Hold on...Please.

Come Again!

 It was so long that I had boarded a private jet. Games, expensive booze, good food... it had everything I never knew I missed. Dad was no where around but I  knew I was spied on. My every detail was communicated to dad over the phone. But the question was why after so many years dad wanted me back! He surely knew where I was all these years but didn't care.

After about half a day, the jet finally landed. The first thing that hit me after getting out of the jet was the humidity. It was evening already, The sun had gone down but the humid weather was really something I hated earlier too. I was literally escorted to a black car. I didn't try or plan to escape this time. I knew what was at stake if I upset my dad anymore. 

"Sandy?" an old voice called as I reached for the seat belt, "How are you? Do you remember me?"

I looked at the driver. He lifted his cap and greeted me with a salute. "Sandy sir!"

"Sam uncle!" he was the same man who drove me to the airport that day. I cannot even imagine what dad must have done with him after that. "Are you good?" I asked. Guilt had taken charge of all my body. I was really very selfish to leave these people behind to suffer.  "Don't call me sir and all...I am just the same Sandy, uncle."

"You have grown really good." he smiled politely.

"What has dad done...I mean did he ...were you punished?" I just couldn't frame the question.

"Don't worry about me. I am fine. Nothing happened. Manny took care of that." he said starting the car.

Then it hit me. Manny.... my elder sister. I hadn't seen her for seven years. No calls. No face time. We just talked through face-book once in a while via our fake accounts. She was really upset with me leaving her behind like that. And for the last two years, I didn't even care to reply to her messages.

"How is Manny?" I asked. It was really embarrassing to ask the driver about Manny. I looked out. The city had changed. Tall buildings. Big billboards. But the crazy traffic was the same.

"She bought a club last month. She lives there now. She is very busy nowadays!"

"Oh, that's good." I was really nervous to face her. But really excited to meet her after so long. The car took about an hour to reach the mansion. As I entered through the huge iron gate I had a sinking feeling. How I thought I would never ever return to this place. The huge white building. With guards and house-helps more than the people actually living inside. As soon as I opened the door of the car. I was greeted with salutes. I hated them. It's a  weird feeling  when you get timely-untimely salutes for doing nothing. I went in with a composed face but a hurricane was ripping my heart. I entered the hall. The huge ass painting, the teak wood antique furniture pieces, the over the top chandeliers and the servants in uniforms. Nothing had changed.

"Sir what would you like to eat?" A lady asked. She was the head cook. She was new, actually many of the faces were new.

"Tea would be good." I replied, the jet lag hadn't hit me yet but I knew it must be coming. I looked at the doors in the left side. Dad's room. It was locked . He still must have been in London, doing business. Manny was also nowhere to be seen. She was clearly very upset.

"Should I send that to your room?" the lady asked, to which I just nodded with a smile.

The house was the same as I had left it seven years ago. Dad didn't like change in things much but he did like to change the people in work quite often. I went to my room upstairs. The white walls , blue curtains, king size bed and the antique decorations all were the same. Blue wasn't my favorite color but it was mom's favorite. Mom designed the interiors for my room and I loved that. After I freshened up I decided to visit the club. I was dying to meet Manny and see her as a grown up woman. 

 Uncle Sam drove me Manny's club. It was huge. I was silently proud of her seeing the crowd outside. I got to entrance and called Manny. I had to take her number from uncle Sam. It rang quite a few times but she didn't answer. I had always changed my number in every three months and I hadn't directly called Manny for at least seven years now. 

"Who's this?" Manny finally picked up. The music inside was quite high. I couldn't hear her voice properly.

"Manny!" I literally shouted with excitement and as a reflex to the loud noise from the other end, "I am standing outside the club. Let me in."

Manny hung up.  Did she hear me? Did she not recognize my voice? Was she so upset that she didn't even want to see me? I stood wondering every possibility outside the club in the rush of  the drunk crowd.

"Sandy!" a lady waved from the door. "Come..." Manny stood in front of me. . Dressed in a long white maxi dress with perfectly color matched heels and straightened long hair she had a strange arrogance in her face. I followed her into the club. The club was lit. The music was deafening though. The DJ was ready to blast the speakers. I was impressed by the wild lights .

