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Preview of my new Horror Novel

Aadita

Published by Wings ePress

Written by Palvi Sharma

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One

Raina chewed fiercely on the piece of gum in her mouth as she mopped the kitchen floor.

This was insane! This wasnt even her house and here she was cleaning up a spill she hadnt evenmade.

Speed up! "ncle Rabindra said from the ne#t room. $ have more chores for you.

%ee& thanks& Raina screamed back and considered spitting the gum out and sticking it

on her uncles chair. That would provide her with ten minutes of fun before her uncle noticed itand punished her with more chores.

'fter youre done& you could call your parents& 'unt (ily suggested.

)o thanks& Raina said and continued pushing the mop back and forth on the floor.

*ver since you arrived two weeks ago& you havent spoken to them even once! 'unt(ily said. Theyre worried about you.

Raina gave a sarcastic laugh. $f they really cared& they wouldnt have sent me to this

dump in the first place. )o offense.

+ow could $ not be offended, 'unt (ily asked.

-ust leave me alone& okay, Raina said and turned her back towards her. She rela#ed her

shoulders when she heard her aunt walk away. She hated this! 'nd she hated this town! +er

parents were being so unreasonable& sending her to this dumpy old town where there was

absolutely nothing to do and all because of one little mistake.

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$t wasnt her fault. The one to blame for her current predicament was a girl in her class

who had done nothing but lay misery upon her from the time they had met. 'nd what

punishment did she get, )othing! 'nd here she was& stuck making up for an offense that wasnther fault to begin with.

Raina leaned the mop on the counter and looked out the kitchen window. +er parents had

tried grounding her& taking away her allowance and even taking away her cell phone and& whenshe had still gone and gotten a tattoo against their wishes& they had sent her to "ncle Rabindras.

+er uncle had been in the army and was retired and she was pretty sure her uncle must have

called his brother and offered to take charge of her.

'nd so here she was in a drab old house& in a boring town& all alone with her aunt anduncle whose three sons were in the army& too. Raina lifted up her t/shirt to reveal a dragon tattoo

above her hip. She hadnt even wanted to do this& but ever since she had known her parents

stand on tattoos& she was bent on having one at any cost.

'rent you done yet, "ncle Rabindra asked.

Raina stared at his bald head and wondered how he would react if she asked him if his

head needed a mopping too,

Why, 0o you want me to paint the whole house now, Raina asked sweetly.

)o& 1ust the garage. "ncle Rabindra said and picked up an apple from the fruit bowl.

2oure kidding& right,

$ dont kid. "ncle Rabindra bit into the apple and cocked an eyebrow. 3ut you dohave two more options.

4h& do tell& Raina said sardonically and leaned on the counter.

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2ou can either paint the garage& clean the roof gutters or clean out the attic& "ncle

Rabindra said.

Rabindra! 'unt (ily said coming up behind him. Shes a girl! 2ou cant ask her to

climb up the roof.5

4r..."ncle Rabindra said and raised a finger. 2ou can take ten laps all around the

town.

2oure not in the military anymore& "ncle& and youre definitely not running acorrectional institute& Raina said.

"ncle Rabindra threw the apple into the dustbin and walked slowly towards her. )ow

listen here! he said 6uietly. 2ou will do e#actly as $ say or $ll make your life a living hell!

Rabindra! 'unt (ily said. Shes your niece& for heavens sake.

$m well aware of this fact. 3ut $ can also see the path shes chosen and theres no way

$m going to let her ruin our familys reputation. She was in 1ail! The first member of our family

to ever be in 1ail for vandalism& "ncle Rabindra said.

Whatever! Raina said. $m taking the attic.

Raina pushed past him and smiled as she heard "ncle Rabindra grumbling. She en1oyed

getting under his skin and seeing him boiling with anger but unable to do anything about it.

She pulled down the stairs to the attic and climbed up while her uncle and aunt arguedabout something. 4nce upstairs& she sighed and turned on a flashlight that was lying on a bo#.

The flashlight flickered twice before it switched on and Raina frowned when she saw three

spiders crawling on the floor.

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%reat! she said& and picked up an old maga7ine from a bo#. She rolled it and knelt

down on the floor. 8ome on& little spidey! she said and swatted at them 6uickly. There we

go!

