Dead or in delusion.

I lived in a big ancestral house I used to call home and have splendid memories of my childhood , if not detailed. Of playing with cousins and friends, children of tenants. I lived with my grand parents, uncles and aunts along with my parents and brother. Though have not been to the place since long, may be from the year 1995. The thread or the rope tying me to it might have weaken but still a weak strand still tugs deep at the heart.

It’s a fine evening. Me and my husband are sitting in our 5th floor terrace garden having coffee. Rain is falling and cool gentle breeze is flowing.’ I don’t know why but every time I see my home in dreams since leaving it back then, it seems quiet and lonely. It’s calling me infact pulling me. When we are next in my home town, we are going to visit.’ ‘Who do you think will welcome you there. Why don’t you understand this point my love, there’s no one now’ he is putting his point but what he doesn’t know is I am going through a strong pull since years and this is high time that I should visit. Well, the good news is now after half an hour he has given in.

I am packing up my bags. Hurrah! We are going to my home town tomorrow with children. Actually the domestic flights are open now so it will be quick annual summer vacation trip. ‘ Hello. Bhaiya, we are coming. Just for few days like a change of atmosphere’

We are in my home town. ‘ mmmm…haaa.’ There, my brother is standing in the parking lot. We are driven to a camp. Here we are staying for 5 days. It’s actually a nice guest house where we are putting up but it’s not costly. Only concern is about children. How will they cope.

Today is the second day and children are already exhausted. They are draining my energy too. May be to some of you it might seem a wrong decision but believe me, they are completely safe here as the place we are in, is not used as camp, before us and we got this because of my brother’s connection with the health team and the police staff present at the airport.

This is fourth day. Yesterday it was very boring. I scolded kids because they were shouting and running in the gallery. This all is because we are the only ones in this guest house till now. No new upturns. My husband has kept himself busy in his script writing work. He puts on his headphones and dives into his thoughts. So yesterday was no different from past two days, on his front. Today, after lunch I have asked the manager of the guest house to let me peep out of the window if possible as I am cluster phobic and the situation is taking on my nerves. Out of pity, he allows a brief moment to look out side. Me and the children are clinging to the window. They are pressing so hard as if they will go out through the mash of the windowpane.

Well today is the last day. Finally tomorrow we are going home. I mean to my brother’s place. At last we will be out in the open air. Today I am late in making the entry as children had the phone to make video calls to their grand parents back home and to their cousin, my brother’s son.

We are having dinner. The current is out but they have a generator here, so no problem. I am done with the dinner and want rest of the three to finish off soon so we can call for the night early. Naturally, next day will come early. Don’t they say,” early to bed early to rise, makes a good person.” In my case it will be free from isolation.

Here is my brother with his MUV, to pick us up. ‘We will be home in not more then five to ten minutes’ he is telling my husband. ‘Well, bhaiya we are here for a very short stay. Hope we don’t bother you much. It’s all your sister’s stubborn idea.’ My hubby is looking at me while saying so. ‘ I can understand that very well. She is like this since beginning.’ Now my brother is winking at me. Both the children are laughing. They are enjoying my leg pulling. Naughty children.

Here we are at my home. Yes still I call it as my home too, because it’s my papa maa’ s home. Brother says till he is alive I can call it and feel it as my home. Because we are one.

Today is the day when I am going to enter this ancestral home after twenty five years appropriately. The bushes and shrubs have grown here so wild. I am shocked. ‘ care taker, our distant relative has passed away ages ago. His mother and family stayed here but now the mother is also not alive. Only the wife and her sons are here.’ My brother is telling my husband. ‘ she seems too busy in her life. But what about her sons? Why dont they take care?’ My hubby is asking.

We entered the house. My heart throbbing as fast Express mail. Crushing and pressing the wild bushes and shrubs we are making our way. This is the first yard with all the garage and houses and a small factory built for the tenants, I am telling my children and hubby. ‘Look that is the entrance to the farm, where we had cows, buffaloes and farming land.’ My brother is showing kids.

