Chapter 7 ~ Accidents Cantankerous moods didn't achieve anything, so Jaidev decided to put Jaya and his father out of his mind and get some work done. He focused on completing the reports that were pending and then attended a couple of meetings virtually. Closeted in his hotel room all afternoon, Jaidev didn't see either Sinhaal or Jaya and nor did he hear from them. By the time he was done with the tasks at hand, it was six in the evening. He decided to step out for a breath of fresh air before he could redirect his energies in convincing Jaya to go back to Delhi with him. It was proving to be an uphill task and Jaidev was genuinely surprised. He hadn't expected resistance from Jaya. In their relationship of over four years, Jaya had always been an acquiescent person, so her current stubbornness was a new experience for him. As he stepped out of the elevator, he almost ran smack into Sinhaal. Stepping back, he did a double take as he took in Sinhaal's dishevelled appearance. His immaculate suit was smudged with dust and dirt stains, his hair was tousled and his shirt sleeves rolled back to reveal bruises that marred his hands and forearms. A trickle of blood ran from his temple to jawline.
"What happened?" Jaidev asked aghast.
"A little gift from our dear old friend," Sinhaal replied.
At Jaidev's raised brow, he shrugged, "Subhash Lal strikes."
Jaidev decided to escort Sinhaal to his room before resuming his earlier plans of going out for a walk. As they stepped into the elevator, Jaidev asked, "So you suspect foul play?"
"Absolutely. The man's got a record for being rough, but apparently, this time he was aiming for thorough," Sinhaal explained.
"What exactly transpired?"
The elevator stopped at their floor and the men stepped out.
"The brakes of my car had between tampered with, but I didn't realise it for a while. Then I spotted this black sedan tailing me and when I tried to lose it, the driver got aggressive. Just had two minutes to ditch the car when I came across the next bend in the road. We jumped out mere seconds before the sedan rammed into my car, sending it up in flames on the deserted road," Sinhaal explained as they walked into his room. He threw his suit jacket on the couch and plopped on the bed.
Jaidev cut short his next thought as something from Sinhaal's words registered belatedly.
"You said 'we jumped'. Was someone else with you too?" he asked, already suspecting the answer.
"Yes. We had gone to meet a couple of potential sponsors for Cherish, so Jaya -"
"Where's Jaya?" demanded Jaidev cutting off Sinhaal mid-sentence.
"She's in her room, being attended to by the doctor."
Jaidev was already striding out of the room before Sinhaal could complete his sentence. He was outside Jaya's room within seconds. He turned the doorknob and wasn't surprised when it opened. When he walked in, the doctor was nowhere to be seen and Jaidev assumed he had already left. Jaya sat on the bed, leaning against the headrest with her eyes closed. Her face was pale, a bandage tied around her forehead. A tiny red spot on the bandage above her right eyebrow hinted at the wound beneath. A moment passed as Jaidev just stood there in silence.
As he was about to turn and leave, Jaya spoke, sensing his presence, "If you're here to ask after my health, I'm fine, thank you. If you're here to check whether I'm dead, sorry to disappoint you."
Jaidev scowled.
"This," he growled, motioning towards her and referring to the accident, "this is exactly why Dad wanted you off this case and away from Cherish."
"And what about you?" she glared.
"I merely want you in one piece till the damn divorce goes through. So you better don't get yourself into something that may be difficult to get out off," he snapped.
"Listen, Jaidev," Jaya flared up in response. "I know you don't care about me, and I'm fine with that. But, at least, when it comes to innocent kids, do not prove you're insensitive and heartless."
"I'm not being insensitive towards the kids," he shot back indignantly.
"Then why can't you see that what Subhash Lal is doing is ruining the lives of these innocent kids! Or is it that you cannot see anything except that which benefits your father, Papa's boy that you are," sneered Jaya.
He opened his mouth to respond but then decided against it. Gritting his teeth against her accusations, he walked off leaving her to bask in the glory of her victory.
*
In his room, Jaidev paced back and forth as Jaya's words kept ringing in his ears. He had never seen Jaya so adamant or vocal about anything before this and he was surprised that she was being so aggressive about this whole issue with Cherish.
Frustrated, he opened his laptop and after a couple of clicks pulled up a screen. A few moments later, he pulled up another screen and keyed in his credentials. From one to the next, he got so engrossed in what he was doing that Jaidev lost all sense of time. By the time he got up from his desk, it was 10pm. Rolling his head to loosen the crick in his neck, he walked to the window and slid it open. The cool night air did little to lessen the disquietude that he felt. As he stood at the window, pondering over all that he'd learnt in the past few hours, a familiar figure moving across the street below, heading towards a couple of cabs parked on the opposite side of the street caught his eye. Dressed in a hooded sweatshirt and track pants, her hair tied in a high ponytail, she moved with a feline grace. Jaya.
