What The Eyes Don't See

17 | Showdown at the Motel

Once again, Anay was involved in a discussion with Kautuk, going over the sinister goings-on of his life. Nothing would probably come out of it but talking to him assuaged his pain.

After a spell of silence during which he digested the facts, Kautuk said, not unlike a Victorian sleuth, "So let us see what you have so far. This person stalking you—"

"Not person, ghost."

Kautuk's eyes narrowed. "Okay, so ghost as you say."

"You don't believe that, do you?"

Kautuk sat up straight and looked into the distance as if he were analyzing something. "I don't know about beliefs. Aren't they a very tricky thing, Anay? What is a ghost, after all? What separates a ghost from a living person? Just the event of death. But we haven't seen death. We don't know what part of us carries over to the other side. Do our thoughts go too, our likes and dislikes, and our passions and desires? But if all of those go with us into the afterlife, then what's the difference between a ghost and a person? Simply the body? But the body doesn't make a person and certainly not his personality. Everything that makes the person passes through the sieve of death. So, isn't a person more of herself or himself in death than in life?"

Anay looked at him agape, waiting to him to finish, trying to catch up with his words.

Kautuk snapped out of his chain of thoughts. "I'm sorry," he said. "Got carried away with my own line of thinking. Do you believe in ghosts, Anay?"

"I never did. When anyone used to tell me ghost stories, I used to mock them. There were many of those imbeciles in my school. Idiots who told ghost stories, trying to scare others, when the truth was that they were themselves scaredy-pusses. In fact, my school building looked scary as fuck. We shitted bricks going past it. Some of the boys said that it was haunted, but the terror in their eyes only made me laugh all the more. However, with everything that has been going on of late, I don't know if the last joke's going to be on me."

The way he said 'last joke' sent a chill down his own spine.

Kautuk perked up. "Oh, yes, remembered something that will cheer you up."

"What?"

"There might be some good news, my uncle says. They are investigating the floor cameras of your old Versova building. Seems like every floor has a camera."

"Wow! That's great!" Anay punched his fist into the air. "Now they will see that Renee went out of the house alone and I did not follow her. That's a lucky break, Kautuk!" Almost dancing a jig, he came up to his friend and grabbed his hands. "And they will see the real cause of the accident. If that ghost, person, whatever, pushed him over, they will see it on the camera. Don't you see it, buddy? I just made up my mind to fight this bastard and things are improving already."

Kautuk gave a rare smile. "Happy for you, bro. I am sure it will be sorted very soon. Now, getting back to your stalker... how does he know exactly what you are up to?"

"Because he's a ghost, that's why!"

"So, if there's a ghost right here," Kautuk said, "do you feel his presence now? Maybe, maybe you are possessed. Do you feel the ghost in you?"

"What are you talking, man? You see me every day. Do you see me doing any weird shit like that chick from The Exorcist? No, tell me..."

"No, you don't. But the innocent face is the best subterfuge of a criminal."

"There you go rambling again!"

"So, we are ruling out possession," Kautuk said. "That's good. Because I don't know any exorcist if you were really possessed. Do you know any exorcist?"