Laughter in Darkness
A suspense, romantic and psychological thriller
By
Kotra Siva Rama Krishna
“We cannot get rid of them by any ruse. We have to bear. Let them start eating away our brains.” Hissing out heavily Sunanda said.
“How much I do wish that snake to come here now. It serves multiple purposes then.”
“If it comes here I don’t yell like you feeling fear.” Madhuri said. “I just hold it at its neck and squeeze it there until it dies. That is the easiest way to deal with a snake.”
“I just did not know about this simple thing at that time.” Sameera sighed heavily.
&&&
Tanuja went into their room to take rest when Aravind, Anand and Vinod entered into the upstairs first room. This time there has been put a small bed also in it to take rest. At that time Emily, Rajesh, Rose and Neeraja were in the verandah.
“Malathi was the gynecologist in my hospital and I was the children specialist and looking after other ailments also. We have ten rooms for in-patients and excellent facilities! As we both were excelled in our professions our hospital used to be with lot of patients and quite profitable.” Rajesh said.
“Is it is not like that now?” Neeraja asked him.
“Not going that much smoothly and nicely.” Rajesh said. “Anyhow it is going profitably. I have recruited another gynecologist Padmaja in my hospital. She is also skilled and professional but not as much as Malathi. She had no experience before entering into my hospital and in these four years itself she became an expert. The present day situation in my hospital is more than my expectation.”
“What about that Padmaja? Has she been married? What her husband is doing?” Rose asked him.
“She has one daughter who is very young studying LKG I am thinking. Her husband is a lawyer she said so far I can remember.”
There was silence among them then until it was broken by Rajesh. “I have put all the responsibility on her till I go back.”
“There is no necessity to worry about that much for a single day.” Neeraja said.
“Our stay here is only a single day. My total absence there is not a single day.” Rajesh laughed and said.
“Even then too” Neeraja said. “she sure can manage.”
“Your responsibility differs a little to our responsibility.” Looking into the face of Rose, Rajesh said.
“Not a little it differs a lot.” Rose laughed and said. “I am part of a big mental care. I have been assigned some patients and I need to look after them. Whenever I am absent like this, some other psychiatrist look after them who is in touch somehow with their case files and it is vice versa. I also have to attend the patients of the other psychiatrists also in their absence. In fact we are not having enough psychiatrists in our hospital to cope with the load. Even new to the profession, this Neeraja is very much efficient and a big help to our hospital at present.” Rose looked at Neeraja.
“It is not so” Neeraja said. “I am learning and helping. The psychiatrists there are very much helpful to me. They are more eager than me also to make me acquaint with all the intricacies in the profession and how to deal with them.”
“It is just because we want a skilled hand to help us as fast as possible.” Rose said.
“How our Vinod is helpful in that Black Ant Mental Care?” Rajesh asked.
“The patients in our Black Ant Mental Care are mainly divided into two categories. Mild and Wild. The patients in the Mild are in such condition that they still can hear and follow suggestions. They are not beyond our control. Vinod looks after them and plays a major role in treating them and see that they don’t become wild.”
“What is that Wild?” Rajesh asked.
“Patients who are beyond control would be put in that ward. That means they are completely mad. They cannot listen any suggestions. Shock treatment also has to be used on them on some occasions. Vinod cannot help us with respect to such patients.” Rose said.
“Any psychiatrist there can do the work of our Vinod that means a psychologist.” Rajesh thoughtfully said.
“That much is true” Rose nodded her head. “A psychiatrist can deal with all the cases a psychologist can do but it is not so to a psychologist. He cannot deal with some specific cases of a psychiatrist. They can be dealt with only by a psychiatrist. That means, a psychologist cannot deal with the patients in Wild ward in our hospital. But a psychiatrist can deal with the patients in Wild ward and Mild ward also in our hospital.”
“I see” Rajesh nodded his head as he understood.
“The significant thing here is my mother was treated by Vinod and Rose also.” Neeraja intervened and said.
“I just cannot understand what you are saying.” With a confusing expression in his face, Rajesh said.
“I think I have said about this before. While Neeraja’s mother was put in our hospital for the treatment of her insanity, both Vinod and I also have treated her. Vinod looked after her while she was in Mild ward of our hospital and I looked after her while she was in Wild ward.” Rose said.
“Really quite unfortunate! Now I remember your saying that she got her madness inherently. How insanity comes to people like that I cannot understand.” With a shocking expression in his face, Rajesh said.
“That madness in my family was from generations. My mother’s mother also mad. She killed her own daughter because of her madness.” Neeraja said.
