||CHAPTER-13||
It was bittersweet, Anika thought watching the two brothers cry their hearts out in relief. Her eyes drifted to the body of the lad on the gurney. He was young and fair with toned muscles and a serene face; just like her Sahil and Rudra.
Anika swallowed hard, struggling to find solace like Shivaay and Omkara did. She walked closer to the prone figure picking up the discarded sheet that lay crumbled on the floor.
She couldn't stop the tears that seeped past her swollen eyelids when her eyes took a closer inspection of the body. He was so young and charming!
Anika may not have names and faces yet, but the boy was someone's grandchild, son and brother; someone's Chote devar like Rudra was to her. And now, here he was dead and caught up in the mess of the Oberoi's affair.
With trembling hands, she cautiously and reverently covered the body with the sheet and clasped her palms in deference. 'Thank you...' her mind silently prayed, 'Thank you for not being Rudra.'
She turned to the doctor standing beside her observing her with muted deference. "Please have the young man's family informed and..." She inhaled slowly as the gurney was slowly wheeled away, "Give them my deep condolence for their terrible loss."
The doctor gave her a tight smile but before he could get in a word, he was harshly yanked back into the steely grip of one fuming Shivaay Singh Oberoi.
He had seen his fair share of distressed and upset families in his years working in the Forensic Department; heck! He had even shared fistfights with a few disgruntled ones! But the miasma of despair and pain from the human before him had him rooted on spot.
He was an atheist; he never gave a hoot about heaven, hell and the afterlife. But the cold fury that stared right into his bare soul had him re-evaluate his faith. He was facing the reaper who was ready to hunt down and brutally obliterate the person behind this seamless plight.
He saw the personification of the Hell standing before him.
"Where is that scoundrel?!" Shivaay shook the doctor by his lapels. "Where is that son of a b***h?!!"
Om, who had been on the floor from his earlier emotional fit, immediately rushed to Shivaay's side along with Anika who desperately tried to pry Shivaay's grip from the frightened man.
"Shivaay, please listen!" Anika begged while her had clawed at Shivaay's solid grip, "Listen to what he has to say!"
Anika flinched when Shivaay's piercing eyes immediately locked on to hers' with burning accusation. Anika held on to her resolve and continued, "There's definitely been some miscommunication here", She internally groaned at the way her voice wavered like a leaf.
"Miscommunication, huh? Now you feel there is a miscommunication, huh?!" He scowled at her, his voice carrying a note of blame and mockery. It didn't sit right with Anika.
"Shivaa-"She started.
"STOP!" Shivaay bellowed, gesturing harshly with his palm in front of her. "Stop..." he repeated in an eerily calm voice, "Don't you dare talk about miscommunication while it was your lack of disclosure that caused this in the first place!"
Om gaped at Shivaay's accusation. Did he finally loose it?! A thick cloud of silence and distress settled upon them that seemed to last forever. His eyes darted between Shivaay's rigid stance and Anika's trembling one. He flinched at the voice that came out of his Bhabhi's mouth when Anika finally opened her mouth to speak. It was broken, hurt and sad.
"S-Shivaay, what are you talkin-"
"You knew..." Shivaay pointed at her and Anika almost tripped and fell at the sudden, sharp gesture, "You knew it was Pinky who had ruined Rudra's sherwani that night!"
Om inhaled sharply, his mind finally catching up with the revelation. She had narrated her part about the sherwani while discussing the whole affair with Chote Papa! And for once in his lifetime, Om felt floored at the accusation. He turned numbly towards Shivaay who seemed to not stop there.
"You knew she had threatened him with something; you knew he was upset when he went to bed that night! You knew that and yet..." Shivaay breathed in and out harshly while he drilled holes into Anika's skull, "You didn't tell me!"
By the time Shivaay was finished, Anika was a sobbing mess. Yes, she knew; she had been carrying that guilt all along. She remembered vividly the night when Shivaay had woken up screaming Rudra's name and had rushed towards his room. She had left Shivaay to snuggle up with Rudra while she cried herself to sleep alone.
