"What...!!!"
They looked up. Two men were standing on the roof of the room, holding Kalashnikovs. Suddenly, they leaped down into the courtyard below and quickly scattered.
"Beware... don't you dare try to shoot..." Farooq warned.
"Why... why shouldn't we try?" Gami looked at Farooq in surprise.
"Because we also have Kalashnikovs, and we have three of them." Farooq smiled, leaving Gami making a face.
"Dad! This Ghami is another Farooq," Humood said with a smile.
"Humood! My name is not Ghami, it's Gami," he corrected quickly.
"Sorry brother... my mistake... I won't forget next time."
"You better not... or else..." He smiled.
"Or else what... what are you trying to say?" Humood narrowed his eyes.
"Or else I'll forget that you're my friend, too," he laughed.
"Friend... since when did you become my friend?"
"I've been with you for so long, friendship is practically mandatory," he pouted.
"Unbelievable... we're standing here with Kalashnikovs pointed at your heads, and you're just rambling on."
"Forget about the Kalashnikovs... we have those too," Farhana smiled.
"Guys! Why are you wasting our time and yours? Be good kids and hand over these toys so we can put them away somewhere, because..." Ikram said, laughing.
"Because... what...?"
"Because your boss... Jani, Kaka, Shashe, Mashe, and all such firecrackers are tied up in the hall... and we pulled off this brilliant work, folks. So it's best if you hand over these sticks politely and head home... the game is over," Farooq continued.
"What did you say... the game is over... what are you talking about?" one of them shouted.
"I'm not saying anything wrong. If you don't believe it, go see them with your own eyes," Inspector Junaid smiled.
They first looked at their three unconscious associates lying in the courtyard, then stared at each other.
"Fine... we'll go to the hall. If what you're saying is true, we'll drop our weapons. If it's false, we'll riddle everyone with bullets."
"We accept that," Humood said.
"One minute... tell us one thing before we go. So many people drive in and out of here... why aren't there any vehicles in sight?" Ikram asked.
"Oh... right... actually... we didn't even notice that!"
"The vehicles are parked in the courtyard of the neighboring house... that house also belongs to our boss."
"Oh... let's go."
They reached outside the hall. Inspector Junaid carefully observed the floor, then raised his right foot and stomped it down. Instantly, the hall door began to open.
"Oh... sir..." escaped from Ikram's mouth.
"No need to worry, the Professor and I figured out how to open the door as well. The spot on the floor where you strike your foot has a slightly different color from the rest of the floor," Khan Rehman explained.
"Oh..."
As they entered the hall, they saw the boss and his associates struggling to free themselves. Some ropes were slightly loosened, but not enough for them to escape.
"Boss! What is all this?"
The boss startled.
"Gamey! Spray them with bullets... they've caused us so much misery..." Chhoti Sarkar shrieked.
"Oh... sorry! We're not going to do that," Gamey replied.
"And why not?"
"Because the people who managed to overpower all of you... what chance do we stand against them?"
"What! Are you going to betray the boss?"
"We're going to save our own skins. Right, Inspector Junaid? You'll spare our lives, won't you?" Gamey turned back to look at them.
"Only Allah grants life, but we promise: if you haven't taken anyone's life, we will strongly recommend leniency from the law."
"Fine... here you go." Gamey handed over his Kalashnikov, and his associate did the same.
"Well done... you've acted wisely," Ikram said.
"Sir... everything is finished here."
"Yes, but their real game is something else entirely. What that is, we don't know," Inspector Junaid said. Then, turning to Gamey:
"Do you have a mobile phone?"
"Yes... I do," he said, taking it out of his pocket and handing it over.
"Dad! I have a recurring complaint about criminals," Humood said, making a face.
"Why just one complaint? I have plenty, and the biggest one is: why do they have to be criminals in the first place?" Farooq chimed in.
"Damn it... if anyone knows how to barge into someone else's conversation, it's you," Humood groaned, tapping his thigh lightly with the Kalashnikov.
"Humood! Don't abuse your own hands," Farooq smiled.
"What do you mean?" He blinked.
"You used to hit your thigh with your hand, and now you hit it with a Kalashnikov... that's abuse of the hands, isn't it?"
"Oh... you're crazy," he laughed.
Inspector Junaid dialed IG Nisar Ahmed and was about to speak when he paused, hearing the IG's enthusiastic voice from the other end:
"Junaid... I'm coming... Muhammad Hussain Azad has told me everything."
"Alright, Sheikh Sahib... I'll wait." He smiled and pressed the end call button.
"Here you go, Gamey, your mobile... thank you very much."
Soon after, IG Sheikh Nisar Ahmed arrived with a large contingent of police officers. The boss and all his associates were arrested. The people inside the neighboring house were also rounded up.
"Dad! We should ask the fat boss about his master plan one more time... maybe seeing the tables turned, he'll spill something," Farhana suggested, prompting a smile from Inspector Junaid:
"He won't talk, but I'll definitely try."
"Sheikh Sahib! We need to talk to the fat boss. Please have him brought here."
"Okay, Junaid," he said.
A short while later, the fat boss stood before them in chains.
"Why have you called me here...?" His tone was dripping with hatred.
"Fatty! Your game is over. Now tell us, why did you have us tied up here?"
"I'll go to jail, but I won't tell you anything, Inspector Junaid... you can run around in circles, but you'll never reach the truth."
"Oh... oh..."
