Chapter 16

3 years ago

chaoticmind2021

@chaoticmind2021

Arnav impatiently paced across the living room. Aman's cryptic call regarding a complete report on Shyam was getting on his nerves and boring a hole in the carpet wasn't helping much. Khushi gathered her courage and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder halting him. 

'It's going to be okay, Arnav ji. Whatever it is, we're going to fight it together.' Khushi consoled him. She was worried that if the half-baked information that they'd discovered up until now was so devastating for everyone then what would happen if there was more. Arnav ji would surely blame himself for no fault of his. So she turned him towards her and held his hand, 'Promise me that you'll not blame yourself.'

'Khushi, that man was living under my roof cheating all of us and...' Arnav grumbled. 3 years that fraud was living amongst them, in their house, playing the role of the perfect man that ever existed. And the mess that his actions had created in all of their lives.  

'Exactly. All of us, not only you. It's no one's fault but him.' Khushi insisted. There were so many what-ifs that she found her head spinning. What if she had been adamant about refusing Shyam's refusal? What if Anjali ji had caught on to his lies sooner? What if Bua ji had checked his background before putting her proposal? What if she had told Arnav ji all of this before? All of them had failed to judge Shyam in some way or the other. It was Shyam's fault. But knowing his transgressions, how they moved forward, that was on them. On seeing Arnav quiet, she asked, 'If you let guilt consume you, how are you going to think straight and act rationally?'

Arnav looked at Khushi deliberating her words. She was right. His biggest strength was not to let emotions cloud his judgement and any decision based on cold, hard facts was a profitable one. This was his family and everyone's life was at stake. And that was all the more reason he should put emotions behind and let ASR do the thinking. Whatever it was, he needed to think from the brain rather than the heart. With that resolve, he nodded towards Khushi and waited with bated breath as Aman entered with a grim expression on his face. This was bad, ASR thought. 

**********

Aman relayed all the facts to the group in an emotionless tone. No one could sense the anger and pain he felt at not being able to see that man's true face and protect his friend's family. Stealing money, impersonating, and stalking. That much everyone knew. Arnav's guilty eyes had met Khushi the moment Aman revealed why Shyam had to save her from the goons. Her mock glare had assured him that they were past all that. But all hell broke loose when Arnav heard the damage Shyam intended to do to his sister's life. The scorpion, tampering with the brakes, the infertility pills. He was trying to kill his own wife. A wife that was ready to forgive his every mistake. Arnav felt like someone had physically stabbed a knife in his heart. If not for Khushi's stronghold on his hand, he would've broken everything in the room. She gently squeezed his hand and shook her teary eyes at him reminding him of their earlier conversation. 

'Why the f"ck wasn't this on his background check when he got married to Di?' Arnav bellowed in a furious voice turning towards Aman. If the private investigators had missed something, he'd make sure that everyone's career was ruined. 

'I don't know, ASR. At that time, the man was clean.' Aman answered honestly. He still remembered the time when ASR had demanded a complete background check on Shyam. He was aware of the scandalized faces of his family and their protests but the man was relentless. Even when the reports came clear, ASR had taken his time to trust Shyam completely. Now, knowing that despite all the precautions his worst fear has come true, was excruciating. 

'Did he meet your sister after you became rich?' Preeto questioned, knowing that money was the main motivation behind Shyam's actions. 

'Yeah, they met at a Mandir. He saved her from falling and it was apparently love at first sight. My business had just taken off.' Arnav answered. Di couldn't stop talking about the 'Shyam ji' that she had met. He had passed it off as a silly crush but things had turned pretty serious when she had put forward her wish to marry him. 

'Knowing the man, I don't think this meeting was so coincidental.' Preeto commented. 

'I agree, Nannav. I mean that was the time you were busy with AR and the family accepted him seeing how happy he made Di.' NK mused. He was here for their wedding. Anjali's glowing face when regaling about her love story about her knight in shining armour and the family's happy gazes at finally seeing their daughter coming out of the grief of her parent's death and her broken wedding was enough for everyone to trust this wonderful human being. The man who had won everyone's heart with his sweet talks and gentle mannerisms was a fraud. 

'He wanted to gain everyone's trust before he made a major move.' Khushi declared. The pattern was the same. Saving them, helping them, being the best version of a man that a family would want for their daughter. Hadn't it happened to her too?

'He's done this before. There's no way he can be that good without some prior experience.' Arnav's brain worked a mile per minute. If Shyam had continued this facade under all of their noses, there was a fair chance that he had pulled these sleazy schemes elsewhere too. Shyam was living a life of luxury, he had access to money and the Raizada name. The reason he got sloppy was that he was desperate to get married to Khushi. Bile rose in his throat when he thought of even the possibility of Shyam pulling it off. 

'He must have some other aliases. Check with the people he hires to do his dirty work. Give them money, anything they want, I want them talking. These people have solid evidence against their own kind for leverage. Find it. Tap his phone and recruit bodyguards disguised as house helps to keep a check on Di.' Arnav barked the instructions at Aman who nodded and immediately started typing on his phone sending orders. They needed to act fast. Everyone looked at Arnav with his eyes burning for revenge and understood on some level how he was feeling. It was the calm before the storm. 

'What about Anjali ji?' Khushi asked the most important question. 

'Shyam could confess these things in front of her and she'll still not believe anything against him.' Arnav sighed. The only thing standing between Shyam and him was Anjali. If she refused to believe him and prevented him to deal with Shyam the way he wanted, then nobody could do anything. And knowing his sister, this was very much the possibility. 

'We have to make her see it for herself. We need to create situations in which she realizes what kind of a man he is.' Khushi murmured. She hadn't forgotten Anjali's blind faith in her husband, so much so that she had refused to believe her own brother that she loved dearly. This was more difficult than just telling her facts and hoping she sees the truth. But it had to be done. Her strong belief wouldn't waver in an instant, they had to break it piece by piece. 

'But that would hurt her.' Aman who was busy executing ASR's orders on phone snapped his head up at Khushi's suggestion and blurted the first thing that came to his mind. At everyone's narrowed eyes and some amused glances, he coloured slightly and was about to explain when he heard ASR clearing his throat. 

'She has to be stronger. For her own sake.' Arnav spoke resolutely. His sister was emotionally vulnerable and Shyam had fed off that for long enough. Yes, it would hurt her in the short term. But that didn't mean he would sit idle. Shyam wasn't just a man who went astray, he was a criminal and deserved to rot in jail for his whole life. And Arnav Singh Raizada would make sure that and the worst happened to the man who had dared to mess with them. 

Shyam Manohar Jha, count your days. Everyone thought determinedly.