tariqa wardat

...there was still some time for the train to arrive,  Mr Simon waiting for the train  took out a novel from the bag placed beside him,  he was  resting his back against the  back of the bench as if it will be  a long wait , this was his  normal  attitude  whenever he   could  get  snatches of free time   , reading novels was his  first love,  he always carried several novels in his  his luggage,  it seemed the main purpose of his traveling was  for the love of reading novels 

Mr Simon had three additional suitcases besides his carry bag, quite extra large,  decent expensive  clothes and facial countenance defined he was wealthy , his eyes glued to the reading  some minutes passed when he felt a horrifying  touch of a cold knife on his neck,  he was shocked and tried to move his head but he couldn't 

Sit still Mr a rough  crude voice spoke harshly,  

Railway stations were sparsely  crowded,  a few people stood some distance away,  it was  a small backward township,  very few cared to come this way,  Mr Simon belonged here , he owned  landed property and a family house,  every  fortnight he would visit  his roots to go back to the city where he had moved to with his family a few years ago 

page 142

...a strange  overwhelming feeling descended heavy on Imran,  as if he was constantly thinking  only of mahin,  she who was in the prison,  he felt guilty she was  suffering because of him,  the day  she was produced in the court  he  left her to face it all alone by herself as he  drove his bike around in the lanes and bylanes of Lahore,  he was under great stress

Hoping the footage would  reveal  mahin innocent,  she will be released on bail, women  get easy bail, even mahin was granted bail,  within a couple of hours Imran reached the narrator lawyer  s place with a box of sweets  looking extremely happy,  he distributed  sweets amongst his neighbors,  seeing the lawyer ready  he asked if he was going somewhere,  the  lawyer was  going to see taufuq rai

A few days later Imran again showed his interest in the case ,  telling  the lawyer uncle whatever this man rai was saying  knew too much about  Chawla or he wouldn't have tried to kill himself  when  Chawla was arrested 

muhabbet me haar ke

....baraza ali, this deal will prove mutually beneficial for us both,  it's a hundred percent win win situation,  this deal can give you fifty chores  , in turn all you have to do is to come with me for a few months,  most probably you will be  free  within a few days  and there won't be any more need for you to be with me,  whatever  , the deal will change your life,  it is a turning point 

The Cafe was  absolutely still in silence,  it was morning  and hardly anyone  came to the Cafe at this time 

And what exactly made you believe I would accept this deal  she asked  who was sitting facing him  , listening attentively in complete silence  without any expression,  this time raised an eyebrow  looking directly into his eyes 

Barazah ali, though I don't know you but  I am  very much familiar with money  and it's buying power,  he  smiled wryly before taking a sip from his  coffee mug 

Good,  I like it

She too  moved forward and sipped her own coffee and declared decidedly she  accepted the deal

page 61

...ayat my darling sweetheart sister  is one of the species of women who blindly  believe every word  her husband says  and  using love as a sentimental weapon husband  cheats on her,  this type of woman  finds herself  emotionally trapped in a unhappy relationship  with golden dreams in her  heart  that remain unfulfilled for the rest of the life 

But when love torn woman  with all her broken dreams  becomes aware of  life situation and specially her own position she takes a strong step  a decision in her own favor  to shake up the meaning mentality of slumbering men , she crosses that restriction  set on her by uncouth men , expecting from her demanding from her  all her loyalty love and care  for himself,  telling her to keep her mouth shut to  save ber marriage  to support his wrongful activities 

The narrator a lawyer  by profession was  assisting such women  for years  but  in this case  she was helpless  it was her sister nit a client 

page 59

...bhabhi you are going to extremes,  such a huge  punishment for a small mistake  that you are trying to break up your own family,  burning down your own   home, , arfi was doing his best to make her understand  and she was  just a  mute spectator 