She knew she should have told him right there and then; maybe this would have never happened. But, she recalled Rudra's quivering lips and stubborn, tear-filled eyes. He had held in his hurt for Shivaay's happiness, withheld his pain for his brother's and her pleasure. He had tried to be strong for them and Anika didn't have the heart to break his illusion.
"Why didn't you tell me? Your stubbornness has bathed my brother--MY BROTHER in blood and pain!" he screamed hoarsely. "Did our marriage mean more to you than my baby brother's life?!" Shivaay spat at her and the very venom and pain in those words shattered her into million pieces.
She could see the fine thread of trust woven between them from years of catfights and tough love shred into oblivion. Moreover, what hurt her most was his blind accusation of not caring for her Rudra!
"Shivaay!" Om yanked Shivaay around harshly and before anyone could comprehend what was going on, a loud smack resonated through the wide corridors. Anika gasped, her hands covering her mouth as she stared at the unforgivable spectacle before her, her own pain and betrayal forgotten momentarily.
Om had slapped Shivaay.
The shock written all over Shivaay's face and the blooming shade of red on his right cheek were proof enough and the same expression reflecting on Om's face told her that it had been unintentional, an act of outrage and frustration on his part.
Om looked on, horrified as he inspected his trembling hand that had slapped Shivaay just seconds ago. What had he done?
"Shivaay..." he cautiously approached him.
"Om..." Shivaay whispered softly, a look of disbelief plastered on his face as he lifted his hand to softly touch his throbbing cheek.
They were all hurt here with no one to hold on to. It was usually Rudra who broke arguments like it was nothing; with his goofy smile, stupid logic and puppy eyes. Now, he was gone and the role he had played was just too much!
When he was within arm's length, Om immediately pulled Shivaay into a rib crushing hug. He felt hot tears soak into his shirt and Shivaay's frame tremble against him. He freed his right arm and looked over Shivaay's head to beacon Anika over.
Immediately, he felt her soft frame against his right as she openly sobbed her heart out. And Om gladly held onto them; for once taking the place of the Oberoi's wall instead of Shivaay.
For what seemed like eternity, the three stood there, in their own world, in a deep cocoon of warmth, security and comfort, away from the harsh storm around them. And when they pulled away, it was with determination and vendetta in their eyes. Without any words between them Anika walked away to call Bhavya who was holding the press back while Shivaay fished for his phone.
"Hello, Dr. Aaron, this is Shivaay, yes, Rudra's brother..." Shivaay's voice was finally strong and controlled, Om observed in relief. Taking a deep breath, Om recalled the events that had happened on their way to the Trauma Department. Rudra was definitely with them in the ambulance, of that he was sure of.
"He was young, maybe around his early thirties..." Om heard Shivaay describe Dr. Barat to the doctor. Om's eyes widened as realization slowly dawned on him followed by white hot fury. "That bas***d..." Om muttered darkly just as he heard Shivaay's voice boom loud beside him.
"What do you mean you were on a bl**dy vacation?!" Shivaay screeched into the phone.
Om immediately snatched the phone from Shivaay before he went and broke it in his rage. "Hello, Dr. Aaron..."
An altogether different voice spoke back. "Hello, you must be Omkara Singh Oberoi." The calm, matured baritone drawled back sardonically.
"W-who..."
"I am Dr. Barat Chabra, the real one might I add, who had been rudely interrupted in the middle of his vacation to speak with an impudent brat through a conference call." The doctor sneered. "You will do good to tell that brother of yours to show some respect next time!"
The authority in his voice vaguely reminded Om about someone. He couldn't put a name to the face but he immediately assured the doctor and mumbled a soft apology on Shivaay's behalf. He shushed Shivaay who bristled indignantly beside him.
He heard the doctor sigh on the other side. "Listen Oberoi, I've been here in London for the past week. I have absolutely nothing to do with you Oberoi snobs and I'd like to keep it that way!" The doctor huffed before the line went dead.
Om stared blankly while Dr. Aaron coughed in embarrassment. "I am sorry about Dr. Barat. He is a little...uptight..."
