What The Eyes Don't See

31 | Revenge and Justice

For several moments, there was no sound in the auditorium. Only the sounds of breathing of the three live people echoed in the hall, along with the long howl-like gasps of the undead. All eyes were directed to that one spot on the floor where the man had collapsed, killed with such a strong fatal blow that he did not even have time to understand what had hit him.

Anay felt as if his brain had frozen with numb shock. There were absolutely no thoughts in it anymore. He could see everything that was happening around him, that is whatever little happened after his father's death, but he was rendered speechless. It was as if some grand comedy had just played out—he had lived with the notion that his father had been dead, only to find that he wasn't, and now he was really dead. And the funniest part of it was that his father's death did not mean anything to him. In fact, as the man lay there, his eyes still staring at a vacant spot on the high ceiling of the stage, he felt absolutely no sympathy for the man who was no longer a father to him, just a stinking criminal.

He turned to face the spirit, which had now settled down on the floor. Despite its bodiless form, there was an expression of anguish in it that cannot be described.

"Deep," he said, "there is nothing that can compensate the pain you underwent in your life. It is unfortunate that you had feelings for me, but I would never be able to reciprocate what you felt for me. I am sorry that I bullied you. I took advantage of your simplicity. I made you a target of my juvenile pranks and humor. Though it was in jest, I cannot hide behind it. I can see the repercussions of it now, which..." Anay's voice went low, "...led to your departure from this world. But, can you forgive me? Can you let me go back to my life and try to make whatever I can of it? Please, I beg of you..."

Nearly motionless now, the spirit sighed with a frightful noise that echoed in the deathly silence of the auditorium. His gaze was fixed upon the corpse of the man on the stage. Without looking at Anay, he said in a hollow sound, "I have my revenge, but justice isn't done yet."

Anay perked up so suddenly at that line that he almost pulled a muscle. "What... what does that mean?"

The spirit of Deep floated up to the center of the stage, which was quite apt for what it was about to do. Pausing for a moment there, as if ensuring it had everyone's attention, the ghost began, "You must think of me as a much malevolent spirit. And you are perhaps right to think so. But, let me tell you this, I did not start with the intention of revenge, at least not upon you. I see you for what you are—a misguided fool—and have always seen you so. I did not intend to kill that foolish girl in your house that night. All I wanted was to scare her away from you, but the poor thing fell all the way down. Everything else that happened—your getting fired, losing your home—none of that was part of my plan. Things kept happening and perhaps that was only fair in a demented kind of way, but trust me, Anay Ghosh, that was not my plan."

Anay collapsed to his knees in a state of final submission. He could not stem his tears now. Oblivious to the presence of anyone else there, apart from the spirit of Deep Mishra, from whom an ethereal glow had begun to exude, he said, "What the fuck do you want of me? Why don't you just kill me and get done with it?"

"I could have done that long ago," the spirit continued, "but don't you see? That defeats the entire purpose of it. Whether you believe it or not, all of this is for your benefit. To set you free."

"Set me free from what?"

"Even after telling you everything that I did, if you cannot understand that, then no one's more pathetic than you, Anay Ghosh!"

"What do you mean?"

There was silence. The spirit had clammed up, refusing to say anything further. Anay thought of standing up and walking away then, but he knew if he left unfinished business here, he would have hell to pay. He knew it was up to him now to figure out what was needed to be said, and, to be honest, he had a vague idea of it, but it terrified him. It was something that was unspeakable for him.