From here we are entering this big gate. The first one to the main building but it leads to the small yard, where on one side old rooms built for the estate staff are there which were later converted to parking and other side had a small area surrounded by brick wall and a small entrance to the berry garden. This all is dried. Nothing is here. From here we cross another small entrance which has a wall in front of it with a small window. Now this is also crumbling. Twisting and turning I am entering the third yard where on the front of it we had our rooms, the second section. I am moving towards the area where caretaker’s family is living. But I think they are either sleeping or out of the house as cannot see them.

Leaving the place I turn back to the main stair cases. One takes to my elder uncle’s portion and the other one takes to the main building. I take this one and taking one step at a time climb to the final entrance. From here I turned back to look at others. They are coming right behind me and are at the bottom of the steps.

I am now standing in the big courtyard. To my left is a veranda and rooms of my grand parents. And small granary opposite to which, means slightly opposite to me is the old kitchen. Adjacent to it and opposite me is a small room, for my great grand mother and in front of me is her veranda. I was looking at fallen gazebo between granary and kitchen.

A light streak of smoke is coming out of the kitchen and I am moving towards it. I am standing at the kitchen door and opening the mash door. The scene inside took my breath away. Sitting there is the maid who was nanny to my elder uncle and used to cook for the family with a group of house helps and maids. I am not able to believe because she is dead ages ago. She cannot be here, not at any cost. She is giving me a look, as if saying you have come at the right time. Have lunch. ‘Screech’ and I am startled. Then hoping to see my kids, hubby and brother, who might have opened the door to grand parents room, I am half dead to see my cousin who died young. I am having goosebumps and it is a hair raising experience. He is smiling and signalling me to come over. I am in a trance I think. My legs are moving towards him. At the door I stop and I can see my grand parents sitting there with the lunch served and they are about to eat and I interrupted. They are now looking at me. My grand ma is scolding,’late as usual’ but grand pa is smiling the loveliest smile ever. He has softness in his old eyes. ‘But how could you be here. All of you. You’re gone long back and you- you cannot come back!’ ‘ Then go back to your room’ grand ma said,’ across small veranda.’

I am taking swift strides. It’s like gliding. Or floating in the air a few inches above the floor. I am crossing the small veranda or my great grand mother’s room and veranda. I am bending down to exit when I hear some whispering from behind. I am trying to hear but all I can make out is whispering of two or at most three old ladies, from great grand ma’s room. As if rest of the house maids were trying to give her a bath as she is paralysed.I am not able to take all this. I am trying to run away but all I can do is go forward.

This is my room. The wooden door is open but the old mesh door outside is ajar. This is the room I have been dreaming of since left visiting the house. I didn’t mention till now, that whenever I had it in my dreams I fell ill. It always used to pull me in and never let me out. It used to shake and tumble but today here I am, standing in front of it. Inert. Again my hair while mentioning the past dreams, raising.

I am opening the mash door by the handle. Still I am freezed. I don’t have the guts to peep inside. I am still standing at the door, half open. I don’t know what’s in there. Why I am so afraid of this room where I have lived from birth to teen age and have returned to it many times in young days till last of the family members lived here and vaccated in 1995. What if it locks me inside in real. With all these thoughts going on in my mind and heart thumping in my mouth I am entering the room. And here I get the shock of my life. I cannot breathe now. It is so gloomy here. As if the opening door has let out the years of loneliness, it has suffered. And in front of one of the two windows facing private court yard of my room till now where I was standing sitting here for lunch are long gone Maa Papa. On the centre table there are three plates. Two served one empty. Papa is looking happy to see me and maa is serving food in the third plate.’ Come. Why so late?’ And she is looking at me with maternal love. I am blank. Maa Papa… really? Am I dead or my life till now is a delusion.