However, Om completely overlooked the less than friendly reception; instead, his mind was reeling at the dreadful thoughts running through his mind. If the man who had been with them in the ambulance wasn't Dr. Barat, then who was he?
"Bade Bhaiya!" Om and Shivaay turned towards the corridor to see Bhavya and Anika rushing towards them carrying a laptop. He saw the Commissioner briskly follow them from behind with a battalion of cops.
"Mr. Oberoi, as soon as the incident at the mansion was reported, our team had started the investigation." The Commissioner asserted as soon as he reached them, "Your mother or anyone else at the mansion has nothing to do with your brother's disappearance. However..."
He held his arm out for Bhavya to hand over the laptop, "This is what we got from the camera footage by the traffic lamps when the both of you got of the ambulance to confront the riot."
Shivaay and Om observed the proceedings as vehicles one after the other bulked up until there was a heavy jam with their ambulance tucked between two SUVs' and another ambulance from behind. He saw himself comb through the cars and Om talking to the imposter Dr. Barat before taking off after him.
He gasped softly when the doors to the SUVs' opened and men dressed in hospital personnel's clothes hopped into their ambulance to pull Rudra's gurney out and into the ambulance behind them.
And his blood ran cold when Dr. Barat hopped into the ambulance with his baby brother, but not before looking up and throwing a mocking smirk at the camera.
"That brute..." Shivaay pressed through gritted teeth, "How dare he?!" He addressed the Commissioner and ordered him to trace the thug immediately.
"Mr. Oberoi, we have the team--"
"Check the ambulance's number, the connecting routes and their surveillance camera!" Shivaay barked orders. "Om! Call Khanna here with the footage of the strike; Bhavya, check the camera in the hospital! I want names and faces in an hour!"
Om nodded but before he could dial Khanna's number, he saw his phone ring with an anonymous number. A sense of foreboding engulfed him. The loud cops suddenly stopped in their inspection and the now-silent corridor echoed with Om's ringtone "Shivaay..."
The brothers' eyes met in a silent conversation before he nodded. Om put the phone on speakerphone and soon, ragged, deep breathing echoed through the device. Rudra's breathing, they realized. The sound of his baby brother's breathing brought a sense of tranquillity and immense joy into their soul.
"Rudra!" Shivaay gushed over the phone, tears pricking his eyes. "S-sunshine? It's me, your S-Shivaay Bhaiya..." Shivaay blabbered on like a fool. "Talk to me Rudy..." he whimpered desperately.
"He won't." A young, masculine voice interrupted his ramble.
"I don't know who you are but you won't get away with this!" Shivaay bristled in rage. "Give me back my boy!"
Humourless chuckle reverberated through the speakers. "You are in no position to threaten me you filthy Oberoi..."
"What do you want from me?!"
"What I want from you?" the voice cackled.
And suddenly, the chuckling stopped abruptly along with the call. Shivaay fruitlessly shook the phone around before it beeped again with a message.
"An MMS..." Anika whispered in anticipation. She hunched over Shivaay's shoulder along with Om as he pressed the play button with trembling fingers.
The screen opened to the angelic face of his baby brother on a cushioned pillow, breathing through a mask.
His baby brother. Alive. And Breathing.
Shivaay's hand quivered as he tenderly traced his sleeping babe's face. His poor Rudra lost and hurt without his Bhaiya beside him.
He stared in shock when the silhouette of a woman's face appeared on the video only to bend over his brother to plant a soft kiss on his temple. In the dim lighting of the room, Shivaay could only see her red, tainted lips and her sharp nose. Those lips hovered over Rudra's forehead with a cruel smirk.
"I have what you want, Oberoi." The venomous voice of the lady whispered like an asp.
"And..." her smirk turned positively evil, "I am gonna have so much fun breaking it."
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A.N: I apologize for the long hiatus. The past week's been pretty hectic, with the New Year and all. I hope you guts had a splendid beginning. I totally did! Thank you all for the continued love and support!!
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
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