It was the noise of our vehicle that had alerted him. Torch in hand, he slowly walked out of the gate, shielding the upper half of the beam lest the light catch the eye of the Pakistan Rangers whose dug-outs are hardly a kilometre away from the International Border. Despite its being Chhoti Diwali, Samka and Gopad Basti villages on the International Border in Jammu's RS Pura Sector were dark and deserted.