Laughter in Darkness
A suspense, romantic and psychological thriller
By
Kotra Siva Rama Krishna
“One thing I cannot understand. Whomever she loved and married, what is the necessity to grandmother to keep the dead bodies of Semanthakam and Nagaraju in the upstairs room? What purpose that would serve?” Rose asked.
“I don’t think that is true. I am not thinking that my grandmother kept the dead bodies of those people in that room.” Rajesh said.
“Then what is the necessity of keeping that room locked like that? Why it should not be opened and looked inside?” Neeraja asked.
“That room was locked like that for a long time. When my dad visited this place for the last time in his life, he proposed that to my grandmother and she vigorously resisted.” Rajesh said. “She did not agree that room to be opened at any time. Opening that room to me is just like showing disrespect to her.”
“If there is nothing ominous in that room, why she that much wanted that room to be closed like that? Why she that much vigorously resisted her son from opening that room?” Rose asked.
“I cannot say anything to that.” with a helpless expression in his face, Rajesh said.
“I can see some reason in keeping Semanthakam’s body. But I just cannot understand why she kept the body of Nagaraju also.” Neeraja said.
“That itself proves” Aravind said with a small voice. “That grandmother loved Nagaraju also.”
“First thing” Rajesh said with an irritating expression in his face “There is no proof whatsoever that grandmother kept the bodies of Nagaraju and Semanthakam in that room.”
“Uncle” struggling himself to keep Arjun and Madhuri with him Anand said. “Why do you feel that much to open that room? Grandmother never wanted us to come here and stay. We have come here and stayed against her wish. It would be the same with the upstairs room also. If we open it and look inside our doubts will be cleared.”
Rajesh looked at Anand and laughed. “Don’t suffer yourself that much with them both. Leave them both to go to their moms.”
“But Sameera wanted to take some rest.” Anand said.
“No problem. Sunanda is also there and she can manage with them. Just let them go.” Rajesh said.
Arjun and Madhuri ran away from that place as soon as they were freed from the grip of Anand.
“I need to think about it.” Rajesh said hissing out heavily. “I cannot take a decision in haste. And I am not seeing any problem even that room remained locked like that with our doubt un-cleared that whether the dead bodies are in it or not.”
“We have started this discussion whether we can assume anything for grandmother’s strange behavior.” Rose said. “Why she wanted to keep her own son and own grandson always away from her and this house? Why she never came away from this place and secluded herself from the outside world?”
“We cannot say whether it is true or false” Rajesh said “But she strongly believed that Nagaraju’s soul is here. While dying Nagaraju took a vow that he would make the life of my grandmother miserable. She thought that he sure would do harm if either my father or I stay with her or come to her or come into this house.”
“That was what exactly happened, was not it?” Aravind said. “In the return journey, after visiting grandmother, both your parents died in the accident.”
“I am not thinking that it was because of any paranormal Aravind.” Rajesh once again became irritated.
“But that accident was really ghastly! You were such a small boy witnessed such a thing! Please don’t think I am making you remember those things unnecessarily.” Neeraja said. “But I felt very much reading it in the book.”
“You are right. That was indeed a very horrifying thing should not have happened in anyone’s life. Losing both parents at one time in such a way is really terrific!” Rajesh said.
“Anyhow grandmother thought that Nagaraju’s soul is here and that would do harm to her close relatives. That was why she did not want either you or your father come to her and stay with her.” Rose said.
“Absolutely that is the reason. We need not discuss about it much.” Rajesh said.
“What type of that Rajeswari, your grandmother? Was she educated, clever, intelligent?” Neeraja asked him.
“My grandmother was born in a very rich family. She was educated, clever and intelligent besides very beautiful!” Rajesh said.
“Then how did she believe that there shall be souls like things? Did she really believe that here are the souls of that Nagaraju and Semanthakam?” Neeraja asked.
“If you are thinking that educated and intelligent people don’t believe in paranormal, you are just mistaken.” Rose said. “Most of the educated and intelligent do believe in paranormal.”
“It is just because paranormal is not just false as you people are assuming” Aravind said. “Spirits are present in this world as much realistically as we are present.”
“If it is so” Anand asked with a small voice. “Can we assume that the souls of Semanthakam and Nagaraju are in this house now also and observing all of us?”
Then, without any warrant, there was an ear-splitting thunderclap once again and a downpour started immediately making it difficult to them to talk any more in the sound of that rain.
&&&
“If you want to take rest, just go and lay your back on that bed. I am not going to disturb you at all.” Sunanda said and slumped herself in the chair beside that bed as soon as Sameera and Sunanda entered into that room.
“Thank you very much” Sameera put her bottom on the bed and looked into the face of Sunanda. “But dear, you are also appearing quite upset to me.” She postponed her idea of laying her back and taking rest after seeing the upset expression in Sunanda’s face.