 The day  the man  , the head of the family changes with that changes the life of the woman,  their home life and the world  is destroyed that moment , the other woman  brought  sparks  and  her world  turned to emotional ashes, ayat was   figure of hard pathos and sorrow,  , her thinking was restricted  by the experience of  faithlessness  she was unable to  cross the mental barrier and think beyond,  she had forgotten herself  how could she remember anything else at all 

Bhabhi  look at this way it's impossible for men to avoid women  enticing and inviting them  into sinful  relationships,  

shadi

...miss,  what's your opinion about me 

Very sweet and nice 

So may I send my mother to your house 

What for,  scowls appeared  

To  of course discuss the matter further 

Are you crazy,  just yesterday  you were born and today you paying oversmart

Miss,  you have gone crazy watching tv serials  dramas  movies and being online  internet,  I was talking about tuitions,  can't you find anything else except marriage 

page 132

... room conditioning was restored by the  evening  followed by Carter s luggage  briefcase and writing material along with the typewriter but his own condition  deteriorated,  his worries were killing him , those ideas  were planted into his head by Lucy  before she left,  departmental  store passes,  thirty thousand  dollars and house  documents  and two months  groceries  were stuck  in his mind choking him , he still owed  forty thousand to the  land owner  every  other month or he would lose the house,  all he had now with him was his savings from the drama company  , it wasn't more than ten thousand dollars  not sufficient enough  , ironically he still wasn't comfortable to write the plot of dramas, , from the side rooms  sheriff Thomas  and his  subordinates  voices rose  , he  couldn't concentrate on his  subject,  he  needed a drink very badly  but who serves hard  drinks in lock ups

...next morning James reached worthmill by car , Carter was ready,  he didn't have much luggage just one brief case  full of writing material  and his typewriter,  Lucy took her seat in the back seat with the briefcase,  Carter  and James occupied front seats, he found it hard to believe Lucy would go with them to drop him home,  but she was up early and all ready to go along,  in fact it was rather good  actually,  the doubts in mind would get cleared up,  she won't  trouble Carter for the rest of the  month,  Carter had given some helpful tips before she came like about how to manage his finances he was to get from  dramas , James started reciting those tips as the car started,  first of all he sweetly enquired how was she,  instead of choosing to answer she turned her face away,  James intervened to subdue the air by congratulating  Carter for  getting involved with the production,  he was  chosen for his   brilliance  and were ready to pay him thirty thousand dollars 

Lucy startled turned to look at Carter  , he smiled  there was no need to be so happy,  he would get the money after the drama was completed  and that too if they liked it, he wanted to be  able to  please them  with the plot of the drama and he could succeed only if he was not distracted  and disturbed at home 

page 123

,...when he  entered his house Lucy was  watching  action fight television show,  the house was  silent and peaceful,  it was surprising,  soon enough  the surprise element was  ended  the  and payments weren't done,,  she said tenenants had left and rooms were vacated ,   Carter  clutching his head sat down in the sofa,, in her  own  style she asked if he would  refuse to take her out  to dinner,  more tenenants will come of course,  because of them  they shouldn't  spoil their own programs 

Carter exploded  he had no money to dine outside,  she  was not  able to manage  the house and the tenenants  and because of her  he wasn't getting any proper job, these were the only two ways to raise income,  rent and salary 

Lucy  on top of her voice  as her habit was shouted , what did he mean  by it , that because of her  he wasn't  getting  any work, he ought to  fear almighty,  her father  got him into  television business,  he should be grateful for it, , today if he was jobless it was because of his own  lack of  capability,  he must  confess his own  inadequacy instead of shifting the blame on her

tanav

...James took  a long sip of his  liquor and turned to speak to Carter sitting  before him  , he wasn't really  disappointed  with him so far,  because he was certain  his abilities weren't rusted  just that his married life  had  blocked his capabilities,  James  reprimanded him for getting married to Lucy  but Carter found her irresistible  and ignored James,  now   he must listen carefully  and attentively  , James was working for  a production  needed  a television serial on a ten percent basis and James  had  as a personal favor  recommended his name to the  producer  ,  he has agreed to sign Carter as his writer,  it was another chance  , he must go for it and not  fail James and break his trust  or both of them would  sink in the dark depths of anonymity 

