(Note: Please go through the previous chapter once again as it has been updated)
"Excuse me?" Anvay questioned the officer who came to arrest him, "Are you out of your mind to make an allegation like that?" he continued as everyone at the table stood up and walked towards them.
"Mr. Singh, let me introduce myself, I'm Inspector Jadhav And second I never make baseless allegations, second I have a warrant to arrest you so I expect that you cooperate" The officer told Anvay, "Constable take him" the constable handcuffed Anvay and began to drag him out only to get interrupted by Lakshya, "I think there must be a misunderstanding of some sort, Dad would never do this to uncle" he pleaded
Ashlesha remained seated and smirked without being noticed as she enjoyed the drama unfolding right before her. The sight of Anvay getting in trouble and the kind of stress it caused his family sure was pleasing to her eyes.
"You'll come to know if we're mistaken or not once we get to the station" officer Jadhav asserted before dragging Anvay away to their van and drove away.
"I can't believe this is happening, this is absurd!! Are they crazy to actually accuse dad like this?" Abhay snapped as he walked back and forth before he punched his fist against the wall.
"Calm down! We'll get him out, I'll call our lawyer so just get ready" Lakshya told his brother as he dialed up the family lawyer to explain what just happened and then they all leave for the police station.
Ashlesha who was now all by herself in the living room moved to the kitchen to pick up Kamalraj's foodtray and headed upstairs to carry out her act of nursing him back to health.
As she entered his room where he laid asleep, she placed the food tray next to his table, she then sat on the bed and leaned close to him, "It really is fun ruining your family little by little every other day" she whispered in his ears knowing that he was listening to her causing him to open his eyes and wake up confused.
"Oh, so you're awake now!" She exclaimed as she stepped away, the look on Kamalraj's face gave away his confusion, "oh right, you think I'm your nurse? Sorry to break it to you, so who am I you might be wondering" she snickered, "Okay I'll give you a hint, remember the night you got into that accident..." the minute she mentioned that his eyes grew wide, "judging by the look in your eyes, I guess you've figured it already, that's right!" she grinned.
"How does it feel to be helpless knowing your loved ones going through hell?" She mocked him, "you deserve every bit of this hell, you see when I watched my loved ones die right in front of me that day because of you and your family that very day I promised to pay you back everything with interest" she sneered at him
"you see, I just managed to turn your elder son into another current version of you while your other son who you used to lure our queen into your trap will be rotting in prison" she then picked up the tray and began to force feed him, "Enjoy your hell, because I will unleash more of it"
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Anvay was kept in a cell along with the other prisoners while his family had just arrived along with their lawyer to discuss the case at hand and get him released.
Lakshya, Abhay and the lawyer headed straight to the officer Jadhav's desk to get an assessment of the overall case.
"The reason your father is arrested is because of this" the officer showed them a cctv footage of the hall outside the hotel's office which showed Anvay accompanying Shashi inside alone right before he was hurled outside the window and discovered. "As per this footage and the date and time mentioned in it, Mr. Anvay was the last person to be with his brother Shashi making him the prime suspect in this case" officer Jadhav explained, "therefore we're not letting him go"
"Even if he was the last person to be with our Uncle that still doesn't mean he did it" Lakshya asserted
"It also doesn't mean that he didn't do it" the officer pointed as they continued argue for quite a while with Lakshya and the lawyer
Abhay stared at the footage observantly, "you know even though dad went inside, he never came out. I mean it's been like more than an hour now since I've been staring at this video" he pointed getting the lawyers attention who then begins to go through the footage.
"You're right, he never came out as per this footage, but he did show up where Mr Shashi was found, how is this possible unless there's something wrong with this footage" the lawyer suggested, "that's right, therefore you can't keep him detained for long especially when he's got an alibi" Abhay added
"What Alibi? He clearly was the only person who could have done it, if he didn't leave from the door he could have used the window, who know?" The officer shot back
"Left out through the window? Really? What do you take him for? He's not a superhuman to jump down from the first floor and stay in one piece, are you even listening to yourself?" Lakshya questioned him back, "Release him, you have no real reason to keep him in there unless there's actually something in it for you"
"You better watch your mouth or you may end up joining your father in that cell" the officer warned Lakshya
"Well you have no real reason to keep him anymore now that you understand that it's simply not possible for him to be at two places at a time and your evidence is simply not good enough to lock him up in there, so can proceed with the bail application" the lawyer requested to which the cop agreed and then began with the procedure to get Anvay released. The constable unlocked the cell that held Anvay and ushered him outside to the desk where he was to sign the papers. Just as Anvay was about to do that, "Not so fast!" A man called out interrupting him.
"And who would you be?" The police officer asked him to which the man showed his ID revealing who he was, "Vikram Singh Shergill from the Crime Branch"
"And What brings you here?" Officer Jadhav asked to which Vikram showed him a document that gave him the authority to keep Anvay under his custody.
