Quandary at the Blue Lagoon

Start your story with someone being presented with a dilemma

Present Day, Time 7:00 pm

Cursing himself under his breath Sam looked around painstakingly in fear of people watching him or making fun of him. To his comfort, no one was looking at him, yet. The temperature in the main kitchen of the Blue Lagoon hotel in Mumbai was no longer comfortable for Sam. Sam exited to the terrace connecting kitchen, it was empty. He took out a cigarette from his pocket and smoked it in a quick uneasy manner. His hands were shaking. A number of things were going over his head. Last year the same time he was vacationing in The Bahamas with his beloved wife Saumya. She looked so beautiful and radiant sitting on that hammock. But now he doesn’t know where she is and how she is. He hasn’t even done anything wrong to get her to this state. The worst problem was that he has to kill a group of people to save his beloved wife. And it has to be done today. Who are those people he has no clue about? He is no killer. He is a simple guy trying to make a living in a complicated metropolitan like Mumbai. A stream of tears flew through his eyes. He wiped the tears and pretended to be sneezing when a group of chefs entered the terrace to have a puff of smoke and a moment of relief from the hectic routine. One of them waved a hand at Sam. Sam waved back hiding his bleary eyes. The sky had turned red, like it knows the truth about what's going to happen. The dusk was almost there. It was time to make a move.

Sam and his wife Saumya, both graduated a few years back from one of the best Hotel Management Institute in Mumbai. To Sam’s amazement, both happened to get employed in the same Hotel. And they both landed up at the Blue Lagoon Hotel, a seven-star hotel built for some of the ultra-high-class people of the world. Situated right at Versova Beach one of the best beaches to enjoy the sunset in Mumbai. Once while standing at the terrace of the Blue Lagoon, Sam asked Saumya, “We have completed two years here, I think it's time to leave. I am getting a very good offer from Bangalore”

Saumya smiled and replied to Sam, “You know I have waited more than twenty-five years to get to enjoy this view. I am not leaving this place so soon.”

Things were going pretty easy for both till now. Hotel Management was also impressed by Sam’s performance and promoted him to the post of General Manager. This gave Sam a lot more authority and a good hike in the paycheck. With more responsibilities on Sam, the management offered the couple an executive suite in the Hotel itself, which was right on the second floor near the guest rooms. So both Sam and Saumya moved into the executive hotel room.

Hotel Blue Lagoon was an iconic building with 35 floors and almost 500 rooms and 30 suites. The shape of the hotel if looked from the top seemed oval, with plenty of space in the middle. It had a huge lawn and also a private beach attached. It was the epitome of modern architecture.

Present Day, Morning 06:30 am

Tring!...Tring!... Tring!...Tring! The alarm bell kept ringing on the bedside table. Sam could hear the bell, clear enough but his head hurt badly, and was feeling dizzy. The alarm stopped ringing after few minutes. His mobile phone started buzzing in his coat hanging from the cupboard door. That was not the normal place he would keep his phone. Last night was different, when he returned from the late-night duty, his head was swirling and he dropped on the bed straight next to Saumya who was already in deep sleep. Sam got up from the bed to check the phone. Saumya was already up as her side of the bed was empty. There was something else with the phone in the pocket, it was a small vial. Sam picked his phone there were ten missed calls from an unknown number and a multimedia message. Sam rubbed his eyes and a big yawn clicked on the MMS. He was shocked to see Saumya tied up on a chair. He paused the video and shouted, “Saumya! Saumya! Where are you dear, what’s this joke?” He kept looking throughout to find that he was alone in the executive suite. Sam continued the massage video the husky voice in the video said:

“Sam! Sam! Don’t worry about your dear wife; she is safe with us, till now. But now onwards only you can ensure her safety. It’s our little game that we will play today. There are a set of rules you have to follow and a simple task you have to complete. Rule One, you will not tell it to anyone inside or outside the hotel. Rule Two, you will not attend any call except the call from the number +9114. Rule Three, after at every hour of the day you shall be standing in front of the reception desk.

I believe the rules are clear to you. Now the task…ha ha ha…there is a family function organized at the colloquium hall at 9:00 pm tonight. The Malhotra’s are having a grand treat. But this should be their last one. There is a bottle in your blazer next to your phone. All you have to do is empty it in the wine bottle before serving your guests tonight. After the guests drop on the table, shoot and send a video in return. Your wife shall be with you within half an hour.

Remember! There are no cheats in our little game Sam. All the best.”

Sam’s heart was thumping with great sound and his hangover from the last night also seemed to be someone's doing, as he didn’t even realize that his wife was being lifted from right next to him. He went to the washroom and threw water on his face and got dressed fast. All the time thinking if it all is a bad dream. Saumya might just enter through the door. He reminded the video in his head. The room in which Saumya was sitting tied up on the chair seemed to be part of the hotel. He could easily recognize the antique woods the furniture of the hotel is made up of. The walls behind Saumya are covered with white bedsheets. He took a snapshot of the video and zoomed on the bedsheet to find the edges of the Blue Lagoon logo right behind Saumya. Now he was sure that his wife is still in one of the rooms in the building.