She threw the maga7ine aside and groaned when she saw hundreds of bo#es lined up.Was she supposed to sort them or throw them out, Raina got up and shone her flashlight all

around the bo#es. The beam hit one of the bo#es labelled 9Photographs and she made her waytowards it. $f she was lucky& she might find some embarrassing photographs of "ncle Rabindra

and then blackmail him with them.

Raina snickered to herself. Who was she kidding, When had her uncle done anything fun

that had ever led to some embarrassing situation, She imagined him to be prim and proper fromthe day he was born.

0id he even cry when he was born, Raina thought idly& opening the bo# and saw that it

filled with albums. This is going to take a while. she told herself. She flickered through one ofthem and frowned. Pictures of the family!

Raina sat on one of the crates and studied the albums. So many pictures and so many

memories. She found a picture of herself in one of the albums and stared at it.

She must have been eight then& standing in a pretty frock with an ice cream cone as herparents forced a smile on their faces. "ncle Rabindras sons and her cousins were in it& too& and

at least they werent feigning their smiles. Rohan& the eldest& had been twenty/four years old then

while his brothers& Ritwik and Shane& had been twenty/two and nineteen respectively.

Raina smiled to herself. They had always taken care of her and showered her withaffection. 'nd then they had left for the army and she had never seen them again. They were all

probably stationed in different parts of the country& but Raina was never told where.

$t hurt that they hadnt bothered to keep in touch with her. (ike everyone else in herfamily& they too had deserted her when she had needed them the most. Raina closed the album

and threw it into the bo#. She didnt have to think about them anymore or even care. $f they

didnt& then why should she, 3esides& she could solve her problems herself.

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She leaned forward on the crate and stared at the bo# of albums filled with pictures of her

whole family:everyone who hadnt been there when she had needed them. Without thinking&

she pushed the bo# away& which resulted in all the albums and pictures being scattered all overthe floor.

She sighed and knelt down to pick up the upturned bo#. This is 1ust perfect! she

groaned.

What was that noise, "ncle Rabindra asked& popping his head through the opening.

The bo# of photos& er... fell. she said.

Thats very careless of you. "ncle Rabindra said and to her dismay started to climb up

to the attic. Those photos are very important to us.

'nd thats why theyre very carefully stashed in the attic. Raina said and scooped upthe photos and threw them into the bo#.

2ou little brat!

Rabindra! 'unt (ily cried from downstairs. 50on;t scold her!5

Stay out of this! "ncle Rabindra said angrily and then turned his attention back to her.0ont you know how...,

Whos this, Raina asked suddenly. The picture in her hand was black and white and of

an adolescent girl. +er hair was open and long& her eyes dark and her mouth small and pouty.

"ncle Rabindra gave a gasp of surprise and stormed towards her. +e snatched the picturefrom her fingers and Raina winced in pain as the photo scratched her inde# finger.

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She is no one! "ncle Rabindra yelled and right before her& he tore the picture in pieces

and flung them on the floor. )ow pick it up!

Rabindra& shes hurt! 'unt (ily said softly.

"ncle Rabindra saw the droplet of blood on her finger and sneered. %ive her a small

bandage.

Raina wiped her finger on her 1eans and stood up. Thats fine.

'unt (ily walked towards her with a sympathetic look on her face and Raina wonderedhow her aunt could tolerate him. Then she remembered something and went downstairs to find

her uncle.

She saw him sitting on the couch with his head in his hands& perturbed by something.

2ou said $ could have the evening off if $ do all my chores& Raina said. So& may $,

"ncle Rabindra wrung his hands. 3e back at nine. 'nd if you get into any more trouble&

there will be hell to pay! $ want you to walk in the door at e#actly nine. )ot a minute after that.

2ou hear me,

Raina opened her mouth to protest and then decided it was of no use. She stepped out theroom and saw her aunt coming with a bandage. $m fine& she told her and then went up to her

room. 4nce inside& she 1umped into her bed and stared at the ceiling& wondering if she should cry

or scream.

She wished "ncle Rabindra hadnt voluntarily retired from the army. Why couldnt he

1ust go somewhere, $f only she could find his weak point!

Raina sat up suddenly. The picture of that girl! +adnt she seen the look of shock on his

face when he had seen her picture, Who was she anyway, She smiled slowly.

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maybe& it might have been "ncle Rabindras e#/girlfriend. $t couldnt have been 'unt (ily or he

wouldnt have reacted that way.

$ have to find out who she is or was& Raina said to herself.

