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feel the tears accumulating, as his mind struggled to come to terms with the reality that Arjun was no more.
    He shook his head to clear the fog. He could not cry now. He still had an example to set, a duty to fulfil. That is what Arjun would have wanted me to do .
    Anbu still remembered that last day, not so long ago, when he had been posted out of the battalion. Arjun had come to the station to see him off. They were standing on the railway platform when the train hooted impatiently and made ready to pull out. Arjun embraced him as Anbu got ready to board the train.
    ‘Take care, my friend. Don't let life bring you down. Never let faith in god or the confidence in yourself flag. Stand tall and make us all proud. No matter where you go, no matter what you do, let there be honour in your thoughts and your deeds. Remember, although we may not be together, we're all going to be watching over you – just as you will, over the paltan… over all of us.’
    ‘I'll call you when I reach, Arjun.’ Anbu had hugged him hard and then broken free and run to the now moving train.
    Anbu picked up the phone and dialled the number he remembered so well… that he had dialled so often. She was crying when she answered. Maybe the Army HQ people got through to her first, maybe the media. God alone knows .
    ‘Tiny… don't cry… you've got to be strong, baby… the kids need you to be strong… Arjun would've wanted you to be strong… just remember that he was a soldier… soldiers die….’ He could feel his voice begin to break and controlled it with a huge effort. ‘It is their karma to stand in harm's way… it is ours to remember them with pride.’
    For a very long time they just held the phone and cried together, brother and sister, he silently, she uncontrollably, her sobs tearing him apart. Then she finally said, ‘Please come over. I need you.’
    ‘I'm on my way.’ Anbu put down the phone, trying to shut out the sound of the children crying in the background.
    Later, as he was driving down, he remembered what he'd said to her on the phone and the thought struck home. Why do people forget that soldiers have families too? Families who care for them, need them, love them, long for them and wait for them to come home, with fear and hope in their hearts… and so very often in vain .
    Unwittingly, Anbu slowed down as the car came up to the turning from where Arjun's house was visible. He dreaded having to face Tiny.
    They all called her Tiny. Not just because she was a little pint-sized runt when she was born, but also because she'd been the youngest one in the family – and a very late arrival at that. To Anbu she wasn't just a kid sister. She was more like a daughter.
    With a massive effort, Anbu held back the tears. By the time his hand reached out to ring the doorbell, the calm had returned.
    THIS INCREDIBLE, UNFLAPPABLE CALM WAS THE REASON HE HAD been nicknamed Captain Cool. It is possible the name would have persisted but for the fact that he got promoted and was now a mature major commanding a rifle company of his battalion. Obviously Major Captain Cool did not sound so cool and Major Cool lacked zing.
    Not long after, Anbu had found himself commanding the same battalion that he had been commissioned in as one of the youngest lieutenant colonels in service. That was when the nickname evolved and he ended up being named Daddy Cool.
    It was soon after this when, having finished his command, he was safely on his way to marking some time as a staff officer in the Corps headquarters that luck and calm had finally deserted him. At least, for those few critical moments, they did….
    THE CORPS COMMANDER WAS CLEARLY IN A GRUMPY MOOD that morning when he strode into the Ops Room. Anbu was the first one he accosted.
    ‘What the hell happened?’
    ‘The final details are still trickling in, sir.’ Anbu snapped to ramrod straight attention. What's with him today? Got up on the wrong side of the bed or …. ‘But it looks like