"You have done quite well!" I said looking around. Manny probably couldn't hear me in the noise. She grooved to the music, held my hands and took me to a room paving through the crowd.

The room was more like a booze store. Yellow light just enough to see each other. The smell of wood and liquor was so divine. Manny stared at me for a minute.

"Why are you here now?"

"I thought of seeing you...I heard you do not come to the mansion very often..."

"No....no I mean why are you back in India all of a sudden?"

She clearly didn't miss me but at least she could be less rude.

"Dad brought me here...I didn't want to..." all my excitement was gone. "Dad didn't tell you about..."

"Do we talk like a family ever?" Manny yelled. "Did you tell me when you left?"

"Manny...I ...I am"

Manny hugged me tightly. I could not say more. I noticed she had grown taller than me but then I noticed she wore heels. But the best part was that she did miss me.

"Why did you stop calling or seeing my messages? I was so worried!" she continued hugging me and for a while the hurricane inside me stopped. It felt so warm. It never appeared to me that I missed her so much.

"I do not have any answer to that. I was really very selfish I guess."

Manny at once pushed me back and  started hitting me with her closed fist. The rings which she wore felt like daggers. "Manny...", I yelled, "It's hurting!"

"Good, it should hurt you i***t!" she said with a shaky voice. She tried hard not to cry and sniffed. "It's cold here let's get outside, enjoy the atmosphere!" Manny took me to the counter and ordered a scotch. The bartender was cute as f**k.

"Do you still hit on men like that?" Manny noticed me staring at the gentleman. "He's the finest I have but not for you...he's for the ladies. He brings good business. So stop that...whatever you are doing!" she slapped lightly on my cheek.

"Alright!" I sipped the drink and smiled at Manny. She had grown so much. She was calmer than earlier. Well spoken and so put together, Well fashioned. The version I remembered was mess.

"What? why are you smiling like that?" she questioned. She took out her phone and checked herself in the front camera. "Do I look funny?"

"You look perfect! At last you have some fashion sense!" I laughed.

"Do you do drugs?" Manny asked out of nowhere. I was quite startled.

"Don't tell me you do business here! I thought it was a regular club." I don't know why I was so surprised. She grew up with our dad around. Of course she was doing all the illegal stuff.

"Everything is business Sandy. You'll understand slowly.  Dad must have something planned for you. So...do you?"

"I did but I..." I stopped when Manny put  a pill in my drink. The pill dissolved immediately. "I have left all these. The nightmares were back and I have..."

"Don't be a cry baby. Be a sport. It'll help you relax I promise. Come on! For me... Please... Drink it, you'll feel better I promise!" Manny held the glass and made me drink it forcibly. I drank very little, most of it fell on my T-shirt and some on the floor. My was a little pissed. The T-shirt was new!

I was sure that I had very little amount of the drink with the drug in it but soon I was quite high. I smiled and this time couldn't help but just smile. The pink and blue lights of the club were making weird patterns. The rush in the club grew as the night grew but then something happened. A siren. The police siren. People knew the drill. They started escaping the club from the back doors. Some escaped and some still lay drunk on the tables. A man appeared through the front door and walked straight to the bar. Manny had the unbothered face and I  tried hard to keep my eyes opened. The jet lag was started to come in.

"Where's your warrant officer?" Manny asked sipping her drink. "Why do you waste your, my and people's time? Don't you have anything important to be done?" She smirked.

The officer pulled out a piece of paper from his pockets. "Officer Ansh Mehra... I need to investigate the club owner. There have been reports of illegal drugs by the narcotics department." His husky but bold voice was something really soothing to my ears.

"Come again!" I said softly. I finally could focus on the officer's face. Perfectly chiseled jaw, perfectly set hair, the cute dimples and the tired yet handsome face. The white shirt seemed to hug the officer's body so beautifully that I couldn't help but look at the perfect abs. He seemed dangerous but dangerously irresistible. I could feel my heart flutter. And I knew exactly what  was to come. The doctor had told me not to travel for long, drink, do drugs or do  anything that would make me anxious. Well I did everything forbidden in the last twenty four hours. I was in my senses till my vision faded, I  blacked out and fell on the ground.