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Two

Raina walked over to the towns only movie theatre and groaned. $t was playing a movie

that had been released last year and she had already seen it. She lifted an eyebrow when she sawpeople flocking inside e#citedly.

4h well& here goes everything& Raina muttered and bought a ticket from the counter.

'nything was better than being at home listening to her uncle yell at her or 'unt (ily.

She made her way to the snack counter and bought a small bo# of candy and a largebucket of popcorn. She had gained a few pounds over the summer& but tonight she didnt care.

'll she wanted to do was stuff her mouth with food and watch a really boring movie that would

end at eight& after which she would have to walk back home before her curfew.

Raina sighed as she sat on her seat and started chewing on her popcorn. 's the theatredarkened and the previews began& she heard someone laughing behind her. She turned around to

see a group of four boys snickering and then heard one of them making lewd comments about a

tall brunette girl who had 1ust walked in.

8ant you guys 1ust shut up, she told them.

+ey! Whats it to you, one of the boys answered. +e looked at least two years older

than her and wore a tight t/shirt that showed off his muscles.

$m trying to watch the movie like everyone else here& Raina said& putting a handful ofpopcorn into her mouth.

The boy leaned forward and Raina could smell cigarettes on his breath. Well& $ was

going to mind my own business& but for the ne#t two hours& $m going to drive you so cra7y&

youd wish you had never messed with me!

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4oh! $m scared! she scoffed and turned back towards the screen as the movie began.

+ey& Samar! -ust leave her alone& man& Raina heard another boy whisper.

Raina paused and chewed her popcorn thoughtfully. What was he up to, She resisted theurge to turn around and tried to concentrate on the movie.

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+ey! the usher cried. Security!

Raina ignored him and started to look for something hard to hit him with as his friends

considered if they should follow his orders and attack her. She pulled on Samars shirt and when

he was standing again& punched him hard on his nose.

3ut before she could kick him again& she found herself being pulled away by two hefty

men and been taken towards the e#it.

2ou sissies! Raina said and grinned when she saw Samar clutching his nose as his eyesteared up.

4nce outside& Raina chuckled to herself. She still did have it in her! 3ack home& she had

taken two guys from her school when they had pushed her and then her bag of books into thepool. She had been pretty much mellow before that& but seeing her homework floating around

her& the assignments she had worked so hard on 1ust strewn everywhere& had awakened a bla7e

inside her. She couldnt remember much after that& e#cept that she had beaten up both boys and

then was sent to detention for a month.

She waited near the entrance for the boys and wondered if they would like to continue the

fight. She could feel her fingers tingle with e#citement at the prospect and loved the surge ofpower that rushed through her.

Samar walked out with his nose still bleeding and as soon as he saw her& gave her a lookof arrogance before walking towards the parking lot in a huff. Raina smiled and knew that she

had seen the unmistakable fear in his eyes& too. +e must have been so humiliated in front of his

friends after being beaten by a girl!

Raina turned around and found to her surprise that she was disappointed that Samarhadnt wanted to fight. 'fter the day she had& it felt nice to punch something or someone. +er lip

started to tremble and she crossed her arms.

She hated to admit this& but she had been scared& too. $t was as if whatever had happenedtwo years ago was going to happen again. The thought of going through all that again and all

alone made her feel nervous. What if she couldnt save herself again,

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The pain still seared into her heart as she remembered how she had asked her family forhelp and they in turn had shown their backs to her. ' few deep breaths later& Raina was relieved

to find that she wasnt going to cry after all. She started to walk towards her uncles home when

someone called her from behind.

+ey! $t was the same boys voice who had told Samar not to harass her.

+e was 1ust one of Samars minions& bringing her a message from him about when and

where they could finish this. Well& she was ready for anything now. She was no longer the girl

she used to be.

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Three

(ook. he said& raising his hands. $ve 1ust come to apologise on Samars behalf. +es

been having a rough week& so if you could...

$ dont care and 1ust leave me alone& okay, Raina said and started to walk away. Thenerve of that guy! 0id he really think he could placate her by giving some lame e#cuse about

how hard lifes been for Samar, 4r maybe it was 1ust a trap> to distract her so that when she least

e#pected it...

"h... one other thing& the boy said.

What, she asked without turning around.

$ live down the street& so $ll be going this way too& he said. $ 1ust dont want you to

misunderstand me& because $ll be pretty much following you and you might 1ump toconclusions...

