I Won't Let You Die Angel (3 page)

Why, oh why was I mesmerized
by the absolutely wrong guys? I mentally chided myself at the incredulity. How could
I change this much in just one day? I never so much as drooled over the most stunning
football player and now here I was staring at my abductor.

Like I had not been
acting stupid already, I did the stupidest thing ever a girl could do in such a
situation. I lifted my half-eaten sandwich and offered him a bite, “Yum…. do
you want…some sandwich…?”

That broke his trance and
he moved away, quickly regaining composure of himself. He strolled several paces
away from me like some reverse magnetic field had been initiated. “Finish quickly.
I don’t have all the time in the world,” He said blandly.

My appetite was now surprisingly
lost, but I still ate my unfinished sandwich and scooted down from the counter.
Mr. Monster was busy on his cell phone, and to my utmost surprise, the window on
the far side of the kitchen was wide open revealing a narrow street. His back was
facing me. This was perfect timing. I slowly dawdled towards the window and took
a peek outside. Not a soul in sight. Then I looked back: he was still busy on the
phone. I silently thanked the gods and jumped out the window.

Well, I thanked the
gods a little too early. When has God ever listened to my pleadings? I had merely
put one foot on the ground when someone grabbed me from behind. I stuck my elbow
in his stomach, but he remained unfazed. I tried to maneuver my free hand toward
his throat to strangle him, but his head tilted sideways making my hand twist in
pain. He grasped my waist in an iron hold and pulled me back over the windowsill.

I landed on top of him,
my back colliding with his hard chest while his arms gripped me strongly at the
waist. He rolled me over and now he was on top of me, his body weight crushing me. 
I gasped for air.

“Aren’t you an intelligent
little kitten?” He said in a surprisingly calm tone.

He restrained my hands above
my head and tangled his legs with mine in such a manner that I couldn’t even move
an inch.

“Now will you call it a
day or do you want to play more? I certainly am in no mood to role play Tom and
Jerry.”

“Jerry’s cuter than you.”
I made an obvious point.

“
What
?”

“You just want to be a kitten,
so I’ll obviously be playing Tom. That leaves you to play Jerry.” Here I was, restrained
by an absolutely dangerous fugitive and my mind was playing Albert Einstein. Great,
just great, now I’m officially crazy.

Saying he looked amused
would be an understatement. If my mind hadn’t been preoccupied with so many thoughts,
I’d have swore I saw his lips twitch sideways in an attempt to hide an obvious smile.

He rose on his knees, and
then pulled me up alongside him, steadying me on my feet. “I hope the game’s over
now darling. Because I only give three
lives
and this is your third. Try
anything stupid again and the next thing you’ll see will be your own blood.” With
that life-threatening warning, he lifted me on his shoulders and carried me to his
room tossing me on the bed.

Stupid!! Stupid me!! I should
have been more careful. You call yourself an engineer-in-the-making Janet!! You
certainly don’t act like one. Couldn’t you grab a knife or something? I eyed his
gun warily. Can’t he just live without his gun for a moment? That would make my
work much easier here.

I eyed the bathroom door
and thought of that small window. No!! No more silly moves. I’d have to wait till
we got out of there for my next opportunity.

Mr. Monster was packing
a blue duffel bag. Now that my mind was working a little better, I noticed he was
wearing black jeans and a light blue shirt, fitting him just right over every rippled
muscle. I shrugged, immediately. Ugh….

“What is it with you and
blue? Is it some sort of good luck charm or something?”

“Are you sane now?” He asked
reprovingly.

“Look
Angel,
I don’t
think in the slightest that making friendly conversation with me will help your
cause in any way. So STOP improvising.” He replied in an angry tone.

“Improvising is the first
thing a science student learns. We’ve got to improvise on everything; otherwise
no experiment will give proper inference.” I had made a valid point.

He snorted, “What is it
with you and science? I’ve been informed about your obsession.”

“Passion, not obsession”
I retorted.