"Inspector Junaid! I made a mistake in underestimating you, otherwise..."
"Hahahahaha... Fatty! If criminals didn't make mistakes, how would we ever get anywhere?" He smiled.
The fat boss pressed his lips together in silence and was led away.
"Muhammad Hussain! You may leave with your subordinates... we'll call you if you're needed."
"Okay, sir," he said.
"What do we do now?" Humood asked.
"Let's go home... we'll think about things once we're there."
"Alright, Dad."
Inspector Junaid borrowed two cars from IG Sheikh Nisar Ahmed and headed home. As soon as they arrived, they put their heads together.
"Farhana! Start talking now... tell me everything in detail that happened behind my back... maybe something useful will turn up," Inspector Junaid prompted, and she began. When she finished her account, Inspector Junaid broke into a smile.
"What is it, Dad? Why are you smiling?" she asked, startled.
"You made two mistakes, Farhana..."
"Two mistakes... what were they?" She looked in bewilderment at Humood and Farooq.
"First mistake... you didn't check your friend. Second mistake... you didn't take Pagal Ji seriously... he might actually be right..."
"Now listen to my side, Dad... I wanted to go to my friend's house, but Ghareeb Bhai and Ameer Bhai suddenly showed up and insisted on bringing us to you... because we were all extremely worried about your safety. That's why we agreed to go with them. If they hadn't promised to lead us to you, they would've bitten the dust too... We were definitely startled when Pagal Ji spoke, but we didn't give it importance because our top priority was reaching you as fast as possible." She fell silent.
"Alright, I understand..." he said.
"But Dad! What could Iram Akhtar possibly have to do with the fat boss? And can she pull off something this massive? Friends have minor spats all the time. I think Iram Akhtar has nothing to do with this game," Humood argued.
"Maybe... she has no connection, but we definitely need to check her out," he smiled. Then his gaze shifted toward Gami and Shazy.
"Whatever story you spun for me... I don't care about that now. Tell me clearly and truthfully: Who are you, and why are you really here?" Inspector Junaid demanded.
Gami and Shazy looked at each other... then they began to smile. Seeing them smile, Inspector Junaid sprang to his feet.
"W-w-what do you mean?!" Everyone was stunned.
"Inspector Junaid... you misunderstood... it's nothing like that... the story I told these people... is completely true! I went from being an honorable man to a rogue. Now my life has only one purpose... and that is to take revenge on Faqir Parinda! He ruined my life... and I want to destroy him..." Gami said.
"That's fine... but..." He smiled.
"Oh... Inspector Junaid... oh..." Gami took a deep breath.
"Gami! Don't turn into Farooq now..." Humood made a face.
"So what's the real plan? Are you two going to reveal your true faces yourselves, or should I wipe the makeup off your faces...?"
"W-what do you mean, Dad?!" Humood, Farooq, and Farhana leaped up as if stung by a scorpion.
"You guessed it right... they were wearing makeup," Inspector Junaid stated.
"Oh... oh..."
Gami and Shazy went into the washroom, and when they returned, their faces were completely transformed... undeniably fair-skinned and handsome.
"Oh... and I used to wonder... how could Gami, who grew up in a cold region, be so ugly?" Farooq smiled.
"Now tell us this, too... what was your connection to the fat boss?" Inspector Junaid smiled warmly.
"Oh... you're too sharp! You figured it all out," Gami gasped in astonishment.
"We used to work for him too... we took money and carried out several hits for him, Inspector Sahib," Shazy finally spoke up.
"Oh... oh..." Everyone was shocked.
"That means you know what the fat boss's real game is."
"No... we don't know what he's planning... because we worked under him a long time ago, and back then he operated out of a completely different place," Gami smiled.
"When we heard news of Farhana's kidnapping, we came here to help," Shazy added.
"B-but Dad! How did you figure all of this out?" Humood asked.
"It was right there in plain sight, which you guys missed... I won't tell you... figure it out yourselves..."
"Oh... plain sight..."
"Yes... hand me Pagal Ji's card..."
"So you're going to call him?" She looked surprised.
"Yes... I'm going to call him..."
"Here's the card," Farooq handed it over. Inspector Junaid glanced at it and said:
"They confiscated everyone's mobile phones. Does anyone have a phone on them right now?"
Nobody had a phone.
"Do you have a mobile?" Inspector Junaid suddenly asked Gami.
"N-n-no... where would I have a mobile...?" He flinched.
"Oh... alright... but why did you flinch?" Inspector Junaid smiled.
"You asked so suddenly, that's why..." he grinned.
"Okay..."
"Dad! Let me go get a mobile from Begum Shirazi for a moment," Farhana requested.
"Go ahead."
A short while later, Inspector Junaid was on the phone with Pagal Ji... introducing himself before diving into conversation. After hanging up, he turned to Farhana:
"Remind me, Farhana, which area does your friend live in?"
"She lives in Acha Garden... she's very snobbish... picks fights with people over trivial things," Farhana replied.
"Excessive money tends to do that to some people..."
"You're right, sir... Faqir Parinda is the exact same kind of person," Gami noted.
"Should I tell you folks something interesting?" Inspector Junaid smiled.
"Tell us..." everyone reacted in surprise.
"The area where Pagal Ji spotted suspicious people... is not very far from Acha Garden."
"What...!!!" Everyone screamed in unison.
At that exact moment, the mobile phone in Inspector Junaid's hand began to ring.
(To be continued)
