NIRUPAMA

(Some Secrets May Better Remain Secrets Forever)

'I cannot bear this', 'I want to pluck my eyes out' only these two sentences were the clues which the late girl Nirupama left in writing one on a wall and one in a book quite unintentionally and involuntarily to know about the reason for her committing suicide. Her father Ranganath, detective Smaran and his niece Menaka along with Nirupama's friend Sukanya pretty well understood that Nirupama did not want the said secret to be known to anyone else. But since her father Ranganath hell bent upon knowing about the said secret, detective Smaran and his niece Menaka ruthlessly investigated the matter only to unearth the said ghastly, shocking and astounding secret which the dead girl terribly wished to keep only with her in her grave forever.

x x x x x

"They are out of fashion. Very few people wear those black spectacles now a day. Why he prefers to wear such spectacles particularly?" Manaka asked

"Only he may be known about that" Sukanya said. "Better I do ask him about it when I meet him again. He talks very freely with me also."

"Alright then. We are side tracked. Where we are.....yes..Nirupama used to go to him for every two or three days. How many times she might have met him after you have found her like that at your home?" Menaka asked her.

"Your uncle talked with Niranjan. He might have asked that question to him." Sukanya looked at Smarn.

"Yes, I asked him. I think that he said he was also out of station for some fifteen days or so just before Nirupama committed suicide and he came home only after her death."

"A little odd indeed she did not say anything to him also.." Sukanya said. "She always liked him. She shared everything of her life with him I think. In fact her father and mother also respected him like that."

"I know about it. I saw him at their home on two or so occasions." Smaran said.

"Here one thing we need to consider" Menaka once again intervened. "Whatever has happened that much depressive in Nirupama's life has happened just fifteen days or so of her committing suiside. And in those fifteen days also neither Sukanya nor Niranjan were available to her to discuss or share that matter."

Frowns gathered on the forehead of Sukanya for some time and in few seconds they were cleared. "I don't think even we were available, she shared or discussed about it with us. To her own dad, with whom she was so much intimate and consider like a friend, did not say anything at all. She was so much intimate to her mom also and she did not say anything to her also. I don't think she would have discussed anything with us either even we were available in those days to her. To tha matter....." she paused a second before saying. "We have talked over phone occasionally when I was in my relatives' home also and I could not discern any difference in her."

"May be you are right." Menaka nodded her head.

"Now we shall consider the messages that she had left unintentionally. First message 'I cannot bear this' second message 'I want to pluck my eyes out' what we can make out of these messages?" Smaran asked

"I just cannot think of anything about these messages." Menaka said.

"I am also so. These messages are appearing quite odd to me too." Sukanya said.

"What she could not bear? What a twenty one years aged girl like her could not bear? Was there a love failure without your knowledge? Did she fell in love with anyone without your knowing about it at all and faced bad experience?" Menaka asked

"We talked about this." With little irritation Sukanya said.

"There is no wrong in thinking again. Try to remember if you have forgotten anything."

"She would have told me hundred percent if she had fallen in love with anyone. What is the necessity to keep something like that as a secret? Especially with a close friend like me?" Sukanya's voice was firm just like on that day.

"We cannot say. May be you better make some inquiries in the college. There may be some reasons that she did not say about her love affairs to anyone at all."

Sukanya breathed heavily and said. "Alright. I make inquiries. But I am not thinking there is anything like that at all."

"So far my staying in their home did not give any productive result at all." Menaka said despairingly. "Is there going to be any use in my staying in that house in future?"

"Sure there shall be. Don't be despaired that fast. Detection work is like this. We have to be very patient. Sometimes we may not have any result until the end." Smaran laughed and said.

"I may not be fit to become a detective I think." Menaka said. "Anyhow I don't want to become a detective either. I am just helping you for some fun."

"Whether you do have any interest in becoming a detective or not" Smaran paused for a moment and said "You have wonderful qualities to become a detective. If you want you sure do can become a great detective."

"Why you have got such an opinion at all?" Menaka smiled.

"Anyone does feel fear to stay in a room where a girl committed suicide just six months or so back. But you did not feel like that. Even after having such scary experiences in that room you are still interested in staying in it. You think rationally and logically like me. So in my opinion you sure do can become a great detective."

"Still uncle I must say." Menaka said. "I just don't want to become a detective."

"Alright, alright no one would compel you to become a detective if you don't like it at all. Don't worry." Smaran said.

"But I am really interested in this profession. May I suitable to this if I try?" Sukanya asked Smaran.

"Detection job is a very tedious one. It is difficult to say unless observing you for some days, whether you are suitable to become a detective or not." Smaran said.

Sukanya hissed out heavily. "Then I think about this. Anyhow if I want to become a detective at all, I shall get the training only under you."

"Its very nice of you to think like that." Smaran said.

"Alright. What I should do in future while my staying there? Just sit idle and pass time?" Menaka asked him.

"The old work itself. We talked about it on the first day of your going there. Observe carefully. Especially that old woman. I cannot say why but I am feeling it is important to observe her." Smaran said thoughtfully.

"You know, mom had become very much emotional looking at the old couple." Menaka said.

"You are right. I talked with her. She felt very much about that Ranganath and Nirmala." Smaran said.

