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    Dry Leaves & Other Stories
    Dry Leaves & Other Stories
    Dry Leaves & Other Stories
    Ebook98 pages1 hour

    Dry Leaves & Other Stories

    By Raja Sharma

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    They had already performed postmortem examination. When they removed his eyes, kidneys, lungs, and other organs, he had his eyes shut. Being a male nurse and a helping hand in the operation theatre, he had seen the repetition of this scene many times but this time it was different. He did not want to see the dead body which was being dissected and he knew that they would sell the organs to the private institutions who forwarded them to the students who were ready to pay the good price.

    Dead Bodies

    The Love Story of a Moment

    This is the Only Truth

    Blessed Fruit

    Mockery

    The Artist

    This is my Last Message

    Relations

    Sir, I won’t Send Milk from Tomorrow

    Wings of Time

    My Village is Lost!

    Dry Leaves

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRaja Sharma
    Release dateSep 2, 2011
    ISBN9781465965189
    Dry Leaves & Other Stories
    Author

    Raja Sharma

    Raja Sharma is a retired college lecturer.He has taught English Literature to University students for more than two decades.His students are scattered all over the world, and it is noticeable that he is in contact with more than ninety thousand of his students.

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      Book preview

      Dry Leaves & Other Stories - Raja Sharma

      Dry Leaves & Other Stories

      By Raja Sharma

      Copyright@2011Raja Sharma

      Smashwords Edition

      Chapter 1: Dead Bodies

      The dead body was lying on the table in the operation theater. They had already performed postmortem examination. When they removed his eyes, kidneys, lungs, and other organs, he had his eyes shut. Being a male nurse and a helping hand in the operation theatre, he had seen the repetition of this scene many times but this time it was different. He did not want to see the dead body which was being dissected and he knew that they would sell the organs to the private institutions who forwarded them to the students who were ready to pay the good price.

      It had been going on for years and he had been the witness for five years, the time spent in that government hospital. When bodies were stitched, the person performing the task seemed to be a cruel cobbler who was mending shoes by stitching them.

      After the sale of the organs removed from the dead bodies, they all shared the bounty. He got his share too. Income was good and life was easy but with every passing year he had gone more silent.

      His wife often said to him, Why have you stopped talking to me?

      What should I talk about?

      You used to talk a lot before our marriage but in last three or four years you have gone almost silent. Are you not happy with me? she would insist on getting an answer.

      No, Rama, it is not so. I am very unhappy with me and I can’t tell you why I am unhappy and please don’t ask me, he said softly.

      Can I ask you something?

      Yes, go on, said he.

      Of late I have seen that you have been buying very expensive things for me and for the house. Your salary has not been raised. Could you tell me how?

      How he could tell her that in last two years unnatural deaths had increased immensely, thanks to terrorists and police encounters! About four years before, everything was peaceful in that district but suddenly the winds changed and the young boys began to prefer guns to books and career. Target killings, bomb explosions, kidnapping and killings, and police encounters began to result in scores of dead bodies in a week. Before that it was difficult for him to live on the salary he got from the hospital but one day the three big ones in the operation theatre offered him a proposal. They said that there was good demand of human organs in big cities and they had decided to supply those organs.

      On very first day, he was shocked when an unconscious young man, with two bullets in his stomach, was brought to them. With a little effort they could have saved him but they did not do so. One of them said that an agent had offered him a huge sum for a fresh kidney. The other two agreed with him and they killed the wounded young man but after his death they removed one of his kidneys and put it in a special refrigerated box and sent away from the hospital. He wanted to protest but they threatened him of dire consequences. Secondly, the money they gave him was more than his three months’ salary.

      Next morning, the three big ones informed the police and the relatives of the young man that they were unable to save him. They had already done the postmortem examination of the dead body. They handed the relatives a certificate of death and postmortem examination.

      That night, in spite of having a fat sum in his pocket, he was unable to eat. His wife tried to persuade him and offered to press his legs and body if he felt tired but he made an excuse that he was not feeling well and went to bed without anything in his stomach.

      The guilt and burden of that heinous act lasted for a few days and after a few days everything returned to normal. He had sold his soul and he had accepted that disgusting and frightening aspect of human conduct.

      Three years passed and in those three years he bought a house and furnished it with the best of the available items in the market. On being asked by the people, he said that he had sold his share of land in his village whereas the truth was that he did not have an inch of ancestral land in the village. His father had already sold whatever land he had.

      His wife often insisted on having a baby but he never agreed, giving one or the other excuse.

      We have everything now. Don’t you want to be a father?

      Hiding his embarrassment, he said, I do want to be a father but not now. You will have to wait for a few years.

      His conscience did not permit him to bring up a little child in the house whose very foundation had been raised on the organs of the fellow human beings. He was dying every day and smiles had left him forever. He never rejoiced at festivals and other occasions which brought happiness. On such occasions, he would mostly tell his wife that he had to go out of station on official duty. His innocent wife never suspected that her husband was going through a turmoil never even imagined about. He would pack his things and leave the town. Away from that town, he would reach an unknown place and check in a hotel and spend a few days there, mostly reading books in his room.

      Last week, his father retired and he decided to live with his son. He was happy that his father’s presence would give him the support he needed. His mother had already passed away when he was in college. He was the only child of his working parents.

      Three days with his father passed quickly. He had resolved that he would not assist in the crime he had been committing

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