Carter assured him he will try his best this time and  prove  he was worthy and James decision absolutely right but to pursue his career he needed a perfect  atmosphere  but  as long as Lucy is around he can't work,  she  was a distraction,  James must  remove her out of Carter s life, 

Carter was  feeling low lost and  helpless,  James looked at him sharply,  and what exactly did that mean,  what did he expect from him,  to do about it, , James can't  get her out of his life  because she will not leave him, because  Carter was  the best husband  for her

Carter sulking agreed James was absolutely right,  Lucy was  a  witch and  e couldn't  get rid of her,  or else  he would have  separated from her long ago 

page 35

....salar sahib had freshened up and changed into a pair of clean nightsuit  and got inside his  giant size bed to relax when wasif knocked at the door  softly, 

Oh yes dear do come in, salar sahib was  so familiar with wasuf s style of knocking at the door that even while asleep salar sahib could  recognize it and ask him to come in 

Wasif opened the door to come in , a pleasant scented room odor welcomed him  along with  perfumes soap shampoo and shower mixed with  air freshener 

Yes, mamu , did you send for me 

Right of course,  dear  today  legs muscles are paining,  so lend me your  hands and give me a nice  massage 

He flung his ego aside and jumped onto the bed  to press massage  his legs

Come on you young man , apply more  force,  you were well fed by your mother,  salar sahib  folded his  own  arms and placed them on his chest and shut his eyes, 

A sky tearing scream rose bringing the whole universe crashing down to be swallowed by an invisible black hole,  he had energized salar sahib filling up his old bones  with  vigor as if he was transferring his own power into the Olde man

What are you up to,  do you want to break all my left over bones inside me,  agreed you do possess  youthful  strength and energy,  every other day you appear to give me a body massage,  but something is not right today 

page 33

....wasif looking quite tired was climbing up the stairs,  fari s shrill voice  stopped  him chaining to him to the spot,  tell papa to leave his job and  go into business instead,  what have the children done  to be deprived of  basic simple things,   , by then  wishes turn lame,  be patient,  just stop,  wait , listen carefully,  wait  endlessly till death 

Again she is turned on,  thought shamsa, 

Something wrong is happened to bhabhi,  how  much I try to explain  shift the burden of responsibility on salar  bhai , but  most probably  bhabhi doubts  he would  immediately  get a mobile   for him,  she must    make him see reason till he returns,  she  argued  to herself  

Wasif was walking  into the lounge  with heavy feet,  it was easy to see  him from that American kitchen,  he had to get across to his room  from the kitchen  

Almighty is merciful,  your papa  holds a high position  others dream of all their life, , it was  sara s voice  landing from upstairs 

What if you had five children,  each one  given a cell phone worth fifty thousand,  at this point  shamsa and  wasif exchanged meaningful glances,  a sarcastic smile  stretched  his lips " action replay"

All family women had this incredible d n a of stubbornness,  tongues venom spitting,  shamsa turned her face away 

Otherwise their life wasn't that miserable 

page 113

....wife: look at my condition,  I have a screen but no border, blusher but no powder,  tiny container but no  eyeliner,   her voice was complaining 

Husband;beghum,  you are so right,  exactly  explains my condition,  I have a pocket but no money 

..

.

In a hospital  a patient  spoke to the doctor when  a fantastically  attractive nurse left, what a nice nurse  she is,  her one touch and  the  high fever left

The doctor answered 

. Everyone knows  it because  the whole   hospital floor  resounded  by the  slap on your face 

.

.a careful  husband wanted to stop his wife  from driving rash; dear if you drive  rash  it could get out of control and end in an accident,  after that tge newspapers will publish the news  and also your real age

.

