END WITH A KISS

When a city expands, it absorbs nearby rural areas. Our old style home with its outhouse and even a cowshed had become part of the city. The house was built mainly with wooden rafters and tiles with spacious rooms. My husband and I occupied a room and just beyond it was the room which belonged to Sharmila our 5 year old daughter where she would sleep with her attendant an old woman when available.

I would often go to the nearby vegetable market for purchases and was familiar with an elderly man known as JK who would unload trucks coming with vegetables. One day JK said to me “Madam this work is exhausting and I’m finding it difficult to cope due to age. I was told your watchman has quit. Why don’t you take me on?” I merely smiled.

My husband called JK home and asked “Where do you live?”

“I work in the market and have been allowed to sleep in the office.”

“What about your family?”

“I’ve no family.”

My husband said “I’m appointing you on my wife’s recommendation. You may occupy the outhouse here.”

JK was very friendly with Sharmila. In fact my daughter preferred him over the old attendant woman who would more often be absent. He kept a diligent watch over the safety of the house and when he found the time would entertain Sharmila. He made her a swing slung from a tree. He would show her the birds and the flowers and tell her stories. On her 6^th birthday we held a party. After the party JK invited himself and presented her with a nice dress but which was one size larger. He was invited to share in the cakes and other delicacies provided for the occasion and he did.

Weeks passed. One day a man visited us and said to my husband “I’m a cop in plain clothes” and gave proof of his identity. He told us about the kidnap of a certain girl - daughter of an important politician and said “A team is investigating the crime. While we were looking into past similar cases we saw JK’s name. We keep a watch on ex-prisoners and traced JK here. His record says his name is Beman and that he had been convicted of having kidnapped the child of a wealthy landlord a few years ago.”

I asked “What happened to the child?”

The cop said “Police recovered the child and handed it over to the parents. We would now like to search JK’s premises.”

 JK was in his quarter when we entered. The cop ordered “Beman I’m a police inspector. Get out of here now. I’m going to search this place.”

His thorough search yielded nothing. He questioned us further “Was JK hiding a young girl in these premises?”

I said “As far as we know he has done nothing clandestine during his stay. He sometimes goes to the vegetable market. Perhaps to meet people he had associated with earlier.”

“That is what I’ve come have to investigate. Perhaps he has secreted the child somewhere around.”

I said “During the few months of his service with us we found ḥim to be perfectly upright in his duties and dealings.”

The cop laughed and said “That is how criminals deceive even cops! I’ll make enquiries in the market. He could be hiding the kidnapped child somewhere around here.”

My husband was flabbergasted. He chided me “You recommend a stranger to work for us and we find we’ve hired an ex-convict.”

JK was immediately summoned and my husband said “You know why I’ve called you.”

JK said “I know you want to fire me. Let me tell you my story. I was a farm hand in a village far from here. I was happily married and had a girl child. When the child was about 5, it got sick. Local medicos tried to heal her but failed. I was told to seek the help of medical specialists in the city. I went to them but couldn’t afford the cost of medical investigations and medicines. I contacted a local charity for help but they turned me down.”

I was listening intently. He continued “I returned home but my mind was on saving my baby. At long last I decided to kidnap the child of a rich money lender. I seized the child while on her way to school and sought money for the release. The moneylender promised to give me the money but then told the police. I was arrested and the child was released unharmed.”

My husband prompted “Then what happened?” 

He continued “A case of abduction was filed against me and I was taken before a court. Police had a strong case and my lawyer was unable to defend me. The court gave me a jail term.”

I felt sorry for JK. I said “Tell us what happened to your child.”

Tear flowing his cheeks he said “I only heard about it later. My wife left me. It seems she had taken the child to the specialists but they had said it was too late. The child died.”

My husband said “I suppose you were later released.”

He said “Yes. I didn’t know what to do. I couldn’t go back to farming. With my record nobody would hire me. I joined the trucker transporting vegetables and then you.”

My husband said “We’ve heard you. My wife has doubts about your reasons for coming to work for us. I’ll give you your salary for six months. Take it and leave. We don’t want you here any more.”

JK bowed and said “I’ll always be Sharmila’s friend.”

JK left our place but Sharmila was extremely unhappy. We heard he was able to get back to his job as truck unloader and stayed in the market’s office.

Almost a month later the festival of bursting crackers came. That evening someone burst a series of crackers called ‘rockets’ and it looked as if one of these fell on our roof. Our roof caught fire. JK who had been watching rushed in to help. As the fire raged he entered, carried out Sharmila and deposited her with me. Sharmila’s attendant had been absent as usual. He was bleeding heavily in the head. He said “A burning wooden reaper fell on my head.”  He became unconscious and we admitted him in the nearby hospital assuring them we would meet all his medical expenses. But the medicos said he wouldn’t survive. Around midnight we three were in the hospital where JK was on a bed. The doc said “He is restless. We’ve just given him a tranquilizer and he’ll go to sleep.”

I saw JK with a great deal of difficulty blowing a kiss at Sharmila who with tears reciprocated. A moment later he was declared dead. It was exactly midnight.

END