im so so so sorry for such a late update was having a writers block in this and then wlhc took over 😳 i hope you guys like this one 😃
Part 61
Dadi looked confused but Arjun was alarmed. Handing the tickets over to Romit, he told them all to wait and sprinted towards the exit. There were a lot many things running on his mind. With 5pm approaching soon, his nerves were already stretched to their limits. Even a setback of one minute could cost them a lot... not just in terms of planning but probably the risk of getting exposed to their enemies! Arjun increased the pace of his sprint as his heart speeded up too. He was about to reach the gate when he saw Rashi walk in towards him, brushing her hands over her clothes. Arjuns feet slowed down, because Rashi had not noticed him as she was talking to ... Sanchit.
His face scrunched up in confusion to see them engrossed in deep talks as they walked towards him. Sanchit was the first to notice Arjun and he gave him a small smile. Arjun relaxed and walked in their direction.
"Sanchit... tum yaha?"
"Haan jiju... voh meri class jaldi khatam hui, toh socha aap sabke saath rock garden dekh loon. Pehli baar Rajveer chachu ne lift offer ki... toh ye chance main kaise jaane deta?!"
Arjun smiled when Sanchit winked and then he turned towards Rashi.
"Di... voh dadi keh rahi thi ki, koi gaadi ke baare mein kuch keh raha tha..."
"Haan... actually it was a misunderstanding. Kisi aur ki gaadi ke baare mein tha."
Rashi smiled in assaurance and Arjun relaxed more. Turning around all three of them headed towards the entrance. Sanchit and Rashi stole a glance at each other behind Arjuns back. Sanchit looked pointedly at Rashis hand and she immediately covered it with her dupatta and hid it behind her back.
"Lo... aagaye! Arre Sanchit puttar... tu kaise? Achha hua tu aagaya... ab aur maza aayega picnic mein! Svere hi chalta hamare saath..."
"Voh meri class thi na dadi. Aur waise bhi dad pehle se hi..." Sanchit looked at Arjun and fell silent. But Arjun smiled.
"Its ok Sanchit. I know Sasurji's feelings for me. S0 its good that you didn't fight with him to come here. Dadi... Arohi kaha hai?"
"Uffo!!! Jab dekho Arohi kaha hai, Arohi kaha hai! Jab paas hoti hai to jhagadta rehta hai, aur jab nahi ho toh bechain hojata hai."
Arjun smiled sheepishly and looked around. His eyes lit up as he saw Arohi and Gauri come towards them from a distance. Every time he saw her, he felt that she had been away from him for years, not minutes. He was too engrossed taking a visual fill of his wife to notice Gauris pale face.
"Le aagayi teri voti!" Arohi looked at Dadi in confusion. "Kabse rutt lagaaraha hai tere naam ki! Ab issko jawab deti reh kahan gayi thi usse chodke... hum sab andar jarahe hain."
Dadi herded all the kids inside, leaving the husband wife to follow behind.
"Jab Rashi Di bahar gayi thi toh mujhe thoda shak hogaya tha... aur tum bhi..."
"Arjun..." Arohi cut him off urgently. Arjuns soft eyes immediately became alert.
"Kya baat hai Arohi???" Now that Arjun was getting more aware, he saw a certain kind of anxiety in Arohis behaviour. He immediately grabbed her hands to calm her down thinking that she was getting cold feet.
"Arjun... we need to abort the mission!"
"Kya!" Arjun whispered out loud. Looking around he continued. "Arohi just relax. Sab thik hojayega. Don't worry, mein hoon tumhare saath. Aur fir Karan bhi..."
"No Arjun!" Arohi pulled her hands back with a jerk.
"We. Need. To. Abort. This. Mission."
"But Aru..."
"Now!"
Arjun stared at the determined look on Arohis face. This was not the place where they could discuss openly but he wanted to know the reason. It was 10 minutes to 5 and if they had to abort, then he had to call Karan now.
