Abhi pressed his hands against his ears as the ambulance and patrol vehicle sirens blared simultaneously. He stopped to see why a huge crowd had gathered. A couple and their daughter on a bike had met with an accident. 

By then, other stranded vehicles began honking, adding to the cacophony of the blaring sirens. Abhi quickly crossed the road and headed towards home. A man approached him, asking for directions, then grabbed his arm and shoved him into a vehicle. 

Abhi yelled, but before his voice reached the ongoers ears, one captor pushed a handkerchief in his mouth, muffling his cries and the other blindfolded him. Abhi’s voice soon faded. 

Abhi found himself abandoned in a dimly lit room. He was no longer blindfolded but could not see the captor's faces as they wore masks. The place reeked of dampness, and the metallic tang from the old fixtures hinted at their long years in the small, jail-like space. His heart pounded. Fear gripped him tight. The ropes around his wrists and ankles cut into his skin, causing pain. 

Abhi screamed, but his voice only echoed back, trapped within the room. A while later, he heard a cacophony of familiar and unfamiliar noises.

It was a woman and a man guffawing, mingling with footsteps. Abhi’s fear doubled. The woman barged in, grabbed Abhi by his collar and yelled, “Your mother will now understand what it feels like when her child is in pain. Die here.” 

The voice felt familiar, but Abhi couldn’t identify it. 

“What did she do? What is my fault? Let me go, please.” Abhi pleaded but fell on deaf ears.

The captors left the room, carelessly leaving the door ajar. Soon their laughter turned into an argument. Their voices, though muffled, were filled with anger. 

Abhi scanned the room. A sharp object was shining on the floor. Abhi carefully inched his way along, lifted the object with his mouth, and used it to saw at the ropes.

The ropes weakened and broke apart, setting Abhi free. 

Peeping, he saw the two still arguing, their backs to him. One of the men’s phones was lying on the floor. Swiftly Abhi picked up a long piece of wood lying in the room and pulled the phone towards him. He didn’t know the location but heard a factory siren and a temple bell.  

Abhi quickly messaged the police headquarters with the available details and threw the phone behind an old piece of furniture. He re-tied his leg with another rope, put his hand behind his back, and sat in the corner where his captors had left him.

Within an hour, the police surrounded the area and apprehended the captors. The woman turned out to be their maid, whose son had committed suicide after being expelled from college by Abhi’s mother, the principal, for dealing drugs.  

Abhi's courage got him out of this trouble safely. When his mother later learned about it, she felt proud of her 17-year-old son.