.the professor was apparently in a great hurry 

Beghum asked him to have his daily paan before he left 

He came back to grab his daily paan and   again  hurriedly  turned to leave 

Beghum again called him back 

Your  shoes...

He explained he was right now in a hurry,  he will have them later

page 92

Mulk Zaman shah s haveli was illuminated  and shone to its spectacular glory at night,  the lawn was decorated and  presented a mesmerizing scene  , memorable for years to come  for those guests,   damsels sang melodious  wedding songs on the  traditional  dholak beats,   voices rising high and  going low  producing a cheerful  atmosphere,  gathered girls  rhythmically  clapped their hands adding more fun and excitement to the entertainment,  , all the girls  lived in the  same village  locality,  friends of shahina the daughter of mulk Zaman shah, it was  an occasion of celebration of shahina s marriage 

Mulk Zaman was  a veteran chieftain of the  village,  naturally  no ordinary people were invited to his  daughter's wedding function,  all were  of higher important status  mostly from the city

Shahina was  in the center of the gathering  on a loafer stage decorated  as a bride,  typical  bridal  dress heavily  overloaded with jewelry  and a long veil hiding her  bridal face  , she was  listening  the songs sung by her friends surrounding her , some distance away  guests were  sitting  , tge special care was taken  to make arrangements for them all 

khwab

...her screams filled  the whole place  resounding  echoes  were full of overwhelming pain  , helplessness  showing , screams defined  lost hopes and  shattered dreams,  her shrieking  evoked  no reaction,  the  people  present  around  seemed  deaf and blind  , moving about mechanically like  robots,  those people consisted of men and women,  each face covered with a mask  hiding them,  just from their outer appearance  and clothing  could  one tell  of their gender 

A big group of strong women held the screaming woman and tugged her to an operation theater,  several  persons stood around a huge table  , their face masks hid their identities,  but  she knew they were all surgeons,  the  room was brightly lit up,  she was scared of the frightening sight  of the masked persons,  their eyes shone  unnatural blood red

She was trying to get herself free from the strong clutches, , wailing out loudly  to show her mercy and let her go, one of the  oppressor woman spoke in rough crude voice her sin was unpardonable, she deceived her husband and conceived without  informing him,  she must be punished for her crime and so must the unborn 

page 73

...after dinner  young people  in the group  would  settle down  in their  chairs in the lawn   for a friendly  chit chat, the full moon in the clear night sky casted its  bright light  turning the surroundings  silver , distant mountain peaks glowed  gloriously 

Afsheen and  asgar sat separately  from others,  suddenly he declared  his craving for a specific cigarette  , would she  like to support him 

She was surprised  in this guest house   when  all others watched them 

Oh no not here,  I have a native friend  coming soon  , I have already talked to him  , let's enjoy,  it's near by 

A giggle escaped her, how clever of you,  where and when did you  make local friends 

Shahid Kareem is my  close friend  of yore  he lives in hamza , we  know  each other for  several years 

Actually I also  want it , long time  not taken   that stuff , do you think it's  no problem  , I have heard   people here are actively against drugs

Don't you worry,  no worries,  tourist season  allows everything  as passable,  trust  Shahid Kareem   he will be  here  soon  with his vehicle 

At this point  ashar s phone  began ringing,  looking at the screen he said  it's him calling,  with this he received the call,  in a short while he shut down 

Come on Afsheen,  he is waiting at the  gate of the guest house,  ashar stood up, 

page 72

It was  their fourth day of the fun trip,  the gular Valley was  amazingly spectacular It is located  just before  hanza  another worth seeing Valley,  the  town was  grown around  resham  was a great favorite attraction  f tourists,  the  Valley  remained  forever in spring filled with  colorful exotic  scented flo, one of the highest peak  is also    located there amidst the natural beauties, 