Her present state wasn't favourable for lone night time walks in a strange city but he'd be damned if the stubborn woman understood that.
Grabbing his car keys and locking the door behind him, Jaidev made a dash for the elevator. As he raced out of the lobby into the street outside, he saw her leave in a cab. He got into his car and hit the gas, following the cab as it wove through the light traffic. After a few twists and turns, the cab stopped at a gate adjacent to a small basketball court. The gate led to a two-storey building where Jaya disappeared inside. A quick perusal told him that the property belonged to Cherish. Jaidev parked his car at a vantage spot, under a small copse of trees beside the basketball court, and turned off the engine as he waited. Whatever possessed the woman to visit the orphanage at this time of the night, he had no idea. Moments passed as he waited, the silence punctured by the occasional honking of a car in the distance. She emerged from the building, a fleeting smile on her face as she entered the basketball court and sat on a bench in the corner. She seemed to be lost in thoughts, a forlorn expression lingering on her face.
The calm of the night was suddenly shattered by squeals of delight. Jaidev was stunned by the complete transformation that he witnessed on Jaya's face as a group of young kids entered the ground and raced towards her. Her face radiated pure joy as she spread out her arms and a little girl, of about seven years and the youngest of the group, threw herself on Jaya. She picked up the girl and swirled her around, releasing more gurgles of laughter. Jaya kissed the girl and sat on the bench, her arm tucked around the girl as the other children surrounded her. They sat down and soon began listening with rapt attention as she regaled them with tales of yore. Some time later, as the tale ended, they jumped up and scattered across the basketball court as one of the boys ran off to get the ball. As he returned with the ball, the kids were split into two teams but suddenly both teams started squabbling over which team would Jaya be part of. Jaidev watched with interest as she effortlessly solved the issue with the toss of a coin. Unbeknownst to him, a smile stretched across his face, as Jaidev realised that Jaya was a natural with kids, when he saw her whoop in joy with her team.
The game soon began and the entire basketball court was filled with the lively chatter of the kids. She played with fervour, a kid among many, losing herself in the game. With every goal, she cheered both the teams and not just her own. Her words and cheers providing the necessary motivation to keep every player encouraged. Except for a couple of goals, she subtly missed the basket each time she got the ball. Then, it happened all of a sudden. As one of the boys hurled the ball towards his teammate, the other boy missed it and the ball hit Jaya on her forehead, squarely on the wound. Reeling with the impact of the hit, she stumbled and fell. Cheers turned to gasps and an eerie silence filled the court. Jaidev was out of the car within seconds, muttering curses under his breath. The children gathered around her as she sat on the ground, worry etching each and every one of their features. The boy guilty of the hit stood isolated, fear lining his face. Jaya suddenly burst into laughter and the atmosphere relaxed as the kids slowly joined in. She called the boy and said something to him which soothed his fears and he gave her a hesitant smile. She ruffled his hair and then gently stood up. Jaidev waited back, not feeling the need to barge in anymore as she seemed fine.
Jaya led the kids to the building and directed them in. Waving them good night, she turned and headed out of the gate and straight into the cab that had been waiting outside. Jaidev got into his car but not before he had spotted the fresh blood that had started oozing out of her wound. With not much of a choice, he silently tailed the cab back to the hotel. As the roads were clear, they reached the hotel within fifteen minutes. Jaya got off the cab and went into the hotel, oblivious to Jaidev's sneaky presence behind her. As she got into the elevator, Jaidev raced up the three flights of stairs. He reached the third floor just as she exited the elevator and headed to her room.
Jaidev saw her swoon slightly before steadying herself. He reduced the distance between them with brisk steps. She unlocked the room and stepped in. Another wave of dizziness hit her and he saw her swoon. Jaidev was beside her in an instant, his hands shooting out to hold her as she collapsed in his arms.
***
A/N: And so, I leave you with the gift of day-dreaming until the next update. 😆
People, your lovely comments go a long way in motivating me to write more and keep writing. They also tell me what is it that you expect from the story. So please keep sharing your thoughts, as always. I'm eagerly looking forward to hear what you thought of Jaidev in this update.
P.S: Thank you for all the love you show towards Sinhaal! There's more of him to come.
Edited by -Sarcy- - 9 years ago
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
