WV-5/1

The Whisper Valley -5/1

There was pin drop silence as Rose waited for Khushi to answer!

"AAAA...er...... Ahhhh! Haan! Aunty actually I got lost and then the fog set in and it became all the more difficult!"Khushi paused still thinking! 

What should she say! How did she make it back to the Casa Willows! The man forbid her to tell the truth! What the heck! Why should she hide anything from anyone!

But! She was attacked not once but twice and both times Mr.Foggy Two eyes protected her! Atleast she needs to give it to him! God please help me She prayed...

"And...." Rose prompted...

"And I just took a right turn after going straight for some time and I was at the Casa!" Khushi whooshed out her breath as she herself felt relieved! Ok! Done! She made up a story!

"But you were up,... when we were all down stairs! isn't it? I saw you coming down!" Rose asked her...

Khushi looked at her stricken!

Next time! Next time that man met her, she would strangulate him!No doubt he saved her life , but this was worse.

She then stopped abruptly...what? She was hoping for another meeting with the stranger? Was she out of her mind?

"Hey are you there?" Aunty Rose waved her hand infront of her face.

"Ummmm!!!Aunty I just walked in and then no one was there at the entrance..." Khushi crossed her fingers and just lied!

She noted a frown on Rose's face and then laid it on thick! "...Then I was muddy with slush and went up to clean immediately and then ,... you know what happened!"she completed in a rush.

"Oh! Thank god somehow you came back!" Rose said in relief!

Khushi felt a little agitated! She hated lying and here she was just lying through her teeth!

"Aunty!..." She hesitated.

"Yes my dear?" Rose was all ears!

"What were you saying about...er...the ghosts of Willow and..e.r... others?" She enquired trying her best to appear casual!

"Oh! That?"The staff they make up so many stories" She scowled... and then waved her hands in the air saying," Not now! I don't want to spoil your mind before you go to bed! That too after such an eventful day!Some other time I shall share! For now you can read that legend! It has plenty of information in it."...and said,

" I am just in the room adjacent to you! Usually I stay down stairs but since madam is not well I shifted up this time so that I will be available for her!"

Khushi had a strong urge to ask her to stay in her room! What if that mysterious presence happens again in her room?"

"Er... Aunty Rose ..."She wanted to request Rose but when Rose looked all tierd and looked at her earnestly, she couldn't ask her and said," Good night!"

Rose smiled gave her a hug and said good night and left!

Khushi walked to the window and looked at the huge grounds spread out which were now almost obscured by fog and appeared very faintly when the fog moved or let up slightly!

What was all this and why was it happening and why with her?

She had nothing to do with it at all!

She checked the window and locked the door! Slipped on teh latch on to the slide door and sat on the bed!

Sleep was nowhere in sight! 

Oh! Why did she loose the book! She would have read through uninterruptedly! But it was lost! 

She doubted if she could ever find it!She called Garima and found out that she had a very tiring day with her pension claims and was almost retiring for the night!

Should she tell Amma?

She must!

"Amma!" She ventured...

"Tell me...how is Nani ji?" Garima asked...

"She is fine er...I mean she met with an accident.." Khushi said very cautiously!

"What?" Garima was all concern!

Then Khsuhi told her about the accident and then how she got lost but she spared the mystery fog man and the biziarre visions she had!

"Oh! Khushi...do you want to come back?" Her mother asked her!

"Amma! How can I? Nani ji is in a bad shape! ...and anyway Aunty Rose is staying so just finish off your work and come early!"She breathed a sigh after she rang off! 

No point in scaring her mother away! She would just watch out and if got any more bizairre she would just go back! 

"Thats as simple" she said it aloud in the room and somehow it didn't feel that simple at all!

The Whisper Valley

The old church clock chimed one and Khushi was still sitting and writing her manuscript on the table near the window! She was not at all sleepy and had been struggling to concentrate for the better part of an hour! But her concentration was long gone! Her mind kept going back to the incidents of the day before and she could not draw any logical conclusion of all that had happened.

Then she heard it! Some kind of whispering!

Who could it be?

The maids stayed in the servant quarters which was right next to the out house that was  a good two minute walk from the main building. No outsider stayed at the Casa Willow! Only Rose was allowed owing to her age and nature of duty! The cook and even Joel were given rooms that were actually stables rebulilt into small apartments thrown away in the estate!

