A Lamp In The Dark

Grandmother had informed me that her kidney treatment was no more effective and that she would return from the neighboring town by the 22:30 mail. With a tired and stressed mind, I had reached the station. The bustle of people on the platform helped me forget the blunder I had done that day in my math exam. I observed my surroundings.

There were a lot of passengers and porters even at that late night and were chatting with an air of worry. An elderly woman informed me that a lot of trains had been cancelled due to a train accident,somewhere in the north but by the grace of god,the 22:30 mail had only been delayed by two hours. Realizing that I had to wait a great deal that night,I sat down on a crowded bench. The paupers were making beds in the dirty platform floor with thin sheets. Tea vendors hawked and I started reading a book to kill time. After some minutes of monotonous reading, I asked a passer-by the running status of the mail who told me that it was further delayed by two hours. On looking around,I found that I was the only person sitting in the platform. My surroundings were all dark except the flickering platform bulb above me. It swayed from right to left with the gusty cold winds laden with moisture. Claps of thunder were heard at a distance. Nothing accompanied me but the moaning rustle of the nearby trees,tapping of the beetle,screeching of wild unknown birds and the booming goods train leaving the platform. I leaned over the tracks a bit to notice a small ray of headlight or muffled whistle emerging from the tunnel ahead but in vain. The fluttering of the bats seated in an inverted position above me didn't go unnoticed. 

All of a sudden, I spotted a lamplight walking towards me, which scared me out of my wits. The mere memory of that horrific night leaves me petrified! It was an incident when I was only nine. Young, carefree and foolish. My summer vacation was on and I along with my family had planned to visit Appenzell, a peaceful village located on the outskirts of the Swiss city, Zurich. It was the perfect place to spend a vacation 'far from the madding crowd'. We were going to the hotel which we had booked, and it had already become dark. My father got an emergency call from the Police Headquarters. I could see shades of concern over his face.

"The miscreants we were hunting for since last week have....." Before he could finish his sentence, a pack of dangerous-looking men grabbed him and my mom's neck and dragged them towards their car parked at a place not far from me. I remember, they resembled the goons that I read about in the storybooks. I cried and ran towards my parents when suddenly a huge stinky man with a funny mustache, holding a red lamplight lifted me up and took me inside another car. The car rapidly started its engine and drove away..... Far away from my parents. I wailed and struggled to get the man 's hands off me but in vain. He was too strong for a girl of 9. The next thing I remember is me getting dragged towards a train bogie filled with ugly looking girls with unkempt hair. I tried to run but in the attempt got hit on the back of my head with a stick. I couldn't feel my limbs and my eyes were shutting down as I was getting carried inside the bogie when suddenly I noticed a vague picture of my aunt along with the cops. 

I woke up with a start seeing the worried face of my gran'mom and realized that it was already the next morning and I had fainted last night. Amidst the loud bustle of the railway station, I could see the station master and my aunt standing nearby. I realized that the person with the lamplight yesterday was the station master who was an acquaintance of my aunt. He watched over me for the rest of the time after learning from my aunt that my gran'mom was to return that night and I had gone to receive her. I found my gran'mom hastily rubbing my sweaty hands. The platform was less deadly now and sprightly. I had never felt so relieved. I later thanked the station master.

"I know you are a cowardly cat and nonlover of studies. A complete waste of time", said her aunt after listening to Calysdale's story. "It happens when one loses her parents. But you shouldn't have been such a bundle of nerves. Your gran'mom was so scared." Gran'mom said, "What a dreadful end it was to that trip of yours! Loss of parents and such danger! You should thank your aunt even if she is rude to you. If it wasn't for her..."

But her aunt interrupted, "Gran'mom! Aren't you ill? Go and get some rest. As for Calysdale...I would have never allowed her to receive someone at midnight all by herself. I could never imagine that you will faint. You should have waited till I come back. I would have accompanied you to the station. Since the train was late, reaching the station a few hours later wouldn't have made any difference."

A tear trickled down Calysdale 's cheek. She quietly went to her room saying nothing. Upon entering the room, she took out a picture of her with her parents and gazed at it with an incomprehensible expression on her face.