They stopped  at kaghan  the first phase of the excursion,  walking around and on the nearby  spots, two nights stay and  then  they  moved  on forward,  including the driver  in the group were fifteen of them,  some of the members were married  couples   others  young boys and girls,  the manager of the trip was  shaukat manzar,  a tourist  and his wife safya bano  was accompanying him , shaukat  Ali  had his own travel and tour company  and  he arranged  several  fun trips  all  around Pakistan,  this  time  both husband wife  were  also on the  trip  to North,  from Narain kaghal they  descended directly  into gangat balastan, the first halt at  Asturias Valley  by the  Rama lake   where   tge sightseeing was  a different out of the world experience  next point the trip  was to  stay was at skurd   then  gangsta was next  , instead of camping there they chose hamza and nagari to  spend three nights  before   going back to Lahore 

palkon pe

...man is the result of his actions,  what he thinks   , speaks and  does  weave a fabric throughout his lifetime  building a personality  on the spinning web of his  own work when  forgiveness is accepted  almighty  wipes clean  the blemishes  of sins,  that means  the scars and hurts and  other  damages  done are healed,  bitterness and  the hangover of his burns are  cured,  a pure calm descends on him and  settles down for ever in his heart  but the wicked  don't let him  be at peace   as if they must play him and pay back  in their own  way,  shamma was  sunk in her deep  thoughts  was  startled out of her meditative mood by a scream from  downstairs,  it was Farisha , shamma sat upright  she was resting on the sofa having  completed her kitchen  tasks and  relaxing in a philosophical mood,  the  balcony was close by , tge lounge and  the balcony  was  divided by a wall running across with a modern style window from where  western winds blew in  cooling the whole  house 

Fari  is again  gripped by some   ghastly idiotic  idea  , she ran towards the stairs 

page 15

....he is taimur my son 

Amma introduced  him to miss zulhama tge first time  amma took him there,  he was  a student of tenth standard  but he hid behind his amma  , he had low self esteem, amma had never allowed him to venture outside his house after his abba  s death  fearing  the bad bad world  could   damage him , naturally she didn't want to lose him,   but staying indoors  didn't help him  to grow  better  , full time  domesticity turned him into a low esteemed  coward,  he couldn't even speak with anyone  properly , he spoke so softly  in nervous tones he could  hardly hear himself,  he became inaudible to others,  mere incomprehensible  mumbles  he would repeat  over and over again,  , he had few friends in school,  at home amma wouldn't let him play with  others,  so he became a nervous wreck 

His maths is very poor   bibi, please teach him  maths  of your standard,  just do something to help him clear his matric 

Amma was  urdu medium  three levels passed  and incapable of teaching him,  he somehow managed to get along  in other subjects but maths was tough 

He will improve Maryam khala but stop calling me bibi

Nodding her head amma  went straight into the room where  mother of the miss was present,  recently she got a stroke  and was not well,  amma  s daily massage  therapy  was proving beneficial,  she had  become stronger to step down from her wheelchair to take a few  steps gingerly 

from previous

....hotel boy brought  them snacks and  drinks,  ashar asked afsheen to help herself  , she  refused to have them , instead she ordered a soft drink for herself,  in the restaurant there were  private cabins available to give privacy to couples  on extra charges,  it was a great relief  ashar had just  smoked cigarettes and  and drank beer but never asked her to  the private cabin,  finally after spending  long time in the restaurant they emerged  outside he had been drinking lots of beer and  smoking  non stop,  he was stumbling  unable to  keep his balance,  afsheen felt her own head spinning a bit and  heart racing with excitement,  she was floating  sitting on the bike with him,  mixed factors smoking  and his company and the ride in northern areas a sense of thrill gripped her 

Reaching her flat she found Maria was sitting there all  alone 

muhabbet gazeeda

Roads of Lahore  were ablaze  in summer heat,  afsheen  got down at her  bus stop from the university bus profusely sweating,  water bottle had turned  to boiling point  and become undrinkable,  she  began walking the side lane leading to her flat  , it was about twenty minutes walk, there were  three other girls  sharing the flat with afsheen,   three rooms and four of them,  two rooms were  used for living,  a smaller room was the kitchen,  

