The Forbidden Daughter (32 page)

“All right.” He gently brushed his thumb across her lips, making them quiver. “Be very, very careful, Isha. Don’t go out alone or let any strangers into the flat. Let Sundari screen your phone calls. If she doesn’t recognize the voice, tell her to say you’re busy.”

“You better take care, too,” she cautioned him. “Karnik knows we’re friends.” She waited while he picked up his computer bag and headed for the door.

“Get some rest now,” he advised, and then took off.

Chapter 27

Harish wasn’t quite sure if it was his imagination, but a vehicle had been behind his car for a while and seemed to be folllowing him. As he’d left his office after working very late, started his car, and merged into the traffic, he had noticed a Jeep pull out of a parked spot and get in behind him. This late in the evening, when it was pitch-dark, it was impossible to tell its color.

There was plenty of distance between the two vehicles, so at first he hadn’t paid any attention, but as he snaked his way through the traffic inside town and then out into the suburban section where his brother’s house was located, he noticed the vehicle still trailing behind him.

Very few people took the route he traveled, from one end of the town to the other—a shortcut via small side streets. It was a convoluted route, but he had figured it out by trial and error as the quickest and most convenient one at this time of the evening. Who else would use the exact same pattern?

Odd, he thought, looking at the headlights in his rearview mirror once again. Could it be the police following him? If so, why? Had he broken any traffic laws?

Then something clicked in his mind. And a spark of fear ig-nited with it. That morning he had called Patil’s office and had been told that Patil was out of town for a couple of days. Since Harish didn’t trust anyone else in the department, he had left 234
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only his name and phone number with a message for Patil to call him back. He had asked that his request be marked urgent.

And now someone was following him home? He believed in coincidence up to a point. This didn’t seem like one. Besides, in Palgaum, this type of utility vehicle was almost exclusive to police, the armed forces, the public works department, and a couple of other government entities. Could this be someone in Patil’s office? Someone who had access to Patil’s messages? It could even be the very man who’d taken Harish’s message.

That’s when Harish wondered if it had been wise to leave a message for Patil. Once he’d learned Patil was out of town, he should have hung up and tried again in a couple of days. But it was too late to change that now.

So instead of leading his tail to his brother’s house and possibly putting his family in danger, he made an abrupt turn and drove toward a popular restaurant in town. On the way he called his mother and told her not to hold dinner for him because he was meeting a friend.

He parked in a well-lit area outside the eatery and went in.

Even this late, the place was crowded. When he asked for a table that faced the door, the waiter informed him he’d have to wait. While he waited he stood by the entrance, watching the parking lot. Despite keeping his eyes peeled, he didn’t see the vehicle anywhere. Ten minutes later, he was seated at a small table that had a clear view of the entry door.

With his stomach in knots and his gaze fixed on the entrance, he ate very little of the meal he ordered. But he took his time over it, hoping the person who’d followed him would get tired and go away.

Customers walked in periodically, but no one seemed particularly interested in him. In fact, nobody even bothered to look his way except one young couple whose child was his patient.

They stopped by his table to exchange a few friendly words.

While he deliberately lingered over his dinner, the restaurant crowd thinned out to only a handful of patrons.

Much later, after paying for his dinner and returning to the parking lot, he took a careful look around, and even at the THE

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backseat of his car, before he climbed in and drove home. There was no one following him.

But he knew it was a false sense of security. He could feel the disquiet in his bones. Besides, everyone in town knew where he lived, where his family lived, and by now perhaps even where Isha and her children had taken up residence. She’d been there for some months. The post office and all the utility companies had her address.

And that brought on a renewed surge of fear. What if his tail had abandoned him to go after Isha? He’d never considered that possibility until this minute.

The instant he entered his house he dialed her mobile number. There was no point in calling the land line and disturbing the children. They’d be in bed by now.