“My god! What a ghastly thing to say!” The shocking expression in Rajesh’s face was intensified even more.
“Most people thought I also do become mad like that. But it has not happened like that.” Neeraja said with a smile on her lips.
“Oh, dear don’t say like that.” Rose hugged her and kissed on her right cheek and then released her. “Instead what happened? You turned out to be a skilled psychiatrist.” Rose paused for a moment and said again. “There are some doctors who are vigorously arguing madness cannot be hereditary. Sometimes I am strongly feeling that is true. Our Neeraja’s excellent mental condition is the proof for it.”
“You may be right.” Neeraja nodded her head. “So far I know that mom’s mom also was mad. But I don’t know whether any other members in the generations of our family are mad like that. In fact sometime my mom also used to be so good. Even she made me suffer a lot because of her insanity, she looked after my welfare so well. She was a very good mother indeed.”
“You are absolutely right” Rajesh said. “Anyhow you people are using past tense. What happened to her?”
“Did not I say before? She died in our Black Ant Mental Care itself. Her B.P. suddenly became very high and she suffered with hypertension. She died because of brain hemorrhage.” Rose said.
“You said it and I forgot. I am terribly sorry.” Rajesh said. “In one way she is fortunate. She already has suffered a lot by that time I think.”
“You are right Dr.Rajesh. The chances for her recovery also were very little. We all also have thought just like that.” Rose said.
“Anyhow was she under her control on some occasions? Did she listen to the instructions? Otherwise she could not be entrusted to our Vinod.” Rajesh said.
“Surely she is under her control on some occasions. Until I have become fifteen years old my mom was under her control for most of the time. She looked after my welfare and I grew up in her hands. But from my sixteenth year or so the madness in her reached its motto and the occasions she was in her control have become very minimum. First she has been put in the Mild ward of Black Ant Mental Care and then psychologist Vinod looked after her. Suddenly the situation has become worsened and she was transferred into the Wild ward. She became completely out of control.” Neeraja said. There was no emotion or distress in her voice while she was saying that.
“Madness! What really causes such madness in people I cannot say.” Rajesh said. “To that matter my grandmother also a sort of mad. If she has been put in a hospital and treated, she might have become proper.”
Rose and Neeraja looked into each other’s faces. They did not know what to say to the comment Rajesh made then.
“We can understand if mad people behave mad. What we have to say if sane people also behave like mad?” Emily who was there listening all the time silently, suddenly said.
The other people there exchanged anxious glances.
“I just cannot understand what you have said.” Rajesh said with lot of confusion in his face.
“Don’t you see how much foolishness it is to come to this place now? Don’t you know how much that old woman wanted you away from this place? All the time you are thinking that she was mad. But in fact you are mad, took an adventurous step like this and put all our lives in danger.” Emily said with the same plain and even voice.
“You shut up Emily. You just don’t know what you are talking!” Rose angrily got off from the chair she sat.
“Why, why she talked like that? Did I put all our lives really in danger?” with a fearful expression in his face, Rajesh asked her.
“You just don’t bother about with what she has said Dr.Rajesh. I am sure that she is suffering from another sort of psychological disorder. I very well know how to deal with it.” Rose angrily said.
“But she is such a small girl! Why she talked like that? There may be some truth in what she has said.” Rajesh said and the confusion and fear in his face were just like before.
“You just stop thinking about this. Every now and then Emily is talking oddly like this. You just don’t bother about it. We will meet you again.” Neeraja said and turned back to go into their room.
By that time Rose already dragged Emily into their room.
&&&
“Why the bloody hell you talked like that? Why you talked like that?” as soon as they both entered into their room, Rose violently made her daughter turned towards her and asked her.
“Mom, what I talked? I just don’t remember what I have talked.” With lot of confusion in her face, Emily asked her.
Rose slapped strongly on the right cheek of Emily with her right hand and just then Neeraja entered into that room.
“Oh, Rose, what you are doing? Are you thinking that beating your daughter like this shall solve the problem?” dragging Emily away from her, Neeraja said.
“You just don’t know how much embarrassed I have felt before that gentleman. She has made him feel fear absolutely. Now he is feeling that he indeed did a big mistake.” Slumped herself in the chair there and holding her head with both of her hands, Rose said.
“Yes, Emily why did you say like that? You have made Dr.Rajesh out of his wits. Poor man now he is feeling absolute fear. You made your mom feel lot of embarrassment there.” Looking into her face Neeraja said.
“Really I don’t remember anything that I have talked at that time.” With the same innocent and confusing expression in her face, Emily said.
(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.)
