Prithvi...(Vol. 6)

Chapter 147

Anuj looked around nervously as he jogged towards Grishma, who was standing on the pavement outside a one-storeyed antiques shop and examining her left hand sombrely. Prithvi wasn't around, which meant he had a few moments before he was kicked in the rear for leaving Grishma and Yamini in the market and going off to shoot a video of the spice market.

Grishma glanced at Anuj as he hurried towards her and smiled feebly.

"Hey," Anuj said, panting as he reached her. "What's wrong with your hand, Grish?"

Grishma showed him her left hand. The fingers were reddish.

Briefly forgetting his worries about Prithvi, Anuj concernedly said, "Looks bad. How did it happen?"

"We'd gone into this shop," Grishma said, gesturing to the antiques shop. "I was picking up some stuff from the lowest shelf, and the shop owner was standing close and drinking tea. Another customer dropped something and the shop owner got startled and spilled some tea on my fingers."

Anuj grimaced. "Oh...did you apply anything on it?"

"No, not yet. The owner poured cool water over it, that helped. Yami said she would get medicines from a pharmacy, but I thought I should ask Prithvi before applying anything since we don't know the best brands here," Grishma replied.

"You both haven't seen him after he dropped you off?" Anuj asked, surprised.

"No, and we're worried now," Grishma fretted. "It shouldn't have taken him so long to get back after parking. Yamini has gone off to look for him in the direction in which he had left with the car."

"You're worried about Prithvi?" Anuj snorted disdainfully. "Grish, short of a comet landing directly on him, nothing could go wrong with Prithvi. And even then, I'd be more worried for the comet," he grinned.

Grishma knew what he meant. They couldn't have explained it to someone who didn't know Prithvi, but the idea of any normal accident or mishap befalling him just seemed absurd.

"That's true," she said with a small laugh. "But why is it taking him this long? Oh Yamini is back. Damn...he isn't with her."

"Couldn't find him," Yamini shook her head, sounding out of breath as she halted near them. "And where had you disappeared off to, jerk?" she frowned at Anuj, punching his arm.

"Ouch! I just wanted to shoot a video of the local spice market for Pari," Anuj said hurriedly, rubbing his hand. "I'd heard it's quite famous in this region. And you know she likes those things...like a flavour of the local place. I spoke to some of the sellers and got some interesting bytes," he said zestfully

"You're not lying about this, are you?" Grishma asked suspiciously.

"I can show you both the whole thing," Anuj claimed. "So don't tell Prithvi I left you two alone, okay."

"I will review your video and see what kind of spice it is focussing on, and then I'll decide," Yamini said dourly. Then she remembered to ask, "Hey, did you hear that loud, scary yell some time ago?"

"Yell? What kind of yell?" Anuj asked, mystified.

Grishma looked at Yamini exasperatedly. "I'm telling you...it wasn't Prithvi. It might have sounded like him, but you know he wouldn't shout like that. And that too some random name."

Yamini looked doubtful but didn't argue.

"What name was it?" Anuj asked with curiosity.

"It was something that ended with 'Ni'," Grishma shrugged.

"Yeah, couldn't make out the rest" Yamini said. She surveyed the area, then excitedly said, "Hey, there he is. Prithvi, over here!" she called out loudly.