Chapter 7
Ven picked up the pace as he made his way to Peter’s office, he wasn’t late, but he preferred to be a couple of minutes early so he could compose himself before knocking on the door.
“Over here Ven, got our very first assignment!” shouted an excited Peter.
Irritated he didn’t get a chance to compose himself, Ven turned around and made his way down the hallway to Peter, who stood with a smile from ear to ear and a brown colored file in this left hand.
“By the way you’re smiling, we got something exciting ahead of us?” asked Ven eagerly.
“Not at all! You’re a day old here, did you actually think you would get anything important as your first assignment?” asked Peter with raised eyebrows.
“Well, you’ve been here for thirty years, that might have helped us get us something important,” said Ven with a shrug.
“Everyone useful and important is already being used, haven’t you been following the News at all?” asked Peter.
“Haven’t had the time, too much has been going on in my life,” said Ven.
“Be that as it may, in the future make it a point to stay up to date with the News, it’s a must in our line of work. The short version is this, everyone is busy working extra shifts to support the extra security they’ve added for the diplomats we have visiting from Bangara. It’s mostly the menial tasks, UTF is handing all the decision making and personal protection of the diplomats,” said Peter.
“Oh yeah, I remember they are here to negotiate some kind of peace treaty,” said Ven.
“Not just any peace treaty, this treaty ends a war we’ve been stuck in for the past seven years. I feel bad for the Bangarans, they just got stuck in the middle between us and Shor. But being in the crossfire is the main reason they have worked the hardest to push for a peace treaty between us and Shor. Not that everyone is happy with the peace treaty,” said Peter.
“What do you mean?” asked Ven.
“Rumor has it part of the peace treaty deal is that one third of Bangara comes under our jurisdiction, one third goes to Shor and the middle third becomes a ‘no man’s land’. The logic being that the citizens of Bangara can move to either Nagiri or Shor. They’ll be given refuge and help to restart their lives. It’s also a chance to add more gifted to our ranks, so naturally both us and Shor are trying to entice as many to our side as possible. Now although this is just a rumor, it hasn’t stopped patriotic protestors from taking to the streets in Bangara, they feel being dissolved as a nation to three provinces by two far larger nations is an abuse of power and something they cannot allow,” said Peter.
“What do you think?” asked Ven.
“I think that staying alive is more important than national pride, especially if you have a family to take care of. If they think living in the middle of a battlefield is better than signing this peace treaty, they clearly have deep underlying issues,” said Peter.
“I can agree with that, war is a brutal thing, not knowing if you’re going to make it back home at the end of the day. Whether you’ll see your friends and loved ones again, only fools make war sound glorious,” said Ven as he thought back to the number of friends he had buried over the years.
“Deep words for someone who hasn’t even held a real gun,” mocked Peter.
“I have seen documentaries about them,” said Ven quickly to cover up his slip. “So, what kind of assignment has the Captain given us?”
“We’re to go to the airport to pick up two scientists, Sinha and Robert, and escort them to wherever they want to go. We are their security detail, so that no one bothers them. After dropping them off we’re done for the day,” said Peter with a smile.
“That’s it?” asked Ven.
“You think it’s boring, don’t you?” asked Peter with a laugh.
“Well, yeah,” said Ven.
“I think today is as good a day as any to hear the wise words my mentor told me when I was a fresh recruit. Boring is good, boring means everything is going according to plan, exciting on the other hand means something has gone wrong. So, never complain about boring days,” said Peter solemnly.
“Doesn’t help get me motivated for this assignment though,” replied Ven.
“I’ll get you a coffee to go from Lorines, now come on, their flight lands in an hour,” said Peter as started walking to the main entrance.
Ven gawked openly at the airplanes in the distance as they drove towards the arrival section of the airport. Flying in the sky, that was something people only dreamed of back in the day, he made a mental note to find a way to get a ride on one of them in near future.
“How are we going to recognize these two scientists,” asked Ven as he turned around to look at Peter.
“Open that file on the dashboard, I printed their names out before you got to work,” said Peter.
“Just how early do you get to work?” asked Ven.
“Early enough to get these minor things out of the way,” said Peter as he parked the car, “they should be landing soon, so let’s get moving and don’t forget the file.”
Upon catching a glimpse of their uniform, people respectfully moved out of the way. Which made finding a spot to stand amongst a group holding signs with names on them far easier than if they were ordinary civilians.
“Hold the sign up once people start coming out of that door,” said Peter as he checked the time on his watch.
Ven didn’t have to wait long, as a trickle of people started coming out of the closed doors. He opened the file pulling out the two sheets of paper and held them up for the incoming people to see. After the first few people walked past them without a second glance, a middle-aged man in a brown jacket finally walked up to them.