"Is it is not odd? I never had found my mom becoming that much emotional for some outside people."Menaka said.

"You don't know your mom inside out. She feels too much but most of the time she keeps her emotions inside herself. But when it comes to this old couple she could not do it like that." Smaran said.

"May be you are right." Menaka said.

"I am very much interested in meeting your mom" Sukanya said.

"I mentioned you to my mom when she had come to Ranganath's uncle home. She said that she would meet you when she comes here again." Menaka said.

"I indeed wait for that pleasure." Sukanya said.

"I take you to my home and you meet my mom there. Just be prepared to take your lunch and spend the whole day with me there." Menaka said.

"Sure no problem" Sukanya lauhed and said.

Those three discussed some more time in between themselves. Then Menaka got off the chair and said. "We both do go now. But before going I want to say something."

"Tell what it is?" with a curious expression on his face Smaran said. Sukanya also got off from the chair and looked curiously at Menaka.

"You already have a pretty idea why Nirupama committed suiside, are not you?"

"I have a theory. I am thinking that is the reason." Smaran sighed heavily and said.

"I am not going to ask you what it is." Preparing herself to move away from there Menaka said. "Just because you are not going to tell about it to me."

Then Menaka and Sukanya came out of that place.

***

Ranganath stood there unbelievingly. It was quite scary to him. He knew that his wife was imagining her late daughter. But seeing her imagining now like this making his heart cringed.

"Oh, Niru. Do you know how beautiful you are appearing to me now? You are so good."

She was looking into the space before her while talking.

"I always say to you don't tie your hair like that. It does not appear good in such a way."

There was some silence as if she was hearing whatever her daughter was saying.

"That new girl. I think you sure do like her. She is indeed very good Niru. You both can become quite good friends. She already became a good friend to your friend Sukanya."

Again some silence.

"You want me to come with you. Where?"

Ranganath stunned on hearing that. His heart beating became faster.

"No darling. I cannot come there. I think I have some more time to do that."

'What the bloody hell this means?' Ranganath thought. 'Where that imagined daughter asking his wife to come? Or is Nirupama really there?'

"Think about your dad. He becomes all alone."

My god! Ranganath understood a little where his daughter asking Nirmala to come.

"Why cannot you stay with us all the time? Is it is not good to you? You do have your room again. We can make that Menaka change her room. We can ask her even to vacate our house. But she is indeed a very good girl."

Her imagination with her dead daughter continued like that for some more time.

Nirmala imagined her daughter in before also. But not in this way, not this intensively. It was all appeared quite dangerous to Ranganath. He thought that he should contact Niranjan immediately and ask him to start treating Nirmala forthwith.

***

"I want you to do something fast. The type of her imagining changed. I cannot say why but I don't like her in that imagination for long." Ranganath went early in the morning to Niranjan and said after explaining everything in detail to him.

"Alright. I do start something as fast as possible. May I come to your home now itself?" he asked Ranganth.

"Best thing you do. I don't think it would be better to delay this matter anymore."

"But Ranga, until this time you always said that she was lucky imagining like that. Why you are talking like this now?"

Ranganath hissed out heavily. " I already explained to you. Still you are asking. I found her in the morning talking with imaginary Nirupama. Until this moment she imagined that her daughter was at her aunt's house. Now she is imagining Nirupama in our house itself. What this means? My god.... I just could not bear the scene.....I am afraid if she has been left like that she would become complete mad. If it is indeed because of her mental imbalance, some thing needs to be done fast and you have to do it."

"Did you hear what she was talking?"

"Not completely. Only part of that. I already told what I have heard. Have you forgotten? Nirupama asked my wife to come somewhere and I am afraid it leads to something unless stopped here itself. It was just like....Nirupama was there. For sometime I too have felt that Nirupama was present there."

"Interesting! Why did you get such a feeling?"

"No. I cannot say why I got such a feeling. It is something paranormal. Niranjan is there any chance that my Nirupama is indeed in my home and Nirmala has been seeing her?"

"Ranga what is happening to you? In which times we are living? Are you thinking that there are souls or something like that?" Niranjan frowned and asked him angrily.

"But what all this is? Why did I get such a feeling? Why Nirmala is behaving like that?"

"We have many a time discussed about Nirmala. She is in a sort of mental shock. It takes time to her to become normal. You asked me to start treatment and I do that. The most important thing, you don't become yourself like her." Niranjan warned him.

"No I cannot give any such guarantee." Ranganath said. "I am feeling fear someday in the near future I do become mad."

"I am thinking it is you who need the treatment first than your wife." Niranjan said.

"Alright then. Start the treatment. I am not going to oppose it."

Niranjan hissed out heavily. "Ranga... a great misfortune happened in your life. I agree. But... we have to adjust ourselves to our lives. There is no other way at all."

Ranganath did not say anything.

(..........to be continued)

(I hope you enjoyed it so far. Please don't forget to rate and review it. I update the next chapter as early as possible.)

#investigation #detection #psychology #hypnosis#hypnotism #love #romance #romantic #suspense #thriller #sentiment #family#suicide #psychology #hypnosis #self-hypnosis #psychiatry #psychiatrist