"You're taking over the case?" a confused officer Jadhav asked, "That's right!" Vikram affirmed
"All of a sudden and out of the blue?" Lakshya questioned obviously unhappy with the new development
"Not really, in fact I've been on this case since last year" Vikram answered,
"We're not following, the incident took place just yesterday" officer Jadhav told him, "yes, but I'm not solely talking about this case alone, I'm talking about Mr Kamalraj's case which we believe was also an attempt to murder the prime suspect for which happens to be his younger son" Vikram explained
"How so?" Abhay asked, "On the evening when your grandfather died, your father's car was sent for repairs now wasn't it, turns out the side mirror was found at the scene where the so called accident took place." Vikram told him
"And you concluded that our dad was behind it?" Lakshya asked, "Not at first, but after this incident yes I do, also regarding your flawed video point, here's one to prove you wrong" Vikram handed over a pendrive to officer Jadhav which he plugged into the laptop on his desk. Vikram then accessed and played the video file which to everyone's surprise actually showed Anvay jumping down from the window.
"I received this from an anonymous person but I'd sure like to thank them for it" Vikram told everyone
"That still doesn't explain how he's okay after jumping down from the first floor" Lakshya pointed, "well it was just the first floor now wasn't it, some people manage to stay fine, I suppose your father's one of them" Vikram sneered, "now if you don't mind, I'll need to take Mr Anvay away, so Mr Jadhav can you please hand him over?"
Lakshya turned to the lawyer hoping he could help them out, "I'm sorry, but given the sort of evidence they've produced we're actually in no position to bail your father out..... but don't worry, I'll do whatever I can to help him" the lawyer assured Lakshya, "however do you know anyone who could have requested the crime branch's involvement regarding your grandfather's case?" The lawyer asked
"We're as clueless as you, in fact today's the first time I've learnt about Dadaji's accident being caused by a person, however I will never believe that our Dad was behind it" Lakshya told the lawyer
"In any case, we'll need to gather evidence to prove your father's innocence" the lawyer reminded, to which Lakshya responds with "We will"
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The next day
"So you couldn't get him out" Srishti asked Abhay who was sulking at his desk, their media research session had just ended, "That's correct, we couldn't, someone apparently filmed him jumping out of the window" he sighed
"Are you okay? You seem pretty disturbed" A concerned Srishti tried to console him, "you wanna talk, I'm all ears"
" Why are you being so nice to me all of sudden?" Abhay asked raising an eyebrow to express his disbelief over her change of demeanour
"I may not get along with you but that doesn't mean I'm heartless or insensitive as you may think of me otherwise" she told him slightly offended by his judgement, "So are you gonna tell me what's troubling you?"
Abhay paused to give it a thought before he finally lets it out, "the thing is...... what if the cops are right? That video clearly showed him jumping out and he was the only other person with my uncle that night before he was attacked"
"Oh.... what do you feel?" She asked getting him to think over it for a moment, "I feel he is innocent, but I can't deny what I saw either" he let out another sigh.
"Sometimes what you see needn't always be true" she pointed, "so don't lose hope"
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Mahima was at home where she was preparing lunch in the kitchen. It was a small 2BHK house that sheltered her family of two that included her elderly father. Given that it was the weekend they were able to spend some quality family time together, which otherwise would have not been possible owing to the workload and responsibilities Mahima shouldered. Once she was done cooking, she moved to set the table which was in a corner of the living room close but close to the kitchen.
"Baba, the food's ready!" She called out to her father who then emerged from his room and walked towards the dining table. He pulls out the chair at the centre and sits down allowing Mahima to serve him. Her father Mr. Arvind Dixit had moved to the city along with her more than two decades ago and had recently retired after working as a taxi driver for the same duration. As he took the first bite he was overwhelmed by the flavours that exploded in his mouth, "This is really good, even better than the lady we hired to cook for us" he told her expressing his delight as he enjoyed his meal. "I'm flattered" she chuckled
"I guess I'll miss this once you get married and leave" he sighed, "I will never leave you" she told him, "I may move out but I'll never stop visiting, so you won't have to miss any of this"
"How will you manage?" Arvind asked her, "I will, so don't you worry" she assured him
"That's a relief" he told her as he then turned his attention back to the food. Once they were done Mahima began to clear the table and proceeded to wash the dishes. As she was half way done her phone starts buzzing continuously prompting her to stop and attend it. It was a call from her colleague, she taps on the green icon to attend the call, "Hello, Is everything okay?" she asked her colleague
"Actually I received a call from our client, they apparently wanted to discuss something, so we'll have to meet them tomorrow" her colleague informed, "No issues, just text me the time and venue" Srishti told her, "If that's all, I'm hanging up"
"that's pretty much it, bye" the colleague confirmed allowed Srishti to disconnect the call.
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At the Singh's Mansion, everyone was gathered at the living room still overwhelmed by the recent events that took place over the week. The lawyer was over to discuss the case and their strategy for getting the bail plea approved.
"I have requested the video showing Anvay jumping down from his office to be sent for examination to verify it's authenticity" the lawyer told them all
"Would that really help Mr. Kulkarni?" Lakshya asked, "Well if the video proof appears to be tampered or edited in any manner the bail plea will get accepted" Kulkarni explained
"And if the video is authentic?" Lakshya asked yet dreaded to hear the answer.
