John

This story is by hasan abis and was part of our 2017 Summer Writing Contest. You can find all the Summer Writing Contest stories here.

He sat on the bed, his heart pounding so hard that he could hear his heartbeat. Drops of sweat slowly came down his forehead. His eyes were stuck straight in at the door, eyeballs so still that they seemed frozen. His muscular forearms made him look handsome with his folded sleeves of his white shirt. He held the gun tightly in his hands pointing it at the door where he was looking unfazed. The stability of his position showed his confidence.

The curtains on the windows were drawn and made the room dark. There was pin drop silence and apart from his heartbeat which he could hear, only ticking of the clock could be heard. His concentration was still undisturbed and he was waiting as still as a lion waits for its prey till the last moment. Soon he could hear the sound of boots running up the stairs, approaching closer. They were too many in numbers as he had already expected and would overcome him very easily. Now his only aim was to kill as many as possible before being killed. He had been in grave conditions before and had overcome it all with his expertise, but this was different and now he realised when death is inevitable, the only thoughts that come to you mind in your final moments is of your family and your loved ones.

As the voice of the boots became louder and louder he knew the door would soon open, he though about the past month in a flash of second.

Only few days ago how John’s wife Emily had had kissed him goodbye while he left for his assignment.

While John headed the investigation of the drugs smuggling by the naval vessel, Mr Jamie repeatedly pleaded not guilty, and John realised that the story Jamie was telling made some sense. Mr Jamie was stating that he had been falsely indicted in the case as he had come to know about the drugs and the involvement of officials in this.

According to his version there was a gang of not less than seven or eight people, including some high ranking officials on the ship who were routinely smuggling the drugs on the navy vessel. John had investigated the case for the past fifteen days and he was sure that either Jamie wasn’t involved at all, or there were more people with him, most probably some high ranking officials. John knew accusing high ranking officials of the navy was not a child’s play and needed solid proof. Collecting evidence against such men were not an easy task. John was busy gathering the evidence and was about to file his report when he got a call from some Mr. Darren. He was told to report Jamie as the culprit and close the case otherwise he might get in trouble. John now almost certainly knew that Jamie was being framed and that the real players were some other people. After the investigation was over, although the ring leader was not found but the captain and three officials of the ship were indicted. John’s wife called and was crying, she told him that their son had been abducted from outside his school. She was pleading John not to name anyone else in the investigation as their son would die. She had known John for more than twenty years and knew that he wouldn’t sacrifice anyone else for hi personal benefit. John was angry and infuriated, he had always stood for his principles and truth, but now on one hand he had his family and on the other his values and principles, both of which were the two most important things in his life. He told his wife to tell the kidnappers to release his son and he will do as they say. He removed the real names from the report and named Jamie the culprit and submitted the report. As soon as he submitted his report he got a call from his wife saying that the kidnapper didn’t call back and that their only son has been found dead at an abandoned place. John felt angry and helpless, and tears rolled down his eyes as he shouted as loud as he could.

In the next two day, he took responsibility for the wrong report he had submitted and asked Jamie for forgiveness. He interrogated Jamie and understood how the orders from higher authorities came for the drugs. John was under pressure to retire for the botched up investigation but he kept on, to catch the culprits. He tapped the phone of the officers who used to take orders from the higher authorities and recorded the conversation which would prove them guilty of taking consignment order of drugs when the case reaches the Navy chief, the highest authority whose judgement will be final. At the last moment he was forced to retire and he was helpless again. Emily was shot at in the marketplace and although she survived as the bullet hit her hand, but this was enough for John, to unofficially take matters in his hand. He called up his navy friends and formed a team, planned to raid the hotel where the leader of the Drugs gang was staying today as per the taped conversation. They knew that the drug lord, through his network of spies in the navy, would have definitely got the information that John was coming, so they planned a rapid action raid and the seven member team drove 70 miles to the capital and raided the Hotel where he was holed up. They went running upstairs to the room with their heavy boots making a thumping sound and without giving any chance broke open the door. Exchange of gunshots took place and moments later the chief of the navy lay dead on the bed with a gunshot to his head, with a gun in his hand, and his muscular looking forearms made him look handsome with his folded sleeves of his white shirt.