The Magnificent Love Chapter 1

2019:

TOIT BREW PUB, INDIRA NAGAR:

BENGALURU, 10:30 PM-

“Behold the lamb of God, who takes away your sin,

The holy lamb of God,

Makes us alive again,

Makes us alive again,

Oh! Your love bled for me,

Oh! Your blood in crimson streams,

Oh! Your death is hell’s defeat,

A cross meant to kill is my victory.” A person sings the lyrics of “My Victory” and the security states, “Hey. This is an restricted area man. No one is allowed to come here. Can’t you hear what am I saying to you?”

But, the mysterious person continues to chant the slogan of “My Victory” and shoots the security. As he falls down, the stranger takes his phone and looks at the photo of an unknown man and goes near him, with the jammer in his left hand and calls him, “Joseph.” The kidnapper is wearing a black suit and pants. To get rid of the CCTV Cameras, he doesn’t show up his face and the camera turns black.

“Yes,” said the guy and the security camera goes off indicating, “No signal.”

The victim’s mother listens to the TV news channel and she fears upon hearing the news. Since, there was a similar murder of a rich businessman’s son two weeks. When listening to the news, Joseph’s father is called by the kidnapper.

“Have you reached, where I had asked you to come?” asks the kidnapper to which, he says, “Yeah. I am here.”

“Good. Now, turn right and start walking.” The kidnapper said.

“Just a minute. I know my son Joseph is with you. But the boy who you had kidnapped earlier you’ve killed him, in spite of the ransom given to you. If I hand over the money to you now, what’s the guarantee that you’ll let my son go.” Joseph’s father questioned him to which, the kidnapper asked him: “Guarantee!?”

He laughed and said, “Sir. There is a saying about believing. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. If you want your son Joseph back, you play by my rules John. You don’t have a choice.”

As he looked here and there in fear, the kidnapper said him: “See darling. It’s very simple. Don’t look for help with local police and CB-CID. If you shut up and do what I say, I am going to let your son go. Now turn right and start walking.”

“Move!” Someone from back instructs John and he starts moving from that place, keeping his finger in the left ear’s earphone. The man is wearing an ordinary civil cloth, with her earphone in left side of his neck and sports a light moustache, with a shaved look and neat haircut. His eyes are sharp like a roaring lion. He said, “ACP Ashwin here, Roshan come in.”

“Yes sir” said Roshan, who is wearing headphones, looking at his computer.

“Have you tracked down the call details? Did you get the location?” Ashwin asked him to which, Roshan said: “No sir. He is making an internet call. He is using TOI to manipulate his location and IP address. It refreshes and shows us as he is in a different country every second.”

Looking here and there, Ashwin said: “Smart! Ok guys, listen up!”

“Yes sir! Yes sir…Yes” said the CRPF team, holding their earphones in a secret car, that had been set up for cracking down the serial killer.

As everyone listens, Ashwin says: “May be it’s just one guy who’s doing everything, or it might be a network too. Just keep watching. Just follow the guy who comes and picks up the cash from him. Keep me updated and wait for my orders.”

Using the binoculars, the team watches the entire surrounding and the kidnapper instructs John, “Keep walking. Keep walking.” Following him, Ashwin stops at a particular stop and says, “Rohit, he’s right here and watching everything.”

“What makes you to say that, Ashwin?” asked Deva Hegde to which Ashwin answers saying: “When that ambulance passed John, I heard double sound. And I think he is also a voice changer. There is distraction and pitch variations in the voice. Photograph every one of them, who are on the phone here. Boys, girls, women…everybody.”

“Keep…walking! Keep…walking. Walk…! Keep…Walk…!” The kidnapper instructed Johan from upstairs of a tall building. Removing the cap from his face, he partially closes his left eyes and looking in his right eyes towards the sky, he says: “Stop!”

As he stops in the middle of a road, the kidnapper ask him: “Do you see a white van on your left? Far off!”

As Ashwin looks, the kidnapper tells: “Leave the suitcase inside that John.”

“Is someone under sight on the left side? What van is that? And how long is it been parked there?” Ashwin questioned his team to which, Rohit tells: “Still checking, we don’t have a clear view.”

