Station Announcement:
"Attention passengers ascending into uncertain terrain: breath deeply. Some truths live at higher altitudes."
The road out of Delhi stretched long and silver beneath the rising sun, carrying them northward toward the mountains.The city's chaos faded behind them, replaced by farmlands, quiet towns, and roads lined with sugarcane swaying like tired dancers in the morning breeze.
Kannan sat by the window of the jeep, clutching the file from Nirmala Records Office — the last official trace of his son.His fingers touched the words repeatedly, as if trying to rub warmth into facts grown cold over time.
Arun sat beside him, alert to every shift in Kannan's breath.
Sara watched them from the back seat, her eyes gentle but unwavering.
Nish navigated the route on his phone, flipping between maps and investigative notes.
Arjun sat with Basil, keeping him steady on the winding road.
Rohit drove, expression tight with determination.
Ananya and Leena rode in the second jeep behind them, documenting small details — not for a story, but for memory.
Ravi sat quietly, occasionally tracing lines in the fogged window.
1. Into the Foothills
By afternoon, the plains gave way to the Himalayan foothills.
The air cooled.The road narrowed.The world fell into deep greens and rising stones.
Sara leaned forward.
"Kannan," she whispered, "drink water. Breathe slower. The altitude may be new for you."
Kannan nodded, but his mind was elsewhere.
Uttarakhand.This was where Akshay had been taken.This was where he had disappeared into the rain.
Arun saw Kannan gripping the umbrella handle.
"Do you… want to talk?" Arun asked softly.
Kannan shook his head.
"Not yet," he whispered."But don't go far."
Arun nodded, his presence steady.
The jeep climbed higher until finally they reached a signboard painted in fading blue:
UTTARAKHAND CHILD RELIEF NETWORK — Zone 4
Below it:
Temporary Shelter (Closed)
Arun exhaled slowly.
"This is it," he murmured.
Kannan pressed both hands to his face.
Sara whispered:
"We go together."
2. The Abandoned Shelter
The shelter stood on a sloping hillside — a long, low building with peeling paint and broken windows.A rusted swing hung in the yard, creaking as the mountain wind pushed it gently.
A locked gate barred their entry.
Nish rattled it.
"We need to find the caretaker."
Arjun pointed to a small house nearby, built of stone and timber.
They approached.
An elderly woman opened the door, wrapped in a shawl despite the mild cold.
"Yes?" she asked cautiously.
Nish explained — gently, carefully — about the file, the search, the boy named Akshay.
When he mentioned the transfer date, the woman's face softened with recognition.
"I remember that year," she whispered."The monsoon landslide. Half the routes were washed out. Many children came here… many left… some…"
She didn't finish.
Kannan stepped forward, voice cracking.
"Please," he whispered. "My son. His name is Akshay. He would have been thirteen. Thin. Quiet. He sketched."
The woman's eyes welled.
"I remember him," she said softly.
Kannan swayed.
Arun grabbed his arm.
Sara exhaled shakily, tears forming.
"Where… where is he…?" Kannan whispered.
The woman stepped out of her home and led them toward the shelter.
Her voice trembled.
"He was the boy who kept asking every adult if they had seen a man who might be his father. He waited by the fence each evening. Rain or not."
Kannan covered his mouth.
She continued:
"One night, during the blackout, he disappeared. We searched for days."
Nish swallowed.
"Did you hear or see anything unusual?"
The woman hesitated.
"Yes," she whispered."There was a man."
Arun's heart dropped.
"A man?" he repeated.
She nodded.
"A volunteer from the plains. He came to help after the landslide. Khaki shirt. Tall. Said he was transporting children to safer sites."
Kannan felt the world tilt.
"Did he take my son?"
The woman nodded slowly.
"I… I believe so."
Kannan collapsed into Sara's arms.
Arun fought back tears.
But the woman wasn't finished.
"There was something else," she said."Your son left something behind."
She walked to a small storage cupboard and pulled out a thin, wrapped bundle.
Hands trembling, she gave it to Kannan.
He opened it slowly.
Inside was—
a page torn from a notebook.
A drawing.
A railway track leading into mountains.
And a tiny figure walking alone beside it.
Below, in shaky letters:
"Appa. I am going with him because he says he knows where you are.If he lies, I will walk back."
Arun whispered:
"He… trusted the wrong man again…"
The woman lowered her head.
"He believed every adult who promised hope. That's what children do."
Kannan sobbed quietly.
"My boy… my boy…"
Sara held him tightly.
Nish knelt, scanning the edges of the paper.
"There's a mark here," he whispered."A stamp."
Everyone leaned closer.
The stamp read:
"SR-OUTPOST / RIDGE-QTR / Volunteer Access."
Arjun frowned.
"That's a railway maintenance outpost… near the upper ridges. Very remote."
Ravi murmured:
"He went deeper into the mountains…"
Leena whispered:
"And we follow."
3. A Witness Returns
As they prepared to leave, the woman stopped them.
"One more thing," she said quietly."There was a child who returned here months later — hurt, frightened, unable to speak properly."
Arun blinked.
"Returned? Alone?"
The woman nodded.
"He mentioned a boy named Akshay. He said the boy helped him escape the man."
Kannan's breath caught sharply.
"Where is that child now?" Nish asked urgently.
The woman pointed up the hill.
"He lives in the village above. His name is Dev."
"Can we speak to him?" Sara asked.
The woman nodded.
"He is older now. But he will remember."
4. Dev's Story
The village was small — stone houses, terraced fields, goats grazing on slopes.
They found Dev sitting under a deodar tree, drawing in the dirt with a stick.
He looked up — wary, older than his years.
Ravi approached slowly.
"Dev?" he asked gently.
Dev nodded.
Nish knelt at his level.
"We're looking for Akshay," he said."You knew him once."
Dev's eyes softened.
"Yes," he whispered.
Kannan's hands shook uncontrollably.
"Tell us," he pleaded.
Dev took a deep breath.
"Akshay was brave," he said."He shared food with me. He told me to run when the man got angry."
Sara felt her stomach twist.
"What man?" she asked.
Dev hesitated.
"The man from the plains," Dev whispered."He took us up the mountain. Said he was taking us to homes. But he lied."
Arjun's jaw clenched.
"What happened?" he asked gently.
Dev's voice trembled.
"One night, Akshay pushed me to escape. He kept the man busy. I ran. I never saw him again."
Silence descended like snowfall.
Raw.Soft.Crushing.
Kannan's face crumpled, tears pouring freely.
"He saved another child," Sara whispered.
Arun spoke through a tight throat:
"He protected someone… even when he had no one."
Dev continued softly:
"He said he would follow the tracks down the ridge. And find his father. No matter what."
Nish nodded slowly.
"So he followed the railway line."
Arjun looked up toward the mountains.
"Then we know where to go next."
Dev pointed toward the highest ridge.
"The outpost," he said."Near the cliff."
The woman's stamp.Dev's memory.Akshay's drawing.
It all pointed to one place.
5. The Road Narrowed
As they began their descent, the mountains loomed larger — ancient, indifferent, yet somehow guiding.
Kannan looked at the drawing again, voice barely audible.
"He walked alone…so far…for me…"
Arun placed a hand on his back.
"You're walking for him now."
Sara whispered:
"And whatever we find… we face it together."
The wind shifted, sending pine-scented air through the valley.
Something ahead waited.
Answers.Pain.Possibility.
The next step was clear.
They had to reach the outpost.