A house on the next Block

` Now it’s my turn to tell a story.` She said. ` Raveena, my friend, it is about her.` She continued. They all were sitting in her cubical, a team of four. It was their night shift and the long hours have exhausted them, so, they took a small break to freshen up their minds and were telling stories.

She took a sip of water and said,` Raveena had a colleague who tried to woo her. He was so desperate that he started to stalk her … on her way home, in the market anywhere she went he followed.` `So why didn’t  she complained?` Naveen asked. `may be she enjoyed the attention.` Mariya cut in between. `In the beginning she did but later it became scary.` She agreed. and then said,` One day he appeared at her home with his throat bleeding and said he loves her. She shrieked and ran inside. Her parents had to drive him out.` She paused for a moment and looked at her colleagues` face. They were all hooked to her story, she then continued, `Next day when she entered the office, Raju, their peon was bleeding from the forehead. She went instantly to him with a first aid box which she kept in her desk. But Raju jerked her hand and looked at her with painful eyes.`

 At this moment their peon entered with a tray of coffee mugs. He too stayed back to listen her story. She carried on,` Madam this cut is more than enough, as your gift, Raju said and left. But no one told her the reason behind all this. In the lunch hour he came to her and whispered, I will carve my name on your hand so that everyone knows that you’re mine.` She sipped her coffee and looked into the void as if trying to remember something. ` He was a monster. Take my words.` this time the peon said. Everyone looked at him in surprise. There was certain pain an d horror on his face, he continued, ` The man was Rakesh and he did similar things to anyone who even tried to come near Raveena Ma`am. Once he stopped her in the gallery and said that she has not seen what actual jealousy is and this all was a trailer. But Raveena Ma`am was not the first girl to face this but yes the last one.` Everyone looked at her, `Yes his name was Rakesh and Raveena got him behind the bars and from there he was sent to the asylum. But rest of what he is saying I don’t have idea.` She said and looked at peon with a questioning look. ` My name is Raju.` he said lifting his long hair off from his forehead. All were shocked. `If you know anything else please continue  with the story` five of them said at once. ` There were number of instances like once he sent her a friend request, of course she didn’t know who it was as he didn`t mention his real name. Slowly he made friends with her on the Facebook then took ids of her all the social media accounts. One day when she noticed there was no one else in her friends list in any of the accounts, she was suspicious and blocked `him`; to which he reacted violently.` Raju said. He picked up the empty coffee mugs and was about to leave when Naveen asked him to tell them what else he knew. ` Sir, I don`t know much as I left after some days.` Raju said in a low voice. `I can tell you one thing for sure that he could go to any length for Raveena Ma`am. One day I saw him in the gallery connecting coffee lounge to their work station. He was holding Raveena Ma`am by her throat and saying that she should not test his patience and that he could kill her that very moment.` He said and left from there.

` There was a marriage proposal for her and the guy with his family was sitting in her home when she got a call from an unknown number. The man on the other side said if she won`t say no, he will kill her father on the way to his work. She put the phone on speaker and looked at he suitor with pleading eyes.` She said.

 `Of course the guy would have understood her position and helped her.` Mariya again jumped in between. `No. I mean before he could do any such thing, this man killed him in an obvious looking accident.` She continued and further said,` He came to her home that day, as her parents were at guys funeral. He said that she should not cry but be happy to get rid of bad match.`  ` One day mom told me a man living in the house on the next block  had killed his wife. The family was always under suspicion because no one had ever seen any family, friend or relatives coming to their home.` She said and stopped to watch everyone`s face then continued, ` You know what? The twist in the story is that Rakesh was allegedly married to some girl he eloped with and this was his house.`

` You mean he killed his wife whom he may have tortured in the same way and finally married, for Raveena? ` It was time for Manjeet to get shocked who was listening the story quietly, whole time. ` Yes. I was there with Raveena that day when he came running to her home, blood stained.` She inhaled deep and then continued,` his condition was telling that he might have hid somewhere waiting for the right time to come and meet Raveena. Who was all confused to see him. I was too terrified to see a psycho murderer in front of me.` She said and took another deep breath and continued,` He appeared when  I was telling Raveena about him. He looked from her to me and back to her, and said that he killed her for Raveena, can`t she see. Whole thing what he did was for Raveena.` Uncle and one of his friend who was there at the time inside their study, came out and got hold of him and Aunt made the call to police who took him away. At last she got freedom from him.` She said and smiled.

