“So you can see my car here has broken down and there is no way I can fix it. And I do not want to wait on the road for the rest of the night. Can I get a lift in your car?” I pleaded to the age-old Fiat that had just come to a halt beside me.
The driver, a figure clad in an overcoat that lifted its collar to effectively hide the face, observed me and my videocam carefully for a few moments before motioning with her chin to get in.
“Thank you so much!"
I quickly opened the door and hopped in, glad to have a better shelter in the late winter night.
“You are from South Delhi?”
Her voice startled me. I had assumed her to be a man. The way she wore her overcoat added with her hairstyle, there was no way to recognize her to be a lady.
“I am, yes”. I replied as I lowered my hoodie. “I came here for shooting a blog”.
“I see..”
As my eyes fell on the rear view mirror, I noticed her eyes fixed on me. I got the chance to look at her closely. A lady in her 40’s, with brown eyes and chiseled features. Not a very ravishing beauty, but a face that would surely snatch a few attention.
“Y-You see, my YouTube channel is Madhublogs. My name is Madhu. You might have seen-“
“Are you not comfortable? You can take your hoodie off”.
This came rather unexpectedly. Although, she was not wrong. Even with the shabby exterior, the car was fairly cozy inside. The seats were well taken care of, the fragrance of air freshener was yet to die down and it had started to get warm. I unzipped my hoodie but kept it hung by my shoulders. This gave my hair a chance to unwind a little.
“Thank you, Miss..” I had no idea whether she was Miss, or Mrs.
“Doctor”. She whipped back. “Doctor Divya. Where do you want to be dropped?”
"Green Park, please". I replied, leaning back comfortably in the seat. A few moments went without a word.
I took my moment to look a bit more around inside, for outside it was foggy. There wasn't much noteworthy, just a small golden kitty on the bonnet, an air freshener that was now off.
"You want to listen to some music? You want to listen to Kishore Kumar?"
It was quite sudden, but a pleasant suggestion. "Umm yeah. Do you have some 90's songs?"
"Well Kishore Kumar is better". Her voice was firm, with a small hint of admonition. No way I could say anything after that.
She reached for the small music box attached in front and played "Yeh shaam mastaani". She had a good taste in music, I had to give her that. I started to hum along in a very low tone, taking out my phone to search for a signal. None yet. Strange, for by now we were reaching the Sanjay Van park. At least that was what I caught a glimpse of on the board, I thought?
Dr. Divya was carefree. She was driving, although every other moment I could see her looking up in the rear view mirror and catch a glimpse of me.
"You are pretty".
" Pardon?" It was so out of the blue that I thought I misheard.
"What? You did not get it?" She chuckled lightly.
"Thank you."
"Even more so when you are enjoying the music. Keep your phone down. It will not let you get the true essence of the music".
Now I understood. She was getting irritated about the phone. I put it back in my pocket and looked ahead.
As I was about to back it back however, an old notification caught my eyes. Something about missing or kidnappings. Maybe some of those pop-up news. The headlights were trying their best to illuminate the hazy pathways, but Dr. Divya was doing just fine.
"How long till we reach?" I asked in between the hums.
"An hour if we keep up the speed".
That was confusing. The path barely took half the time other days.
She seemed to get my thoughts and said, "Do not worry. You will reach your home. That is my responsibility".
The car kept taking turns that I kept guessing wrong. Why would we go by Mehrauli? Was she even going the correct path? I quickly whipped my phone out. Maybe opening the window would give me a network.
"Put your phone down, darling". This time, she was stern. " I mean it".
"But I need to make a call!"
"Girl, you are disturbing my music".
"But the call is urg-" No, I did not get a chance to complete my words. She hit the brakes so hard that I almost toppled over. My phone fell down and disappeared in the shadows of our seats.
"What the hell? Let me out!" I screamed at her.
"Honey, you are fine. Now calm down".
" No, I am not fine! I want to get off now." I was genuinely scared.
"Fine. You know what? Go. Do whatever." She turned the car off. I opened the door and immediately jumped out. And I realized why it was a bad decision. We were in the Qutub Golf course, in the middle of nowhere. Even if I screamed at the top of my lungs, there was nobody to hear me at all. And the chilly wind bit right on the nape of my skin. But I was mad at her. I put my hoodie on, and started walking, not even aware in which direction. I walked, and I walked, until I realized I had left my phone back in the car. I quickly turned back, and ran. She was still there, in her car waiting. There was an eerie smile on her face.
"Get on, dear. Every path you take will lead back to me".
I slowly opened the door, and like an obedient little girl got back in. How was she controlling my thoughts that good?
" I need to search my phone". I said, once I was warm enough inside.
"Sure. Do you want some coffee? I think I have half a cup left".
" Yeah, whatever." I knew it was futile to argue. I crouched down and started searching. It was in a corner under my seat, accompanied by a pair of bikini panties. That got me curious. It was about 32". Dr. Divya would be at least 36" from the looks.
I came up to my seat with a curious look with the panties in my hand.
"Oh, that?" She stifled a small laugh.
"My previous client. You'll get along with her just well".
"She got her therapy in her car?"
"A way to pay her fees, dear. I could not refuse".
"Mm. Okay".
The car came to a stop by the side of the road. She reached down to her drawer in the bonnet and pulled out a flask.
The coffee must have been cooled down, but the thick aroma soon filled the car. It was not Nescafe, that I was certain. It was rich, savoury. As a coffee person, it would have been a crime on my part to refuse. She carefully poured the coffee in the lid and offered it to me. And did not look away for once as I sipped the coffee. "Nice, huh?" Her eyes were shiny, and voice soft like a doting mother.
"Yes, it is.. Gooo… d.. " And everything went dark.
The shabby Fiat came to a stop at a two storeys house. The neighborhood was asleep, and no guard was around. The elderly yet well built lady pulled out an unconscious girl on her shoulder, and shouldered hard to shut the door.
"Welcome to your home, client 87". She hissed mockingly. " You will reach your home after a few days".
Then, looking into the little golden monkey doll resting on the bonnet, she waved with her free hand. "Welcome to Dr. Div's blogs X. X. X. Let me know about the plans in the comments, once we get in".