"If the video is authentic then that would make your dad a cold blooded criminal" Chetan who was seated right next to his mother Soumya snapped.
"Tell me you don't actually believe that now do you?" Lakshya sneered at him over his remark.
"Who knows? maybe I do" Chetan retorted, "Please calm down and that is no way to speak to your brother" Soumya tried to calm her son, "I trust your Uncle, he would never do that to your father, so please..."
"Exactly, Anvay would never do this, it must be a conspiracy of some kind against us, first my husband met with an accident that crippled him, then my grandson nearly died, my elder son is currently at the hospital and now this!" Chandrika broke down as she allowed everything that happened to sink in.
Ashlesha was watching everyone from upstairs without getting noticed, her lips curled into a smile as she derived pleasure out of their turmoil
"Maa ji is right, this isn't the time to be turning against one another when we should be standing with each other" Shipra told everyone, "I trust my husband and I know that he's innocent regardless of what that video shows" Shipra added who then turned to Mr. Kulkarni to know what they should do next, "So what happens if the video is authentic"
"If it's authentic then we'll have to get him an alibi, that means we'll need to prove the person in that video isn't really him" Mr. Kulkarni suggested.
"Okay then, so we just need to do that right?" Lakshya asked, "it's probably not going to be easy though" Mr. Kulkarni told him not trying to crush his new found hope.
"You guys can try all you want but I won't let you get him out so easily" Ashlesha whispered to herself as she eavesdropped on them.
"I'll still do it" Lakshya told everyone, "and starting tomorrow I'll help out with the family business until dad gets out"
"Since when did you care about that? and what makes you think you can just walk into it?" Chetan asked objecting to his sudden decision,
"You sure don't seem happy given that you're objecting" Lakshya answered, "It's our family business and both our dads are not in a state to manage it at the moment, so it's only likely that we're supposed to take over for them unless you've got a problem for some reason, like something to hide maybe?"
"What are you getting at?" Chetan asked narrowing his eyes at Lakshya who then shrugged, "I don't know, you tell me"
Shipra then gets in between them, "Okay, you'll need to stop! Fighting amongst yourselves won't help you" to which Lakshya nodded in agreement before she pulled him away
" I'm just making sure he understands the same" Lakshya conveyed before leaving out through the main door.
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It was past midnight, the time when everyone was supposedly asleep. Abhay wakes up and picks up the jug at his bedside to fill his glass, however it was empty as well prompting him to step out of his room and head downstairs towards the kitchen to get some water. As he enters the kitchen he walks straight towards the water dispenser to fill his glass. As he did that he began hear the footsteps of another person from across the living room by the stairs.
He quickly gulped down the water and walked out to see who else was awake at this hour but he found no one there, but then heard the main door shut momentarily surprising him. He then walks straight towards it and opens it, to his surprise he saw a lady heading out. At first he couldn't tell who it was but on paying closer attention he realized it was Ashlesha. He then followed and tried to catch up with her but as he stepped outside the main gate there was no one around making him wonder if he was imagining it.
Ashlesha was in her serpent form slithering her way towards the temple, she enters the cave and finds her way through the passage at the end of the cave. As she enters the temple she then assumes her human avatar following which she bursts into laughter.
The priest Mr. Kailash walks in on hearing her laugh, "what's the matter? Why are you laughing?" He asked astounded by her chortling which she continued for a while till she finally stopped.
"Our plan is working. Finally those people are beginning to get a taste of their own medicine yet they haven't been able to guess who's behind it" she told him as she sniggered making the priest wonder what she had been up to, "what did you do?" He asked her
"Moved a step forward towards getting our revenge, I've sent that man to prison and intend to keep him in there for a while, but the fun part is turning them against each other" she told him
"I see.... but you need to be careful given that you're living amongst them, I hope you don't get exposed given the pain you took to get this new identity Seema" he cautioned her.
It took Seema more than 20 long years of penance to attain her new identity which made it easy for her to infiltrate into the Singh's household. It was her who paid the previous nurse to quit so she could replace them and execute her plan of destroying them all.
"I know panditji, they won't find out about me at least not till I'm done" she assured him, "however my only concern is that tantrik, he has our queen's ashes, which means he would have the naagmani as well"
"Then all we need to do is either track him or lure him, whatever works" Mr Kailash answered, "but at the moment you'll need to keep an eye on their every move, so don't do anything reckless"
"As you say panditji" Ashlesha agreed.
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The next morning
Lakshya walks into the royal sky hotel much to Chetan's displeasure and heads straight to the conference room where Mahima and her team were waiting.
He wanted to start the meeting sooner but was waiting for the owner of Shubh events co.
"Where is your boss?" He asked them only to be returned with their confused expressions,
"I mean the owner of Shubh events" he clarified which earned him a frown from Mahima.
"Owner? They're here already" Mahima told him
"Where?" Lakshya asked to which she responds with crossed arms, "I'm the owner"
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That's the end of chapter 5, hope you like it and done forget to share and vote.
Thanks :)
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