Lakshya couldn't believe his ears, and thought he may have heard it wrong but his eyes made it pretty clear that it wasn't the case. For some reason he felt an unusual sense of dejection weighing over his chest when he saw Vikram and Mahima embrace each other.
"You're not going to be working here anymore" Vikram told her in an authoritative tone as everyone watched and then drags her out by the hand. Mahima stops and pulls back and away from his grip while they're midway across the corridor much to Vikram's surprise who then looked at her in confusion.
"You can't just make decisions for me" Mahima asserted herself before him.
"And what is your decision going to be?" He asked expecting a clear answer from her.
"I can't leave, and you very well know the reason why!" She answered.
"So you're going to continue working here even after what happened?" He asked expressing his disbelief.
"I have a contract with them, so I'm legally bound and committed to work for them" she explained
"And what if that b@st@$d repeats what he did again" he asked expressing her concern.
"It won't happen again, not after the warning you've given him" she answered hoping it would ease him off a bit
"What if that doesn't deter him" he pointed out the possibility of Chetan ignoring the same to which she tells him, "Even if that were the case, his cousin will get in the way as long as he's around"
"And you trust him? Because I don't" he responded as he shook his head in disagreement
"Do you trust me?" She asked
"Yes!" He answered
"Then just let me be, trust me I'll be fine" she told him
"Okay, if you say so.... But you're leaving with me right now" he decided
"No I'm not! What about the event down there?" She reasoned
"You don't have to worry about it, we'll manage" Lakshya who followed them happen to hear a bit of their conversation before approaching the two.
"Are you sure about that?" She asked him to which he gave her a nod, "and I'm really sorry about what happened earlier" he apologized sincerely.
"What good would you're apology do when you've got crime running in your family" Vikram scoffed
"I wasn't talking to you!"
Lakshya glared at him reacting to his comment.
Mahima sensed the two of them were at odds and possibly at the brink of a verbal spat prompting her to request her fiancé to spare her a moment with her client. Vikram reluctantly agrees and heads outside where he would wait for her.
"About your apology, It wasn't exactly your fault and thank you for again for what you did earlier and now as well" she told him
"I won't let him get anywhere near you, I'll make sure about that, however you should call it a day" Lakshya assured her
"Okay" She responded and then took her steps to walk away as he watched her leave followed by a void creeping within him.
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The next day
Srishti had asked her group members to gather at the canteen where they were waiting for Abhay. Though they were early, She worried that his absence could mean that he would arrive late and that she wouldn't be able to discuss her plan to visit Manasgadh before the class begins.
Sick and tired of waiting for him, she heads to the service counter to place an order where she requested for sandwiches and some soft drinks and waited there till she was served the same. She collects her food tray and then heads back to her table where Kirti and Shruti were seated. She took her place and served her friends before having a bite from her own sandwich. A few moments later Abhay showed up interrupting their mini breakfast. He pulls out a chair from the nearby table and drags it to where his group was seated.
"Pretty early aren't you?" Srishti's taunted Abhay however he ignores her and sits down then allowing Srishti to begin with her discussion.
"So I've researched about this place over the internet, and I believe it's perfect to collect the information we'd need to ace this assignment" Srishti explained about the beliefs and other folklores regarding serpents that were passed down since generations in that village and then proposed about visiting the same.
"So where exactly are we heading?" Shruti asked Srishti to which she replied, "Manasgadh"
Abhay was surprised over the fact that Srishti actually made a mention about the village Manasgadh given that he first heard it from Ashlesha the other day. Once the discussion ended and they were getting ready to head to class Abhay calls out to Srishti and stalls her, "Did you really find out about Manasgadh over the Internet?"
The question puzzled her for a moment before she realised what he meant, "oh about that, well I heard it from Rani. She was the one who suggested I look into this"
"Really?" Although Abhay was aware of the fact that Rani heard about the place he didn't expect her to go and share the same with Srishti.
"Why do you ask though?" She asked him to which he replied with a "No reason" and then heads up to class.
Srishti couldn't figure out his odd response and but decided to cut him some slack considering the fact that he has been going through a rough patch lately.
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Shipra was in the kitchen preparing the lunch by herself for the family. The house's staff member who was responsible to assist in the kitchen took a day off while Soumya was still at the hospital.
Shipra was done with the salad and set it aside to get back to the attend the rice which was getting cooked over the stove. A moment later Ashlesha comes in to collect her usual which was Kamalraj's food tray, however as she noticed the house staff wasn't around she began to load it herself.
Shipra was pretty curious about their new nurse, the previous one who resigned out of the blue was quite sociable and got along well with everyone in the family while Ashlesha on the contrary seemed pretty reserved and aloof from the family.
