The peace to his storm- chapter 20 updated on Pg 19

CHAPTER- 2 MINISTRATIONS AND MANIPULATIONS - Part 1

Barely managing to speak she whispered through trembling lips, "Paro".

Still lost in her fear- struck face, Rudra slowly lowered his gun, but didn't loosen his grip on it. As he bent down to reach out to her, he saw that she had her hand on her right foot which was bent in an odd angle. As he reached out to check up on her foot, she trembled and pulled away from his hands. Realizing the fright she must be going through, he asked again as gently as he could "What are you doing here? Why didn't you leave with the other girls?"

Still trembling, she replied frantically, "Nandini Jija ... She is still here.. I wanted to leave with her.. I was running and my foot... Jija... She's still captive... she is injured.. he has her here... he'll hurt her.. he'll kill her." Rudra understood that she was talking about Tejawat. Tears ran down her translucent cheeks as she tried to explain the situation to him in broken sentences. As her eyes lowered from his face to his uniform, a new hope dawned in her eyes as she looked back at him and begged "You're the police aren't you? Please save my Jija. She needs my help. She's alone and injured.. She's still in his clutches. Please search for her. Please find her." She tried to move towards him but her foot didn't allow her to shift even an inch. Holding on to her foot, she continued to plead for his help.

Rudra was torn. On one hand, he was the closest ever to catching Tejawat, but on the other, safety and protection of civilians was of first order to any policeman. Rudra had always honored his uniform. He felt a sense of pride in owing it. On the first day that he had donned the ensemble, he had vowed to always protect its dignity. His work always came first for him. Despite the long, tiring, grueling hours and many broken bones, nothing would elate him more than taking down the enemy. Every drop of sweat and blood spilt had made it worth it. Unconsciously itself, he knew what the right thing to do was.

Gripping her shoulders, he told her in a stern yet soft voice, "Listen to me. I promise you that I will find your sister, but what's important right now is getting you out of trouble first. We need to leave this place and get you to safety. Your leg needs the medical attention before its condition worsens." Silencing her unsaid protests by firmly placing a hand over her mouth, he further instructed saying, "All I need you to do is listen to me right now and do as I say. I promise I will come back for your sister." He showed her the sincerity of his words through his eyes as he looked into hers with searing intensity.

Gazing back into his eyes, Paro finally gave in and nodded in agreement. Slowly removing his hand from her mouth, he asked to wrap her arms around his neck so that he could carry her out. Very hesitant at first and still trembling, Paro slowly brought her arms towards his neck and clasped her fingers behind firmly, still gazing up at him. Securing his gun and placing one hand on her bare waist and the other below her feet, he helped her adjust her lehenga and carefully gathered her into his arms and started walking towards the exit, while her eyes never left his determined face.

As he carried her in his arms, he was suddenly aware of her dainty form. There was something about this girl that had struck him the moment he had laid his eyes on her. He was suddenly conscious of her smooth arms pressed against his neck and his fingers against her waist. Her face was only inches apart from his as he studied her features. Ebony eyelashes grazed her now pink tear- streaked cheeks. Her almond shaped eyes continued searching his face while her pale soft lips were pursed together.

Rudra was never the man to be swayed by beauty. He did not believe in attraction or even stronger emotions such as love. His past had taught him that. His mind was already set when it came to trivial matters like love and affection. He hated those sentiments, despised them with every cell of his being after what "that woman" had done to him. The pain and agony were still fresh in his memory, so were his harrowing nightmares and sleepless nights.

But, at that very moment, he couldn't ignore the strong pull he felt towards the girl in his arms. All he wanted to do was protect her, to pull her away from any harm and bring back the tranquility in her scared eyes. With the same lingering thoughts he continued to walk.

If only he knew that it was her who had come into his life to save him. To pull him out of the deep abyss and lead him towards unbound happiness and peace.

A sudden movement behind him brought back his senses to full alert as his eyes scanned the premises like a hawk. He barely had time to duck down and protect her and himself as a thick log whizzed past his ear missing his head by inches. As Paro screamed in fear, he enveloped her in her arms before setting her down carefully and pulling out his gun as he turned to face the monster in person.

CHAPTER 3- FACING HIS WRATH

"Forgive me Paro" said Nandini, with tears in her eyes, lovingly stroking her sister's head. "Forgive me for putting you through this hell every day. I am so sorry Paro. My hands are tied. I am indebted to Tejawat and because of me, you have to face his atrocities" she said hating herself.

"No Jija." Parvati assured her distraught sister. "This is not your fault in anyway. I have never blamed you and I never will. I know what we are going through is tough but as long as we are together, nothing is ever going to happen to us. I agree that right now conditions are not in our favor, but remember what Maasa would say." She asked Nandini with a smile.

