Shocked, Bibi forgot her own pain and hurriedly cupped her mouth with her palms. An eerie silence descended soon after, pierced only by the sounds of the night. A few minutes later, Shahida too reached the spot and stood next to her husband. She had a long broom in her hand. Allah Rakha took it from her and began sweeping the debris and burnt pieces of wool. Shahida joined him. Satisfied with their work, the aged couple walked back towards their home. Before entering, they looked up to check if Bibi’s door was closed. Contented, they went inside their house and shut the door. Bibi stood in silence till she heard the sound of Allah Rakha’s door bolting. Even in her wildest dreams, she had not anticipated such a turn of events. It dawned on her that she had turned two innocent, lovable and pious humans into murderers. She rushed into the kitchen, washed her face with cold water and began crying bitterly. Why did I do this? Why did I not kill myself instead? O God, please help me. This is not the karma I wished to perform! Then she thought about her loneliness, her family and cried some more. A bird that is born in a cage often thinks that freedom is a crime.

About ten minutes later, Bibi heard a gentle knock on her door. She ran into the kitchen, splashed water on her face, straightened her hair and went towards the main entrance. She unlocked the door to find Allah Rakha and Shahida. The latter was holding a bowl of warm water and a towel in her hands. Shahida spoke first. ‘Now we know how you dealt with the Pakistani SHO. Though the cop survived, this goon met his fate. And hopefully, his accomplices will get the message and leave you alone,’ she said in a firm, motherly tone and escorted Bibi inside. They made her sit and applied a home-made concoction on her wounds to relieve her of the pain.

It was hard for Bibi to believe that the fingers that were applying balm on her wounds belonged to the same hands that had tossed a fully-grown man into the valley alive a few minutes ago. Shahida broke her reverie by placing a gentle hand on her shoulder and giving her a glass of warm milk mixed with saffron and honey. As she took a sip of the liquid, she burst into tears.

‘What happened?’ inquired a worried Shahida.