Tejawat was walking in his warehouse, inspecting the new weapons that were being prepared for exportation. There were dozens of crates being packed with weapons and labeled with the destination. The crates that were inspected and signed off on were carried by men into a truck, which would take them to Tejawat's second location, where they would be hidden within everyday objects and smuggled across various borders. Today, his inspection was a little behind because the man in charge of the finances wasn't present. The boy already wasn't on his good side, and his tardiness was not helping anyone. Tejawat's anger at this situation was present as he was yelling at his men, ordering to find the whereabouts of his financial assistant: Varun Kumar.
It was in the middle of his demands that he received the call from Bheema. Tejawat didn't know what he was talking about, but he needed something to break the boy, and it seemed that he had gotten it. Bheema was ordered to get back to the haveli as soon as possible with the new information. The thakur hung up the phone and angrily thought about the events leading up to him spying on one of his own.
Tejawat had taken Varun under his wing because the boy was in desperate need of money. It was clear Varun was not a strong man, and not much of a fighter, therefore the thakur allowed him to take care of the finances of his exports. At first it was just small amounts, but as time and trust grew, Varun became responsible for handling all money transactions, and he was very good at it. Things were going very well, until Tejawat stumbled upon some inconsistencies in the balances. It seemed that the transactions were now off by a few rupees. To a regular seller, a few rupees wouldn't mean much, but it meant everything to Tejawat. Any money that went missing could end up being traceable to his underground business, and that was the last thing he wanted.
At first, it was only a few accounts, then more and more accounts were off by small amounts. Tejawat wasn't worried, but he did become inquisitive. His gut told him that Varun was withholding money from him. He began having his men investigate and he had come to know that Varun was, in fact, stealing money from him. It hadn't just started recently, oh no, it had been going on for the last three months. By calculating the amount missing, Tejawat had discovered that Varun had taken almost 80 lakh! Upon learning of this deception, Tejawat was furious. The volcano within him was the verge of erupting, ready to destroy everything in its path.
However, Tejawat kept his composure. If he lashed out now then Varun wouldn't suffer, and after all of the stealing and lying he had done, Varun deserved to suffer according to the thakur. Therefore, he had Bheema keep an eye on him, to observe and take note of everything the man was doing when he wasn't working with Tejawat. It seemed that Bheema had some interesting news, and he was eager to know what it was, which is why he called his loyal follower back to the haveli to see what he had found. Tejawat returned to the haveli after inspection, and found Bheema waiting patiently for him in the main room.
"Bheema," Tejawat said. "What news have you brought?"
"Thakur-sa I found that Kumar's weakness," Bheema said proudly as he handed Tejawat his mobile.
Thakur-sa looked at the picture of the woman and immediately recognized her as Parvati. She had lost her parents at a young age and her mami-sa had taken her in. He had run into her once before and remembered how eloquently she thanked him for everything he had done for the village. The innocence within her left him awestruck. She was certainly not a woman that could be easily forgotten. But the question was: What was Parvati doing with Varun?
As if reading his master's mind, Bheema spoke, "Based on their conversation, this woman is Varun's fiance. He gave her a gift and discussed finding an auspicious date for their wedding."
Tejawat laughed, "Well done Bheema! So, Varun has been stealing money, and thinks he could get away with it. Poor chap forgot the most important rule I taught him. Love and women are weaknesses for men, and it will lead them to their downfall."
"What are your orders thakur-sa?"
"It looks like we're going to have to show him the price of deceiving Thakur Param Singh Tejawat. Bring me the girl. She's going to be very useful in all of this."
"And Varun?"
"I sent him out on business. We'll deal with him after you bring me the girl."
Bheema bowed and was dismissed by the thakur. Tejawat sat down and began contemplating his convoluted plan to destroy Varun. The thakur didn't take kindly to stealing, and this was no exception. As much as he wanted to shoot Varun through his skull point blank, he knew that it would be too easy of a punishment. He would have to make the boy suffer. The best way to do so would be through Parvati. Tejawat wondered how badly should he punish Varun. He could just kill Parvati, thereby sending him a message, or he could slowly torture her. Tejawat couldn't decide. There were just so many options that it made him giddy with excitement.
It was nearly nightfall when Bheema had returned with an unconscious Parvati. She was tied up and slung over his shoulder like a sack of flour. When he arrived with the cargo, Bheema dropped the girl on the ground next to Tejawat. Since he knocked her out by using chloroform, Parvati would remain unconscious for the rest of the night. Tejawat stared at the woman for a long time, going through his mental lists of punishment that would be deemed fit. She certainly was beautiful. Even in her unconscious state, she seemed like a sleeping goddess; it was surreal. This woman was depraved of the realities of the outside world, but after today she would become well aware of the cruelty out there. There were so many options of torture, but only one woman. The thakur let out a sigh in disappointment.
"What are your plans for her?" Bheema asked.
Tejawat didn't respond to Bheema's question. Instead, he grabbed the phone sitting on the table next to him and dialed the number of the man whose ideas for punishment would be far better than anything he could come up with.
"Yes thakur-sa," the voice said.
Tejawat smirked evilly, "Rudra, you know that man I had you take away two days ago? Well, it seems that you will have to give him an easy death. Your services are required once again, but this time...things are going to be a little different."
After Tejawat's call, Rudra had to kill off his most recent prisoner and dispose of the body properly. It didn't take more than an hour. Afterwards, he got on his bike and made his way to Tejawat Haveli in Birpur. Rudra was actually interested in what job thakur-sa was going to give him. This was going to be something different, but he didn't know what. When he arrived at the haveli, Rudra didn't find Bheema at the front gate with a prisoner. Instead, the gate was wide open, with no one else present. With his guard up, Rudra slowly entered Tejawat's haveli. The thakur's workers were working around the house, moving items and fixing things, not paying much attention to him as he casually walked into the main room, where he believed thakur-sa would be. He found Tejawat sitting calmly in the main room, gazing at the being lying on the ground. As he came closer, his eyes caught hold of the woman tied up and unconscious. Tejawat stood up upon Rudra's arrival.
"Rudra," he stated.
"What needs to be done thakur-sa?" Rudra asked.
"It seems my money keeper, Varun, has been stealing money from me for the past three months. Small amounts that have now totaled up to around 80 lakhs. I want that money back, so I've decided to motivate' him into returning the money."
"With this woman?"
"Yes. Her name is Parvati. She is Varun's fiance. You are going to hold her captive until Varun returns all the money, and if he doesn't return it in time...kill her and him both."
"So...a ransom?"
"Yes. But she needs to remain alive."
"And if Varun returns the money in time?"
"Kill her anyways, but in front of him so he sees what happens when a person messes with Param Singh Tejawat."
Rudra accepted the orders as they were given. Tejawat handed him a larger sum of money than usual, since this wasn't the usual job. This time Rudra would have to keep the prisoner alive, with no intent to kill until it is confirmed by thakur-sa whether or not his money has been returned in full. Without even caring about the gentle figure of the woman, Rudra carried her over his shoulder out to his motorcycle. He didn't care who she was, he just knew the task he had to accomplish. He placed her on the back, just like he had done with every other prisoner, and drove back to his small home in Chandangarh; he was ready for his session with a new prisoner.
**********
Let me know what you think by leaving your comments and feedback below.
Thanks for reading everyone.
Ishaani
Cricket