Anant who was sitting quiet for the whole time was now uneasy, `may be people get poisoned but not their mindset` he said at length. Everyone looked at him, he bowed his head and murmured, `Always girls are not at the receiving end.` and walked away.

Heart touching story.

August 1990. Police HQ Tirumalgherey. Unexplained huge fire occurred. Within fifteen minutes the whole building was engulfed in it. Everything destroyed. Each police official present was burnt alive to death.

Present day scenario. New Police HQ is in function from past two and a half decade. It’s not that the old one has been forgotten, it’s just that it has been converted to a memorial.

During day time people come and go to see it, some go there to study the case and some enthusiastic people go there to find out some missed leads of the mysterious fire occurence. Most of the time the family members and the friends of the deceased police go there to make offerings. The whole building is left the way it was after the fire cooled off. The marks of smoke and destruction by fire are visible clearly. One can make out the situation and power of fire and very well imagine the situation of the police personnel present inside at the time of incident.

I remember reading in a newspaper about the place, once. Daytime it looks all is well but after the dusk, no one ventures even near the spot. They say with the sunset it turns spooky around there. First I thought it’s all because the reason for the fire has not been discovered yet and such a strong mystery gave birth to such feelings, which on its place is right.

Some days back I met a friend of mine who was visiting her parents in the same locality as the Police HQ. When she with her husband, who is not a local, was crossing the place, told the sad incident to him. He wished to see it. They both went to the old HQ, leaving their car in front of the main gate. When my friend looked at her watch, it was half past four. She hesitated but when her hubby forced she agreed but said they will come out in half an hour.

They stood under the main porch of the HQ and looked around and climbed the three steps to enter the main hall. It was a huge lobby and from there the stairs went up to the first floor. To her right was a window from where sunlight from the evening sun came and made patterns of the ground in front of her. Tube lights were on and a high ceiling fan revolved in slow speed. They moved ahead and found a big cabin, which might be of the Police Commissioner. He alone escaped the fire that day as he was in the Home ministry, to brief the security arrangements for the religious processions which were to be held two days later.

The cabin was so dusty and everything there was under a thick layer of dust. Webs were hanging here and there. They came out after observing everything in that cabin. Then saw some other cubical type sitting arrangements. But these all were clean, and organized. Then they went upstairs and were amazed to see a well preserved corner. Infact, the upper floor was like it’s being cleaned daily. Don’t know why but it seemed bit strange to them.

She looked at her watch and was shocked as it was six pm. She urged her husband that they should leave the place but before he can say something they felt a gust of wind, as if any window was open to let the fresh air in. They ignored this and went downstairs. They felt something was different but what, they could not figure out. They heard a muffled sound of sweeping from the upper area but thought it was the gust of wind again. While they were crossing the big hall they felt the constant presence of someone or some people moving about the place. It was not to disturb them but as if some one going through their routine work.

My friend and her hubby came out safely. She told me that it was hair raising experience for them but not fearful. It was like the untimely dead wanted to tell we are present and doing our duty.

