Chapter 6: The Mogra Scent

7

As we spoke, a white shadow suddenly appeared in the middle of the road.

It was so sudden, I almost forgot to breathe. My hands tightened on the wheel, and the truck lurched slightly.

The headlights swept over it, and everyone in the truck saw it clearly—a girl in a long white dress, with little red floral patterns on the sleeves.

Her hair streamed behind her, and for a split second, her eyes met mine. It was like staring into a well—deep, dark, endless.

By the time I hit the brakes, it was too late. The truck barreled straight toward the girl.

The tyres screeched, and the cab jolted. Time seemed to slow down as we braced ourselves.

But it seemed to be just a shadow, like a frame flickering across a TV screen—suddenly there, then gone in an instant.

I blinked, and she was gone. But the scent of mogra lingered, sweet and ghostly, as if someone had whispered my name.

"Is it her? Is it her?" Kabir shouted in panic. "She’s back!"

He scrambled across the seat, trying to see out of every window at once.

"Chup!" Old Mehra yelled at Kabir again.

His voice was sharp, almost desperate, echoing off the metal roof.

Anjali clung tightly to her daughter, but the girl remained calm, though her face was full of confusion. "Maa, I think I just heard someone calling me."

Her voice was barely a whisper, yet the words seemed to hang in the air, heavy and insistent.

Anjali instinctively covered her daughter’s ears. "Don’t listen. It’s nothing good."

She hugged her even tighter, her hands trembling as she stroked the girl’s hair.

"Don’t be nervous. Maybe it’s just some image left behind by the environment here," I tried to reassure them.

I tried to sound matter-of-fact, like those lorry drivers who laugh off even the strangest of encounters.

Old Mehra quickly agreed, "Yes, yes, Bhaiya Rao has been driving trucks for years. He knows more about this than we do."

His words were hurried, but grateful for my calm. The entire cab seemed to exhale together, the fear momentarily held at bay.

Outside, the shadows pressed closer, and I wondered if we were all seeing the same road—or something else entirely.