Chapter 13

[MEMBERSONLY] [NOCOPY]

Chapter 11

Arjun was paralysed, his muscles refusing to obey his commands. Eyes glued to the retreating figure of Riya, he wondered the reason behind her hasty withdrawal from him. Did he misinterpret the feelings her eyes conveyed to him? No, that can't be it. I know she likes me. I'm sure the matter is something else, something so crucial that it's forcing her to oppose her heart, he thought in a desperate attempt of consoling his now pounding heart. 

As he stood there replaying her actions in his mind, a dialogue of the past peeked in from the sidelines. “Kuch baatein samay rehte boli jaaye toh behtar hota hai. Lekin aaj wo samay nahi hai,” she had told him when he questioned her about her secretive behavior. His eyes widened by a fraction as the possible reason for her denial hit him. It has something to do with the secret she was trying to hide from him! And that only fueled his determination to decipher the encrypted message her tense body conveyed to him.  

His head snapped in the direction of her retreat and he sprinted after her. There was no way he would let her find her own way home, at this hour of the dark, and never after the intimate moment that had transpired between them. It didn’t take him long to reach her, his speed twice his usual one. He breathed out in relief, knowing that she was with him now and seized her wrist, effectively ceasing her movements.

Although she wasn’t moving, she certainly didn’t take the initiative to face him either. And despite all his attempts of pretending to be unfazed by her ignorance, that pinched his heart. However, he shoved the feeling in the dark depths of his mind and focused at the woman standing there. 

“Let me drop you home,” he offered. Noticing that she was about to refuse, he pleaded, “Dekho Riya, raat bohot ho chuki hai aur iss waqt tumhe koi taxi ya auto bhi nahi milega. Please let me drop you. I promise I won't do anything you don't want me to.” 

Understanding that he was right and realizing that she was extremely fatigued, she nodded and quietly sat in his car. He sighed and followed her, driving to her house. An awkward silence enveloped the atmosphere, so thick that it could be cut with a knife. He didn’t have the words to begin explaining himself and the puzzling feelings developing in his heart while she didn’t have the courage to speak without spilling the beans, something she knew would force him to change his mind about the physical attraction he had towards her. 

To his utter dismay, the car came to a halt outside her house a little too soon. Had it been any other day or time, he would’ve been glad for the journey to end so that he could have his own pondering time. But today was certainly not that day and nor was now that time. The indirect rejection still pricked his heart and he wished he could figure out what had led to it. 

Feeling suffocated with his suddenly overbearing presence, she decided to go away from him, so far that even his name wouldn’t be able to reach her. Just as her hand clasped around the door handle, another hand seized her wrist. Her breath was stuck in her throat and her heart accelerated. But she didn’t dare and turn in his direction, knowing that her resolve would falter if those brown orbs stared into her hazel ones. 

He leaned closer, his breath fanning her earlobe and he whispered, “I’m sorry Riya.” 

Involuntarily, she shivered at his husky voice. Oh how she wanted to touch him, in the same manner she did in the forest. But she refrained her emotions from taking over. She knew that he viewed her as the fire that could warm him during a cold night. But in reality, she was the fire that could burn him to ashes. And hurting him was not even on her list of ‘to-do’s’. 

Receiving no response from her, he continued, “Main jaanta hoon ki shayad tumhe achha nahi laga mera tumhare yun paas aana. Aur uske liye main maafi maangta hoon-”, was all he could speak before she interrupted him.

“Aapko maafi maangne ki zaroorat nahi hai sir. Mujhe bura nahi laga ki aap mere qareeb aaye, aur na hi mujhe koi shikayat hai. Lekin aap jitna mere nazdeek aayenge, utna hi mujhse nafrat karenge. Aur mujhe yeh manzoor nahi,” she whispered in a painstakingly low voice. 

For a moment he was speechless. Words failed him and his mind was in a frenzy at her claim. Puzzled as he was, he couldn’t stop himself from analyzing her words. If she thought that he would hate her by unveiling all her layers, then that only indicated two things. Either she was hiding a past that she believed would change his opinion of her or she was involved in something he despises. 