Spooky Incident

Dim lights in the plane,on the runway suddenly I see a reflection of a girl smiling, in the window of plane
I sit up straight with a jerk and look again but nothing and realize that flight was raising from the ground. I doubted my eyes as I was half asleep and looked around for a girl inside the flight whose reflection I might have seen. But no one to be seen in the flight with same features. Just then I realised the eyes had strange twinkle and the smile too was quirky with a twisted curve at the right corner. But what bothered me the most was that how can she show up to that height. Even if she stood on the stairs to board the flight then also she cannot come up to the windows. Even if the plane started to move and she crossed over to the window,but then this is also not possible because she could not be permitted.
After going through all the possibilities and logic behind the appearance of the smiling girl’s face, I gave up and slept. After fifteen or twenty minutes later I awoke by a strange sound. To my relief it came from landing. I turned to look out of the window and to my utter shock, on the glass of the window ‘Boo’ was written with finger tip. Strange feeling returned.
Flight came to halt and I descended. But till to date I could not make out what was that. The journey is a remember-able one and still gives me goosebumps.

FOWC : SCARY DREAM

Yesterday night I had a dream which made me scream.

I saw me and my children were in my bedroom discussing something and suddenly I felt fearful and as if something trying to harm us so I asked children to leave the room and when I tried to leave the room the door was stuck and the space was not sufficient for me to pass.

When I tried to open it a bit more it was not moving. Someone was holding it in place but was not visible. I started to scream but couldnot move a inch. At thus moment I realised I am dreaming and all this is not true but still I couldnot move or wake up. So started to scream louder hoping them to escape my dream and wake my hubby sleeping next to me, who in turn will pull me out of the situation. He is always a savior in such conditions…when he is around or else I suffer longer until the spell breaks on it’s own.

Some of these episodes were more hellish and unimaginable. I suffer this since childhood. FOWC:SCARY

1972. My grand mother visited her sister’s family with her children.

One early morning her two young daughters woke up and started to cry. She put the youngest one to sleep again by consoling and the elder of the two was given milk to drink and she went back to sleep.

It was winter and the sun was not up yet. It was dark outside. My grand mom sat overlooking her children as her sleep was disturbed. Suddenly she observed from the corner of eyes that the elderly lady of the family got up early to start her chores and walk past her and went to the kitchen then to her son’s room and then opened the back door of the house and went out in the backyard.

I will mention that it was an old fashioned estate home and was surrounded by vast fields and big trees, as we have in rural areas. The family was counted in richest families of the locality, blessed with two sons and a good family business apart from their earning farmlands.

So, after a while when my grand mom saw the elderly lady going out of the house, the younger son came out and got ready to go on his work. He noticed my grand mom sitting like that and told her that he was leaving for work and will close the front door while he goes out. Then my grand mom told him bit worried that his mom went out in the backyard a while ago and she is not yet back, could he check on her, what’s taking her so long in that cold?

The son looked puzzled and threw his glance from grand mom to the door and back to her, the pointed to the door and said that it was still locked from inside how could any one go outside from a locked door? What was she talking? Then it was my grand mother’s turn to be shocked and she looked towards a small room where the family used to offer prayers daily and from the elderly lady in white came out and took the round of the rooms and went out.

After this incidence the riches of the family were all gone. They lost the business and suffered loss at their work. They had to leave their home and move to other places for earning their livelihood. The affection between the brothers was affected and the peace was lost.

Recently they sold their property in the village and their was some misunderstanding between the brothers regarding distribution of money earned from the selling of property. The relatives had to come in between to solve out their problem. The families of both the brothers are not in very good position now.

Today, my grand mother told me this story and revealed the truth, I don’t know how many of you will believe me or may you won’t as I myself don’t believe but the truth is, that day, according to my grand mother, The Lady Luck or ‘The Goddess of Wealth’ moved out of her sister’s home.

Three Line Tales, Week 169… The Devil

photo by Peter Gonzalez via Unsplash

Car speeding up on almost empty road said a lot about the person sitting behind the driving wheel and the company she was having. The rain blurred the visibility but inside the presence of the person on the passenger’s seat was more than enough to put her in control of every situation and at the same time she was praying for her life because till few moments ago whom she believed to be her soul mate was actually The Devil himself, on a mission and the truth had to be disclosed upon her now, when she was taking him to meet her parents. Her whole world swung in front of her eyes and she could not do anything about it apart from staring at the sky and thinking that it also felt her pain that it too, cried with her.