7:30 am

Sam went straight to the Reception and started going through the logbook. 234 rooms were occupied out of the 500 rooms in the hotel. It's difficult to keep someone in unoccupied rooms because housekeeping guys can open the doors at any moment. So Saumya must be in one of the 234 rooms. Although Sam had reduced the number of rooms, still they were demanded among 35 floors and close to impossible to check all the rooms in search of Saumya. Sam had already marked his presence in front of reception at 7 o’clock. Sam went straight to the kitchen, Dharam one of Saumya’s colleagues asked, “Hi! where’s Saumya?”

Sam continued walking inwards, “Won’t be coming for work today. She is unwell.”

Sam reached Sid one of his and Saumya’s close friends and said, “Sid, need to ask some things of you.”

Sid who was busy chopping the vegetables for the day replied “Hi Sam! How come the manager decided to give a visit to the kitchen so early?” Sid wiped his hands with the apron as Sam pulled him to the terrace next to the kitchen.

Sam asked, “Did you observe anything unusual yesterday night at the party. Like anyone coming close to me or something like that.”

Sid replied, “No, yesterday we both had a great time if that’s what you called unusually.” Then looking at Sam’s seriousness “I think we got drunk too much. Is everything alright, where’s Saumya?”

Sam looking around if he’s been watched answered in a soft firm voice, “if you can keep it to yourself, Sid, Saumya is missing, she’s somewhere in one of the rooms and I need your help to find her.”

He showed the video to Sid and explained the situation.

9:00 am

When Sam reached the reception, his phone starts buzzing again. It was from the same husky voice, “Sam! Sam! Stopping to pay respects to your friends and acquaintances in the kitchen is not helping your wife here. Notice the drops next to your feet” Sam could hear Saumya shouting in the background. Sam looked down to find drops of blood on the floor.”

Sam cried, “Please don’t hurt her, please no. Let her go I will do as you said. Just don’t hurt her”

The kidnapper continued, “Follow the rules, Sam. Follow the rules.”

The Event, 9:00 pm

Sam received the Malhotra’s in the colloquium hall and greeted their guests. Silently he took the drinks around and prepared glasses for the guests. Poured a small bottle into the wine. And served the guests.

The guests had drinks during the course of the ceremony and to no surprise dropped to the table. Sam recorded the video and sent it to the kidnapper’s number.

In return received a massage room 3201. Sam shouted, “Thank you, everyone, for your kindness to me shall never be forgotten, thanks to the Malhotra family!!.. Thanks a ton,” Sam sprang to his feet and dialed a number.

9.30 pm

It was the moment the door or room 3201 opened that a team of three waiters standing outside the room door with their backs towards the walls, grabbed him from behind, covered him with a sack bag, and wound him tightly with a rope. The guy barely got a chance to speak. Sam reached 3201 and entered the door to find Saumya sitting on the chair, now being untied by Sid. Sam sat down on his knees in thanks and hugged Saumya the moment she was free.

Sid said, “The police are waiting outside, they have already git his accomplice and now it’s this guy’s turn to play with innocent lives.”

Saumya said, “I so glad to see you, Sam. How did you manage all this?”

Sid and Sam smiled looking at each other, Sam replied, “the credit goes to Sid and the entire hotel team. They worked in such a fashion that the kidnappers had got not the slightest hints.”

Sid said, “I was alarmed the moment you didn’t come for work and Sam met me in the kitchen. I checked all the camera footage from last night's party. All the housekeeping staff has been checking throughout the day room by room floor by floor. It was only filtered to two rooms 3201 and 1104, the guys who didn’t allow them to clean the rooms while still being inside. 1104 is a family one of our frequent visitors from the hotel records. So the only suspicious room was 3201. We still waited for his movement.”

Sam continued his part, “Malhotra’s are queer folk, as Mr. Malhhotra already knew about a threat call. His team contacted me in the morning itself. And the plan was set I would pour a whole cup of honey instead of the poison and they all will play dead for 10-seconds for this guy's 5-second video. The other guy police grabbed was no one but Jobin our waiter from the Hotel itself. It helps a lot when you have friends eyes looking after you. Our team saw him dropping few red drops on the floor in the morning, but we still kept vigil on his movement.”

In a few moments, the police arrived with Mr. Malhotra and arrested the culprits. Mr. Malhotra said, “This scum is one of my business partners Inspector. Send him in for a long haul. I am really thankful to you Sam, despite being in a threat you cooperated with us. Thanks to Sid and other hotel staff. Many lives have been saved today.”

Sam and Saumya held hands and watched the Police Vans depart with the kidnappers sitting in it, handcuffed. After the vans left the sight on the horizon was different but beautiful. It was the moon that shone in the night looked distinguished among the city lights.