Chapter 3

InkedImagination

@Queen0fDarkness

Chapter 3: Transformation

Over the years, Geet had transformed herself. Gone was the creative, bubbly artist who had dreamt of panting the world in vibrant colours. In her place emerged a woman fuelled by a single goal – Revenge.

Geet spent the last couple of years methodically transforming herself. She first began with her appearance, the oversized t-shirts and messy hair was gone. She learned how to carry herself gracefully, how to use her looks like a weapon. She spent hours in front of the mirror, practising her poker face, masking her true emotions, how to charm and flirt without her brewing storm within being visible.

One thing she was aware of was that just changing her appearance would not be enough. She needed to be sharp and cunning. The Khuranas were sharp, calculating, and dangerous. She needed to outmatch them not just in poise but in intelligence. She threw herself into her studies, reading voraciously and consuming books in different subjects such as business, psychology and power dynamics. She watched endless videos on how to analyse people, spot their weaknesses, read their expressions and how to exploit any vulnerabilities. The artist within her shifted focus and her artistic creativity now became a tool to strategise and envisioning moves and countermoves for the game she was preparing to play.

From there, each step Geet took over the years were deliberate. She attended university and immersed herself into environments that would refine her social skills, build connections and she learned how to navigate the worlds of the wealthy and privileged. She started learning how to speak their language, how to blend in with elitists who would have once dismissed her for being ‘middle class’ and insignificant.

Geet stared into the mirror, her reflection a stark reminder of the years that had passed since her world was shattered. At just 22 years old, she looked older than her years and each line on her face told a story of loss, grief, and resilience. In a few weeks, it would Meera’s 6th death anniversary. The wounds of her sister’s loss had not healed yet and while they were broken and scarred from her loss, they had started living a sort of life.

Geet picked up her notebook and flicked through the entries she had jotted down. For the last couple of weeks, she had started going out and watching Maan Singh Khurana. She had seen the Khuranas splashed across the newspapers and welcoming the return of their son from London where they had sent him off to finish his studies. That day she had burned that newspaper in the backyard as she only remembered how Meera did not have the chance.

Maan Khurana was being groomed by his father to take over his company when he decides to retire. She had followed him and watched. Each move he made was bolstered by the power and wealth of his family. Yet, as she observed him further, he also seemed mysterious. He was quiet, his demeanour calm and guarded. He exuded a quiet intensity and carried himself with an air of authority. He seemed to prefer being alone unlike his parents who basked in the social attention and thrived on networking. He had seemed to master a poker face, his expression were unreadable and she could not figure what he might be thinking at any of the times. She wondered whether he thought of her sister or even remembered her. It didn’t matter, she would remind him and make him pay for it. He would never forget her sister or their family. They would not be dismissed.

“Geet” Rano called from downstairs. “Dinner’s ready”.

She snapped out of her thoughts and shoved her notebook into the drawer before she went downstairs.

Geet smiled at her mother as she sat down, as always her mother’s expression was weary, resigned yet gentle towards her.

“Here, beta” Mohinder said as he joined them at the table. He patted her head and placed a jar. Mango achaar, a favourite of hers. What she had been sneakily eating spoonfuls of on that fateful day.

“Thank you, papa” she said softly.

“Are you sure you’re going to be okay staying alone?” Rano asked after a moment. Geet’s parents have decided to go to India for a couple of months to just get a break. Geet further encouraged them as this would be the perfect timing for her to initiate her plan. Rano and Mohinder being out of the country would allow her work smoothly and without any interventions. She didn’t want her parents around or let them know what she is going to be doing.

“Mama, please don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine”.

“I still think you should come with us”.

“You know I cannot come, mama. I’m about to start my new job so I don’t want to derail all my hard work” she explained.

Rano nodded reluctantly and looked at Mohinder.

“She’s going to be fine” he reassured his wife. “Geet, you must keep in touch and remember only use an uber or other public transport when you come home if its dark. You are not to walk!”

Geet smiled sadly. “I know, papa” she agreed.

“Keep in touch always, via calls or messages” Rano added further.

“I promise” she said. “I’m going to be okay” she reassured.

Geet had chosen to pursue a degree in IT, not out of passion since her passion was creativity and art but it was a calculated need to equip herself with every possible tool for her revenge. The Khurana empire was powerful so she would need every tool at her disposal to destroy them and everything they built just as they had ruined her parents and their lives.