He looked in her eyes once and removed his phone to make the call. They were trying to tell him what his eyes always told her.
Trust me.
+
"Are you sure?"
Rashi looked at Sanchits pleading face. "Yes Sanchit I'm sure."
"But Di. Ye koi choti baat nahi hai..."
"I know! Lekin Arjun has a lot on his mind right now. Mein usse ghar jaake bata dungi."
Sanchit looked unsure. "Aapka haath kaisa hai?"
Pulling her hand out from under her dupatta, Rashi poured some water over the scratches. Sanchits eyes filled up at the red and blue marks.
"I still cant believe it! Di hamey jiju ko batana chahiye..."
"NO Sanchit! Jab voh aadmi hamare paas aaya tab he was consciously talking to Arohi. Aisa bhi hosakta hai ki voh haadsa Arohi pe ek hamla ho. Probably he didn't see who is following him outside and so they mistook me for her. Agar Arjun ko bhanak bhi lag gayi isske baare mein to he will kill himself worrying over me and Arohi. I will speak to both of them when i reach home, but not now."
"Mera dil toh abhi bhi zor se dhadak raha hai. Agar mein aur chachu time pe nahi pohachte toh!"
Rashi looked up at Sanchit. "Lekin aap dono aaye kaise? Tum toh aane nahi waale they toh..."
"Voh actually... meri class jaldi khatam hui... aur mein bahar aaya toh chachu mera intezaar karrahe they. He said he had some urgent work around here, so he can drop me."
"But... how..."
"How... why... jaise sawaal mein chachu ko nahi poochta. Voh gussa hojaate hai aur mein unki aankhen dekhke dar jaata hoon! I was just happy thinking that i can spend sometime with you guys."
Rashi smiled at Sanchits innocent answer.
"And now i thank god ki mein aur chachu yaha aaye! Mein toh ek minute ke liye darr gaya tha. But hamare ACP as usual cheetah ki tarah alert aur tez nikley. Jis speed mein voh aapki taraf bhaage..."
Rashi shivered remembering the impact of Rajveers body, when he had literally thrown himself on her to avoid the speeding vehicle. They both had gone rolling on the other side of the road. Rashi was alert enough when she was crossing the road, but the car had come out of nowhere... and so had Rajveer! He had pulled her up and checked her for any wounds, yelled at Sachit about getting his walkie-talkie from his jeep and barked in it at his juniors about details regarding the car. But Rashi had just kept on staring at him, wondering if she was dreaming that he is here or if the avoided accident was a nightmare.
"Maine chachu ko itna dara hua pehle kabhi nahi dekha! Aur itna gusse mein bhi..." Oblivious to Rashis blush, Sanchit continued. "Agar voh gaadi wala unke saamne aajata toh chachu shayad usse goli maar dete! Aur ab agar unhe pata chala ki ye hamla shayad Arohi di ke liye tha, toh uss insaan ko bhagwaan bhi bacha nahi sakta."
"Sanchit... ye Arohi wali baat... apne chachu ko mat batana! I think let me talk to Arjun first."
Sanchit nodded his head in agreement. "Thik hai. Ab wapas chaltein hain. Warna dadi poochegi ki hum paani khareegne dukaan gaaye they yaa ghar!" Rashi smiled seeing the worried look on Sanchits face. "Shes just like DJ man... so scary at times."
Rashi chuckled and they both headed back.
+
Arohi could see the questions on Arjuns face but she purposely ignored looking him in the eye. She could make out his restlessness but right now she could not do anything. Their entire planning had gone down the drain. If only she had spoken to Gauri beforehand, this could have been avoided. She didn't blame Gauri either. If she was in Gauris shoes, then she also would have taken the same decision. But there HAD to be a way out of this! What... Arohi could not figure out right now, and she needed Arjuns help for it. But that would happen only after this picnic was over.
