save my daughters life' said abraham with  determination.lily cautiously walked towards abraham and try to disarm him with words'abraham its a stupid thing to do, she is only a kid, put down the gun and we can talk'.In a split second abraham grabbed natasha and hold her tight towards his body with his left hand.' Just give me the money and i will let her live' said abraham. 

John couldn't control his temper 'You won't do shit, leave my daughter before i break you to the ground'.

 "John" lilly yelled with a shrill voice ' have some sense'. After giving john a strong look she faced towerds abraham 'just put down the gun, we will give you whatever you want'.

john jumped in 'we don't have that much cash with us now but we can arrange it by tommrow '. With a wicked smile on his face abraham replied ' Oh John",Don't you have any concern  on your daughters life. Both john and lily didn't understood what abraham was talking about. With a dramatic look on his face abraham continued  ' The consignment arrives tommrow and the nigerians don't accept anything other than cash, So you already have the cash with you right now'.with a deep look into john's eyes abraham continued ' i worked for you for 15 years and i know everything about you,  but you,  you dont know anything about me'. 

'Ok, ok give him the goddamn money 'said lily out loud to john.Because, of all others in the room she could really see the maniac  behind abrahams eyes and what he have become.He was not the man who walked through that door minutes ago.

When john was about to turn abraham stopped him'No, not you' He pointed the gun in his right hand towards the direction of lily and said ' You'.lily raised her arms about her chest hight and said 'Ok, ok'. 

' And one more thing, dont do anything stupid if you love your daughter' lily was warned by abraham. Lily rushed towards upstairs and came down with the money in her hand.Abraham received the money with his left hand by holding natasha tight with his right arm in which he has the gun.

'you have the money now, let our daughter go' said john.When abraham was about to leave nathasha, her bright pearl necklace stuck on his gun.Right after he saw the necklace greed invaded his mind.

All he could think was "it will look beautiful as ever on ruby's neck,it will be the perfect comeback gift for my daughter, she would love it".

 ' I want this too' said abraham wrapping his wrist around the necklace. That proposal of abraham was denied by nathasha herself 'No' she said. 

'Honey,  let him have it ' said lily. But still natasha's answer was a no. Abraham tried to snatch that necklace from natasha's neck. In the blink of an eye john jumped in and grabbed abraham's right hand and lily tried to save her daughter. Suddenly the sound of a gun shot heard out loud. It all happened during convulsions, abraham accidentally fired the gun. The bullet punched its way through john's stomach, causing a gaping hole in its way that quickly filled with blood and gushed out. John fell to the ground, a pool of blood forming around him and socked into his clothes as he chocked and blood came out of his mouth.Within a split second that room became the worst nightmare and traumatic experience for all four of them.

lily rushed towards john raising him up in her hands looked back to abraham and said 'what have you done, you monster '. Without a second thought john pointed the gun towards nathasha because now the rest of the john's are loose ends.But he couldn't pull the trigger as he saw the same fear in her eyes as his daughter, when she said" I don't  want to die daddy". The sound of her voice resonated in his ears.Abraham look at both of them back to back, hold tight the necklace in his left arm and ran out.

when he was fleeing away from john's house he could still hear the bawl of his family. Abraham ran till his stomach hurts and after that too. While he cross each ascending street light, a glimse of distressed moments he lived crossed his mind. He is full of guilt but there was something more in him that helped him to cast out the guilt."The feeling of entirety ".  

Abraham never took rest before he got to the hospital and ran straight towards the bill section. He paid the whole amount with that blood money and right after that the whole process began to pace up. Nurses and doctors fleeing towards the operation theatre. Attenders transferred ruby to the theatre just after the payment. Abraham couldn't even see the face of his little girl before surgery.  The red bulb of fate burned bright infront of the operation  theatre. 

Abraham waited outside beside the door restlessly. During this time nothing crossed his mind but his daughters innocent smile when she see's the pearl necklace. Seconds passed like hours and hours like decades, finally the wait was over with. The fate bulb has changed colour. 

Abraham dashed towards the door when the doctor came out. When abraham saw that destitute look in doctors eyes, his hopes were burned to ashes. The doctor didn't say a word but took his hand and gave an impotent look to his face.

suddenly abraham felt like wiped out of existence.he couldn't find his conscious. His eyes were flooded with darkness. Finally tears burst out.it was more than crying, it was the kind of desolate sobbing that comes from a person drained of all hopes.he sank to his knees and then to the floor. Tears rolled down his cheeks.His gasping wails echoed arround the hallway.The pain that flowed from him was as palpable as the frigid fall wind and soon the only person at his side was his shadow. Struggling to keep his tears silent, looking out through the window he saw a nest on the adjacent building's ledge . 

 

He saw a bird feeding her offsprings with something, maybe trash. With the necklace in his left arm his body and mind sunk into numbness. He told himself with shivering words"what was it for, What was it all for".Just before his body became totally irresponsive, he could hear the sound of boots approaching. One thing for sure he will never know the truth that ruby was gone way before he remitted the fees for surgery.