She was a student in the university,  two more girls also were students  of the same university,  just one resident girl  was  doing a meager private  job in a company,  all four of them were  from multan 

Afsheen had reached her flat  when her  phone rang,  she  pulled out her phone from her handbag, with  a touch of a smile  she saw the  screen  display the name of the caller,  it was ashar on the other side,  he was a co student  in the university in different  departments  tgey knew each other for a  year now,  they were in relationship and  not just  classmates anymore,  he was from faislabaad 

She pressed the button and received his call,  he was  saying   they couldn't  get enough time to ve together in the university , later he looked for her everywhere  , her mobile was shut off,  he was worried  for her 

She explained during her classes her phone remains shut off 

She forgot to  turn it on  and just now getting down from the bus she  switched it on

Where are you,  have you left,  he wanted to speak to her 

She gave her location  , she was  outside her flat,  heat and sun was burning,  it was  difficult talking  standing in the summer sun 

page 61

Jolly  said it was  a weekend , 

His wife and daughter were away  out  of town  , he could  spend his time  in his way 

The detective came out of the house  and turned towards his car  , he saw  Clive Samson and his  friend hunter had  parked their Honda right beside his car,  so many dents  were visible on it completely covered in snow  , windshield was wiped clean of the snow  by the  moving wiper  , he cleaned the license plate before taking its picture and got inside his own car 

The boys had left the garage door open 

That husband wife couple had two Durangos one silver other white 

The road to Saint Claudia was absolutely plain smooth,  flanked on either side with  fields  running along,  he rang up his partner Anderson  to inform him of the meeting between him and  jolly and Greg and sent him the picture of the license plate  recently clicked to get more information about it 

Without announcing he reached Sofia  s apartment,  he pressed the intercom button to inform about himself,  the door opened,  Sofia lived on the fourth  floor,  young attractive woman  arrived at the door  dressed in a loud showy  gown,  holding a cigarette in between her fingers  and a lighter in the other hand 

What is it she enquired 

I am here to see Sofia soreena

She is not here 

Doesn't she live here or is she not here at this time 

I am just awake and  craving for a smoke,  if you want join me in the balcony and talk 

jhoota jasoos

He wasn't  a cheat by nature but the nature of his work demands he cheated,  lies are affective like bullet shots  all that one has to do is take aim and  fire at the chosen target,  as a result  some  get injured one such wounded victim was  jolly Samson  who took him  to her living room  and said  her sister  died a week ago  she wanted to find out  how and in what circumstances did she die

Jolly was  in her late fifties  touching sixty but amazingly she didn't look her years,  clad in designer jeans  ,,English rose  warm woollen sweater,  silver ear rings   she looked young 

Greg her husband appeared  had not  bought  new trendy  clothes for himself in ages,  he was completely comfortable in his  old t shirt   ragged jeans and  worn out tennis shoes,  absolutely bald with  a couple of remnants of hair standing on his head stubbornly  not succumbing to his comb

The visitor  explained that the county medical  examiner   declared  Nancy  died   a natural  death,  but jolly  had som unexplained reason to believe otherwise  perhaps  Nancy was  murdered 

Jolly didn't really know what exactly she  believed  but  last week  when her sister Nancy died  she overlooked  the possibility  of murder  but now  careful thinking  makes her feel it was not a natural death,  Nancy  enjoyed a healthy  life  and couldn't have died suddenly of nothing  , all we  want from  you is to investigate  the case 

page 57

.....I think  this much is enough  of instructions,  wanting to wind up the thread of conversation he declared,  you must take semiboy with you,  there  should not be any problem,  but just in case  some unforeseen  issues crop up contact me telephonically,  there won't be any need of it  because  after  work  he would himself take a round  and check on things

Mr fargausan that is wonderful  Said  Greg

He thanked him for his hospitality and warmth,  he quickly left  declining  the host s offer of coffee,  , 