15 years back…

A village deep in the heart of Uttarakhand.

A mordern littterate family, which was staying out of the village for the job and study purpose, gathered in thw village for their elder son’s marriage. The younger one being the friend of my li’l brother told him the first hand experience of whatI am going to tell you here.

The village had a mother goddess believed to be taking care of all, had to be made certain offerings before conducting the marriage. But the father of the groom being educated and working as a GM in the bighest national bank, did not payed heed to all the beliefs of the traditional villagers, but did something to fullfil the formality. The marriage was performed and the villagers who questioned him, were husshed, the marriage procession came to an end, the party returned home with the new bride. Everyone laughed, ate and dance.

Morning….

…..chaos! Where is she? What happened to her? Was all that could be heard.

Whole house was searched. But she was not to be found. The whole village was searched…ahmm…she was not there even. Her parents turned up and searched their village but she was nowhere to be found either. All the relatives of groom and bride were asked but no, the result was same.

Finally they went to a sage who lived in a cave in the mountains. He said, something we people of mordern age won’t believe or have faith, that mother goddess has taken away the bride as the offerings were not upto the mark and asked the father of groom to look for her at the goddess’ place. The party went to another village where the goddess’ shrine was. They searched the whole village and asked for her at all the possible hideouts but she was not to be found anywhere. Finally the priest of the shrine told them that they should look for her by the side of the river, which is the actual place of power. The party reached at the river but not before the evening they found her by the waterfall in semiconcious condition. They woke heer up and returned home.

The next day at home….she was asked about her disappearing to which she was equally surprised. She didnt remember anything about the last night. How she reached at the fall in the first place, did anyone forced her or carried her or she went byherself? To all this she had only one answer….”I don’t remember, night I slept in my room and didnt wokeup till you all came and woke me up there”.

This still is a mystry but one thing changed that my brother’s friend became a staunch believer since then and his parents asked for forgiveness from the goddess and till now everything is fine.

I don’t know how you people may feel but for me its bit scary and believe me when yesterday my brother told me this incident I was like seriously rhis happens now a days also? I still am horrified a bit.

The Car

A dense forest….on the verge of a lake stands still a lonely cabin.
A few meters away is parked a vintage valks vagon.
The sunlight is creating camouflage pattern on the ground.
Shadows are darker and light is not so bright, the contrast is high.

Some cops enter the scene. They went inside the cabin to check it and later investigate the nearby place. They finally halt near the car. Inspector looks into it and asks the constables to check the car thoroughly.

One of the constable who was at the rear end of it told Inspector that the car number plate was missing but the number was scrapped into its paint with any sharp object and that the number was same to that which was reported of the missing valks vagon. So the team becomes more active and starts searching in the car for some other clues.
But they were more of confused then curious, that how the car reached the place where it was seen and reported last week as it’s condition was not good. Still they continued with their search and thus reached for door handle to open it.

There was something strange about the car but what that they were not able to figure out. The inspector peeped into the car and noticed something glittering below the seat cover of the passangers seat. He, then asked one cop to pull up the seat cover and see what was it, that was glittering. The coptried to lift up the cover thinking it to come up in a large chunk of cloth but it tore into a pieces instead. To prick on the seat cover he had to scratch it and scrap it. The way it was coming out was peculiar as if peelings of dead skin! After scraping half of the seat he could takeout the glittering object which turned out to be a mobile. On switching on the mobile they found out it belonged to one of the missing boys for who they were searching. Suddenly the search becomes more intense and the whole party involves in the act of tearing the seat covers which came off into bits and pieces as like that of dead skin and the belongings of the missing boys start to appear under the seats. The foot mats of the car were even more weird, black thread like matterial plaited to form mat and felt silky to touch. After searching the interior of the car their attention turned to the exterior and they noticed the car was faded rusted red color as that of dried blood. Apart from that, they could not find anything more from the car.