“Nothing like that. You just take rest without bothering with anything.” Sunanda said and leaned back in the chair.
“No, Sunanda.” Sameera came near to Sunanda and sat in the chair beside her. “Even I am not a psychologist, I can understand if anyone is worrying for anything by looking into his or her face. I can say that you are terribly upset for something. Tell me what happened.”
“I just cannot understand that Emily. Why she talks sometimes so?” with gathered frowns Sunanda said.
“First tell me what she has talked with you.” Sameera asked Sunanda while looking into her face.
Then Sunanda explained to her the conversation went in between her and Emily.
“My god! She talked like that to you?” with a shocking expression in her face, Sameera asked her.
“Absolutely. She said that she has the ability to sense the presence of spirits and talk with them.” Sunanda said.
“And you believed everything she has said to you!” With a sarcastic expression in her face, Sameera said.
“How can I remain without believing? What is the necessity to her to talk like that?” with a troubling expression in her face, Sunanda asked her.
“No, Sunanda. There is something.” Sameera clipped her lower lip between her teeth frames and released it slowly while thinking deeply. “I saw her sitting behind us while going through her smart phone. There is no doubt that she heard quite carefully what we have talked and came to know about the issue fully. She knew exactly how you do feel if she talks like that. She wanted to have some thrill by making you feel fear.”
“Is it is just that?” her brows were knitted together when she asked that.
“Just think yourself, you can understand.” Sameera said.
Sunanda hissed out heavily. “You are right. That girl is just trying to make fun of us. Whatever she may talk, I am not going to take it seriously from now on.” Sunanda said with firm voice.
“That is the best decision! Cheer up atleast now. Come out of your dark mood.” Sameera said.
“Sure why not?” Sunanda laughed. She really felt very much light after hearing Sameera so. “Now about your experience in the kitchen! You have imagined the same black cobra again there.”
“Or I have seen the same black cobra there.” Sameera said. “I have seen it that clearly and I cannot think it was my imagination.”
“I am not thinking that a cobra can live nine years.” Sunanda said.
“You are not thinking but you are not sure. Search in google and see the life time expectancy of a king cobra.” Sameera said.
“Good idea!” then Sunanda searched for that information in google. When it has come into display she gasped and said “My god! The life time of a king cobra can be upto twenty years! I cannot believe it!” she said.
“Give it to me” Sameera took that smart phone from Sunanda and looked at the information. “You are right. Then the cobra I have seen in the kitchen just before could be the cobra I have seen on that day.”
“If you really saw a cobra” Sunanda nodded her head “It could be that one.”
Sunanda suddenly yelled. “You found one thing?”
“Please don’t yell like that” Sameera said. “Tell me what it is?”
“My cell phone has got network! Otherwise how could we search that information?” Sunanda exclaimed.
“You are right!” there came surprise in the face of Sameera. “If there is anyone to you to talk now, just do that.”
“I don’t need to phone to anyone in this single day stay here. Anyhow I am happy signal is available in this room to us. We can browse through internet in our smart phones here. We just did not see our smart phones do have signals here or not.” While looking at her phone Sunanda said. “Where is your smart phone?”
“I put it again in my suit case as I could not find any signal in it. When I go downstairs I take it out from there.” Sameera said and after few seconds she said again as if she remembered something. “Do you remember? Emily said that she was searching for a suitable fiction book. How could she search in the net otherwise signal was available there?”
“She might be searching in the already downloaded books or signal might be available occasionally there also.” Sunanda paused and said again “One moment. See just it is internet or we have got the phone signal also.”
“I think without phone signal internet also not possible.” She suddenly hissed out despairingly. “It lost again. There is no phone signal or internet connectivity now!”
“Does not matter. We have the information we want now.” Sunanda smiled and Sameera gave back her smart phone.
They both were engaged in talking like that then Arjun and Madhuri came into that room like rain and wind.
“You both came here! Now I can take rest as long as I want.” Looking at them both irritatingly, Sameera said.
“We don’t disturb you don’t worry.” Arjun said “We came here to see whether that snake is here.”
Sameera looked shockingly into his face. “Why you are thinking that snake is here?”
“It has not been anywhere downstairs. We thought it might come here.” Madhuri said.
Sameera and Sunanda looked into each other’s faces with smiles.
“That snake is here until seconds back. Just before you both come into this room it went downstairs again. Go and see there.” Sunanda said.
“We did not come across it while we have been coming here. It did not go downstairs.” Arjun said.
“It did not go by staircase. It went through another way.”
“No, I am not thinking like that.” He said. “It is somewhere here itself. If we are patient enough it would sure come into our presence.”
(I hope that you enjoyed upto here. I shall publish the next chapter as soon as possible. Please don’t forget to rate and review.)
