Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    The Night Run
    The Night Run
    The Night Run
    Ebook63 pages47 minutes

    The Night Run

    By Bali Rai

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Amritsar, India, 1919. A city on the verge of meltdown, as tensions between the local people and the British colonial rulers explode.

    12-year-old Arjan Singh learns that his father has been falsely charged with serious crimes and faces hanging. But there has been a terrible massacre in the city, as British troops fired on unarmed Indians, and the city is under curfew. Anger and fear have left the population seething and danger lurks around every corner.

    Arjan sets out on a perilous mission to save his father, in the face of armed troops, martial curfew, and vicious local bandits. Can he escape and get to his father before it's too late?
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBloomsbury Publishing
    Release dateJun 5, 2014
    ISBN9781472904379
    The Night Run
    Author

    Bali Rai

    Multi award-winning author, Bali Rai, has written over fifty young adult, teen and children's books. Extremely popular in schools across the world, he is passionate about the promotion of literacy and reading for pleasure. His first novel, (Un)Arranged Marriage, was published in 2001. He is currently working on two new projects and his latest title, The Royal Rebel, is out now.

    Related to The Night Run

    Related ebooks

    Children's Historical For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Too BAD

      Aug 30, 2022

      Too BAD
      6 min read

    • Article

      Laugh A Little

      Mar 26, 2021

      Laugh A Little
      3 min read

    • Article

      Second CHANCES

      Aug 24, 2022

      Second CHANCES
      6 min read

    • Article

      GHOSTS Got Me A JOB!

      Dec 29, 2021

      GHOSTS Got Me A JOB!
      2 min read

    • Article

      No Going Back

      May 19, 2022

      No Going Back
      4 min read

    • Article

      The Show Boy

      Oct 9, 2019

      The Show Boy
      9 min read

    • Article

      The Rabbit

      Jun 3, 2021

      The Rabbit
      6 min read

    • Article

      Dad Was Killed As I Slept

      Oct 8, 2020

      Playing with my toys, I sprang up as soon as I heard the front door open. ‘Dad!’ I cried, when my father, Kevin, walked into the living room. ‘How was your day?’ he asked, a huge smile spreading across his face. At five years old, I was truly a daddy

      3 min read

    • Article

      Nugrybauti

      Apr 24, 2019

      Nugrybauti
      8 min read

    • Article

      I Drowned In A Past Life

      Nov 17, 2021

      I Drowned In A Past Life
      2 min read

    • Article

      Every CLOUD

      Aug 31, 2022

      Every CLOUD
      6 min read

    • Article

      You Girls Are Good

      Mar 31, 2022

      You Girls Are Good
      16 min read

    • Article

      Thirteen

      Jan 30, 2020

      Thirteen
      21 min read

    • Article

      Neighbourhood WATCH

      Apr 26, 2022

      Neighbourhood WATCH
      6 min read

    • Article

      Marina’s Mission

      Jan 26, 2022

      Marina’s Mission
      7 min read

    • Article

      Marina’s Mission

      Jan 26, 2022

      Marina’s Mission
      7 min read

    • Article

      Hunted Down

      Apr 11, 2024

      Hunted Down
      4 min read

    • Article

      Gone In 55 Seconds

      Jul 29, 2021

      Gone In 55 Seconds
      4 min read

    • Article

      Goodbye Chief

      Nov 10, 2022

      Goodbye Chief
      5 min read

    • Article

      The Great Escape

      Mar 21, 2024

      The Great Escape
      5 min read

    • Article

      The perfect HUSBAND

      Mar 1, 2022

      The perfect HUSBAND
      4 min read

    • Article

      Killed For Her Kindness

      May 14, 2020

      Killed For Her Kindness
      4 min read

    • Article

      Devil’s Fork

      Mar 16, 2021

      Devil’s Fork
      2 min read

    • Article

      Bhanu Kapil

      Mar 15, 2019

      Everything is red. The trees look like they’re bending over. The lorry is approaching the village. Nurpur. Don’t tell anyone it was Nurpur. Just say it was any old village. A motorbike was coming from the opposite direction. The driver of the motorbi

      5 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for The Night Run

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      The Night Run - Bali Rai

      Journey

      Chapter One

      The Next Morning

      Amritsar, Punjab, Northern India

      April 10th 1919

      My home city, Amritsar, is smouldering. There was a riot overnight – a curfew has been imposed – and now the streets are beginning to come to life again.

      Smoke rises from charred buildings, some still burning. I can taste the ashes in my mouth; feel the kerosene fumes stinging my eyes. In a moment, I will leave this place, perhaps forever.

      My mother, heavily pregnant, loads the last of our things onto the cart that our neighbour Mr Khan has given us. He’s given us a bullock too, a tall, grey beast with long, curling horns and milky eyes. It will pull us to our new home. Mr Khan looks sad, and his wife is crying. She hugs me tightly and tells me she is sorry. But our troubles aren’t her fault. She is not to blame.

      In the distance, I watch another woman walk away. She wears a black shawl and there is purpose in her stride. I wish I could run to her but there is no time. Another storm is coming to take the city – another tragedy caused by humans. We have to be away before it strikes.

      Chapter Two

      Arrest

      I think I should explain.

      A day earlier, just after five in the evening, British soldiers took my father. He runs a food stall and is a fine and noble man. His name is Mit Singh, and he is my hero. The soldiers didn’t care about that. They didn’t stop to ask, or to investigate. They simply came, four of them with their rifles, and took my dad away.

      We were packing up for the day. My father sells savouries and spiced tea, and each night I hand out leftovers to the poor, who crowd the narrow lanes around the marketplace. My city, Amritsar, is a hectic, noisy, smelly, colourful place. And nowhere is busier than the market. The stalls sell everything from cotton and silk, to birdcages, spices, earthenware pots and fruit. It is the only school I’ve ever known, and it is my favourite place in the world. Or it was – until they took my dad.

      When I returned to the stall, I could see something was wrong. Soldiers surrounded my father.

      ‘I did not riot!’ my dad shouted at them. ‘You are mistaken!’

      The lead soldier, a tall Indian with dark, pockmarked skin and a curling black moustache, told my dad to keep quiet.

      ‘But you have the wrong man!’ my father protested.

      The soldier raised his rifle and used the butt to hit my father on the head. My dad fell backwards, crying out in pain, and I felt my stomach churn.

      ‘Leave him alone!’ I yelled but no one heard me.

      The other stallholders had crowded round. Most were friends but none helped my dad. They were too scared. Earlier in the day, rumours had begun of a riot. The rumours were true. People had died and buildings had been burned to the ground. The soldiers were searching for rioters and no one wanted to get in their way. The British ruled India with an iron fist. Anyone who stood against them paid a heavy price.

      ‘Help him!’ I shouted. ‘Please!’

      The lead soldier shook his head.

      ‘We have witnesses,’ he said. ‘You are a rioter!’

      I pushed through the crowd, trying to reach my dad, but two strong, rough hands grabbed me around the shoulders and I was pulled back. It was Atar Khan, one of our neighbours.

      ‘No, Arjan,’ he warned. ‘Do not make them even angrier, son.’

      Hot, salty tears poured down my cheeks. My head felt light. I didn’t care what the soldiers did to me. I wanted to help my dad. I struggled in my neighbour’s grip.

      ‘You are twelve,’ Mr Khan whispered in my ear. ‘You are not a man. Stop.’

      The crowd grew bigger, and people were shouting. ‘Stop the British! Kill the British!’ they screamed.

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1