He wagged his index finger
at me, “I don’t give a damn about your passion
or
obsession. I have given
you a lot freedom. From now on, you won’t speak unless I ask you to, and you’ll
behave. Because if you don’t; you won’t be left with any time to even regret your
foolish actions.”

On this happy note, he took
a black cloth and blindfolded me. I didn’t resist, knowing it’d only make my position
worse. There was no way out of this, at least for now, until the weapon was
forced out of his hand. If only I could get a gun somehow…

After a few minutes, he
pulled me up on my feet and dragged me out of the room and the house. I waited for
him to open the passenger door of our ride; instead I heard a familiar hum.

“Hop on.” He ordered.

I was confused. “Um…. With
all due respect, if I have permission to speak; may I ask where to hop on? You know
with my line of vision hindered and all, I don’t follow.”

I swear I heard an amused
laugh nearby. The next moment, I wasn’t blinded anymore. I gasped in surprise. In
front of me stood a brand new Honda Neo bike, shining in its glory. Mr. Monster
urged me forward and then again blindfolded me.

“Hey,” I protested. “You
can’t possibly assume that I’d sit on a bike blindfolded; besides anyone can see
me like this.” Silly me!!
Why
did I have to give him the idea? I should have
let him make his way, and then there might have been the possibility of someone
reporting this to the police. I mentally cursed myself.

“Don’t worry about technicalities,
Angel
. You’ll be wearing a helmet anyway.” As if on cue, a helmet was placed
on my head. “Now, hop on.”

I climbed in the back defiantly,
hesitatingly placing my hands on his shoulders. “How will you know which direction
to go? I don’t suppose there’s GPS installed here.”

“I don’t need a GPS to wander
in my own country. I know every nook and cranny.” He replied egotistically.

“By the way, did you know
that the GPS system works on the principle of Einstein’s theory of relativity, which
actually has two theories: one for general relativity and the other for special
relativity? Special relativity states that when …..”

“Suck it up. If you keep
enlightening my mind with your stupid theories, I swear I’ll silence your voice,
too.”

And without any warning,
the bike swept forward in sixth gear. I had to hold him tightly in order to stay
firm.

He drove and drove and drove
and didn’t even so much as falter for hours. I wondered how he had got past all
the checkpoints. Dizziness started to consume me. On a normal day, I would have
enjoyed the free ride, but you can’t really wander about being blindfolded, can
you?

Finally, after what
felt like raised to the power infinity, we stopped. It took me a few minutes to
calm my senses. And when I reclaimed my vision, well… I couldn’t believe what
my eyes were projecting. No! This can’t be real. Mind tricks… I told myself. I rubbed
my eyes several times and then blinked profusely, but the scenery in front of me
didn’t change.

You have got to be freaking
kidding me.

“You’ve got to be kidding
me.
Disneyland!!!...
Seriously! Of all the places….”

I still couldn’t process
the fact that I was here…… at Disneyland.

I’ve been to Disneyland
only once and I’m not really fond of the memories. I was only two back then. After
that, I lost interest in visiting amusement parks, this one in particular. Mom tried,
several times, but some wounds just don’t heal.

Standing at the entrance
now, I regretted my decision right then and there. Just because I was afraid, doesn’t
change the fact that this place was splendid. Just amazing, and I haven’t even been
inside.

I looked with amusement;
it was so beautiful, everything out of a fantasyland. Mr. Monster scowled at me.

“Don’t go all happy on
me. We are here for work. My part here will be over and soon I’ll be off for my
own
entertainment
.” He chuckled at his own inner thoughts, giving special
emphasis to the word entertainment. I wonder what that meant.

“Wait a minute. You’re abandoning
me? I’ll just get lost here.

Never mind, I could just
spend my whole life here. It’s a pretty amazing place to live.”

I twirled around in three
full 360 degree circles and breathed in the fresh air. Then the odd reality of the
situation struck me.

“YOU…. You should have told
me we were coming here. I can’t go in public like this.” I gestured furiously at
my sloppy outfit. “Everybody will mistake me for a clown. I won’t be able to take
pictures. What about my Facebook? Huh!! That’s not fair.” I stomped my foot childishly.

