[Sheetal's phone rang] "Hello... who is this...? What?!" [She screamed] [Everyone stood up, hearing her scream] "What happened, Aunty?" [Siya spoke] "Where... when... okay, I'm coming there right now!" [Vikram rushed towards the living room] "What happened?!" "We don't know, Uncle. She just screamed on the phone." [Esha spoke] "They found Kabir!" [Vikram looked at her, his eyes widening] "When... where...?" "He was seen at Hilltop Old Age Home. Come on, let's go!" Sheetal rushed outside. [Vikram grabbed his car keys and rushed outside] "Uncle, can we come too?" [Zoya looked at Vikram with a desperate face] "Fine, hurry up!" [Everyone got into the car] "Hurry up, Vikram!" [Vikram got into his car and stopped in front of Sheetal] "Get in..." [Everyone sat inside the car] [Vikram dialed Rathod] "Yes, Officer. Someone has seen Kabir." "Yes, he was seen..." [He looked at Sheetal] "Hilltop Old Age Home... Hilltop Old Age Home, Officer." "Yes, we are heading there now." [Vikram sped away, running red lights]
"Rahul... any leads in Kabir's case?" "Yes, sir. While we were searching the surrounding area where that old woman told us about Kabir, a few people saw him in the park near Marine Lines. Some people said he dumped his books and bag in the dustbin. When someone asked him why, he said he didn't need them anymore." "He doesn't need them anymore?" "Yes, sir. Was the dog with him at that time?" "Yes, sir. A few people identified that the dog was with him." [Rathod's phone rang] "Yes, Mr. Vikram... what... where... yes, we're coming." [Rathod hung up] "What happened, sir?" "Someone has seen Kabir." "What? Where?!" "Hilltop Old Age Home. Take out the bike. Judging by the city traffic and time, it will take us some time." [He looked at the clock] "Sure, sir." [Rahul grabbed the bike keys, and they left for the old age home] "But sir... why was he seen at an old age home?" "Judging by the time it takes to Hilltop Old Age Home, it would take almost... four hours. But he ran away at 6 PM. It would have taken him almost five hours, depending on traffic. He would have camped overnight. It might be true, sir. Let's just hope he hasn't gone too far." [He tightened his grip on the phone]
"But why was he seen at a hilltop?" [Sheetal questioned, tapping her feet in the car] "I mean, it would be the one place he would have gone to." [Vikram changed his mirror to see Siya, who was sitting in the back seat] "What do you mean by that, Siya?" [Sheetal looked back at Siya] "What did you say just now?" "I said it was the most likely place he would have gone." "How did you know he would have gone there?" [Sheetal asked] "I mean, mountains are Kabir's favorite. He always wanted to go." "Mountains..." [Aisha spoke] "Back when we were closer, he always talked about going there." "You guys know this, right?" [Zoya spoke] [Both Vikram and Sheetal were silent. Their silence was enough for the group to know the truth]
Four hours later... "Take a right from here." [Vikram took a right, seeing the cottage and seeing Rathod and Rahul had already arrived. He stopped in front of the cottage, rushed out of his car, and headed towards Rathod] "Have you found him yet?" "No." [Rathod shook his head] "Who called you, Sheetal?" [Rathod asked Sheetal] "I don't know. It was a woman." "And who are these kids?" [Rathod pointed at them] "They are Kabir's friends. But I didn't see them at school." "We are two years older than Kabir, and we moved schools." [Siya told Rathod] [A car approached from a distance and stopped in front of them. Hita and Martha stepped out] "Officer... you were the one who called." "Yes, Officer." [Martha answered Rathod] "Where is my son?!" [Sheetal grabbed Martha's hands and shook her] "Have you seen my son? Please... just tell me." [Tears rolled down her eyes] "Yes, ma'am, we have seen your son. He was with us. But he left this morning when we saw the news. We contacted you immediately. We even went to search for him near the town, but we couldn't find him. I am... sorry, ma'am." [Martha removed Sheetal's hands from hers] "My baby...!" [She put her hand over her mouth, and Vikram hugged her] "It will be okay, Sheetal." [Rathod and Rahul went to ask about Kabir while the rest of the group stood there talking] "This is crazy. Why