On one side of the gigantic door was  fixed the security alarm,  it was an ordinary system  easy to turn on and off , it could also be operated from  outside the house  , Greg was absolutely right  it was not a reliable system,  trained  watchdogs are different because they  ta orders only from their master,  and  could  go to any  extreme 

Good boy,  Greg and semiboy stood there as he waved his farewell  and  drove off to reach  Saint Alabanz there his whole day was spent   getting his work done  , the night he spent at the hotel,  next  evening  around seven  forty   he dined at a Chinese restaurant golden  mandarin,  he phoned Greg to find out if he was  alright with  semiboy  showing his concern 

What a nice doggy , no problems,  time  together was pleasant experience 

Thanks for taking good care of him,  he became rather sentimental,  if you  permit  can  I come and see him,  I also want to  give you a nice book on dog handling 

from previous

One ought to be self conscious  and you have always been that she said  moving her fingers over the arm of the chair 

You are zulhama   , whose  shadow cast on me  and that alone made me  a great person

She stared back at me without a word,  her intense gaze  were always unbearable and  the  radiance like ever before made him lower his eyes  , he uncomfortably tried to change the subject 

If you hadn't come I was  ready to visit your parents uncle and aunty 

Really,  what for 

He couldn't find any answer  instead he asked what brought her to him  , he wanted to  focus on the real matter 

I need something done,  I thought you'd be able to get it done  , you occupy a powerful post,  must have several important contacts  ,  so it would be easy 

He was startled at her explanation she was  aggressively against  taking favors and giving bribes,  now  she  herself   asking for it was rather odd,  suddenly  a giggle escaped from her lips,  a sarcastic  giggle  laughing at herself 

For the rightful things and to keep lawful order  also sometimes one needs  powerful contacts 

page 12

...sir, there is one miss zulhama come to see you,  he picked up his intercom  to hear his  p a inform him,  rubbing his forehead he thought  he knew just one zulhama who won't and couldn't come 

About what did  she say she wanted to see him 

She says she is your teacher 

He  got a shock,  miss he   bit his lips repeating  the name as he quickly closed the file placed before him 

Quickly send her in

 And also two coffees please,  coffee must be creamy

Turning off the  intercom he tidied his hair,  from the sidetable he drew out a bodyspray  and  generously poured it over himself,  it was going to be four years since they had met last,  it was unbelievable  though he was  missing her  intensely for a while  but he couldn't muster enough courage to visit her 

At that point  stepped inside miss zulhama  her presence  influenced  the surroundings 

Can I come in,  a c sahib, she stood there  holding the door  and he was  as if charmed by her spell, she  had become  even more  radiant, when he was small  her appearance was doll like  and delicate  now he was  a dashing  grown up young man   before her  but she still was a most graceful woman  he had ever met 

hoshiar

It was  a pleasant weekend morning,  he parked his van   at ten thirty before 2419 Melrose palace,  it was  a fashionable  and fantastic area in Saint albanz,  built on colonial style  the two storey  house had a fabulous look,  the hedge  cut to perfection  across it a lawn   beyond that  magnificent house  stood there  overlooking  overpowering  the scene in all its superlative glory,  most expensive  most  impressive 

James Greek  certainly must be  extremely wealthy  , to protect his property from robbers of all kinds  he  could afford  any security system,  latest devices  alarms and  what not  and he also  could hire the service of the best guards and watchmen,  but every one has his weak spot,  some  simply don't trust others  , perhaps Mr Greg was one of those species  who refuse to trust outsiders,  whatsoever  his  natural tendency  quickly lead him to post a message in the newspaper to connect with his contact 

After parking the car he began moving towards the  back door entrance,  the moment he opened the door semiboy wagging and barking welcomed him in,  the pet lowered his head and   pushed himself forward for a back rub

page 15

It was  around twelve  , her phone  began ringing,  startled she picked up her phone,  it was Hyder  flashing on the screen,  she had saved him and his number  , she tentatively spoke  hello on the mouthpiece  not  wanting him to know she had  saved him to contacts 