She looked through the window... nothing! Thick fog which ran in torrents giving an ocassional glimpse of the willows when it moved...

She resumed writing...and heard it very clearly this time...

"Come with me...." The whisperer said...

Khushi looked around...There was no movement in the room and she had actually locked the room!

She then heard some noise outside in the passage!

Aha! Now she would find out the mischief monger! 

It could be one of the young men who Rose was talking about of being hired for the cleaning up and maintenance of the Casa!

She took a light blue silk wrap and covered herself as she was wearing a pair of deep blue harem pants and a white soft cotton top! Khushi always preferred it that way as she did not like being in her night things at a new place!

As she opened her door, she hit upon an idea and she switched off the light and listened to the sounds from outside...

There was a distinct rapping sound somewhere down the passage as if something was being sawed off! she opened the door without making any noise and peered outside!

There was a night bulb each, low on the wall almost near the floor on both the sides of the passage...casting strange shadows!

She told herself to be brave and walked slowly into the passage towards the sound...

As she neared the end of the passage, She heard a whisper..."GO AWAY!"

She sucked in her breath and turned around...nothing...no one was there!

Should she go back? Who was the whisper addressed to? 

She walked and came to the base of the stairs that overlooked the hallway and there was  a sudden movement towards the parlour and Khushi felt relieved more so coz she was not imagining and it was not the so called ghosts of the Casa but someone playng Mischief!

She tip toed down the stairs and turned right only to see a shadow vanish down the other bend which was to the left!

Khushi did not know what to do next! Should she follow the shadow or was it safe to go back! She thought for a minute and turned to go back when she heard the scuffling noise!

"Ummmm!!! Aahah!"

Who was there and where were they? 

She just did not understand as the Casa looked so simple when she actually saw it the hall, the parlour, the salone and the office and the steady! The kitchen and the conservatory... and as she moved it seemed to be a complicated maze!

She slowly moved forward and held on to the wall and walked till the end of the passage! Strangely silence ruled!She took a deep breath and turned and found a huge passage again!It was very very dimly lit and looked scary in the shadows... There was a passage at the back side of the Parlour? Well she did not know!

She walked slowly looking backwards and as she looked back suddenly someone collided with her with such force that she was knocked off and but for her holding the wall she would have been thrown off a few feet!

The form huddled up but just bolted off and she was relieved that, it was a human being and chased who ever it was! A door opened and she could see a shillhoute in the opened door frame before it closed.It was of a woman!

Khushi gasped and ran behind her and waited for a minute and opened the door with trembling hands! It opened and gusts of chilled wind greeted her making her shiver and she stepped out and the door knob slipped from her hands and the door closed behind her!

Khsuhi panicked and tried to keep the door open, so that she had an escape route if just in case someone attacked her. But as she tried she found out with a sinking heart that the door got locked automatically.....

She was locked out of the Casa Willow!

Khushi did not know what to do! She did not get her mobile with her! At whisper Valley things were laid back and she too wanted to stay away from her mobile as she used less and less of it!She looked at the Casa which looked very forboding in the night!

There was no door bell! Security was an acre away and the patrol happened only at an od hour she had heard coz there was an electric fence and the house and the gardens were secure...She caught her forehead! Rose told her that it was being replaced as it went out off order!

Oh! How embarassing! She looked around there was thick fog every where and she felt very odd standing out there on the porch looking into nothingness!

There was a flutter from some near by tree and a flock of birds rose suddenly startling her!

Must be some night birds! 

She tried the door jamb again! It did not move! Now all she had to do was to walk till the other side and try the kitchen door! But that too would be secured!

She realised she was left with no option but to walk till the outhouse, to wake the servants up and they could either call Aunty or call joel!

She felt very stupid and was miffed about the whole episode!She moved carefully taking to the drive way and stepped off it into the garden that would lead to the outhouse and the servant quarters!

As she walked... She felt again the strange sensation of being watched...Oh no! Was she conned into going out of the house? 

She was about to knock on the main door of the out house...when a hand closed her mouth and dragged her away from the door!

______________________

Want to thank IF readers Armela, Mugil and Archmink for all their support! Thanks guys for being there always...