When she answered the phone in her usual manner he took a deep, relieved breath. He heard music in the background, which meant she was sewing. And that was reassuring. She always had the radio on for company when she worked. “Is everything okay, Isha?” he asked her, trying to sound casual.

“Sure. Why do you ask?” Her voice took on a wary note in spite of his attempts at nonchalance. It seemed like she was jittery, too.

“No particular reason. Since last night I’ve been a little on edge. I tried calling Patil, by the way. But he’s out of town attending a conference, so I couldn’t meet him.”

“I guess we’ll have to wait until he returns.” She must have guessed something was bothering him. “Harish, what’s wrong?”

“Well . . .” In the end he decided it was best to err on the side of caution. “Look, when I called Patil’s office, I left a message with someone to have him call me back . . . and . . . it may not have been a wise thing to do.”

“What else could you do but leave a message?” In spite of her supportive words he could hear the undercurrent of disquiet in her voice.

“But one never knows who’s listening in or who’s reading the messages. So please be careful, understand?”

“I’m trying my best. I’ve cautioned Sundari against taking the 236
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children out to the park, or anywhere, for that matter. And we’re keeping the doors to both flats locked at all times. In any case, I’m the one Karnik might come after, not the children or Sundari. They have nothing to do with this.”

“I know you’re being vigilant, but I still worry about you. All four of you.”

“It’s nice to know we have someone strong and dependable watching over us.”

“Are you mocking me, Isha Tilak?” he jested.

“No.”

“You make me sound like that senile old knight, the fellow who fought imaginary windmills. We read that book in our high school English class.”

“You mean Don Quixote?”

“That’s the one.” Harish was having a hard time keeping the smile out of his feigned indignation. She had a way of making him smile.

But she was serious. “Of course not! I meant every word. It’s nice to be able to depend on someone like you when I could be headed for trouble.”

“Good. Now make sure the locks are secure and keep your mobile phone close by.”

“At the moment, I’m working, and since I’m talking to you I obviously have my mobile with me, Doctor,” she informed him with a chuckle. “And before you ask me the next question, let me assure you that your number and Sheila’s are programmed into my speed dial.”

“Excellent. Are the children asleep yet?”

“A while ago, and so is Sundari. I checked on them before I came to the shop. I’m trying to meet a deadline for a birthday party dress.”

“I’ll let you get back to it, then. I’ll talk to you tomorrow,” he said and rang off, hoping he hadn’t scared her too much. But putting her on her guard was better than letting her become complacent and hence careless.

To practice what he’d preached to Isha, he made sure all his windows and his front and back doors were locked. He’d have THE

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to depend on the ceiling fan in his bedroom to keep the air cir-culating. To add a little extra security, on each doorknob he placed a small battery-operated device. Any movement on the door was supposed to set off a shrill alarm.

They were a gift from a college classmate and close friend, Phillip D’Souza, who was a police inspector in a neighboring district. Harish had never used the fancy gadgets before. He hadn’t seen any use for them. But tonight he felt insecure enough to take them out of their boxes, read the instructions, and install them. They were probably not much of a deterrent to a seasoned criminal, but they’d let Harish sleep a little better.

He made a mental note to go to a store the next day and look for a similar device for Isha’s flat.

After changing into pajamas and turning off all the lights, he parted the thick curtains on his bedroom window a crack and made a quick visual survey of the street. It was dead, the only movement being the giant moths flitting around the vapor lamp of the streetlight. There wasn’t a single vehicle. Maybe that Jeep
had
been a figment of his imagination?

But that little voice in his brain said it wasn’t. His instincts were usually right on target. Someone had been tailing him for a reason.

And then he saw it, the vehicle from earlier, making a slow pass on the street in front of his house. There was no way he could read the license plate.

And his fear for Isha’s safety went up another notch.

He picked up the phone and rang his friend the police officer.

“Phillip, sorry to disturb you at this hour, but I need your help urgently. How soon can you get here?” He figured if Phillip started right away and drove fast, he could arrive in an hour or so.

