Darkness within: The Isolation

This is 2nd episode of the fiction- Darkness Within, pls read the 1st episode before reading any further if u haven't already.

Isolation is not necessarily the worst thing in the world. Some like Sabrina have longed for it and enjoyed it subconsciously since departing from Bashol, Himachal Pradesh. Away from the noise of the pressure cooker, away from the abuses of her mother, Sabrina would often enjoy reading a romantic story late night in her one room apartment and as the silence of the night grew louder, fall asleep inside a thick blanket in the cold winter night of Delhi. But the isolation of being locked down in a tiny white room with nothing but a bed and no windows was not her dream scenario. Absolute silence, a metal bed and a food tray delivered by guards were her only company. The food tasted surprisingly good. She guessed that must be the difference between a custody and an arrest.

Its been 3 days since the incident. Sabrina has been subjected to two episodes of questioning and two episodes of lie detection so far and each time they ask the same question bent in different ways. So far she hadn't met anyone she knew, from her firm or other wise. She guessed they must be getting subjected to the same questioning and isolation every day. There was a gentle looking lady guard who had told her about the common room all people can go to any time. People could listen to music and play games or read a story book there. Sabrina called an attendant and asked if she would be allowed to go to the common room. The guard came back in an hour and opened the door and asked her to follow. On the way she finally looked out of the large glass windows and realised it was a full blown noon, with bright sun and greenery. So much greenery that she had no idea what part of New Delhi was it, since Delhi is pretty much a concrete jungle.

She was soon led into this spacious lounge, with sofas, AC, and a huge flat TV that was off. Must be for officers, she thought. She sat calmly and just stared around. There was no one else there other then two gaurds in the corners pretending to read newspaper while eyeing her every now and then. A few magazines lay before her, fashion and all, everything nonsense, nothing important to read about. She browsed through them and was pretty bored. She soon requested them to be taken back to her room. On the way one of the staff room's door half open caught her attention. Someone watching the news had forgotten she was out of her room. She heard- "The latest report in the Vandana Treason Gate is that CBI has allegedly found concrete connections of Vandana Enterprises with the notorious international arms smuggler Federico Lazarev, a man worth a billion US Dollars and wanted in 3 continents. The report further says that Lazarev was buying parts at throw away prices for Vandana and in return supplying the makers in Croatia and Romania the designs and the blue prints of various weapon systems used by the Indian Army. We have no information on how these countries plan to use it but their alleged ties with Pakistan and North Korea paves way for terror not only for India but the rest of the world. Of all the employees of Vandana Enterprise, everyone has been granted a bail by CBI except 3 people, out of which one is a female".

Sabrina was shocked. It was too much for her to take. Later in her room she sat and thought about it, but nothing made sense. Why Me??? She kept asking. Few hours later, a call came for her. She was being summoned back for another round of questioning. Now that she was used to it she didn't hesitate for a second- lets get over with it, she thought. Walking into the room she realised a familiar face, it was Mr Ajay Maakan. A chill went right down her spine. He asks- "How are you doing Ms Sabrina?" to which she replied wittily "I am doing very well, thank you for your hospitality", to which he couldn't stop but laugh.Maakan- "Oh the pain you girls can hide is beyond us men to comprehend. I mean your childhood, ur family is so not what a little girl should face". Kumar in disgust- "you know for a person who doesn't wants to be misconstrued as an enemy, you have a very bad understanding of that word and its boundaries". To which a smiling Maakan replies " Relax, I know the pains of being a step child. I was one myself". Sabrina is infuriated -"What is wrong with you sir, and where are you getting these preposterous ideas!" Maakan- "Oh! So you don't know. Your family is doing a very good job of hiding the facts from you. Sabrina, the woman you call your mother isn't her, she is your step mother. Your biological mother died sometime after your delivery and your father married soon. It's so silly that being so intelligent you could not connect the dots yourself. Your step mother has a reason to treat you the way she does. There is no affection for you in her heart". Kumar is devasted and disgusted, and she breaks down into tears. She has no idea how to cope with it. Every now and then she did wonder why her mother treated her that way, now it all makes sense. But why is he telling her all this? And how did he find out about this. Maakan- "don't be heart broken Sabrina, and I'm so sorry that you didn't already knew. Anyways, you will now follow Dr Mishra to a lie detector test. If you have nothing to hide this will be your last one". This suddenly made sense. Criminals are often broken down emotionally before interrogations cuz it's easier to get secret informations out of them after that. But Kumar had nothing to hide. She was ready to face whatever they could throw at her.

A depressed and sobbing mess, Kumar was lying in her bed covered up in blanket. She has never felt this weak, alone and sad in her life, her whole life was pretty much a lie so far. She was always an optimist and far sighted but today she couldn't stop thinking about her past and gaze on her wounds which suddenly got fresh.

Somebody knocked at the door. Sounds of keys, lock and the door opened. A guard was here. With a clipboard at hand, the guard offers her a pen to sign. It was a release certificate, she was free now, she could go home. She has never missed her tiny apaprtment so much before. It was a relief but a blank future lay ahead of her. No job, no family. What's next for her, what dark days lie ahead now. Stay tuned to know more.