Geet had started off with coding and programming, but as she started understanding the digital world, she realised how useful this skill would be so she deepened her knowledge further. She learned about how networks worked, how systems were secured and then she learned about how to find a flaw in the security systems and take advantage of it. She found herself equipped with the knowledge of breaching systems, bypassing firewalls and leaving certain viruses to cripple a system.

Geet Handa was no longer a novice; she was a weapon. She had honed her skills to the extent where she could easily infiltrate almost any network within minutes, extract information, drop a certain virus and disappear without a trace. As with all her works, she had learned to be cautious with her skills. The power she wielded needed cautiousness, so she did not make any mistake and risk her plan.

A couple of weeks later, Geet and her parents spent Meera’s death anniversary together and visited their local temple offering prayers for their daughter before they spent the day together. A week after that, Geet was stood at the door waving at her parents as they climbed into the taxi.

“Make sure you lock up and call us every night when you come home from work, ok?” Rano called out in concern and waved back.

“I will, mama. Have a safe flight, both of you” she responded.

“We’ll miss you” Mohinder repeated again.

Geet smiled. “I’ll miss you too. Please take care of yourselves and just relax” she said. Also heal your hearts she thought silently. She hoped her parents would gain strength within themselves to start living for themselves and not just try to survive and watch their lives fade away. As the taxi pulled away, Geet’s smiled faded and her heart ached with their departure but it was necessary she reminded herself. She headed back inside, her mind shifting to her plan where she was finally going to ‘bump’ into Maan Singh Khurana.

Geet had snuck into his network earlier to check out his calendar and learned he was due to attend an art gallery event. She had slipped into a beautiful black dress that fit her body in all the right places and complimented her curves. She twisted her hair into an elegant bun, her makeup was done flawlessly and slipped on a pair of Louboutin heels to finish off her look. She looked stunningly beautiful and looked the part of their ‘society’.

Geet had deliberately stood near the centre of the gallery as the event commenced, she walked slowly and deliberately watching each canvas. A bittersweet ache filled her heart as she took in the art surrounding her, it was a sacrifice she had made. She had loved art, her fingers were always marred with pencil marks due to her endless hours of sketching, but now, her hands were clear and her nails perfectly manicured.

Geet wondered what the artists were thinking when they had created their masterpieces. She studied a large canvas, it was an abstract, there were black and red streaks across the canvas and behind that there was a colour image but were obscured because of the black and red streaks. It was as though the truth of the painting was hidden, struggling to break free from the darkness.

Geet slipped her mask into place as she felt his presence beside her. He was studying the painting silently.

“It’s striking, isn’t it?” she asked and turned her head offering him a small smile.

Maan turned his head surprised and found himself captivated by deep, brown eyes that looked at him. The words had died in his throat as he continued to stare at her, her eyes were warm and inviting and her mouth curled into a subtle smile. He could not look away for a moment but quickly snapped out.

“It is” he said looking back to the painting. “It’s like the artist is hiding something and wants us to look beyond the streaks and find the answers”.

Geet felt a flicker of surprise at his insight but kept her mask in place. “That’s interesting. I find most people look at the chaos and don’t bother with it much”.

“Like they don’t look deeper, right?”

Geet nodded. “Yes”.

“What do you see in it?” he questioned curiously.

“Well, I see regret. The artist created a masterpiece but almost sort of regretted it and painted these streaks to obscure their truth. The truth wants out. And there is hope as well, the artist probably hoped whoever sees this looks beyond the chaos”.

Maan was captivated by her response and intrigued. “That’s quite an interesting interpretation” he remarked with a smile.

She smiled. “We seem to be having quite a deep conversation and I don’t even know your name”.

“Maan, Maan Khurana” he introduced himself holding out his hand.

“Geet” she answered shaking his hand. She maintained her composure as their skins came into contact.

“Geet?”

“Just Geet” she replied.

Maan smiled softly. He felt something stir within him that he hadn’t felt in years. Being near this mysterious stranger, he felt warmth and a lightness that eased the dark shadows of the past he carried with him always. He was completely intrigued and taken by her. He wasn’t sure what it was. He didn’t know who she was, but he knew he wanted to find out. For the first time in forever, he felt like there was a light at the end of the tunnel and it was Geet.

Only he didn’t know, she was not the light in the dark, she was the storm waiting to destroy him.

I hope you are enjoying the story, please do hit the like and comment. ❤️