Page 91 - Musings 2021

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The Curve of Life
Adveidh Krishna
2019A8PS0374P

Nothing fazed him anymore. He had experienced it all it seems. With early fifties beckoning,
most of the people at his age envied him for his body and endurance. The thought of losing
his son still haunted him. The disappearance of his only child had inevitably led to his
divorce. He loved his wife dearly and could never fathom to understand why she would leave
him. Her last few words still echoed in his ears “John”, she said “I can no longer live such a
frugal life. I don’t blame you for anything that happened but continuing to live with you in
such a hopeless life no longer entices me. Hope you understand the reason for my decision”.
He did not argue with her nor did he try to vent out his pent up anger. Coaxing someone to
change their mind was beneath him and his ego wouldn’t give way. Suicidal thoughts weren’t
out of his purview and the revolver that he carried around with him did him no favours either.
A prominent beard, stoic nature and a guttural voice gave him a sense of superiority. As it
turned out, the job of a personal bodyguard suited him inimitably. John Spectre was a
household name in London. His current job was to ensure the safety of the British
ambassador to France, as he attended an important meeting with foreign delegates. It was that
time of the year when tourists flocked to Paris to enjoy its beauty. To put it in simple words,
John loved his job to the core. A perfectionist at his job, no one under his personal protection
had died. Injured yes, but never died. Somehow he always came to their aid and dealt with
the perpetrator in the nick of time to prevent their death. Hence had been deservedly
nicknamed the ‘wall of Britain’. John saw it as just another day of work and nothing more.
Customary background check on the man under protection yielded nothing out of the
ordinary. Getting a goodnight sleep was integral to staying alert on such a demanding job.
Quite astounded by the beauty of the embassy, Mr. Spectre kept staring at it for a solid two
minutes. Looking up towards the sky before entering the building became a habit for him as
if to acknowledge a higher power for the safety of his clients. Thud! Thud!

His heart pounded as he entered the building. As alarming as it was, he transcended into a
calm mood soon enough. The embassy had a soothing ambience about it. Apparently, a
solace and serene atmosphere wasn’t advisable before something important happened.
According to John, it could take his mind off of the task at hand. But suddenly he felt
ominous as if nature was trying to warn him. Ever since he had started this job 25 years back,
he had never felt such a portentous gripping thought. In a way, he felt excited as he hadn’t
been involved in a proper shooting spree for almost a year. Brushing aside his weird mixture
of thoughts, he began to enjoy the architectural marvel of the building. Chandeliers with
diamonds at the centre reflected natural light to illuminate entire rooms. Rooms were also
adorned with exquisite paintings like The Last Supper and Whistler’s Mother. Antique
priceless artefacts too were on display. For a moment there, John thought if he had set foot in
some kind of a museum. Such had been the beauty of that place. As he trod on, something
stupendous caught his attention; A separate room filled with weapons, an arsenal of some
kind. Reminiscing the day he had held a gun for the first time in his life, he gazed at the
artillery in awe. Moving on, he entered the security room to meet with his comrades who
were supposed to aid him in the protection. They handed over a shotgun and two rifles.
Carrying four guns with him, including the one he had already had, he marched on to meet

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