I am Hyder speaking,  I hope I didn't disturb your sleep,  gulnar had told me  you study  all night 

Oh, so gulnar gave you my number 

Yes of course,  I asked her for it 

 For unexplained reason she  had seemed to hesitate 

Perhaps  she thought  it unwise  to share my number  without my permission 

Probably you are right,  she talks too much,  she constantly chattered twenty minutes before shutting down 

Who rang up 

Gulnar had rung him up, to share her own number with him 

So what  did you talk about for so long 

 Asked shazya smiling 

Gulnar was interested in asking about me and my life in detail 

And why did you call me  up

Just wanted to share the  conversation between gulnar and me with you 

Why

The reason I shall tell you tomorrow,  can we meet somewhere 

page 11

Shazya  standing  restlessly in the  park  saw a police  sergeant  with his mobile bike and hyder with his bike   , Shazya  jumped forward and enquired hyder what was going on 

The robber who snatched your phone is dumped inside the  mobile pickup,  he smiled didn't he say just wait  and watch 

Mobile was held by the inspector now 

Is this yours  he asked her 

Sge confirmed  it it was hers and held out her hand to grab it

Not just now, the inspector waved off his hand,  at the police station after completing all the steps,  then its yours, hyder and Shazya and the  pickpocket all had to reach the police station to give their statements,  Shazya must show her gratitude towards hyder who saved her expensive mobile 

Certainly,  thank you so much  Shazya  thanked  him

The inspector continued her mobile was so expensive  she must also have a car too 

We both have cars

Meantime gulnar kept  staring at hyder 

Both of you follow the police to the station  in your cars

And  you too  hyder

Thus that long convoy  drove off 

page 9

Shazya reached home but escaped a scolding  but Jalal bukhtyari  made it very clear to her  he personally didn't like  improper  behavior of students  and their sitting on the stairs  gossiping in the college 

She  promised  her father to take care of this in future before going to her room 

That day she  spent time thinking and smiling about gulnar  who was  definitely  adored  or was it a mischief played by someone , but loaders usually treat all that way 

Shazya reached a decision  it couldn't be a loafer but could he really be worthy of gulnar  s love,  she  belonged to an ultramodern ultrasmart  family,  though she always arrived in college dressed up  decently  conservative  otherwise she liked  to wear  trendy  short dresses and according to shazya  she was a sincere friend 

It was a Sunday next day,  shazya  went out jogging  her daily routine early morning,  when she was about to leave Jalal bukhtyari stopped her and suggested she must  take some along  with her instead of going alone for safety reasons,  take the chauffeur  as a chaperone 

No need  daddy , all her college friends are present in the park she isn't alone 

Right  but it's always better to have a man around to protect you from bullies who like hurting good girls from riçh families 

Lamhon ke asir

That day  Zafar was  late for college  so   sitting down at the writing table he was  quickly  scribbling  some notes,  it was also his study table,  he would always keep his window open during  his  studies,  his window was  wide open right now also,  it was a room in the apartment,  the window opened in a side street  on the other side of the street  was   another  wing of more apartment buildings,  all their windows also opened in the same street,  the lane between  the  buildings was very narrow  that bigger than an auto Riksha  vehicles couldn't cross it

The window of the second floor apartment  looked the window facing it directly from across  from another apartment  that opened sometimes  and Zafar then could  see  a good looking girl standing there,  several residents of the  area knew each other well  or were familiar with each other or knew them by their faces or names,  Zafar knew   her name was bakhtawar  of twenty five,  she must have been married quite young  because she was a young mother of two,  her boy five  and other six  showed up in the open window  across the street and sometimes screamed  mummy mummy calling bakhtawar,  perhaps her husband was a travel agent,  Zafar had overheard someone say it but he had never seen the man