"Happiness is always within our reach. All we need to do is realize where it truly lies" Paro reminded Nandini. "You are my happiness Jija. You shall always be my happiness." she continued wiping away her sister's tears. "Bholenath never fails to protect his children Jija, and you are one of His most favorite child. He will never let anything happen to you."

Nandini admired her sister's innocence. It wasn't the foolish kind. There was a certain level of maturity in it when she spoke that Nandini hadn't seen in most people of Paro's age. Nandini cursed her fate since it brought despair to her young Parvati. Forced to work in the worst possible situation because of their late father's debt with Tejawat, Nandini had vowed that she would never let anyone harm her sister or let her go through the pain that she went through every night in the hands of the beasts that flocked at Tejawat's hideouts. She had pleaded Tejawat to keep Paro away from the business by promising to sacrifice her own body, which was now left without a soul, whenever he demanded her to. Paro was the only reason left for her to live, to fight and to smile.

"You rely too much on me Paro. I have never been able to give you anything and I'm scared about what would happen to you if I'm hurt or if I die. Who wou-"

"Don't you dare Jija" interrupted Paro. "Don't you ever say that again. Nothing will happen to you, it never will. I will always be there for you come what may."

Nandini chuckled at her sister's naivety. "It's not just death that I am talking about Paro. There will come a time when others will become more important to you. There will come a time when you will have to leave me", she emphasized understandingly before Paro could interrupt her in indignation.

"There will be a time when someone will enter your life, and pull you away from anything that is despair. He will be your savior, your hope, an answer to your prayer, who will dedicate his every waking moment for your protection." Nandini told Paro.

"I have you for that Jija" Paro replied as she lay down on her sister's lap who stroked her hair tenderly.

"No Paro. It's true that right now I am with you and I shall protect you for as long as I can. But you cannot deny the person when he enters your life. He will come into your life like the burning sun. Both of you will clash, but that will make the bond between you even stronger, unbreakable by even the forces of nature. As the time will go by, you'll become inseparable. You'll yearn to remove any pain from his life. It'll make your day when you shall see him smile. Same would be with him. He will lay down his life for you, for your happiness, for your protection, for your everything. It'll happen soon Paro. You may feel otherwise now but a time will come when he shall become the reason for your every breath"

Paro pondered on her sister's words as she slowly drifted to sleep. Would such a person like that really enter her life? Would he mean so much to her? She thought as she closed her eyes.

She tried to open her eyes but her mind wouldn't listen to her and her eyes remained stubbornly shut. Trying to recall what had happened to her, she realized she had been dreaming about the conversation she had had with her sister long ago. But that meant she had no idea where she was right now and she still had no clue as to where her sister was. The thought was enough to open her eyes in panic. As soon as she did that, waves of sunlight blasted in her direction, forcing her to close her eyes once again. As she squinted through the light, she could make out a silhouette as it approached towards her. Panicking, she tried to move away, but then she hit an end at her back.

She finally lifted her head up when he finally appeared beside her and she looked into the eyes of her savior. But there was hardly any room for gratitude, as his dark eyes burned into her. She could feel his anger radiate towards her and he looked like he was about to spit fire at her. Gripping her arm in a sudden motion with his blazing eyes never leaving hers, he erupted on her...


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"Why?" he demanded fiercely holding her hand in a death grip. "Why didn't you listen to me at the warehouse? Didn't I tell you that I would leave no stone unturned to find your sister? Yet you still fell into that coward's trap and because of you, because of your foolishness, he has escaped." Rudra hissed at her.

Paro trembled as waves of his anger crashed onto her and she tried her best to explain to him the reason for her behavior. "Whatever I did, I did it for my Jija. At that point of time, he was my only hope of finding her and you were about to kill him and I couldn't afford that. Please try and understand. There was a reason why I did that" she pleaded.

"Nonsense!!" roared Rudra as he yanked her out of the bed she had been resting on and she winced in pain as her injured foot hit the floor because of the sudden moment. Gripping her shoulders and pulling her close, he continued to shout, "Didn't I tell you that he was just playing with you? He had no idea where your sister is. He was just using you as a means to escape. Also, I wasn't going to kill him. Do you know for how many cases that man is wanted?" he questioned her shaking her slightly, ignoring her bruised foot.

"If I had taken a shot at him, it would be only to injure him enough so that he wouldn't escape. Death is too simple a punishment for him. I wanted him to rot in jail for the rest of his life for the sins he committed knowing that he would never escape. Every day he spent behind bars would remind him of the sickening deeds he did. But now, because of your foolishness, your inability to think straight, he has escaped" finished Rudra pushing her away from him with disgust apparent in his eyes.

Holding onto the bedpost to stop herself from falling down, Paro looked at him with tears in her eyes. "I agree that what I did then was wrong and that my actions were foolish, but at that point and even now, all that matters to me is my sister. What if you would have killed him there?"