“Officers. I want someone to check on it immediately.” Since Ashwin instructed, the officers runs after John and the kidnapper continued telling: “Keep walking.”

“Camera on that street!” said Deva Hegde, to which Rohit replied: “Uh…Ok!”

John reaches the van of CBCID police department eventually and breaks down. While the kidnapper says, “Oh! Oh…Oh! Oh no! CBCID! I got whiff of this at first. How did they manage to come here, John? I’m sure, you wouldn’t have asked them to come. Because you want your son alive. Moreover you wanted him alive. Then who must have informed them?” The kidnapper looked somewhere in the sky at the top of Berleyz and asked him.

“I panicked. I did tell CBCID not to interfere in this matter. I am totally unaware of them being here. My son. Please don’t do anything to Joseph.” John begged the kidnapper to which, he stated: “You raised him with so much love. She grew up to be young man with all sorts of bad habits: smoking, drinking, drugs, etc. I have kidnapped a ****boy. As a father, what must be going on in your head. They won’t know it, but I know it very well. Poor thing, understand the sentiments of Mr. John Mr. Ashwin Krishnalingam. CB-CID. How are you?”

He looks here and there. While, the kidnapper tells: “Anyways, let’s get back to business, Mr. John. They are here for nothing but to just witness the fun. Ok, let’s put up the good show. Ask the people inside the van to get down.” Since the team gets down, John puts the suitcase inside and closes the door.

“Do you drive, John?” asked the kidnapper. Predicting what is he coming to say, he drives the van by himself. As the red signal drops, he stops the van. While, Ashwin observes at the van. While, a sudden alarm bell rings from a machine operator of Berleyz, Ashwin looks up and the kidnapper becomes alert.

As Ashwin’s team are ready to round up Berleyz, the kidnapper ordered John to reach the terrace and he obeys the kidnapper’s orders. Deva suggest Ashwin to surround the terrace, since they have weapons. While, Ashwin argues with him saying: “Saving Joseph from the kidnapper’s clutches is their ultimate objective and there’s no point in surrounding the kidnapper.” While the other officers obeyed him, Deva gets angered.

John reaches the terrace of Berleyz, as the officers of CBCID takes their position, as per the instructions of Ashwin. They looks the terrace, where John have reached and the kidnapper continued to tell: “Keep walking.”

One of the officers looked using the binocular and informed Ashwin, “Sir. Doesn’t seem like anyone is on that terrace.”

“Yes sir. No one is inside.” The other officer said.

“Now stop!” said the kidnapper and asked John to throw the suitcase down. Since, he reached the circle like place of the terrace.

“What!?” asked John. The kidnapper, standing near the tree by wearing the cooling glass smoked the cigar and said, “Throw damn it!” Everyone are puzzled upon hearing this. As John throw the suitcase as per the kidnapper’s instructions, Ashwin said: “Oh Shi! Photographers stay right here. I want pictures of everyone getting in and out of the basement. All eyes on the suitcase, officers rush to the basement immediately.”

“Yes sir” said the officers and they immediately runs to the basement. Everyone searches the place in and around after finding out the suitcase. While, John and his wife panicked.

Deva Hegde said, “Ashwin he isn’t here to pick up the suitcase. He is planning for something else.”

“Sir.” Rohit said and Ashwin replied: “Uh!”

“Yes sir, there’s no one inside.” Hearing this, Ashwin looked at the suitcase. While, Joseph’s tearful mother rushes to look the suitcase and she breaks down seeing the bloodstains and severed body of Joseph.

“Joseph…Joseph…Joseph!” Hearing this, John kneels down at the suitcase, crying and his wife tells him: “It’s Joseph, John.”

“Joseph…” John cried.

“I have seen the autopsy reports. Bleed to death. In order to prolong the blood from clogging, he gives them anticoagulant injection, and drains out the entire blood from the body. He has jammed the CCTV cameras, wherever he went. How’s it even possible? No fingerprints, not even DNA tests. The boy wasn’t even touched. His motive wasn’t that. He must have enjoyed looking at them die. Must be, some sort of a psycho.” Ashwin reads the autopsy report, holding his daughter, who is sleeping in his shoulders.