Phillip must have been asleep. He sounded irritable and groggy.

“You want me to drive to Palgaum
now?
”

“Now!”

It was past midnight by the time Isha finished the last of her sewing, ironed the dress, and put it on a hanger. Her back was 238
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stiff from sitting at the old machine for hours and then hand-finishing the necessary items.

Sheila had suggested that she buy a modern machine with the capacity to do a number of things like buttonholes, hems, seams, and simple embroidery, literally within minutes. To that end, Isha had saved up a little. Soon she was going to go out and buy herself one of those sleek machines that would save her time, effort, and, in the long run, money.

She was also planning on hiring some help. She’d never be able to keep up with the work at the current rate. At the moment, she was so swamped she could barely meet her obliga-tions. Although, she had to admit the income was excellent. She was planning on increasing Sundari’s salary.

Her mind reverted to Harish’s phone call earlier. To hear a calm, rational man like him sound so worried was more frightening than what she’d felt the previous night. It wasn’t like him to caution her again and again about something.

It had been more than twenty-four hours since her strange al-tercation with Karnik. She had this eerie feeling that something was going to happen soon as a consequence of that. But what?

The thought of dying a gruesome death like Nikhil’s was terrifying.

All of a sudden she realized it wasn’t a good idea to be alone in the shop so late. Nikhil had apparently been caught when he was by himself, finishing up his work for the day and closing the office. That’s exactly what she was doing now.

Thank goodness her home was barely fifteen feet from the shop’s threshold. There was no long drive or walk in the dark.

Shutting off the radio and turning out the lights, she stepped out into the hallway. It was deserted. She did this practically every night, and yet, tonight the silence, which she generally considered blissful, was almost eerie. During waking hours there were often voices coming from the other flats in the building, music and sounds from someone’s radio or television, and traffic noises from the street.

Quickly securing the lock, she crossed the aisle, her home key held ready.

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She froze in her tracks when she noticed the door to her home. It was slightly ajar. Sundari had strict instructions to keep the door locked, and never open it without first looking through the peephole. Besides, it was way too late at night to leave any doors unlocked.

Her immediate reaction was annoyance. What was Sundari thinking, leaving the flat wide-open to intruders? But then again, Sundari never ignored instructions. That’s when Isha recalled Harish’s call and his advice about keeping her doors locked. She felt an icy thread of fear slither down her spine. Instinctively she flipped open her phone and pressed the speed dial button for Harish’s mobile.

He picked up on the first ring. “Isha!”

“Harish, the front door to my flat . . . is open,” she whispered, “and . . .” She didn’t even know what to say beyond that.

She was afraid someone would hear her.

“And what?” When she remained silent, her gaze fixed on the door, he asked, “Exactly where are you, Isha?” There was a note of alarm in his voice she hadn’t heard before.

She took a deep breath, telling herself to calm down, spell it out to Harish, one word at a time. “I’m . . . uh . . . standing in the corridor between the two flats. I just finished working and was heading back home when I noticed the door was open . . .

so I called you.”

“Then turn around immediately and go back into the shop.

I’m on my way. I have a police officer with me, so stay right there behind locked doors. Don’t move!”

“But the children . . . and Sundari—”

“Do as I tell you,” he ordered. “Now go! I’ll keep the phone line open.”

But in the next instant a shrill beep sounded in her ear, making her jump. The phone went dead. It took a moment to realize the battery had just died. Oh no! Of all times to run out of power!

She stared at the door, torn between barging in and turning around to run for her life. Should she go in and see for herself?

Maybe it was just a matter of Sundari dozing off without lock-240
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ing the door. After all, the woman was getting old and a bit for-getful. How foolish would it look if Harish and some police officer arrived with guns blazing, only to find an old woman fast asleep on the drawing room floor and Isha standing over her, hyperventilating like an idiot?