As I walked along, the moonless night, crossing the pavement, I shrugged as I felt some touch on my shoulder, touch or vibe, I'm not sure, but the feeling was spine chilling, as was the night...

I hastened my footsteps and clenched my hands inside my jacket... I begin to hear a slow murmur.

Two old men whispering something in Urdu, not sure exactly what the conversation was about, I reflexively looked around... Seeing nobody in sight and the arena all dark around, I tried to distract myself by lowering my head and focusing on the road...

I heard subdued laughter, which made me even more cautious and scared... I walked stomping my feet hard, and the voices quietened. Reaching home I fumbled hastily for the keys and unable to open the lock at once, muttered curses under my breath....the murmuring voices started again.

Petrified, I switched on all lights in the house and locked all doors, closed gates and windows...

Surprisingly the shivering cold air still persisted... I lit a bonfire and poured myself a glass of whisky... The voices continued but exhausted by my ordeal for the night and anxiety, the drink took a toll quickly and I fell asleep....

The next morning as I woke up, belief left my mind and trust, my soul. As I woke up from my faint, I looked around, no injuries, no blood, no red colour... I was half convinced that I was going delusional...

For the coming few days, I kept a low profile, spoke Little, And drank a bit too much. One such night, in a half-drunk state, I reminisced about my bygone family... I opened the family photos and trying to immerse myself in memories, instead of tears, put my hands lovingly around each, as I glided the pages slowly.

One picture, hazy, half torn, black and white, caught my eyes, I saw my dad standing next to the two men I saw in the shadows... I was sure, I could swear they were the same ones, my tears dropped a little too more, as I didn't even know or recognise them....what if the murmurs and visions I had seen lately were a message from someone close and deceased?

I got up as quickly as I could and retraced the path to where it all began from, the voices, and murmurs beginning. I looked around, this time, not out of fear, but out of sheer desperation, of having lost something unknown.

I looked around, a small handmade tomb, not a proper graveyard, dusty, untouched, caught my attention. I went near it, trying to sweep away the dirt, the names had faded away, but covered under the leaves and dust, was a pocket watch...

I picked it up with swelling eyes and a torn heart and blew away the grime from it...i t belonged to my dad. Rusted, but still functional..... I cried my heart out, collapsed near the tombstone, and clenched the watch as my biggest treasure. I cleaned the place in the coming days, stored the watch cautiously and reminisced my bygones... Wish I had heard the shadows at least... it reminded me of how I had driven everyone away from me...

The whispering and visions were gone, maybe the ancestors had done their part, given me, my message, be in any form, and returned my memories too.

It was for me to understand the blessings now...

The pocket watch now adorns my pocket, and the next few days of my life were unforgettable after that.... maybe you'll find their mention in some other part.

(Continued in next chapter...)

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