"I hope you've managed to settle in here fine" Shipra asked in a bid to break the ice.
Ashlesha although uninterested in holding up any sort of conversation replied with a brief "yes, of course" just so she didn't come across as rude to her employer.
"That's great. How's father doing?" Shipra asked wondering if his health showed any signs of improvement much to Ashlesha's annoyance who wasn't sure about what to say, "If I were to be honest, then I'd say there aren't really any significant changes to his condition" she answered hoping it would discourage her from asking any further questions, "I see" Shipra muttered in disappointment.
"In case you notice changes that is even if they were minor, I'd expect you to let us know" Shipra instructed.
"Yes of course" Ashlesha feigned her assurance to comply.
"We used to be quite happy, that is this family until a year back when father got into an accident that left him in that condition today" Shipra told Ashlesha who again didn't really care but still gave the impression as if she felt sorry for them, "life sure is unpredictable" is all she could tell her at that moment.
"I know, it's just that I never expected it to be this bad. It's almost as if we've been afflicted by some sort of an evil eye" Shipra remarked.
"You bet" Ashlesha thought to herself. A moment later the doorbell rings however there's no one around to attend the same and since Shipra had her hands full in the kitchen, Ashlesha agrees to open the door. She then heads towards the door and opens it. The minute Ashlesha did that she was met with a rude shock as she found Soumya along with her husband Shashi at the entrance who then walked inside. The minute Shipra saw them she quickly washed her hands off and headed to the living room. As happy and elated she was to find her brother in law standing right before her she couldn't help but wonder how exactly did he manage to get back up on his feet as if nothing happened, almost as if it were a miracle. She then calls out to Chandrika and Rani who then emerge out of their respective rooms. The moment they saw Shashi they both headed downstairs, where Rani assisted her grandmother. Once they were down in the living room Rani runs towards her father and gives him a hug as she began to cry in joy while Chandrika joined her granddaughter in doing the same and thanked God.
Shipra then asked Shashi about what exactly happened on the day he was attacked and who exactly was behind it to which Soumya explained that he didn't really remember anything much to their disappointment but to Ashlesha's relief.
Shipra then gives Lakshya a call to inform him about the same. "Hello son, your uncle has regained consciousness and is back home"
"Really?! That's excellent news, I'll be right there" he told her and then leaves to get back home.
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"But how is this possible?!" Ashlesha asked the priest who was equally bewildered by the news she she gave him.
"It is quite bizarre if you ask me, but not impossible either" the priest told her
"What do you mean by it's not impossible" the priest than went on to explain, "if you could survive and attain a new identity then why not him?"
"You mean someone healed him?" She asked to which he told her, "that's correct! Which is also why you'll need to be more cautious than before" the priest explained that the person who healed Shashi would have figured that his comatose condition wasn't caused by a fall alone but rather induced.
"Could it be the tantrik?" She thought out loud
The priest who heard her dismissed it explaining that if it were indeed the case then he would have sent his snake charmers after her however nothing of that sort exactly happened.
"Then who could it be?" She asked him hoping he'd make a guess.
"I can't tell at the moment, but you'll need to watch your step from now on" he advised and then picked up a wrist cuff and handed it over to Ashlesha, "Wear this from now on while you're living amongst them, it will help you conceal your true identity" Ashlesha had earlier told the priest about how she was nearly caught by Abhay when she heard the been music play in the house and worried that the same could occur again later hence she needed a quick fix to it. Considering the same Mr. Kailash prepared the cuff to resolve it.
"As long as you wear this you will remain unaffected by the anything that could risk exposing you, be it the full moonlight or the been music, so make sure have this on at all time while you're there and don't lose it" the priest told her, "Also endure that it never comes in contact with water otherwise it'll turn useless" Ashlesha then thanks him on receiving it and then exits the temple.
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It was past evening and everyone was back home at the Singh mansion.
Lakshya and Abhay were back already and the entire family except for Anvay had gathered in the living room. They were really pleased and relieved to see him back home in full health.
Lakshya was met with Chetan's glower who just entered the house from right across the hall which was quite noticeable by everyone. Unsure of what happened Soumya asked them if everything were okay.
"What happened to your face?" Shashi asked his son who's face was bruised as a result of the fight the previous night. Chetan lies about getting into an accident while on the road as he didn't want Lakshya to let his family know about how he misbehaved with Mahima the previous night.
Mr. Kulkarni walks in through the entrance. Lakshya had called him over to discuss the recent developments.
"Can we get dad out now?" Lakshya asked the lawyer who then informed him that it depended on Shashi's testimony but given that he didn't recall anything it was going to be a little difficult unless he insisted on Anvay's innocence.
"But it's possible right?" Abhay questioned leaning onto the possibility that his father would be out sooner.
