THE HUNT FOR KOHINOOR BOOK 2 OF THE THRILLER SERIES FEATURING MEHRUNISA by Manreet Sodhi Someshwar Read Free Book Online Page B

sensitive spots.’ Which meant airports, a clutch of historic monuments, strategic installations and a couple of elite boarding schools in north India.
    Harry processed the information, his eyes narrowing. He stayed silent.
    ‘A hundred hours,’ Mishra said. ‘Where could the President’s Kohinoor be – any guesses?’
    Harry made a derisive snort. It came out strangled because of the bandaged jaw, yet the contempt was clear. ‘You are an optimist Mishra, I have to grant you that, a persistent optimist.’
    Mishra leaned forward. ‘Think Harry. In your talks with Aziz, did he ever mention anything that could lead us to the Kohinoor?’
    ‘And a supreme opportunist,’ Harry continued as if Mishra had not spoken. ‘For years you had your own personal spy on leash to do your bidding. Well, guess what Chanakya? I quit.’
    Jag Mishra thrust his lower lip forward and eyed Harry briefly before saying, ‘And you are stubborn. Perhaps,’ he got up pushing the chair back, ‘an incentive will help.’
    From his front pocket he extracted a photograph and, leaning forward, held it in front of the prone man’s face. He kept a steady hand, giving Harry time to study the high broad forehead, the grey-green eyes, the straight black hair.
    He saw realization dawn in Harry’s eyes. In a wearied voice Jag Mishra said, ‘I am a realist Harry, not an optimist. A realist who believes that people are capable of anything – all you need are the right levers.’
     
     

 
    Srinagar, India
    Monday noon
    As the plane flew over Srinagar, Mehrunisa surveyed the ground below. It was dotted with what looked like army camps. Not surprising perhaps, but it was very different from the view she recalled from her last visit to the city with her father, twenty-three years back. Then Kashmir was still a paradise for tourists, adventure-seekers, and Bollywood producers, the insurgency still a couple of years away. Dismayed, she sat back in her seat and turned her mind to Raghav’s call.
    What was Raghav alluding to? She was travelling in some sort of cargo aircraft of the Indian Air Force. The grey plane had a prominent tricolour stamped on its sides and its only passengers were Mehrunisa and her escort. She had tried to source information from her taciturn companion but only learnt that the man was employed by the army and tasked with ferrying her to Srinagar. Had she known that the aircraft was an AN 32 Cline headed for Leh with its cargo of rations for the soldiers stationed at the high-altitude base, her speculation might have turned closer home.
    When Mehrunisa stepped off the aircraft clutching her handbag and a small strolley, the cold air hit her. December in the Valley was significantly colder than in the plains of Delhi and she looped her turquoise pashmina shawl twice around her neck, tucking the ends inside her leather jacket. The runway they had landed on was at a distance from the commercial hub of the airport. Her escort indicated a jeep parked at some distance to the right, offered a stiff handshake and retreated. A figure reclining against the vehicle straightened and began to walk towards her. Raghav was not in his policeman’s uniform, but in casual trousers, sweater and a dark blazer. He greeted her with a raised hand as he jogged towards her.
    ‘Mehrunisa! Long time!’
    ‘Did you throw in the drama as compensation?’
    Raghav laughed and gave her a quick hug before reaching for her strolley. ‘You’ve been well?’
    Mehrunisa shrugged. ‘The same,’ she said, and fell in step with him. At the jeep Raghav hoisted her suitcase into the boot, then stood back, hands on his hips, and regarded her. He had a luxuriant moustache that unfurled outwards and upwards from under the bridge of his slim nose. It provided a striking contrast to his clean-shaven chin and his compact body.
    ‘So what is this urgent task that is bigger than the Taj conspiracy?’
    ‘Get out of the cold first, shall we.’ He held the passenger door