The Endless Chase (1970s)
The City's Secrets
Author
[Scene: Mumbai, 1970s – A Smoky Bar in Grant Road]
Aarav stepped into the dimly lit bar, the scent of cheap whiskey and sweat hanging heavy in the air. Jazz music played from a broken radio, the sound crackling like a dying memory. The bartender barely looked up as Aarav took a seat, flicking ash from his cigarette.
bartender
(wiping a glass lazily) “New face. You don’t look like you belong here.”
Detective araav
(smirking, lighting another cigarette) “I don’t.” He slid a crumpled photo onto the bar counter. “Ever seen her?”
The bartender’s hand paused for a fraction of a second—too quick for an untrained eye, but Aarav noticed. He knew that pause. That hesitation. Fear.
bartender
(shaking his head) “Never.”
Aarav took a slow drag from his cigarette, eyes narrowing.
He could feel it in his bones. The bartender's fear of phantom—or someone like her. But why hide it?
[Scene: A Narrow Alley – Outside the Bar]
Stepping out, Aarav leaned against a wall, letting the night swallow him. The city was alive, but something about it felt… wrong. He looked up at a billboard advertising a film. But the film? It hadn’t released yet. It wouldn’t, not for another five years.
His head throbbed. A feeling of déjà vu. He had seen this place before. Hadn’t he?
A whisper brushed past his ear. Not from a person. From the wind itself.
Aarav turned sharply. The alley was empty. Just shadows. Just… memories?
Back in his rented room, Aarav found a letter slipped under his door. No name. No sender. Just a single line, handwritten in ink.
Author
Letter:
"You’re not looking for her. You’re looking for yourself."
Detective araav
clenched his jaw, crumpling the paper. "Who the hell was playing this game?"
Outside, the city kept moving, as if nothing had changed. But Aarav knew better.
Something was watching him. And it was waiting.
Comments