'I'm safe, don't worry about me'

Dubai: "Kevin... Kevin"... whispered Boris de Rego to his brother before hanging up.

Sensing trouble his father called again on his son's mobile. Boris answered the call and he whispered again..... "Daddy... Daddy" and then hung up.

The time was 4.30am on Thursday, November 27.

This was the last conversation that 23-year-old Boris had with his father Urbano and his elder brother Kevin before he died.

He was shot by one of the terrorists as he got out the hotel basement where he was hiding with colleagues and guests.

A resident of Diwar, Goa, he had worked at the Shamiana restaurant at the Taj Mahal hotel for the past couple of years.

This was the same restaurant where his father Urbano who is currently the corporate chef of the Taj Mahal hotel in Goa started his career about 38 years ago.

Speaking to Gulf News on the telephone from Goa, his brother Kevin said that he was in constant touch with his younger brother up until 4am on Thursday.

"When the first news of the terror strike at 11pm on Wednesday started to flash on television I immediately called Boris on his mobile.

"I am safe Kevin. Just don't worry about me. He added that he was in the basement along with hundreds of other people.

"He told us that the terrorists entered the restaurant by kicking the door open. At 4am when I gave him a call said that he, along with other people in the basement, were trying to get out of the hotel."

Promising to call back in 15 minutes Boris hung up but when the telephone did not ring after half an hour his family could not stand the suspense any longer and Kevin decided to call Boris on his mobile.

A bleeding Boris who lay on the floor after he was shot picked up the call from his brother and all that he could do was whisper out Kevin's name.

"His voice was so cold and he hung up. So my dad called him back immediately. Boris whispered 'Daddy..Daddy' and then there was silence," said Kevin.

At about 8am my father started calling up all the senior executives at the Taj Mahal in Mumbai.

"No one was telling us exactly what had happened to Boris and where he was. Finally at around 2.30pm on Thursday my father got the human resources officer on the line who forwarded the call to the head chef with whom my father had kept in touch with to know how Boris was progressing in his job.

"Whenever my father used to call the head chef he used to say 'keep an eye on my boy and take good care of him' and so on Thursday the head chef told my father on the telephone 'Sorry chief I was not able to take good care of your boy. Boris is dead.'"