would Kabir go to such extreme measures to run away?" [Esha spoke] "I mean, we are also a little involved in this." [Siya spoke] "What do you mean, Siya?" [Aisha looked at Siya, confused] "I mean, after we left the house and Kabir, we only talked to him that day and a few months after that. We didn't even wish him a happy birthday last year. We kind of forgot about Kabir." "What have we done?" [Zoya put her hands over her face] "We didn't know he would do this. Do you think he would hate us for this?" [Siya asked in a low voice, as if she knew the answer] "We messed up... big time. He was always there for us in our tough times, but we weren't there for him." "Kids..." [Rahul called the group as he walked towards them] "Yes, Officer, what can we do for you?" "I just wanted to ask some questions about Kabir. What was he like when you were all together?" "He was a very nice person, always caring for others. Even when people used him, he would still help them. He was very extroverted, always loud and talkative." [Rahul noted down the things the group told him about Kabir] "Thank you, kids. This will help us find him." [Rahul walked away] "So, Kabir stayed here for two days?" "That's right, Officer. He came yesterday morning and left this morning around 8 o'clock. He was a very nice kid. He enjoyed his stay here." "That's all for now. If you find anything about him, contact us on this number and try not to leave the state." "Okay, Officer." [Rathod left the cottage, seeing Vikram, Sheetal, and the group heading back home] "Sir..." "Yes, Rahul?" "What do we have so far?" "We have contacted the local police station, and they have begun searching for him. I also asked the kids about Kabir." "What did they say?" "They said he was very talkative and extroverted." [Rathod looked at him, surprised] "Extroverted?" "Yes, sir. Their statement is completely opposite to the kids' at the school. I think one of them is lying, sir. And the kids also said that Kabir liked mountains and quiet places like this. This might be a hint. We should focus our search more towards the mountain region." "Yes, sir. I think we should pay a visit to our old friends, shall we, Rahul?" "Yes, sir."
Four hours later... [Rathod knocked on the door] "Come in." "That's you, Rahul." "Yes, sir." [He entered the room] "Good afternoon, Miss Shweta. How are you doing? I hope you are well." "Officer... what are you doing here?" [Shweta stood up, stammering, surprised to see him] "What do you need, Officer?" "Oh, you know, just some answers." [He took a seat in a chair] "Oh, this seat is very comfy. Didn't you get your answers the last time you were here?" "Well, there have been some recent findings about Kabir. I want you to call his class here and Mathew too." "Sure, Officer." [She asked a worker to call Mathew and Kabir's class to the dean's office] [Mathew and the kids arrived, surprised to see Rathod] "Officer..." [stammering] "What are you doing here? Did you find Kabir?" "No, we did not, but we are still trying. We have a few questions that we want you to answer honestly this time." "What do you mean by that, Officer?" [Mathew started to move his hands nervously as Rathod and Rahul watched his hand movements] "Well, new evidence shows Kabir running away might be linked to this school." "What are you talking about?" [Shweta interrupted Rathod] [He glared at her] "Let me finish." [in a cold tone] "We ask you once again, what
We ask you once again, what happened to Kabir on October 2nd and October 4th? And answer honestly this time." [The group gave the same answers as before] "Rahul, what is the sentence for assaulting a minor?" "It's 10 years, sir." [Rathod looked at Shweta and Mathew] "Ten years, that's a lot, right?" "You can't threaten us like this, Officer!" [Shweta stammered] "Threaten you? I'm just stating my knowledge, Shweta. You don't have any proof that we assaulted a minor." [Rathod looked at Mathew] "Who said I can't create proof?" "You can't do that!" [Mathew was sweating and scared] "Oh, I can. Just tell me what happened on October 2nd and October 4th." [Both remained silent] [Rathod looked at the kids] "You tell me, kids. You wouldn't want to go to juvenile detention, right?" [The kids got scared] "I'll tell you what happened..."