Can You Keep A Secret?

Skies poured mercilessly. Strong gusts of wind knocking on the tightly shut glass windows, demanding to be let in. Trees trying desperately to hold their place in the ground.

He looked outside and sighed. ‘What a beautiful day’ he thought. His bed was hard yet comfortable. Currently, the only patient in the old village clinic. ‘Not for too long, though’.

The nurse walked into the room again. Checking his saline drip and ensuring that everything was in order.

“You don’t have to work so hard. I will not make it through the night.”

“Don’t say that. Have some hope, sir.”

“Hope is something I am undeserving of. Dying here, in this rundown clinic, in the middle of a storm, no friends or kin, is what I deserve.”

She smiled pitifully and sat on a small seat beside. “At least you’re not completely alone.”

He grinned at her words. “Would you like to hear my story? My first and final confession of the sinful life I have led.”

She gave him a small nod and he began.

“I was born to a very poor family living in a small village. My feeble mother passed away when I was seven. I left home, boarded an unknown train, and reached an unfamiliar city. ‘Bombay’ they called it. The year was 1972.

I lived a few days in the station, sleeping under benches and begging for food until I met a group of kids my age. Pickpocketing was in their blood. I lived with them, learned their art, and never went to bed hungry again.

I was fourteen when I first met him. One of the most feared men in the city. He caught me red-handed, trying to steal his wallet. But rather than beating me black and blue, he took me in. He fed me, gave me a place to sleep, and trained me. I soon became one of the best. ‘Parchaai' (shadow) they called me because of my precision and ability to get the work done undetected. From sincere cops and journalists to lying politicians, I killed many.

I was given a rather unusual task once. A simple exchange. But we were compromised. Shortly after the exchange, the building was surrounded by police. I barely escaped death.

I looked at the bag filled with money in my hands. Never before was I ever tempted, but after my close encounter with death, I made my choice.

I boarded an unknown train as I had 25 years ago. I sat there anxiously, a bag full of money close to my heart and fear clutching my throat. After days of searching, I finally reached somewhere they could never find me.

A village; a decade behind the rest of the country. I had barely scratched the surface of the riches in my possession and ended up here, breathing my last.”

He looked at her, expecting her to be surprised. But she remained calm. She cleared her throat and spoke, “That was quite a life you lived. Well, I suppose it's my turn now.”

He listened intently and she began.

“I was five when I first discovered.”

“What?”

“The joy in causing death”

He froze.

“My parents were a part of the ordinary, hard-working middle class. I respected them a lot. They had simple beliefs and ideologies. So, I held it in. As years passed, it became harder to suppress my dark desire to kill. Until one day, I snapped. I killed someone. And I did it beautifully. No evidence, no suspicions. I can't describe the pleasure I felt. It was unlike anything I ever felt. So addicting.

But you see, it's no fun killing innocent cattle. It is the predator I want. A sinner. Full of fear, regret, and guilt as their life flashes in front of their eyes. So, I picked each victim carefully. Studied them closely and waited for the right moment to strike.

There was one that got away, though. He was given an interesting name. ‘Parchaai’”.

He froze with fear, his heart pounding loudly in his chest.

“Disappeared before I could do anything. Soon I got tired of the city, I wanted to go somewhere quieter, easier for a while. To my surprise, who do I meet almost a year later? Now, I couldn't let this opportunity pass, could I?”

“Y..... Y…. YOU!” He pointed at her accusingly, eyes wild with fear and shock.

“WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?”

He felt weaker every second. His body giving up. She stood up, a menacing grin on her face.

“I can trust you with my secrets, can't I, sir?”

With that, she left the room.

A cigarette dancing on her lips as she stared at the heavy rain. Pained cries for help growing fainter in a distance.