It was a long ride to Spiti Mansion for Major Ross. It was a rainy day and it was already dark by the time he reached. The road to the mansion was in poor condition and it was situated in a lonely forest, far from human civilization.

Major Ross’s Spiti Mansion was an architectural marvel and he frequented it . This time he had his new friend, Ms. Julie, for company.

They reached at around midnight. Maj. Ross unlocked the door himself. Julie was amazed at the grand mansion that stood before her. Everything was spick and span, proving it was being cleaned regularly. The brass shone and dust was nowhere to be seen.

Maj. Ross showed her around the mansion. The rooms were spacious. There were huge French windows, which led to a rose garden. She could see the roses, but decided to visit the garden in the morning instead. The weather was cold and there was a good amount of breeze.

Julie had recently met Maj. Ross at a friend’s party. She was not an extrovert and preferred to stay away from most of the guests. So, she sat in a quiet, dimly lit corner, away from the noise. A tall, handsome gentleman sat beside her and struck up a conversation. She was impressed with his personality and politeness. They soon became friends and started meeting each other. After a couple of meetings, Maj. Ross asked her if she would accompany him to his mansion. Julie agreed without much of an ado.

Julie had begun develop feelings for the Major and she was certain that he felt the same way. She believed she saw love in his eyes. Julie was nearly sure that the Major would propose to her in this very mansion and she eagerly awaited the moment.

The Major then took her to the first floor. He showed her his lavish personal room. This room was also very clean. She was already impressed with Major’s fetish for cleanliness. Now, more than ever she longed for him to propose. He would indeed be an ideal life partner- loving, caring, courteous and of course, obsessed with cleanliness.

The Major asked her to wait at the corridor and went in another room. Julie thought, This is the moment- now he will propose marriage. Probably he has hidden a ring there, or maybe he has decorated the room for me”. Thoughts were running wild in her head. She just couldn’t wait for the moment. Major did not return for some time. She wondered what was taking him so long? So, she decided to see for herself.

She slowly opened the door to the room. She wondered if this act would be followed by a rain of flower petals or some music for her. But nothing of that sort happened. The room was dark. She heard a loud sound of ‘THUD’- the door had locked behind her. She searched for the light button and switched it on. She was aghast to see what she saw. There was no decoration, no balloons, no crackers, no music. Not even Major Ross. There was a huge portrait hanging from the wall. It was a portrait of Major Ross. It had a caption that read: Died in action in World War II- 70 years ago……