Rishi got back to his car to compare the location that he had just received with that of Suman’s last known location. The phone had been stable and had not moved since the last few hours. Either that or the location reporting had somehow turned off. The two locations were different. While the phone seemed to be in a warehouse, the location he found was off by a margin.
Rishi wondered what to do. He could either follow the bread crumb trail that he got off the phone or he could go to the location he found at the spot. He checked his glove box for the gun. It was there. His trusted Taurus PT709 Slim was safely tucked inside. So were a few spare bullets. Two spare Beretta 21A Bobcat were hidden away safely within his shoes. One Beretta 93R was strapped to his chest. He set it to fire at burst mode for dire consequences. He also had a classic scout’s knife hidden within his belt.
The car started like the purr of a cat and he was fast on his way to reaching the last known location of the phone. He was not sure what to expect. But he had to take that risk. The warehouse was a good 10 kms away. He set up his smartphone to navigate him to that location through the fastest known route. Since it was past midnight he expected the roads to be empty and empty they were. He was racing away with the navigation system on full blast at a high speed. He was there in no time.
When Rishi reached the warehouse he found it to be an abandoned old warehouse that may have been used to stock liquor. Several broken bottles and used cartons lay strewn around. He quickly read the name off one of the cartons. It read Black Dog. He was careful not to ruffle so much as a leaf just in case the people inside got alerted. He could hear a few muffled voices coming from inside. They were mostly sounds of women and a few children. He still could not risk it. He moved with the agility and swiftness of a lion to catch the people inside by surprise. Instead he was caught surprised. He was hit on the head by something hard.
When Rishi gained his senses a few moments later, he found himself tied to a chair with the spotlight on him. He could feel that his Beretta 93R was no longer with him. He did not know about the Bobcat though. His face was soaked wet and there was a man standing right there before him with a knife in hand. Next to him on a table lay his gun. He could feel his temple pulse with pain and trickles of blood around his eyes clouded his vision. He knew this man. He was the same person whom he had had jailed from one of his earlier cases. He had been wanted for murder, assault and felony. Suman was nowhere around.

While sleep was elusive and Rishi was savouring his Black Dog, he kept wondering how he would progress further in his love life with Suman. Neither had professed love, nor had they denied it. But it was too early to say anything. Neither knew each any better than a coin knowing its flipside. With this he started tossing a coin. He was never a believer of chance. He always liked to have his way. What if she loved somebody else? What if he popped the question too early? What if he delayed it too much? Ugh…
His mind drifted back to the days when he was working as a software engineer. He had fallen madly, deeply in love with one girl. He had seen her for the first time in a lift. He had barely managed to read her name. He did not even know if she sat in the same building as him. He was lost, without any direction. His friends tried to draw him away from the girl, but then he could not. Finally he saw her again. She was seated in the same floor as him, the very same building, but another wing. He was happy. He finally had a breakthrough.
Few days later, when he was stuck with some code of his, he desperately needed help. He dropped a mail to all the people working on the same technology as him. Late afternoon, he got a reply. It was from the same girl. He was elated. She worked on the same technology as him. He could try and get the friendship closer. But he did not pay him much heed. His colleague on the same project as him decided to move ahead, he wanted a change in the project. Another change in life. Tough part teaching the new person coming into the project. The replacement was a girl. Ok. She wasn’t as great looking as the other girls he knew. Ok. But then came the surprise package. The girl he loved and this new girl were very good friends! They even went out for tea together.
Five months he fielded for her. Five months he went for tea every evening with them. Then came the big day. His company was celebrating 25 years of being in existence. He was high. High on love. He searched for her. He searched everywhere. He searched with his friends. He searched with her friends. Nobody had any clue. He decided to call her up. She did not answer his call. There was a big singer who had been called. She was planning to come over in a limo. He was excited. He was one of the volunteers from the organizing committee.
Finally she answered his call. Her family had comedown from her hometown. She was with them. For the first time he came to know she had a twin, a bother. She did not want to speak to him. He was bursting out of excitement. He could contain himself no longer. He burst out. He told her how much he loved her. She cut the call. She did not pick up his calls after that. He was happy he had told it to her.
Madonna arrived in her limo. There was Black Dog on the house. Public went crazy. He went crazy. At forty plus, she still looked so desirable. She still looked so HOT! His heart skipped several beats. None of them were allowed anywhere near her though. But still… they were happy even looking at her. The evening was a resounding hit. Madge belted songs upon songs. She even sang some of her unreleased numbers. They had all called it Black Dog Easy Evening! He had gone back home happy. Things never worked out between the two is another story. He wanted to make this story work. He wanted this story to work. He wanted someone he could come back home to.