The Path Of Mystery

“I wonder where the narrow foot path leads to!” Neha said to her grandmother, as she stared through the window. She had gone to visit her grandmother during the summer holidays.

Grandma’s house was in the outskirts of a small village. It was surrounded by huge trees on all sides. It was not very far from the dense woods. The narrow foot path that started near the house went right into the woods. Neha would often ask her grandma about it. Grandma would not reply, but she would warn Neha not to go there.

To little Neha, this path was the path of mystery, and the thought of following the path excited her. One afternoon, her curiosity got the better of her. She saw that grandma was having a nap, and slipped out of the house.

It was a sunny afternoon, but Neha did not mind the heat. She started walking along the path. As it took her deeper into the forest, the heat and the sunlight reduced. The path was obstructed by brambles and thorny bushes. A thorn pricked her foot, and caused a lot of pain. But she cleaned her wound in a hurry, and went further.

It had grown much darker, when she heard the leaves rustle. But she could not see anyone around. She neglected the sound. But after a while, she heard the sound of horses trotting steadily. The sound grew louder and louder each minute. But it was when she saw the chief of the tribe appear from behind the bush, that she sensed the danger. One by one, many tribal men appeared from different directions, and surrounded her. They looked very fierce, and the sight of these men made her tremble.

The chief dismounted his horse, and ordered the others to do the same. They came towards Neha, caught her, tied her hands and mouth, and took her to their settlement.

It was twilight by then, and the bonfire was lit. A huge metal pot filled with water was kept on the fire. As the water started boiling, two of the tribesmen picked up Neha and put her into the boiling water. She screamed and yelled and called for help. She struggled a lot, but it was too late. She could not bear the burns from the boiling water. She yelled louder…..

At this moment, there was a flash of lightening, followed by loud thundering. It started raining heavily, and the wind blew hard. It was a thunder storm. All the tribal men and women ran back to their shelters. The bonfire was put out by the rain, and the boiling water stopped burning Neha as it was cooled by the rain. She jumped out of the metal pot and started running towards grandma’s house. She ran and ran, through the rain, through the wet mud, in spite of her burns, till she reached the house. She knocked frantically at the door, and grandma opened it.

“Where have you been, my dear? I was so worried!” said grandma, and hugged her tight. Neha realised that this time, mother nature had come to her rescue. But she vowed not to disobey her elders again!