"I can't make any promises yet but hopefully yes" Mr Kulkarni answered
Abhay then went on to inform everyone that he'd be leaving home this weekend to visit Manasgadh.
Chandrika I'm hearing that then dragged Abhay to a corner "Where'd you hear about that place?" Chandrika asked her grandson who then told her about his assignment and that Srishti was the one who proposed visiting the place to gather first hand information.
"And how did she learn about this place?" The very mention of the village Manasgadh got Chandrika sort of unsettled.
"She heard it from Rani who was with me when Ashlesha made a mention of it the other day" Abhay told her, "Ashlesha made a mention of it?" Chandrika grew curious and yet suspicious at the same time.
"But what's the matter Dadi?" Abhay could sense his grandmother was worried about something.
"Nothing, it's just that Manasgadh isn't a very welcoming place and I'm worried about letting you go there" Chandrika told him
"Why do you say that?" Abhay asked out of curiosity
"It because....." Chandrika trailed realising that she almost told him something he shouldn't be knowing while Abhay waited for her to answer making him wonder if there was something she was keeping something from him, "that place isn't exactly safe, visitors get attacked and robbed over there" she continued and explained that he would be better off not visiting Manasgadh.
"I understand, but please don't worry too much. Also we'll be visiting during the day so we'll be careful" Abhay assured his grandmother who reluctantly agreed.
Shashi too wondered about what made Abhay want to visit Manasgadh, however he didn't bother to ask him directly but rather thought he'd find out the same from Chandrika later when he finds the opportunity to speak to her in private.
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Mahima was at the hospital carrying out her volunteer duties. While she was at the general ward assisting with the cleaning duties she seemed to be ruminating over the previous night when she was at the hotel managing her event and what followed after she headed back home with Vikram who then reported the entire incident to her father. On hearing what happened her father like Vikram opposed to her continuing at the royal sky and that kind of became a cause of her worry and to top it all her entire day at work was full of awkwardness as the workers around seem to gossip behind her back.
Once she was done she headed to the mess area to collect her refreshments for the evening and joined her co-volunteers who were getting ready to leave for the night.
"Are you okay?" one of the volunteers asked as they noticed the gloomy expression on Mahima's face.
"Yeah I'm fine, just had a rough day at work" Mahima answered
"Oh I see, do you wanna talk about it?" The volunteer asked Mahima who gave it thought for a moment. She wondered if it would be okay to share what happened to another person outside work but at the same time she did seek a different perspective hence she agreed to confide in her. Once Mahima told her everything the Volunteer shared her opinion, "that is indeed a pretty difficult position to be in right now, but I guess you're other boss seems to care about you enough to actually take on his own cousin"
"It was the right thing to do and I guess he would have done it for anyone being harassed by that jerk" Mahima told the volunteer
"I guess that's there too, but what if there was a slight chance that he may have a thing for you?" the volunteer raised a possibility which seemed to make Mahima uncomfortable, "he's engaged to another woman and let's say even if that's true he better give up" Mahima clarified following which they then walk out of the hospital and split off in different directions.
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Srishti was at the Jewellery store to get her ring fixed. She took it off and handed it to the jeweller who began to examine the same in order to assess the level of damage.
After examining it the jeweller appeared to be quite surprised, he had never seen a diamond get damaged just weeks after it were sold.
"We'll have to replace the diamond" the jeweller told her.
"When can I come to collect it?" Srishti asked the jeweller
"After two weeks" he told her and explained that the particular ring would need to be sent away to a different a different store from another state.
"Alright" she told the jeweller and then paid him part of the charges in advance and then walked out of the store.
She then pulled out her phone which was inside of her pant's pocket and dials her mother's number from the contact list.
"Are you done?" Srishti's mother asked once the call went through
"Yes, but it'll take around two weeks to get the ring repaired" she told her mother
"That's okay, we have time till the pre-wedding functions begin" her mother responded and asked her to return home right away. Srishti hangs up and places her smartphone back inside the pocket. She then walks towards her car which was parked right outside the store.
Before she could enter she heard the cry of puppy which was attempting to cross a busy road in order to reach its mother on the other side.
Once the road appeared to be clear the puppy darted towards its mother's direction however once it was halfway across the middle of the road Srishti noticed a speeding car approaching from afar and then rushed to rescue it before it got hit. Once she managed to reach the little animal she picked it up however by that time the speeding vehicle was pretty close to a point where it was just nearly impossible to avoid getting hit as a result of which Srishti froze in the middle of the road as she watched the vehicle come close enough to hit her. The vehicle screeched and came to a halt as it appeared to have gotten into an accident.
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Hello Friends,
That's the end of chapter 9, I hope you'll liked it.
Thanks :)
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