“That’s me right there. Unfortunately, Robert couldn’t make the flight with me, a family emergency came up. So, obviously you know who I am, what’s your name?” asked Sinha.
“I am Peter, and this here is Ven,” said Peter.
“Oh, two Officers, I didn’t expect that,” said Sinha.
“Ven just started on the job, so I suppose you could say that you got one and a half Officers to help you,” laughed Peter as he started ushering Sinha through the crowd.
“That’s a good one, but it’s still half more than I expected,” said Sinha.
“And you are half the number of people we were expecting,” added Ven.
“Yes, that I am, which means that I get double the protection than if I was with Robert,” said Sinha.
“Shouldn’t it be less than double if I only count as half an Officer?” asked Ven jokingly.
“Congratulations then, you now count as a full Officer,” laughed Peter as he gestured towards where his car was parked.
“Just like that?” laughed Ven.
“Just like that,” winked Peter. “So, where would you like us to take you?”
“Sparrow Ville,” replied Sinha.
“Isn’t that where you come from?” asked Peter as he looked at Ven.
“Yes, but I haven’t been there in years, I don’t even know if anyone remembers me,” said Ven as he waited for Peter to unlock the car.
“Nonsense, people wouldn’t have forgotten you. But wow, you certainly chose somewhere far away. How do you feel about taking a train instead of driving there?” asked Peter.
“A train will certainly be more spacious, and it’s nice to have a local boy to show me around once we get there,” said Sinha.
“It’s settled then, we’ll be taking the first train to Sparrow Ville,” said Peter as he started the engine of his car.
“Relax, I’ll guide you through everything. They’ll never know you’re not from around there,” said Vikram in Ven’s ear.
Sitting in their seats Peter explained to them how he had managed to get a whole first-class cabin for free. As he put it, it was one of the perks of being on the force, all types of public transportation was free, and if someone knew which buttons to press, getting a first-class ticket wasn’t all that hard.
“I have to say, I am very happy they chose you two as my security detail,” said Sinha with a smile.
“The feeling is mutual, simple jobs are the best” said Peter with a smile.
“So, is there any particular reason you’re going to Sparrow Ville?” asked Ven.
“Unfortunately, I can’t reveal the reasons I am travelling there,” said Sinha.
“Well, we have a long journey ahead of us, and I for one wouldn’t mind taking a nap, what about you two?” asked Peter.
“Don’t mind me, I’ll be going through my notes,” said Sinha as he pulled out his phone.
“Well, I didn’t expect to be on a train to Sparrow Ville the day after I got to Genesis. I think I am going to look around the first-class section and see what the differences are between here and the normal seats,” said Ven as he stood up.
As Ven reached for the door handle, there was a loud knock on their door. Not knowing what to do, he instinctively looked to Peter.
“Well, open the door and see who it is,” said Peter.
Nodding once Ven grabbed the door handle and slid the door cabin door open. Standing opposite to him was a brown-haired young man in a blue jacket with black pants.
“Sorry to bother you gentlemen, but can I see your tickets?”
“Of course, here you go,” said Peter as he passed the tickets along to Ven.
“Misters Peter, Sinha and Ven, a one-way ticket to Sparrow Ville. Since it’s not every day we get Officers riding our train, a little gift for you three, compliments of the staff,” said the young man as he returned the tickets to Ven and moved to the side to show a trolley with an assortment of food and alcohol on it.
“Thank you very much for taking good care of us,” said Peter as he got up and shook the young man’s hand.
“Please enjoy the rest of the journey, and do not hesitate to call me in case you need something,” said the young man as he closed the door behind himself.
“I am really happy they sent you two! I’ve never had service like this before!” exclaimed Sinha.
“Neither have I, but then again I haven’t taken the train to such a backwater town before,” shrugged Peter as he poured out a glass of wine for himself.
“Looks like I won’t be going through my notes just yet,” laughed Sinha as he joined Peter for a drink.
“Ven I am sorry, but you’ll have to refrain from having any alcohol today. Can’t have both bodyguards tipsy, now can we. No restrictions on the food though, dig in!” said Peter with a huge smile.
Ven laughed as he pulled a bowl of steaming soup towards himself. Maybe this wasn’t such a boring assignment after all.
Another long chapter! Sorry its late, but real life appointments got in the way. I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, our buddy cop drama is picking up.
Who exactly is Sinha and what will happen once they reach Sparrow Ville. Tune in again next week to find out!
And remember to stay safe out there, we're not out of the woods just yet.
Anderoth