“In spite of saying so much, you keep asking what’s the issue? Uncle, have you gone nuts!? People out here don’t know how to raise a cute little girl. Look here, you don’t want to say all that. When are you coming down? I don’t like being here. It’s really stressful.” Ashwin’s daughter is speaking to someone in the phone. While, he takes a file from his cupboard and asked his daughter(who have wore school uniform), “Anshu. Did you eat?”

As she didn’t respond, he raised his voice: “Hey, I am talking to you.”

“No sir. She didn’t have her breakfast.” One of his assistant said to which, Ashwin shocks and asked, “Why aren’t you eating? Who are you speaking to?”

“What does it matter to you, to whom I’m talking? Anyways you have deceived me.” Anshu said to which, Ashwin apologized her and asked, “Now tell me, who are you talking to?”

“I am speaking to uncle.” Anshu said to which, Ashwin said: “Oh! Sandeep! Give it to me.”

“He wants to talk to you” said Anshu and a seconds later, she said: “He doesn’t want to talk to you it seems.”

“Won’t talk to me!? Just give it to me” said Ashwin. As he tries to grab the phone from her, Anshu alerted Sandeep by telling him: “Uncle, I am not giving him the phone. She’s pulling it from me.”

“Give it!” said Ashwin and he said, “Hello! Hello!”

“He hung up on you!” Anshu laughed at him and mocked him. Afterwards, he looks at the wallpaper, which had been changed by Anshu.

“Hey. When did you change the wallpaper?” asked Ashwin and further questioned, “It was me and you on the wallpaper until yesterday.”

“I started disliking you since yesterday. That’s why I have changed it.” Anshu said and Ashwin murmered, “You don’t like me.”

He gave the phone to his assistant and lifted his daughter telling: “Fine. Come on!”

“Don’t touch. Let me go. Leave me.” Anshu said to Ashwin. 

“She will be back by 2 PM from school, keep her clothes washed.” Ashwin said to his housemaid, to which he nods his head telling: “Ok sir.”

While going in the car, Ashwin plays a track of his wife Reshika so that, Anshu could hear her words: “Baby, it’s me Mom speaking. Are you fine? Whatever happened, happened for the good. Whatever is happening, is happening for the good. Whatever will happen will also happen for the good. You shouldn’t be like your mom. You should be brave like dad. Shouldn’t be scared of anything. You should walk your chin up. You should always speak looking into the eyes. Shouldn’t cry no matter how tough it is. I have never seen your father cry. You should be the same. You should never be upset because Mom isn’t with you. No matter how far I am. I’ll always be thinking of you.” After dropping his daughter in the school, Ashwin gets ready to take the car.

That time, Rohit calls him and he responds him asking: “Ah…tell me, Rohit.”

“Sir, watch NDTV Hindu live right away.”

‘I am on my way to office, Rohit. I’ll be there in 10 minutes.”

“No sir, it’s really urgent watch it right away.”

“Ok!” said Ashwin and he parked his car in a nearby studio and looks into the TV using a remote.

“Five years ago, kidnapping of the same kind and three murders happened.” The kidnapper said to the CB-CID senior officer, watched by DGP Pramoth Gowda.

“Which case are you referring to?” asked CB-CID senior official. The kidnapper said, “Cobra’s case handled by CB-CID special officers.”

“You mean, the serial killer Cobra!?” asked the CB-CID to which, the kidnapper says, “Yes. The most sensational serial killer, Cobra. From Cobra’s killing methods, CB-CID confirmed that he must be a doctor. Close friend of the murdered victims. Dr. Vikram Hegde is Cobra. The case was closed by putting him down in encounter.”

“Yes. About four years ago. I remember.”

“Poor thing. Dr. Vikram Hegde was a scapegoat. In order to put a full stops on the sensational case, that was a cover up operation led by Ashwin. She cooked it up completely.” As the kidnapper says this, the CB-CID head questioned him angrily, “What!? How can we believe everything you say? What evidence do you have?”

“I have a living proof.” The kidnapper said through his phone call, from somewhere in the building near Bangalore-Mysore borders and said, “The real Cobra is still alive. Yes, I am Cobra and I am back. The two murders which happened currently were done by me. And it will continue.”