Raina turned to look at him and raised an eyebrow. The boy grinned and scratched his

head.

Sorry& $ tend to babble on and on when $m nervous. $ 1ust never saw a girl beat upSamar before.

Raina started to walk again& trying to hide her smile. She had surprised herself& too& andhadnt thought she was capable of doing something like that. She wondered how much anger wasfestering inside of her. She looked at him through the corner of her eye& making sure he wasnt

up to something& but the boy was walking at least five feet apart from her and she willed herself

to rela#.

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' few minutes later& the boy called to her again. $ live in the ne#t house and uh... wanted

to& $ mean suggest& if you would like to come inside and wash up,

*#cuse me,

$ was referring to your beer/soaked hair& he said 6uickly. 2ou could use the bathroom.

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$ts upstairs on the right& 'han said. There are some e#tra towels on the shelf near the

shower.

Raina nodded and walked slowly upstairs& keeping her ears pricked for any sounds from

'hans parents. Were they really at home or was 'han lying, Then she heard voices from the denand let out a breath. So far& so good.

4nce in the bathroom& Raina locked the door and made her way to the basin. She picked

up a random bottle of shampoo and bent her head. 's she applied the shampoo in her hair& shethought about how terrible the last few days had been. This had been her first night out and it had

been ruined& thanks to Samar.

She rinsed off the shampoo and wrapped a towel around her head. 'nother week to goand she would be back home& 1ust in time for the new term to start. +er classmates had made all

sorts of plans about what they were going to do after high school and which college they would

go to and here she was:without ambitions or a plan.

0o you need anything else, 'han called from outside.

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$ can go by myself& Raina said.

$ts the least $ can do& 'han said.

Would you like something to eat, his mother asked.

$ really have to get home. She said looking at her watch. $t was a 6uarter to nine and

"ncle Rabindra was sure to give her a hard time if she missed her curfew.

(et me walk you home& 'han said and& without waiting for her to respond& wentdownstairs.

Raina said her goodbyes to his mother and followed 'han out the door.

$ really dont want you to drop me home& she said.

3ecause youve 1ust met me, 'han asked. 2oure not really from here& are you,

3ecause people in this town are very hospitable.

Raina started to walk. She really had to make her curfew and she couldnt waste precious

minutes arguing with 'han.

Where do you live, he asked.

'round& she said and then a thought occurred to her. $f 'han knew who her uncle was&

maybe he would leave her alone. 0o you know Rabindra Savera,

'han whistled. Who doesnt know him, *veryone in this town is so proud of what hesdone for the country. +es really popular.

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Raina frowned. $f the people in this town knew what her uncle was really like& shewondered if they would have the same opinion. +e wasnt a saviour> he was a tyrant. $m sure

he must be& she said dryly.

'han paused and narrowed his eyes. 2ou cant be his daughter. +e doesnt have one.

$m his niece& Raina replied.

'han looked pu77led and then nodded. 4h& $ get it. 2oure from his wifes side of the

family.

"m... no. 3ut why would you say that,

'han hesitated and looked down at the sidewalk. 2ou know...

)o& $ dont! Raina said and looked up ahead to see that they had arrived.

'han still had a confused look on his face. 're you saying that he is your real uncle, $

mean his kids arent your second cousins& but first,

2eah! Why is that such a pu77le to you,

3ecause of the curse& 'han said.

8urse,

2ou must know& 'han said& but now he looked a little scared of her. There arent any

girls in your family. 2ou must have noticed.

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Raina smiled suddenly and then turned away from him. She licked her lips and thenlooked back at him. Thats 1ust absurd.

*veryone in town knows it too& he continued. People still remember 'adita and what

she said.

'adita,

52our great/aunt& 'han said. 're you telling me you havent even heard of her,

Raina tried to remember if her parents had ever spoken of her and realised they hadnt.

*ven %randpa never spoke about her.

'han shrugged his shoulders. True to 'aditas words& there wasnt a single girl bornuntil... well you of course.

Thats 1ust stupid. 2oure obviously pulling my leg& Raina said and started to walk

towards the house. The house was in complete darkness e#cept for the study where she couldspot her uncle and aunt deep in discussion.

$m not& 'han said. 2ou can ask anyone anyone in town. +eck& ask my grandfather.

+e was there when 'adita died.

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