He shook my shoulders and
pulled me towards him. “Stop acting like a child. We’re not here for fun. I’ve been
restrained, but mind you,
Majestic
will show you no mercy and she’ll be here
sometime soon.”

I heard each word, but couldn’t
process the sentences. He was close, so close. I could practically feel his breath.

I couldn’t do anything except
stare at him with blinking eyes. He was obviously oblivious to what had gotten
to me. “Nevertheless, it’s none of my business. You’ve already caused more trouble
than any other assignment in my career,” he added skeptically. And then he released
me, and I could finally switch my mind from hibernation to active mode once again.

“What are you talking about???

Aren’t you going to call
my dad and ask for, like a ransom to release me? That’s how it’s done, right? You
can’t simply hand me over to some other terrorist,” I cried in exasperation.

“Oh, don’t mistake
Majestic
with some mere terrorist,
Angel
, she’s bigger than that and certainly don’t
mistake my reputation as just some creepy local kidnapper. I’m the prince of the
underworld.”

“Do you have any idea with
whom you tried to mess around?”

“Prince!!!” I know, I should
have been scared and all, but damn my mind, always wandering out of league range.

“Now I get why underworld
is deteriorating in its territory.

Monarchy is the worst form
of governance. You should try Democracy.”

He looked absolutely exasperated
and shook his head back and forth like a simple pendulum.

“Are you for real? Here
I am envisioning your fateful future and YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT HOW TO GOVERN
THE UNDERWORLD, seriously!!!” He shouted, openly grimacing at me.

Well, he had a point. I
hate it when someone else makes a valid point. But I just shrugged, not wanting
to answer. I tried to direct my mind into some serious issues here, but it had already
decided otherwise.

“Since we are here anyway,
I’m gonna utilize this façade. There are scarcely a few moments in my life
when I get to enjoy myself despite the circumstances. So, there’s absolutely nothing
you can do to stop me.”

On that happy note, I strolled
forward, admiring the world of fantasy and happiness so different from the real
world outside and altogether much more appealing.

Mr. Monster had no other
choice but to follow. Together we stepped inside Main street USA, glowing in
all its glory. This theme land area had been patterned after a typical Midwest town
of the early 20th century the typical train station, town square, city hall, firehouse,
shops, arcades, horse-driven streetcar, everything was portrayed as originally
known that I felt like I was travelling back in time. I wondered what it would be
like to be actually part of this world, living here away from all fear, hatred,
and misery.

Mr. Monster was silently
walking beside me, his eyes watching my every step.

“Paranoid are you?” Don’t
fret Mr. Monster. I won’t run away, not before I get to admire all eight fantasylands
here. You are my accountant, you see.

You may at least pretend
to appreciate the resplendent architecture here.”

I watched the big, old buildings
looming over us and remembered something I’d read. I clapped my hands excitedly.

“Did you know that the designs
used the technique of forced perception to create an illusion of height? They are
actually built in ¾ scale on the first level, then 5/8 on the second, ½ on third,
to reducing 1/8 part each level thereafter. Isn’t it fascinating?”

He was now in front of me,
again way too close, and watching intently.

“You really don’t care what
will happen a few moments from now? How can you be so calm and content talking about
all this?”

I shrugged, “Look, can you
do me a favor? Just one for once, leave all of your worries and sadness and tensions
outside of those gates and enjoy the moment.

I know I don’t have control
over the future, but that doesn’t mean I’m a coward. I promise you, I’ll try to
escape as soon as I’ll get a real opportunity. I’m stubborn that way. I don’t take
anything for granted. I’m not some rich daddy’s girl, who waits for someone to come
rescue the damsel in distress. I take care of my own responsibilities. I was brought
up that way.

But I didn’t want this one
evening spoiled either. Because the future is uncertain, I might not see the sun
again. While I can’t do anything about the former, I can enjoy the latter.

Thinking about the past
and worrying about the future won’t do any good at the moment. So, why not live
the present as it is? Appreciate the fact that you’ve been rewarded with this
ephemeral happiness. Then look around. Really look around, dropping all the scales
from your eyes, see the beauty of life God has granted you.”

