The Trick Of An Eye

NIGHT. THE ROAD is deserted. Except for a car parked there. The window slides down. A hand come out. And that hand is holding something-a gun. Another car comes from the other side of the road. The hand pulls the trigger and the bullet goes and hits the tyre of the car that was coming. 

The tyre bursts and the side where the burst tyre was rose up. The car completely rose up, tilted to one side. It landed upside down on the road with a loud THUD! The glasses broke. The back part of the car was ripped apart. The door of the driver’s seat fell down.

The door of the other car opened. The guy inside the car which is upside down comes out. His body is half out, facing the sky. The other guy, who wears a black coat over his shirt and black pants, walks and stands above the guy who was struggling to get free. He raised his gun and emptied the gun into him.

+++

Day. A shoe. Manuel, a police officer, crouched down to look at the damaged car. He looks behind him. On the lighting pole, there’s a CCTV camera. Manuel smiles. He gets up and calls his assistant, Zach, and gets in his jeep.

They drive off to the building where the CCTV visuals are stored. He tells the operator the details and the operator opens the visuals, recorded by the camera, on the previous night.

The car comes driving. A bullet is fired. Car flips and crash lands. The guy in the other car gets up and shoots this guy. The murderer walks backwards and gets in the car and goes. The video continues playing.

“Can you show it from another angle? All I want is that guys face.” Says Manuel

“No, sir.” Replies the operator 

“Isn’t there any other camera in that region?” asks Zach 

Operator shakes his head. Manuel slams his hand on the table. Manuel looks back at the video. He sees something.

“STOP!”

“What is it?” asks operator

“Go back.” He replies

The murderer gets in the car and goes. 5 seconds and a man, who seems like a beggar, wearing torn clothes, comes walking.

“That man must have seen the murderer!” exclaims Manuel

The man goes and walks to the guy who got killed. The victim now lay in this man’s arms. The man shakes the victim. 

“Sir?” man says

Manuel walks out of the building, with Zach behind him, and says to Zach, “We have to find him.”

They go to the scene of crime and start searching the nearby area for him. Zach asks many people if they have seen him. Manuel gets in the jeep and drives off to a nearby colony. He enters the colony and searches left and right and finally find the man he is looking for. The man sits on a broken rock along with another person.

The second person, seeing Manuel runs away screaming, “POLICE!”

The man gets up and runs. Manuel runs and jumps onto the rock and with its help leaps forward. Man turn left. He throws a broken door at Manuel. Manuel slides to right to dodge it and keeps running.

Man climbs onto a wall and then grabs hold of the roof of a house and climbs on top of the roof. Manuel is still running. He grabs a mop from a lady who was sweeping, turns it upside down and presses it to the ground and leaps.

He lands on the roof. Man runs. Man jumps onto another roof and Manuel follows him. Man kicks one of the bricks of the roof away while jumping onto another roof. The bricks fall to the ground, bringing along with them, Manuel.

Manuel gets up fast and follows the man running on the roof. Manuel grabs a rope and swung it towards the man. It wrapped around his leg and he pulled. The man falls down. Manuel walks to him and helps him get up.

“What is your name?” asks Manuel

“Albert.” Man replies

“Why did you run?” asks Manuel

“I’m scared of the police.”

“Well, you’re coming with me.” Says Manuel. The man begins to say something but he interrupts the man by saying, “As a witness of a crime.”

“But sir.....I can’t see. I’m blind.”

“As if.” Mutters Manuel

“Ask anybody here.”

“Then how did you manage to run this far without getting hit or anything?”

“I’ve been living here for long. I know this place pretty well.”

Manuel nods. He turns around to leave.

“But,” says the man, “I guess, I can help you.....”

+++

The lights come on. Albert sits there. 

“What do you know?” asks Manuel

“The guy who got killed told me something before he died. He told me a name. The name of the person who killed him.” Albert replies

“Who is it?” asks a curious Manuel

“Christy.”

+++

The jeep stops in front of a building. Manuel goes up the steps and knocks on a door. He waits then knocks again and a woman opens the door.

“Isn’t Christy here?” he asks

“No.” She replies

Manuel goes in.

“Hey, where do yo-” she stops when Manuel takes his gun out. He searches each room. When he enters another room, Christy runs out. 

“HEY!” Manuel says while putting his gun back, and he runs after him. Manuel chases Christy into a garage, which is not functioning. Christy suddenly turns around. Seven people, along with Christy, encircle Manuel. Christy smiles.

The first guy, with a big metal pipe, comes at him. He swung it toward Manuel’s head. Manuel ducked and punched his stomach. The guy flew backward, leaving the metal pipe to fall there.

Manuel took it. The next guy came. Manuel bends down and hit that guy’s leg. His body rose up and Manuel hit him in his chest. The guy hit the ground. Very hard.

The next two came together. He swung the pipe left and right. The pipe hit each of their heads and they flipped out. Another two come, from his either side. He grabs hold of one their shirts and lifts himself up. Then he kicks the other guy.

The impact pushes him forward. Manuel puts his hand around the guys neck and, in the air, easily flies 180° and lands. He then pulls the guy back with his hand, while pushing his legs forward with his legs. His head hit hard on the ground. 

The next guy came alone. Manuel walk towards Christy. The guy who came punches. Manuel side steps and punches him in the face. The guy falls down as he walks and grabs Christy. He puts him in the jeep and they go.

+++

Court. Christy and Albert stand on either side of the court. Christy as the accused and Albert as the witness. 

Lawyer, “Your honour, I would like to question Albert.”

Judge, “Proceed.”

Lawyer walks to Albert.

“So, you’re blind.” Says Lawyer, to which Albert nods. Lawyer gently raises his hand then suddenly moves the hand to Albert’s face.

“NO!” Albert screams

Lawyer, “See my lord! He is not blind! He can see. Officer Manuel while investigating the surrounding areas of the crime, found out a clip which showed that he was not blind. Here you go.” He gives it to the Judge. Judge sees.

The lawyer continues, “The police had recovered a mobile phone from the scene of the crime and when the police searched it, they found this.”

He gives it to Judge. The judge plays the video. The car comes. The guy fires a bullet and car jumps and stands upside down. When the driver tries to come out, a man comes and shoots him. But unlike before, now, in this video, his face can be seen. The murderer is.......Albert! The car leaves and Albert changing his clothes to that of a beggar comes back.

“Albert, why did you kill him?”

“What I-I didnt-I” 

“Don’t lie Albert.” Says the Judge

“Christy told me to do it. The guy I killed, he was Christy biggest rival. He promised me a huge amount of money.”

The Judge sentences both to five years of imprisonment. He also congratulated Manuel for solving the case. Manuel had been given another crucial case. 

“Let’s go. Another criminal to catch.” He says to Zach. They get in the car and drive off. Off to solve a new case. Off to find a new culprit. Off to have a new, thrilling journey!