The bearded Cobra laughed by saying this. The media people and common public looks the video. While, the angry CB-CID head asked him, “What!? Who the hell are you? You’re making an anonymous call and claim to be Cobra. Are you trying to scare us? Do you know the punishment for fake threats?” Everyone in the CB-CID office shocked and looks at the TV.

“Roshan. Track the call.” Deva Gowda ordered him and he puts his headphone to trace the call of Cobra.

“Fake threat. You can fool the public. You guys and the CBCID know whether I am Cobra or not. Murders which happened five years ago, and the murders happening now is there even a small difference? Why don’t you ask them? Ashwin is not on top of her game these days. Let’s make the game little easier. Before I kidnap my next target, I will definitely let you guys know. In fact, I will tell you right now. On Live!”

As everyone listens, Cobra tells: “Sir…Sunday…that’s in next six days, I will kidnap my next target. Stop me, if you can Ashwin. Good luck!” The news spreads like a fire and a tense situation arise in CB-CID office.

Deva Gowda points out the high profile people’s sons: Anbuselvan, Mathivanan and Dharun, who were kidnapped by Cobra before five years and demanded ransom. Although their parents did give him the ransom, he still killed them all and gave them the dead bodies. As he points out several similarities in the murder and accuses Ashwin of doing a fake encounter, However, the CB-CID head clarified his doubts by telling that, “Her reports and submission were perfect and true.”

While, Rohit tells what led them to do this encounter by revealing an incident at Vikram Hegde’s house five years back.

The operation consisted of five person and he too was a part of this mission. Their agenda is to catch him alive. The team surrounded the 2 acre farmland from all sides to catch him alive. When they reached there, he was drunk. Rohit was shot by the drunk Vikram Hegde and as an act of self-defense, Ashwin shot Vikram dead, as the other team members come with their gun.

“Rohit. Are you okay?”

“I am ok, sir.”

From his house, they found out 6 crores of ransom money, a diary and weapons. The team learned that, Vikram have murdered his own friends for the ransom money.

Rohit however, tells he’s making untraceable calls and jamming cameras, to which Deva Gowda tells that he could be a techie. Hearing this, Ashwin laughed and refers some serial killers like Jack- The Ripper, Alexander and said, “These serial killers are all copy-cats and could be caught by him one day.”

PUNE, MAHARASHTRA:

10:30 PM:

Around 10:30 PM, Sandeep is standing near to a bridge drinking whisky and throws the bottle down. One of the passerby asked him, “Bloody bastard! Don’t you have any sense, damn it! Just a miss.”

“Hey, Sandeep. What are you doing?” asked Ram, his close friend, who too have a shaved look, just like him with good-looking face and eyes.

He apologized to the by-passer and one of Sandeep’s friend Nikhil asked him, “I heard you and Rashmi have broke up before two years it seems. If you don’t mind, I can give it a try.”

“Hey. Who the hell are you da?” asked Sai Adhithya, drinking the alcohol. Angered, Sandeep slapped him and Nikhil goes back to his home in the car.

“Fine. Come on, let’s leave too.” Ram said to which, Sandeep replied: “Wait. Let the driver come.”

“Huh, why do we need a driver?” asked Ram, to which Sai Adhithya said: “He doesn’t drive when he’s drunk.”

“Why’s that?” asked Ram to which Adhi says, “Because, Ashwin doesn’t like it.”

“He won’t talk to his brother. But, will listen to what he says. Let’s leave. I will drive.” Adhithya laughed and said, “You are drunk too. He won’t let you drive either.”

Ram reluctantly sits near Sandeep, who’s making a phone call to someone. Ram said him looking at Sandeep’s girlfriend Rashmika’s phone number: “I wasn’t here for three years. Meanwhile, you have fallen in love and broke-up. Hey, what exactly happened?”

“She changed everything, Ram. She turned it upside down.” Ram asked him to give him details.

“What did she change and when did she?” Sandeep recalls what all happened in his life, since the childhood days, as he asked him.