Something changed in his
eyes. He regarded me more carefully, which brought him closer than before. His posture
relaxed. He closed his eyes for about a minute and when he opened them again, there
was a glint in them, like he was seeing me all over again with a much different
perspective. Then he smiled, not some sideways twitch, but a broad heartwarming
smile. I couldn’t help but smile myself. God! He was beautiful. I stopped counting
how many times I’ve said that in my mind.

“All right,
Angel
,
let’s see what wonders this place has hidden within itself. I bet you have lots
of theories to explain everything.”

I swirled around and told
him all about the architecture and how there’s a
Tomorrowland
which shows
the future of mankind and how it integrates with science. He bought me a typical
Minnie Mouse style dress and clicked lots of pictures of me standing in front of
almost everything.

At the center of the magic
kingdom stood the
Sleeping Beauty Castle
the icon of the park. The stone
castle with shades of pink and blue was straight out of the animated Disney ads
you see every day. But damn if it wasn’t darn gorgeous. Oh, I would give anything
to live in that castle.

Tomorrowland
turned
out to be my most favorite land. Space Mountain, Innoventions, Autopia, Astro Orbitor,
Star Tours…OMG, they were all awesome.

“Awesome? Is that even a
word? You need to work on your English,
Angel
,” laughed Mr. Monster. God
help me, his laugh was intoxicating and some tiny part of me was pleased that I
was the reason.

We hurried towards the
Sleeping
Beauty Castle
when it was time for fireworks.

I watched in awe. It was
so… so beautiful. I haven’t seen such a fireworks show, like ever. It was even better
than the Fourth of July show at Cal. Hundreds of fireworks of different colors blazed
in the sky in every direction. Tinker Bell and Dumbo were flying in the sky above
the castle upon occasion.

My guard had picked a secluded
corner in the shadows so that no one could see us unless searching specifically.
So, the alignment of our line of sight had a slightly disrupted view, but that was
fine by me. We were away from the crowd, enthralled by the colors and brightness
in our lives, happy and content, hand in hand…

OOPS…. I just noticed our
entangled fingers. I hadn’t realized
when
I took his hand, or he took mine.
I looked down at our hands for a few seconds and then looked up.

He hadn’t noticed anything
unusual as yet. He was smiling happily, looking nothing like a sort of monster in
disguise; and different lights cast a multicolor hue on his face. He looked content,
laughing. It transformed his face into something out of this world. I thought of
looking away, not wanting to see him as anything but a monster. But I couldn’t.
I just couldn’t help it.

But then he turned his face
and his eyes bore into mine, clear pools of blue with random green and red reflecting
the fireworks. I decided then and there that he was not a monster. No one this gorgeous
could be a monster. His other hand traced my arm gently.

“I don’t suppose you’ll
tell me your name.” I asked.

He laughed and leaned forward.
I caught my breath. “Neil.”

I smiled triumphantly.
“I knew it. I knew there’s something to do with you and blue. See, your name
means blue in Hindi.”

He smiled at me, and my
eyes involuntarily stared at his lips. “You can’t help finding logic in
everything?” He asked lightly.

“No, nothing happens
without logic. Every phenomenon in this universe has logic, an explanation.”

His smile turned mischievous.
“Then explain the logic behind
this.
”

He cupped my waist and pulled
me closer, as if he were not close enough for me to faint. My heartbeat decided
to take a marathon. One of his d rested on my lower back and with the other, he
touched the corner of my lips. I shuddered and it had nothing to do with the drop
in temperature at the moment.

My mind was bankrupt, unable
to formulate any logic. He traced my lips with his index finger and slanted his
hand, his face dangerously close to mine. Oh lord, he’s gonna kiss me and I was
giving in, completely drowned in the fragrance of his cologne, any moment now. My
hands seem to have a brain of their own because they reached up to circle around
his neck. There was a light brush of his lips over mine.

And that’s when all hell
broke loose.