Page 52 - Love Story of a Commando

each other as we cried, thanking God for saving us and mourning the deaths
that we witnessed.
We were changed people now. Nothing could have been a more
brutal life event than this.
As soon as I had gone to the bathroom my friends heard the gunshots
and were warned by the stewards to evacuate the restaurant. Two of the
stewards ushered most of the guests towards the fire exit staircases which led
them directly out. There were still some guests left at the restaurant who
refused to go out despite constant pleading from the stewards. There were
two more stewards who decided to stay with the guests willingly and God
knows what happened to them. Once out, my nervous friends fled after
waiting for me for some time.
Frankly, they thought I was dead by now.
None of us were going to be the same ever. The effervescence and
warmth that existed amongst us were lost like dew in the sun.
Nidhi could not sleep comfortably after that incident. Gaurav chose
to be silent about it, like it never happened. Dipti would eat, sleep, cry and
repeat the pattern and chose to wrap herself into a cocoon which never
opened after that. It was as if we never existed for her. We could never be
sure about Swami as he left the city the very next day without even bidding
us goodbye.
And I?
I would be drowning in my misery every single second. The agony of
losing him would burn me each moment. My arms would be sweaty all the
time, my heart palpitating and eyes would be bloodshot. Losing Virat once
again, that too after living an eternity inside those burning corridors, was
brutal. The hope would linger in the middle of the night but would soon be
replaced by sobs.
The fight between humanity and terrorist brutality continued for one
more day, eventually leading to ten terrorists being killed mercilessly by the
NSG commandos and one being captured alive by the policemen. A team of
Navy Marcos had also played a pivotal role before the specialized NSG team
arrived, in securing the arena and cordoning the Taj hotel once the terror
attacks were confirmed. Reports revealed that the terrorists armed with AK-
47s, grenades, pistols and other explosives entered the city through the
Arabian Sea and split into pairs of small kill teams with a sole aim to
annihilate the city.
Had it not been for our armed forces, Mumbai could have turned into
a graveyard but they could not cause the levels of damage as expected by
their handlers, all due to our armed forces who stand vehemently between
death and people, whenever an enemy threatens the sovereignty of our
nation or risk to civilian lives rises. All because it is not just a job but an oath