Ruling out the second possibility without hesitation, he concluded that there was more to this cheerful facade she carried with confidence. And the mere idea of her being hurt boiled the blood in his throbbing veins to a temperature over 100 degrees. His hold on her wrist weakened, along with firmness in his voice, “I can never hate you Riya. Koshish ki thi lekin main uss mein nakamyab raha. Please, just look at me once.”

The plea in his tone tugged at the strings of her heart. Although she wanted to obey him, her cruel mind refused to command her muscles in favour of her desires. Gently shrugging off his hand, she opened the car door and walked out into the silent night. Her feet came to a stand-still as she took a couple of steps. Turning around to face him one last time, she wished him, “Good night sir. I’ll see you tomorrow,” before moving towards her house without sparing him another glance.

Left with nothing but to watch her retreating back, Arjun wondered why it hurt to see her walk away from him. Why does it feel like I should stay away from her yet be so close that even our skins can’t separate us?, he asked his heart, hoping it would give him a desirable answer. But alas, he was left with more questions than there were answers to. Suddenly, he realized that he never knew the real Riya Mukherjee. The lady in front of him was not the same girl who was once terrified of guns and neither was she the inexperienced officer. She was now a mystery, one that he was impatient to uncover. 

With that thought in mind, he drove to his lodge as the images of her sad smile overpowered the flashes of his wife’s blood-matted body. 

On the other hand, the team had gathered in the parking lot, disappointed as they noticed that Arjun’s SUV was missing. They had been late, like always, in being the strength for their vulnerable senior. Yes, they had initially developed a dislike to him and his ways of underestimating their abilities. But they had warmed up to him when they witnessed his soft side on many occasions. And it brought tears to their eyes at the realization that he was suffering alone, with nobody at his side to share his sorrows with. 

“Arjun toh chala gaya. I just hope ki wo theek ho. Sameer ne aaj kuch zyada hi bol diya,” said Sakshi in a low voice. 

Three heads bobbed in agreement. Shree, visibly angered by Sameer’s lack of sensitivity, exclaimed, “You’re right Sakshi. Rathore sir agar Sikandar ki existence pe believe nahi karte iska yeh matlab nahi hai ki woh Arjun sir ki kalpana hai.”

“Sach yaar. Arjun sir toh Roshni ji se kitna pyaar karte the, aur aaj bhi karte hain. Pata nahi Rathore sir unhe Roshni ji ki maut ke liye kyun blame karte hain,” continued Chotu. Even he was furious with Sameer’s behaviour because accusing for a loved ones murder was a great deal for him. 

Lost in her thoughts, Aisha ignored the heated conversation surrounding her. Her eyes trailed back to the 10th floor, where their office was. Worry reflected in them because she was well aware of their chief’s anger. And more than that she was aware of his tendency of hurting himself in his fury. Excusing herself from her friends using a very lame reason, she darted back into the building, hoping and praying that he hadn’t done anything dangerous yet.

Back in the ETF office, Sameer was still on the ground, a continuous trail of tears falling from his eyes along with the blood gushing out of his wound. The pain of his hand was numbed as the pain in his heart overwhelmed his senses. The now false promises of always taking care of Roshni echoed loudly in his quiet mind, causing a severe headache. He stood up on his staggering feet and stumbled slightly, finally slumping in a chair as his knees buckled from under him. 

“Rathore sir!”, came a horrified yell from the door. Eyes drowsy and body weak, he managed to notice a blurry figure of a woman standing in the door-frame with hands lifted to her lips in utter disbelief. “Roshni?”, he whispered before his eyes closed. 

Panicked and heart pounding against the ribs, Aisha ran to his semi-conscious figure. Her eyes teared up at the sight of his bleeding hand and she quickly wrapped it in clean bandages, effectively stopping his body from losing any more blood than it already did. Although her heart was soundlessly cracking with each passing second, she realized that receiving a response from him was crucial at the moment. 

She tapped his face, continuously rubbing his palm with her left hand. Minutes passed before he opened his eyes. Sighing loudly in relief, she assisted him in drinking water from the glass before settling him back in his chair. “Are you okay now sir?”, she hesitantly questioned, hoping the answer would be a positive one. 

