As the SUV slowly rolled to a halt by the roadside, David did something unexpected. He opened the door and rolled outside onto the road. The jeep's occupants saw him and began firing at him as he ran to the other side of the road, diving to take cover behind a road sign. Mayukh took his gun from Swati, loaded his last clip and stood outside the vehicle, aiming at the jeep that was now bearing down on David.
He had fired at one of the goons attacking Swati, and then at the Biters outside Purohit's apartment. But this was different. It was the first time he was shooting to kill a human being. David was not returning fire, and he was either out of ammunition or more badly wounded than he had admitted. Either way, Mayukh knew it all came down to him. He steadied his hands, spreading his legs slightly and bending at the knee to get the best balance. He remembered what his father had once taught him. Always shoot between heartbeats. He aimed just ahead of the driver and pulled the trigger twice in quick succession.
The first bullet hit the man in the hip and the second, raised by the slight recoil of the gun, hit him in the chest. The jeep swerved to the side as the driver fell out, not to get up again. Mayukh had no time to contemplate what he had done. The three remaining men were now jumping off the jeep, guns in hand, and turning towards him. A bullet pinged off the SUV inches from his face as he knelt down and fired at the shooter. Three shots in rapid succession, two of which struck home. The man went down hard against the jeep, bounced to the ground and did not get up. Another man fired at him, the bullet grazing his hip as Mayukh felt a stinging pain sear through his leg as he fell.
That was when David exploded into action. He raced out from behind cover, his handgun raised, firing as he ran. He emptied the clip into the man nearest to him, who was struck by round after round, pirouetting like a puppet on a string before he fell. David discarded the gun, took his combat knife in hand and jumped on the man who had just shot Mayukh. The man had turned to face him and tried to raise his gun, but he never stood a chance. The man must have fancied himself to be tough in innumerable drunken brawls, but facing a Navy SEAL out to kill him, he lasted no more than three seconds.
Hina was now outside, and Abhi had run up to Mayukh, hugging his knee and crying. Mayukh felt Swati hugging him close as he tried to get up. She was smothering him in kisses.
'Oh God, I thought you were…..'
There was no need for saying anything more. Mayukh held her close, as he saw David walk over. His right shoulder was covered in blood.
'Ah shucks, I wish someone would fuss over me as well. I'm bleeding as well, you know.'
Hina walked over to take out David's first aid pack and tended to his wound.
'All you get is a sixty-five year old crone. Now stop being a baby and let me look at your wound.'
They had both suffered superficial wounds that were soon bandaged and they just sat there on the highway for some minutes, reveling in the close escape they had. Mayukh looked at Swati, who was feeding Abhi some cookies.
'You were really brave back there.'
Swati said something about not even hitting anything, but David patted her on the shoulder.
'Doesn't matter, Swati. You probably saved all of us there.'
He had been inspecting the weapons of their fallen enemies to see if there was anything useful but had proclaimed them to be pieces of junk-all crude country-made pistols. The hunt for a spare tire for their SUV had proved equally fruitless, with the spare having been slashed by the Biters. Two of their pursuing jeeps were wrecks, and the third was leaking fuel from two bullet holes.
Hina had her head against the SUV's side, her eyes closed. Her heart was still hammering, and as she began to think of the dangers they had all faced and the stakes each of them had in the struggle to get to Ladakh, just how little she mattered. David was their unspoken leader due to his military experience; Swati and Mayukh had each other and Abhi to live and fight for; and the little boy was the key to this whole expedition, the one spark of hope that kept them all going. But what was she doing in all this? She couldn't fight, had nobody who would lament her passing, and had no useful skills to offer. David sat down beside her, smiling as he tried to think what was going through her mind.
None of them had yet asked the question that was on the back of everyone's mind. How would they ever get to Manali or to anywhere safe before Sunset? It was already two in the afternoon, and nobody had any bright ideas. They were also running short on ammunition. David was out of ammunition for his rifle, and was on his last clip for his handgun, and Mayukh had only four rounds left.
Just then, Mayukh shouted.
'Shit, not again!'
All of them looked to see a cloud of smoke approaching them on the highway.
***
Given the attack they had just survived, they were in no mood to take any chances. Hina, Swati and Abhi crouched inside the SUV while David took cover behind one open door, and Mayukh the other. They had just over a dozen rounds between them, but they were hoping to catch whoever it was in their crossfire. As the vehicle, a black van, came closer, David aimed at the driver, and was about to fire when the van stopped and a single man stepped out, his hands in the air, and began walking towards them.
As he came closer, they saw that he was white, totally bald and wearing jeans and a plain white shirt. His hands were raised, and as he came within a few feet, he said loudly, in a thick accent.
'I am here to help.'
Mayukh got up, and started to move towards the man, but David motioned for him to wait, his gun still pointing at the man.
'That's close enough. Who are you?'
The man looked at David and smiled.
'My name is Walter. I am alone and unarmed.'
The way he said his name, it came out sounding like
'Walter, what are you doing out here all alone?'
The man dropped his hands, causing David to tense, but then he laughed.
'Come on, you have two armed young men covering me. I am fifty and have no weapons on me. Let me come closer and I can tell you more. By all means, keep your guns on me if that makes you feel better, but don't make me shout through this conversation'
David nodded and the man approached them. Up close, Mayukh could see that the man was very fit, with not an ounce of spare fat on his body and his arms were sinewy and muscled. His face was however creased and wrinkled with age. He smiled again as he came up to them.
'I do this route twice every day, looking for people like you.'
When David asked him what he meant, he pointed to the overturned jeeps and carnage around them.
'There are many like them, preying on the weak and desperate. And then, there are the Biters. It seems nowadays safety is a precious commodity. Thankfully, we have safety to offer and are trying to get as many people there as we can.'
Mayukh asked him where he was from, and the man responded with an expression that indicated that he would have thought that everyone knew about the sanctuary he was referring to.
'The Sammasati Ashram in Kullu, of course.'
Then Mayukh remembered the ashram that Freddy of the one star price had referred to. David must have remembered as well, for he visibly relaxed, lowering his gun, though he did not put it back in its holster. Walter took this as a good sign, and came closer, still smiling and nodding politely to Hina and Swati. Abhi had bounded out of the SUV and looked at the stranger in their midst. He ran his fingers over his hair and then giggled.
'You have no hair.'
Everyone tried their best to suppress their laughter as Walter knelt in front of Abhi.
'No, my dear, I have not had hair for many years now. But I do have a toy train set back at the Ashram. We could play that if you liked to. Would you like that?'
Abhi's eyes lit up and he looked at Swati, as if seeking permission. David asked Walter how they had set up the Ashram and how many people were there. Walter looked at his watch.