When Arjun had called up Karan to dismiss everything, she could hear Karan almost scream from the other side! The entire plot... right from Chandigarh, to London, till Florida had to be cancelled. It was not easy to plan something like this, with so many people involved, especially when it was an underground mission. But Arjun had spoken to Karan with authority, telling him that he cant disclose the reason right now but they cant go ahead with the plan. Arjun had known nothing, yet, placing his entire trust and belief in her, he had taken the onus of cancelling everything.
Arohi felt like crying. She wanted to tell Arjun but she had to wait to get him alone, which looked impossible right now! Why did he trust her so much? If only he had just wound up the picnic and headed home, she could speak to him. But her husband was much more sensible than she thought him to be. He didnot want others to be upset about the shortened picnic and so he was faking to enjoy. If only she could tell him...
Arohi moved closer to Arjun and grabbed his arm. Arjun kept a hand on hers and looked at her. The understand smile on his face blew her away. He patted her hand and walked ahead with her. But Arohi could not stop looking at him. Not only he understood her dilemma but he was actually reassuring her! Arohi pulled him closer and rested her cheek against the fabric clad arm.
She was never ever going to let go of this man again.
"Mikhail... tu yaha?"
Arjun shut the boot of his SUV and became alert. Guarding his eyes with an impassive look again, he moved to the front. Everybody was preparing to seat themselves in the car, ready to go back, when the most unwelcome person had showed up in the parking.
"Ji Dadi. Voh maine socha ki mein picnic pe toh nahi aasaka... toh Gauri ko dinner pe le jaau." Mikhails smile didn't reach his eyes when he looked at his fianc. Gauri paled and Arohi frowned.
"Pagal hogaya hai? Poora din ghoomke bachhi thakk gayi hogi. Aur ab tu usse bahar le jaayega. Itna hi tha, toh picnic pe aajata!" Dadi glared at Mikhail and he gulped. Arohi sighed in relief.
"Dinner hi karna hai... toh ghar pe karlena. Kyu dadi?" Arohi spoke up taking the chance. "Fir dinner ke baad tum Gauri ko ghar chodke aana... thikey?" Everyone agreed weakly and Arohi started ushering everyone inside the car.
"Thik hai. Chalo Gauri. We'll go back together in my car."
Arohi stiffened at Mikhails words. She could see Gauri look helplessly in her direction from the corner of her eye. But Dadi came to her rescue again.
"Shaadi ke pehle akele ghoomne ka bada shauk hai tujhe! Chal mein chalniya tere naal... tum dono pe nazar rakhne wala bhi toh koi hona chahiye."
Dadi started towards Mikhail but Arohi stopped her. "Arre nai nai dadi... aap mat jao. Agar Mikhail shaadi se pehle Gauri ke saath waqt bitana chahta hai, toh ye achhi baat hai. Ek kaam karte hain, Sanchit chala jaayega unke saath. Aap hamare saath chaliye."
Arohi gave a sweet sugary assuring smile to Mikhail and turned in the car to bring out Gauris purse. Handing it to her, she lightly pressed her hand and let go. Mikhail Gauri and Sanchit moved towards Mikhails car, and everyone else started sitting inside.
The drive back was much more quieter with everyone tired and lost in their own thoughts. Arjun dropped Arohi and Lovedeep at Ahluwalia mansion and headed back home. Everybody went to their room to freshen up for dinner. Arjun entered the bathroom and pulled out a note from his jacket pocket, that Arohi had slipped in at the rock garden. The three words written on it didn't help in calming his nerves but gave him something to look forward to. Looking at the note again, he tore it up and flushed it. He needed to take a shower before he had dinner and headed to meet his wife at the cottage at midnight!
+
"You're getting on my nerves now Mikhail!" Natasha spoke harshly.
"You are freaking crazy... you know that! Agar dad ko pata chal gaya ki Arohi ki jagah Rashi di pe hamla karvaya tumne toh..."
"Shut up! I told you it was just to scare Arjun. The intention was not to kill Arohi, and so Rashi would have been okay... even if that inspector had not saved her!"
