Page 100 - Love Story of a Commando

‘Leave me! Leave my hand. I will go wherever I wish.’ I tried to pull
my hand free.
‘Can’t you see it is dark outside and if you are suffering from some
kind of memory loss then let me remind you that you are still standing in one
of the most dreaded parts of Kashmir,’ he said.
‘I don’t care and it’s better to die than to be with you here. Leave
me!’ I said.
‘Are you an idiot? I understand our differences yet I am your
protector now and you cannot go anywhere until I tell you so. There are not
only terrorists here, but also a forest full of wild animals. You should know
that,’ he said.
‘I said leave me!’ I gritted my teeth and punched him on his shoulder.
‘Riya! Stop behaving like a kid. We are in enemy territory and it is
not safe here,’ he said while I tried hard to get free of his grip.
I was grappling with him like a wild cat and was astonished with the
sheer force that I could muster. Nevertheless, he was just ducking his head
casually. He lost his cool for a moment and pushed me toward the stone wall
behind me and bent both my hands behind my back only to trap them with
his hands. Our eyes were locked for a moment before I turned my face to
one side grudgingly.
I wouldn’t turn and face him, so he took a step around me and leaned
down to put his face in my line of sight. His warm breath was lingering on
my face and tingling my neck. The electric sparks surging out of our bodies
were so obvious and the air felt too heavy to breathe in. There was this
irrepressible tug, the curious magnetic pull drawing me towards him with a
ferocious intensity. It was almost beyond the realm of my own self-control.
I shut my eyes as quickly as I could and clenched my fists.
‘I accept whatever you say, and I deserve your hatred. I always knew
in my heart that I had lost you forever and I don’t blame you for that. No
woman would ever love a man who abandoned her like that. You have all the
right to hate me and I promise once I take you to a safe zone you can shoot
me with my own Glock pistol, and I won’t complain. But now please listen
to me. We are in Kashmir, that too in a forest where if animals don’t kill us,
a terrorist definitely will. And our best chances are if we stay right here till I
contact my pack and ask for reinforcements. Till then we need to hide. Do
you understand?’ he pleaded.
Out of his long speech, only two words ‘ Shoot me’ caught my
attention and the very thought pierced my heart like a dagger.
No! I didn’t mean that. Yes! I hated him, but no! I would die too. I
nodded absentmindedly.
He released me from his grip gently. I rubbed my wrists vigorously.
He looked apologetic but did not say anything. A few moments passed, we