The next morning, Aditya woke up earlier than his usual 5 a.m. and went for a swim. The pool was empty, the water glowing eerily in the dim lights. Aditya stood on the tiled edge for a moment and then dived in. The water was icy cold; he felt the blood freezing in his veins. He swam furiously to let the shock wear off. After half a lap, he felt in control of his muscles again and eased into his rhythm.
As he turned for his second lap, he heard the scream. It seemed to be coming from the depths of the pool.
Help me, please! I don’t want to die!
Aditya tried to scream back and shut the voice up inside his head. But he couldn’t.
He heard the siren of his patrol car. And footsteps. His own. As he ran towards the building. It was eleven in the night. Four years ago. Aditya ran past the crowd that had gathered on the street and took the elevator to the nineteenth floor. A few people were in the hallway, standing about in their nightwear. A middle-aged couple was trying to break open a grille that obstructed them from taking the staircase to the terrace. They were shaking it violently, weeping and shouting incoherently.
‘Please save my daughter,’ the man implored Aditya. ‘He says he loves her ... then why is he doing this
‘Step back,’ Aditya said as he took out his revolver and fired a shot at the lock, snapping it open. ‘Wait here,’ he yelled as he slid open the grille and ran up the twelve steps to the terrace door. As he opened the door and stared into the darkness outside, a cold, harsh wind hit him, chilling him to the bone.
He saw the two intertwined figures at the far end of the terrace, as if suspended in the air. He put his gun down on the concrete floor and slowly walked towards them. The girl, no more than twenty, was sobbing softly. A young man, about her age, had an arm around her waist and a hand around her neck, gripping her tightly. They were standing on a ledge, a foot wide, that went around the terrace. Aditya looked down over the ledge at the street and felt dizzy. ‘Let’s talk. Everything will be all right,’ Aditya said, raising both his hands.
‘No ... it won’t,’ the man said.
‘I promise you ... just step down. You love her, don’t you?’ Aditya stepped forward, hands still raised, eyes making contact with the man’s.
‘But she doesn’t ...’
‘Help me, please. I don’t want to die,’ the girl cried, looking at Aditya.
‘Nobody can help us now,’ the man said and took half a step backwards, one of his heels now an inch outside the ledge, his grip on the girl still firm.
‘Wait ... don’t do that!’ Aditya shouted and rushed forward, arms outstretched. The man took one final step back and fell, taking the screaming girl with him into the void.
Aditya made a desperate attempt to clutch at something, anything, but he saw the two bodies plunge, making short work of the long way down. He turned his head away before they hit the ground. He heard the muted thuds though.