Two sisters. Alike in appearance but contrary in nature. Both leave home but where one of them returns the other goes missing. Binita Sen steps in to help in another bizarre search after Debts of Desire.
Mary Mary Quite Contrary How does your garden grow? With Silver Bells and cockle shells And Pretty maids all in a row
Little Ronnie was feeling angry. It had been raining since evening which had kept most people indoors. He hated it when the roads were empty and there was nothing for him to watch all day. Ever since his legs were reduced to limp logs owing to the paralytic attack he suffered when he was 3 years old, he had little else to do than sit by his window and watch the busy world running around outside.
Ronnie stared out of his window on the empty streets as the droplets pelted the pavements creating huge, big puddles. Even Dobby, the stray mongrel of the locality was nowhere to be seen.
He sat by his window till late in the night. Too angry to even go to bed. The rain fell in sheets. Its roar drowning every other sound. Ronnie was still staring desolately at the falling rain when he noticed headlights in the distance. The mist created by the rain made it difficult for him to notice anything clearly, but he focused hard, desperate not to miss the only activity in the otherwise bleak day.
He could vaguely make out a figure getting out of the taxi and looking around for something. He perked up expectantly as he realised the figure was walking towards his window. As the figure approached him, he realised it was a woman. She was wearing a huge rain poncho which had a hood. She had pulled it up to save her head from the rain. There were no streetlights on the road outside and the fact that the hood had covered half her face made it difficult for Ronnie to see how she looked. In the light of the feeble table lamp in his room he could make out that she twitched her lips trying to smile as she looked at him squinting her eyes to keep out the rainwater.
“Do you know where House no 54 is?” she shouted to make herself be heard above the rain.
Ronnie nodded and pointed at the last house on the opposite lane. The girl looked in the direction he indicated and smiled back at him.
“Thanks” she said as she disappeared into the rain.
Ronnie watched as she crossed over and pushed open the wicker gate to enter the house.
Ronnie never saw her again.
Not the next day nor any other day.
Later, when he thought about that rainy night, he found himself wondering if he had imagined the whole incident? He did not remember seeing her leave. It was funny but Ronnie hardly forgot an event that had happened in their lane and the one opposite to theirs. Did she then leave at night when everybody else was asleep?
But why?
And if she had not left, then why did he never see her again?
Read Next – Chapter 1
Cover Photo by Valeriia Miller from Pexels
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