Held (Part-3)

Story :
Filled with happiness and joy, Dan and Lilly came home. The very same night, doctor confirmed that Lilly is pregnant. Cheerfulness filled in the entire house of Dan. That night, Dan gave leave for the servants working at his home. He also gave money to enjoy the night and come back to work, the next day. Dan also went out to bring flowers for Lilly.

The house was empty, except for Lilly. Lilly was stretching herself in the bed room, reading a book. She heard a crackle; the sound of the main door getting opened. Must be Dan she thought and started acting as if she were sleeping. The bed room door opened, she didn’t open her eyes. The person who came in, with a gunshot made sure she never opens them again.

When Dan came home he saw that the main door was left open. He immediately ran to the bed room. Lilly was there, with her eyes closed and a red mark on her forehead. It was a head shot. Dan couldn’t bear it

Why now? What kind of father wants his daughter dead?

As he was talking to himself, he saw in the mirror infront of him, a gun behind his head. He immediately bent down, let the shot fly and within this time lap made the person holding the gun fall to the ground. He beat him up. Anon, he tied his hands. Dan then, called the police and handed him over to them. But he refused to answer anything that the police were asking. He was dumb with shock. It was raining outside. He took his rain coat, his hat and started walking into the forest area which is in the outskirts of the village.

 As he was walking, something knocked from outside to enter his mind. He gave it permission

Why did I run always? Why didn’t I try to solve the problems? Why didn’t I fight back? What about the lives lost at the MIRACLE? Why didn’t I stand up as a witness to bring peace to their souls? And now, why didn’t I try to take the help of the lawyers and police to help them, so that they could arrest Lilly’s father? It’s my life. And I should not keep submitting it. Enough has happened. I should not run away like a weakling.

He didn’t waste time. He went back to his home. The police were still present there, collecting evidence. He told them the whole matter; about the eloping, the circumstances that lead to it. And why no other person, other than Lilly’s father could have given the order for the killing. He hired a good lawyer, and also made the files of the fire accident at the MIRACLE - Home for the destitute to be reopened.

After the hearings, Lilly’s father was arrested and sentenced to jail for fifteen years. The superintendent’s wife also got arrested. They arrested the Superintendent too, for the perjury of misguiding the law about the cause of fire.

Dan never married another woman. He stayed in the village for the rest of his life, making the people to know the rights and fight back, if injustice had been caused to them. A TV reporter once asked him,

“Why didn’t you try to kill the people who did injustice to you? “

“Let me tell you one thing first, I don’t hate anyone so much as to kill him; even the person, who murdered my wife. There may be several reasons why a person does any crime or injustice. He may be desperate of something. The things that may appear right to him may appear wrong to us. But looking in his perspective may be sometimes he is right. A person who steals because he is hungry is not a robber. Truthfully, no one in this world is completely righteous. A criminal may not stay as criminal for his whole life. May be they will do some jail time, and then, may be they will change. Who knows? But, not giving them a second chance makes us no different from the butchers of mankind. I don’t want to be like that. Also, I am helping people to get justice, so that others could get inspired from me and do the same”

“Do you think all these activities are heroic for people to get inspired?”

 “Yeah, sure”

“But a hero should at least kill a dozen men”

“Well, this is a new form of heroism and I am the new age Held(Dutch)”