— Ruskin Bond
Mr. Oliver, an Anglo-Indian teacher, was returning to his school late one night, on the outskirts of the hill station of Simla. From before Kipling’s time, the school had been run on an English public school line; and the boys, most of them from wealthy Indian families, wore blazers, caps and ties. Life magazine, in a feature on India, had once called it the Eton of the East. Mr. Oliver had been teaching in the school for several years.
The Simla Bazar, with its cinemas and restaurants, was about three miles from the school; and Mr. Oliver, a bachelor, usually strolled into the town in the evening, returning after dark, when he would take a shortcut through the pine forest.
When there you doing out here, boy?’ asked Mr. Oliver sharply, moving closers so that he could recognize the miscreant. But even as he approached the boy, he appeared to be crying. His head hung down, he held his face in his hands, and his body shook convulsively. It was a strange, soundless weeping, and Mr. Oliver felt distinctly uneasy.
Well, what’s the matter? he asked, his anger giving way to concern. What are you crying for the boy would not answer or look up. Come on, boy you shouldn’t be out here at this hour. Tell me the trouble. Look up! The boy looked up. He took his hands from his face and looked up at his teacher. The light from Mr. Oliver’s torch fell on the boy’s face – if you could call it a face.
A Face in the Dark
It had no eyes, nose or mouth. It was just a round smooth head – with a school cap on top! And that’s where the story should end. But for Mr. Oliver, it did not end there.
The torch fell from his trembling hand. He turned and scrambled down the path, running blindly through the trees and calling for help. He was still running towards the school buildings when he saw a lantern swinging towards the middle of the path. Mr Oliver stumbled up to the watchman, gasping for breath. “What is it, Sahib? asked the watchman. Has there been an accident? Why are you running? ‘
‘I saw something horrible – a boy weeping in the forest – and he had no face!’
‘No face, Sahib?
‘No eyes, nose, mouth – nothing!’
‘Do you mean it was like this, Sahib ?’ asked the watchman, and raised the lamp to his face. The watchman had no eyes, no ears, no features at all — not even an eyebrow! And that’s when the wind blew the lamp out.