They took all the evidences and the strange car to the city for forensic investigation. Two days after the inspector got a call from the forensic department asking him to reach the office without any delay. The investigating forensic doctor and his assistant were pale as scared to death when the inspector reached. They took him to the lab and showed him some tests they had performed on his findings. The seat covers were not actually fabric but what they felt like and the foot mats too were made of human hair of different people told the forensic doctor after performing the dna tests and most surprisingly the color of the car was not actually regular color but had traces of human blood with mixed dna! To their horror the car was taking fuel from human flesh as some pieces of human tissues were found in the fuel tank and the combustion system of the engine. How it could be possible they were wondering when suddenly the car seemed to move a bit from its place and the light went off.

Headlines of the news paper next day read, team working on double missing cases of four people and a car, missing. The forensic doctor, his assistant and inspector were in missing complaint too. A suspicious brand new car of blood red color with crisp new seat covers and foot mats was parked opposite to the forensic department.

A mysterious house.

In a house far away from the vicinity of highly populated city of Kanpur, four people from some uknown city found,shelter. This house was vacant from last 14 years. It is believed that house was hanuted or some spirits visit it on a particular night.

The boys were unaware of this fact and it could have made no big difference even if they knew because they didnt believe in ghosts and spirits. In nights one of them used to guard the house alone, while the other three slept and next night it was other’s duty. Suddenly one night they faced something strange.

It was amawas (night of no moon). It was 11.30 in the night when they decided to set up their beds when something strange happened. A knock was heard but strange part was that the house didn’t have a door. They ignored it and laid their beds and were about to doze off when the knocking sound was heard again but this time it was from inside. The boy who was guarding, was sitting on the low wall of the premises heard nothing and was busy making puffs of smoke.

The sound continued for 5 odd minutes. But searching for the source they could not find anything visible that could produce such a sound. It was mud for the floor, half broken ceiling made of stone over only left room, rest were reduced to ruins. The once kitchen was now a room with two halves left over adajecent walls giving a corner where they used to cook for themselves. There was one place where they never ventured and that was the open area opposite to the kitchen with lonely broken pillars like a last man standing, making an arch like structure and rest was open area without any surrounding making the outside area visible from any corner of the once house. On reaching the arch they found something different under their feet. They tapped from their feet and same sound of knocking. And they were taken aback. They bent down and tried to feel the floor, suddenly one of them struck to a handle like thing on the floor. The torch light flashed on the spot, and they could see a latched door! None of them dared to open it.

Shocked from their discovery they were stunned and speechless. Suddenly the knocking came again and this time they could see the source in the light of torch. The latch was fluttering as if someone from inside wanted to break open the door. The three boys ran with their feet over the head and stopped at the entrance where the fourth one was puffing. Still, panting they told him what they had discovered. He first didn’t believe them then broke in to hysterical laughter. They went in again but this time with fire torch for more clear vision. This time the wind swooshed from the broken ceiling and echoed in the whole house as if a group was whistling on top of their esophagus. The four moved ahead in tight-knit group, holding hands. They were using their eyes to look in four different directions at the same time, their backs touching each other.

Sudden gush of chilled air knocked off their fire torch. Now they have no other option except the 2 battery torches. They lit one of them and moved ahead turning in each direction every now and then. Once one of them felt a light feathered tap on his shoulder from behind, and he turned with a jerk hoping to find his friend who might be walking behind him, but he saw nothing. A flatter of soft wings or a cloth was felt instead, but nothing more. They kept on moving towards the arch. When finally they were near it, none of them had the guts to reach out to the underground door. To their amazement they could see some sort of blurry glow near the arch half a foot above the door and it felt like waving but in a blink of an eye it disappeared and then knocking sound came again but this time very slowly. And they could feel the surrounding temperature falling down and to their astonishment they could see the door opening and as if some lady in full royal attire came out! But the next moment her whole body was ablaze and the atmosphere warmed up to the unbearable degree….to be conrinued.