‘Abba, don’t you worry. Relax for two minutes. Rahat, give him tea and let him rest. I will lead the prayers at the mosque, he has trained me enough,’ Salim said.

‘But won’t you get late for work?’ Ali asked.

‘I can manage. I will join you for breakfast before leaving for the garage,’ Salim said.

Salim put on his leather slippers and left the house for the mosque. Rahat followed him out of the house.

Before crossing the road to reach the mosque, Salim passed by a newspaper vendor, whom Rahat had not seen before in the neighbourhood. She saw the hawker fold up his stall then rush towards a telephone booth a few metres away.

Seconds later, a black car with tinted glasses came hurtling towards her house but halted metres away from it, almost knocking over Salim. Two muscular men clad in safari suits and wearing sunglasses leapt out of it.

‘Teri maa ki … don’t you know how to drive?’ Salim screamed.

But the two men were all over Salim in an instant, punching and kicking him.

A man clad in a white shirt and sporting black Aviator sunglasses sat inside.

‘Chalo,’ he said sharply to the other men, who then bundled him inside and left.

‘Salim! Salim! Where are you taking Salim? Abba, they are taking Salim away! Abba, come out please … Let go of him, where are you taking him?’ Rahat shouted, running after the car. ‘Who are you?’

Two hours later, Rahat was still at the Rukhsar Ganj police station with Ali, lodging a complaint about her husband’s abduction.

Sixteen kilometres from the police station, at the Hyderabad airport, a lone chopper painted orange and white sat motionless on a tiny airstrip. The car suddenly appeared next to the chopper. A sedated Salim was shifted to the chopper. The car then reversed and disappeared in a flash.

3. WAITING GAME

3

WAITING GAME

His head felt like it was about to explode. The pain was agonizing. Salim put his hand on his forehead and pressed it. He suppressed the cry that was about to escape his lips, even as he realized that the crusty coating he felt was probably blood.

Salim sat in silence for a few minutes, trying his best to ignore the sea of pain throbbing through his body. Had he passed out? He tried to figure out where he was and why. He looked around the room he found himself in. It had white walls and clean granite floors, with wooden doors painted dark brown. Was it a government office? The memories, meanwhile, came flooding back.