Danny stared at the burner phone in his trembling hand. The screen blinked with a message that sent ice through his veins: "Come home!"
"Is she in trouble? Does she need my help?" he muttered, his eyes narrowing as dread pooled in his stomach. "Is Rajendra Uncle bothering her again?"
There was only one way to find out. He tapped the number and hit call.
The number you have dialed is out of service.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
He tried again, his thumb pressing harder against the worn keypad.
The number you have dialed is out of service.
"Damn," he cursed under his breath. "Why does trouble always find us?"
Danny shook his head and slipped the phone into his pocket. Maa must be waiting to hear about my results. He had just checked them at Rajat Bhaiyya's cyber café: 98.29%. His ticket out of this hellhole of Mayapuri. Maa would be so proud.
He took off running through the narrow lanes of Mayapuri Chawl (Slum).
Thoughts raced through his mind like a bullet train. Uncle Rajendra AKA Raju wasn't born evil he was forged by jealousy, sharpened by greed, and polished by a lifetime of living in his elder brother's shadow.
At fifty two, he wore entitlement like armour. Barely 5'6" with a sagging belly and nicotine stained teeth, he strutted through life as though the world owed him everything. His eyes were perpetually bloodshot from country liquor, and his scalp clung to a greasy comb over he believed still commanded respect.
But his hands... those hands haunted Danny's nightmares.
Thick knuckled and studded with rings rings that had once belonged to his father they struck fear more than they ever offered comfort. Each ring bore a memory: bruises on Danny's arms, welts across Maa's back, and the metallic scent of tobacco that always accompanied pain.
"You think I'm a fool, bitch?!" Rajendra would scream, spittle flying from his lips. "Your husband took ten lakhs from me! Return it!"
"We have nothing, Rajendra Ji," Maa would whisper back, her voice barely audible. "You took everything."
And then he would strike. Methodical. Precise. His cruelty wasn't impulsive it was routine, practiced over time, and inevitable.
When sober, he ran Papa's coaching institute like a mafia racket, exacting fear and respect in equal measure. When drunk which was increasingly common he became an unhinged animal.
Danny and his mother lived in Mayapuri Chawl now, one of the worst slums in Scaredford. Tin rooftops clattered during monsoons, cracked staircases threatened to collapse, and shared bathrooms reeked of neglect. Stinking drains bred mosquitoes so large they felt like flying syringes. Drunken men sang off key Bollywood songs at midnight after consuming countryside liquor 'Dholamaru'. Barefoot children played on gravel roads, their innocence slowly eroding in the harsh reality of poverty.
But it hadn't always been this way.
Once, they had lived in Rajmahal which literally meant "The King's Palace." And the name wasn't just for show.
It was a 12,000 square foot dream built from Makrana marble the same pristine stone used to construct the Taj Mahal. A ten car garage housed luxury vehicles that were legends in Scaredford: DMW X5, Bercedes Benz, Bamborghini Aventador, Berrari SF90 Stradale, Folls Foyce. Gardens bloomed with Italian fountains and mogra blossoms that perfumed the evening air. Their driver wore the crisp white uniform of a professional chauffeur, and Dad's Folls Foyce Ghost would glide through Scaredford like royalty moving among subjects.
And then... he disappeared.
One day, no note. No calls. Only whispers carried on the wind. People claimed his bloated body was seen floating in the Pureflow River. No police case. No official confirmation.
Just Rajendra, appearing with documents.
Claiming he was the nominee of all Papa's wealth.
In one devastating stroke, they lost everything: Rajmahal, the bank accounts, and All in One Coaching Papa's life's work. The very Uncle Rajendra who used to toast champagne on Danny's birthday to curry favor with his father threw them out like stray dogs.
He kicked them out that very week.
Since then, Maa and Danny had been rotting in this place drowning in poverty and despair.
Rajendra still showed up sometimes, drunk and violent. He often misbehaved with Maa, and Danny suspected he had done worse when Papa passed away and Danny was too young to understand or act. But whenever Danny asked about those dark days, Maa would fall silent, not a single word escaping her lips.
He was thirteen then. Helpless. Powerless. A spectator to his mother's suffering.
Now he was seventeen. Eighteen in just a few more days.
And this time... he wasn't going to be a bystander.
Danny reached their room in the chawl, the stairs groaning beneath him like they too were tired of carrying broken dreams. He unlocked the door with the rusty key.
Maa sat on a red plastic chair, mending his torn kurta under the pale glow of a tube light. The moment she saw him, her hands froze mid stitch.
"Danny! Did you check the result?"
Her voice trembled with anxious excitement.
"Is that why you asked me to come home urgently, Mom?" Danny smiled, though something felt off about her message.
"And why is your phone out of reach?" He tried to change the topic, sensing an undercurrent he couldn't quite place.
"Battery died, beta. And did you forget today is Friday? On Fridays we have "
"Power cuts," Danny finished. "Right."
"Yes, now come back to the topic. What about your results?"
Danny's chest swelled with pride. "Ninety eight point two nine."
Her eyes welled up instantly. She stood and pulled him into an embrace, her dupatta carrying the familiar scent of turmeric, sweat, and cheap soap the smell of home, of safety, of unconditional love.
"My son... you never fail to make me proud." She kissed his forehead tenderly. "Are you the state topper?"
"I might be," he said, grinning. "Still waiting for confirmation."
She touched his face with weathered hands that had worked so hard to keep them alive. "You're already my topper." She pulled him close again, showering him with the fierce love only a mother could provide.
Like a switch being flipped, she shifted into full mother mode. "You must be hungry. Want to eat Maggi?"
"Yes, please."
Danny sat on the floor, his breathing finally slowing. After a pause, he gathered his courage. "Maa... I'll be going to Officer Lane today."
Her smile faded like a candle being snuffed out. "Why?"
"Why there, beta? You know he won't even let you near Rajmahal."
"I'm not going to Rajmahal, and I'm definitely not going to see him," Danny replied, taking a sip of water from their shared glass.
"Then where?"
"To meet a friend."
She squinted suspiciously. "What friend? Since when do you have a friend who doesn't smell like Amit?"
Danny grinned. "I met someone at the ghat. Her name is Kanika."
"Kanika?" Her eyebrows shot up. "That's a girl's name."
"Yes... she is a girl."
Maa stared at him for a long moment. "Is this your way of telling me you have a girlfriend now?"
"No!" Danny laughed, heat rising in his cheeks. "We just met. And Mom, she's the daughter of SP Rajveer Sharma."
"The SP? The SP of Scaredford?!"
"Yes Mom."
"Is she your age?"
"She just cleared her 12th too... with 89.92%."
Maa crossed her arms, her protective instincts kicking in. "So she's weaker than you academically. You better be careful. Remember what your Papa used to say slow horses and fast women will ruin you."
They both chuckled at the familiar saying.
"She owes me momos," Danny said playfully. "That's all. I'm going for snacks, not marriage."
Maa sighed, worry creasing her features. "Still, be cautious. Her father is a powerful man. This isn't a love story from the movies, Danny. One mistake and we could lose even the little we have left."
Danny nodded solemnly. "I know, Maa. I'm not meeting him. I'm just meeting her. For momos. Not like a girlfriend and for gods sake I just met her today only mom." Danny replied cheeks turning rosy red. Just like shown in movies.
She gave him one long look a complex mixture of trust, fear, and the fierce love only a mother could carry for a boy forced to grow up too fast.
Outside, the sun dipped lower on the horizon. Dogs barked in the distance. The city's holy cacophony resumed its eternal rhythm.
But inside Danny... something else stirred.
An urge. To see her.
****************************************************
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