"Inspector... what inspector???"
"Ohh... so your sources didn't tell you this detail huh? Probably they didn't observe properly. There was a police uniform person who saved Rashi."
"Shit! That must be Rajveer. I thought it was Sanchit..." Mikhail started biting his nails as his brain started putting things together. "Agar dad ko pata chal gaya ki maine tumhe hire kiya hai toh..."
"Relax. Uncle will be happy that you hired the best. I told you don't question me for two weeks! After that you can voice your reservations."
Mikhail hated the dismissal in Natashas tone. All his life he had been treated like an unimportant person, by his dad, by his staff and clients, and now this mercenary!
"Dont forget that if Rajveer has witnessed this accident then he wont let it go! And hes an ACP... not an inspector... and a crazy one! So he will hunt you down very soon."
"Is it? But why would he do that? I thought he hated your family??? Why would he go through so much trouble for a Singhania??"
Flashes of Rajveers and Rashis meetings popped up in Mikhails mind. He was not as stupid as everyone thought. He knew that Rajveer had a soft corner for Rashi and so did she. So Rajveer WILL take this up on priority.
"Because hes a policeman. Its in his blood. You have to stop these nonsensical games and get to work now. I don't want to keep telling you this again and again. But if anyone traces you back to me, then you know what i can and i will do!!!"
Mikhail hung up the phone and threw it on the dashboard. He brushed his hand through his hairs. After dropping off Gauri to her house, he had parked at the side of the road to blast at Natasha. But this woman was getting crazier day by day. At dinner, dad had noticed the bruises on Rashis arms and questioned her about it. Mikhail had seen Arjun become alert too.
This was not good.
The more they wait, the more difficult it was going to be for him to carry out his plans. But first, he had to blast his source for keeping the detail about Rajveer saving Rashi from him.
+
Arjun paced the living room in his cottage thinking deeply. He suddenly halted seeing Arohi stand in front of him. Frowning he looked around. The door was shut.
"Tum... tum andar kaise aayi?"
Arohi put her hands around Arjuns neck. "Gangster ki wife hoon. Kahise bhi aasakti hu."
Arjun smiled and pulled her in his arms. They both just held on to each other, deriving and giving strength and peace to one another. Arjun caressed her hair and walked backwards to the sofa. He dropped down on it taking Arohi with him. Arohi closed her eyes and hugged him tighter. Arjun dropped a kiss on her hair.
"It feels like years that i'm hugging you like this." Arohis confession bought a smile to Arjuns face.
She pulled back to look at him. "Im sorry. I could not tell you then... but..."
"I understand Arohi. Its ok. I know the reason was strong enough for you to tell me to cancel everything."
Arohi pulled back her hands and turned to face Arjun.
"Can you tell me now? Kya baat hui tumhari Gauri se? What did she say???"
Arohi took a deep breath and Arjun looked on anxiously.
"Gauri nahi jaanti ki Mikhail exactly chahta kya hai, but whatever it is, its not good. And I think that he feels that Gauri is all alone."
"All alone... matlab?" Arjun asked confused.
"Matlab jo ussne hamare saath kiya usske baad mein ya tum usski help nahi karenge. Jo usske chachu aur mere gharwaalon ke saath kiya, usske baad meri family usski help nahi karegi. And she had gone to jail where her father refused to bail her. So she cant go to him also. So technically speaking, Gauri is all alone in this world... except for her sister Simi."
Arjun eyes widened. He had underestimated Mikhails shrewdness. He had chosen his target very well. Even if Gauri did manage to dare and confide in her sister, she wont be able to help her and no one else would do so because of what Gauri did to them. But what did he want from Gauri???
Arohi read the question in Arjuns eyes.
"Noone knows what exactly he wants from her. But he has warned Gauri one thing. If she tries to run away or cancel this wedding to avoid whatever he wants her to do... then SIMI will have to take her place!"