FEW YEARS BACK:

Sandeep and Ashwin were born in upper middle class family consisting of his father: Mohan Krishna and mother Kalyani. Since their childhood days, Kalyani often picks up quarrels with her husband and there were no peaceful days in their life due to negativity and villainous nature of their mother. As a henceforth, Sandeep developed a hatred for love. While, Ashwin prayed to the God for someone who could change his life. Kalyani ran away from her house to far away and since then, it was Mohan Krishna, who cared for his sons.

Years later, Sandeep and Ashwin finished their college. While Ashwin went for CB-CID training in Uttarakhand, Sandeep took training for joining Indian Army under Air Force in Pune.

During a training camp in Pune, Sandeep met Rashmika, who did part-time job as a Vodafone promoter. She hugged him and through interrogation, Adhithya found her out. Sandeep’s initial encounter was strained with her and they just were friends. Later, he learns Rashmika’s parents too quarreled every time and eventually died in a road accident, leaving her orphaned. Since then, she studied in the orphanage and wanted everyone to be around her.

Eventually, Sandeep realized: “Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.” The duo eventually falls in love and due to several circumstances and conflicts, break up.

THREE DAYS LATER:

BANGALORE:

Meanwhile, Cobra again threatens Bangalore city that, he will kidnap a high-profile politician’s son and messages everyone including the media. Ashwin promises to solve the case and catch the serial killer to the CB-CID head. While, Rohit informed him that, “Inspector Gaius is here sir.”

“Gaius!”

“He investigated Vikash Hegde’s kidnapping case mam” said Rohit, to which Ashwin says, “Oh yes. Come.”

As Gaius had been looking the photos of the murdered Vikash and few more, Ashwin comes in and he says, “Inspector Gaius- Crime Branch, sir.”

“Please sit down.”

Getting the CD of the kidnapper from him, Ashwin plays it, which gets stuck, as Gaius scratched it and he refers the kidnapper’s voice to that of Magizh Tirumeni and says, “He took handicapped vendors and local businessman for investigation.” As he says, he have beaten them to pulp for clues, Ashwin slaps him and questioned for touching the public.

Pointing the video, Ashwin infers: “You can see a small reflection here. What’s it?” As he blinked, Ashwin said: “News for the deaf and dumb. It comes on air at 6:00 PM. The time when Vikash Hegde got kidnapped was 5:15 PM. So he sent this video from a place which is within 40-45 minutes from the Golf course. So keeping in the mind, main city and the traffic, he must’ve been within 5-7 kilometers radius from there.” He sends him out for being inefficient in handling even this small case.

Rohit suggests to send a few people in order to collect the fingerprints and DNA samples. However, Ashwin asked him to look at the video, which had been wrapped with plastic covers all over. Thus, making it difficult to find any traces.

Ashwin further tells him that, “His motive is bigger and his main intention is CB-CID should take over this case. He is playing a different game.”

Meanwhile, Cobra enters into a lodge, where he brutally murdered a security camera operator and jams the cameras. Afterwards, he enters into a room by ringing the bell. The boy inside was taking the video of his girlfriend, bathing and he goes to open the door. However, Cobra hits his nose and makes him unconscious.

Inside the room, he shoots down the girl brutally in front of the boy’s eyes to death and kidnapped him. The boy’s name is Siddha Shasank Swaroop, the son of Bangalore Home Minister Jayapal Swaroop. The car is parked in front of the bridge and Jayapal comes along with the police forces.

He asked for his son, to which Ashwin doesn’t answer. While, Cobra calls him. Ashwin asked him to put it in loudspeaker, which he does.

“Minister sir. Your son is inside the boot” said Cobra, eating Mutton Biryani. As an officer tried to open the car door, Cobra said: “Sir. Ask them not to open it.”

“Hey stop!” Ashwin ordered and Jayapal asked for reasons.

“There are pictures on the back seat. Have a look at them.” Cobra said. Swaroop is tied with bombs all over his body. Coolly drinking butter milk, Swaroop said: “High ED Bomb! Customized. With utmost care, Just for your son. I made it with so much care.”

As the bomb squads arrive at one side, media people also comes on the other side. Since the media comes, Inspector Gaius ordered to seal their places. While, Cobra said: “The bomb is connected to all the sides of the boot. Even if the car moves a bit, disturbing the wires 200 meters radius, boom!”