His blurry mind was still in a haze, his eyes gradually focusing on her concerned face. “Aisha?”, he asked in a throaty whisper. As she nodded her head to confirm her identity, he continued, “I’m fine. Thank you.” His gaze ceased at his previously injured and now bandaged hand, a small smile gracing his lips. 

He moved slightly, attempting to stand up on his unstable feet when her soft voice ceased his movements, “Kabhi-kabhi nafrat aur gusse ki patti humari aankhon ko andha bana deti hai. Jiski wajah se saamne pada hua sach bhi hume jhooth lagta hai. Isse pehle bohot der ho jaaye, aap iss patti ko apni aankhon se hata dijiye, sir. Otherwise you’ll lose something far more precious.”

He didn’t respond to her words, or showcased any signs of having heard her. But in truth it got him thinking. She wasn’t wrong, no, but he wasn’t either, was he? Hearing no response from him, she wondered if she made a mistake hinting towards his blind hate for his subordinate. She prepared herself for a verbal rebuking from him for interfering in his personal matters. 

However, she was perturbed when she saw him lean in, his hand moving to cup her cheek. Eyes widened and mouth opened in shock, all she could manage to do was stare at him in wonder, anticipating his next move. He brought his face closer to her, intense eyes unwavering from her confused ones, and said, “Thank you for everything.” Removing his hold on her, he left the room without glancing back at her. 

Amazed at his unexpected gesture, she brought her hand to the place that still tingled from his touch. She felt an earring dangling from her earlobe. And it finally hit her: he was expressing his gratitude for the day she sneaked into his cabin and relieved him of his headache! And just like that, a red blush spread across her cheeks. 

Next Day

The team had yet again gathered in the conference room, discussing the peculiar case in a hushed tone. The verbal war of the previous night was still not forgotten and they couldn’t afford to piss off their seniors, anymore than they already were furious. However, that didn’t stop them from conducting a heated conversation about the poison and Arjun’s declaration. 

Before any random guesses could be thrown into the discussion, Sakshi decided to ask, “Arjun, kal tum keh rahe the ki wo poison unn victims ko experiment ke taur pe diya gaya tha. What do you mean by that?” 

All voices abruptly stopped, an eerie silence enveloping the room. Arjun glanced at Sameer, who was now staring at the table, and walked towards the evidence board. Reading something off of a picture, he said, “Wo saare social workers sirf uss qatil ke experiment ka hissa the. Isiliye Lisa ko unki bodies mein se kayi saare poison ke traces mile hain. Khooni unpar har poison test kar raha tha, maybe because he wanted to check which one was the most painful and dangerous.” 

“Agar aisa hai toh unke sir kyun kaate? Aur ‘S’ naam ke social workers hi kyun?”, questioned Sameer in a mocking tone. 

The juniors exchanged glances before sighing loudly. They knew that the two ACPs could never see eye-to-eye and they lived to challenge the theories of one another. Arjun glared at Sameer, his tired eyes straining to focus on the question rather than the insult concealed in his voice. 

Arjun, moving closer to Sameer, informed his team, “Sir kaatne ki sirf ek wajah hai. Khooni hum tak yeh message pahunchana chahta hai ki wo apne real target ko asaan maut nahi maarega. Social workers kisi bhi gunhegaar ke sabse bade dushman hote hain. ‘S’ letter ke naam shayad isiliye kyunki qaatil ka jo prime target hai uska naam issi letter se shuru hota hai, ya shayad khud qaatil na naam ‘S’ se shuru hota hai. S for Sikandar.”

As soon as he finished his statement, Sameer’s temper flared. Despite all the berating he did for himself the previous night, that name from Arjun’s mouth seemed to always test his tolerance levels. And his patience always proved to be futile. However, just as he opened his mouth to blast Arjun for his false beliefs, Chotu’s phone rang loudly, cutting through the awkward silence that had settled in. His face paled and he quickly hung up, turning to deliver the new information to the team.

“Sir, mashoor businessman Sumit Awasthi ki laash jungle ke paas waali factory mein mili hai. He was poisoned.”

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