“Seems like they are here to die” said Gaius, looking at the media people.

“Who are you? Tell me what do you want? Hello! Hello! Let go off my son. Hello!” As the minister is shouting, Cobra happily drinks Orange juice and laughed off in happiness.

“Hey, who the hell are you? Let my son go. Hello!” Now, Cobra said: “Huh! I don’t like foreplay. I will come straight to the point. Heard that you just received a hot delivery of 2000 crores from a dangerous drugs trafficking mafia groups of Mumbai. I saw 4 of them ranting about it in TV yesterday.”

The minster replied, “It’s all a lie. I have filed a character assassination suit on them. They are all terrorists.”

“Ooooh!” Cobra laughed and asked him, “Locking up stating they’re terrorist if stands up for justice is not fair. Fine, let that go. All I need is just 2 crores. Don’t get baffled with 2 crores. Just because your son had a desire, with costly drugs and an Kannada actress, father and son had a gala time on a private jet costing 5 crores. If you can spend 5 crores for your son’s desire, it’s just 2 crores for his life. Not a big deal.”

Since, the politician is a Type 2 diabetes patient and had undergone a bypass surgery, Cobra calls Ashwin for giving him the ransom amount and further tells, “Let Ashwin bring the cash. He had been waiting to meet me. I will meet her face to face and get the cash.”

The minister instructs Ashwin not to take any action and he just want his son safe and secured. Keeping this in mind, he gets into his car and during the time, the cash bag comes into his hand by Minister’s men.

Ashwin tells his team, “Ok, this is the plan. I will get the cash and come alone in my car. All you 8 go ahead of me and watch that place. I am sure he will ask to meet at a crowded place. I want to know who is he?”

Meanwhile, Cobra driving his car, tells Ashwin that they are going to meet within 20 minutes and asked how is he feeling about it. As Ashwin tells he is excited in meeting him, Cobra too tells his excitement in meeting him and asks him to come for Cubbon Park Metro Station.

When getting inside the car, Ashwin secretly activates his GPS Navigation satellite, linking it to his phone. And he asked Rohit to track using GPS. As he tries to violate the queue, Cobra instructed him to get inside the queue, which he reluctantly does.

“Like that! The chronic kicker, even the most violent critic, will frequently soften and be subdued in the presence of a patient, sympathetic listener - a listener who will be silent while the irate fault-finder dilates like a king cobra and spews the poison out of his system.”

Ashwin is instructed to put everything asides by Cobra, which he obeys and he whispered, “Oh! Weapons.” Meanwhile, Deva Hegde and the team followed the instructions of Ashwin and enters to Platform No. 2.

While, Cobra continues the story to Ashwin telling him: “Do you know? I've never actually met one in the wild, but I have seen a king cobra. They go towards people, they rear up six feet tall and they're very aggressive and they are very fast. And one bite means certain death. So if I encountered a king cobra in the wild I would be very alarmed. The city of angels? It's the city of devils. The city of smiling cobras. ”

Spotting the team of Ashwin, Cobra cleverly sends them off in the metro train, thus leaving him alone in the platform. Now, Cobra tells: “Ready! Time to meet.”

Power goes off in the platform and Ashwin wonders looking at the place. Rohit asked the security to look at the power maintenance. However, the camera gets jammed and there’s no signal. Now, Cobra wears mask all over the face and comes forward to Ashwin for getting the money.

“Hi Ashwin. Cobra! Cash.” Cobra said. Ashwin takes a handcuff and tries to arrest him. However, Cobra acts smart and escapes telling: “See you soon.”

Though the cash is returned to Cobra, Minister’s son is returned dead in Ashwin’s car. Angered, the minister decides to suspend him and his car is seized further, thus worsening the situation.

The team returns back and Deva deduces that “Cobra has escaped.” While going in the car, Cobra tells: “The Game begins.”

Note: This story is a spin-off to my mystery-thriller story The Mysterious caller. One of the main characters is sketched as an Anti-Villain(A character with heroic goals, personality traits, and/or virtues who is ultimately the villain. Their desired ends are mostly good, but their means of getting there range from evil to undesirable). As the story goes more lengthy, I split it into two chapters.