Something in Rudra snapped upon hearing her accusing words. Breathing hard, he slowly moved towards her. Controlling the rising urge to hurt her, he demanded, "Are you questioning my ability? Who gave you the authority to question what I could or can do? How dare you? You're nothing but a mere woman passed between hands" he finally spat.

"RUDRA!!" a voice yelled at him from behind. Turning around towards the voice, he saw his mother standing at the doorway with a thunder-struck expression. As the seconds passed, the expression changed to that of anger as she strode into the room. Rudra knew that he had crossed the line when he had uttered his last few words about Paro. But he had been so angry that he couldn't stop himself before the words slipped out of his mouth. Now, looking at his mother striding towards him, he realized the weight of his disgraceful actions.

"Is that how to talk to a woman? Mind your words Rudra!" said Mala Ranawat she strode across Rudra, pushing him, towards Paro who still held onto the bedpost for support, aghast at Rudra's spiteful words.

Gently holding Paro, who was still speechless and dumbfounded, and directing her to sit on the bed she turned towards Rudra and ordered him, "Apologize Rudra. Apologize to her this instant."

CHAPTER 4- TURMOIL IN THE HEART

At the police station:

Rudra continued to twirl the paper weight as he thought about the tiring day that it had been. But what he found more perplexing was that he kept thinking more about the girl than Tejawat's escape. Flashes of her face kept tormenting his mind. Those hazel pools did not leave him. The eyes with fear in them, the eyes wet with tears and what haunted him most were the eyes which looked at him aghast at the spiteful words that he had hurled at her before leaving his place.

He hated her, he was sure of it. She was the reason for his failure today. If only she had listened to him today. Hadn't he told her again and again that he would find her sister irrespective of the consequences? If only she had believed in him, trusted him for those few moments. But she hadn't and the thought of it boiled his blood. As he stubbornly tried to count the reasons of why he hated her, his mind took a detour and he remembered when he had first seen her. He couldn't explain what he had felt then, he was unsure of those feelings himself. Something about her had drawn him towards her, an invisible bond that had bound them together.

The feelings had intensified when he had carried her in his arms. He was suddenly aware of her touch, her breath against his neck, her soft fingers entwined at his nape. Despite the tensed situation then, all he had been aware of were the sensations that he had been going through. He had felt gratified when she had held onto his shoulders during his confrontation with Tejawat. For this very reason, he had felt more betrayed when she chose not trust him.

Suddenly aware of the trail that his thoughts were taking, Rudra sat upright in his chair and questioned himself, "Did he hate the girl because of Tejawat's escape or was it because she hadn't trusted and relied on him. Had the issue become personal to him? Why did her trust matter so much to him? It hadn't even been a day since he had seen her and she already disturbed him to this extent.

Laying back on the chair and closing his eyes, Rudra remembered her sleeping peaceful face, devoid of any emotion, except the peace that she needed. After she had lost her consciousness, Rudra had carried her home thinking that it was the best thing to do. He had laid her down in the passenger seat of his jeep and her fluttering raven tresses against her tranquil face had disturbed him throughout the journey.

After he had laid her down on the bed, he had remembered about her injured foot and had tended to it, albeit in a haphazard manner, since he had never done anything like this for anyone else, except probably his mother when she had been sick. At that moment, looking at her sleeping face, he had forgotten all about his anger and defeat. In those few moments, all he had wanted was for her to be alright, for her to open those doe eyes and look at him.

Chiding himself at his stream of thoughts, Rudra rubbed his temple that had been throbbing since he had arrived at the station. He had been harsh to her. His biting words had cut into her. Her pained expression had said it all. But Rudra was not ready to apologize.

The chaos going through him continued to disturb him before a constable entered and told him that Aman had come to report to him. Sighing, Rudra asked the constable to send Aman in. He mentally willed himself to concentrate on the more pressing matters at hand regarding Tejawat, as Aman walked in.

At the Haveli:

"Jallad!", that was what he was, thought Paro as she opened her eyes. He was a beast, who only cared about himself and his victories.

As she rolled to sleep on her side, she got a full view of the room. Observing the soft pastels, she was suddenly reminded of the woman in whose arms she had bitterly wept before she was lovingly tucked into bed by her. Something about her had reminded Paro about her Jija, the way she had consoled her after the Jallad's outburst, the way she had fed her despite her refusals. She had also let Paro sleep with her head on her lap and had tenderly patted her hair till sleep had overtaken her.
Paro had realized that she was Rudra's Maasa. She found it very difficult to believe that such a crude, harsh man was her son. Remembering Rudra reminded her of his words and accusations. How dare he say all that to her? She had only been thinking of her sister. Even now she had no idea where her sister was.
Making her mind up to leave and search for her sister, Paro sat up on the bed and tried to get down, but her aching foot did not allow her to. Placing a hand on her foot, she drifted to the time when she had first seen him. She had been waiting at the warehouse for her sister as she had asked her to do so. Sitting with the other girls, she had suddenly heard the bullets as they rang harshly, hitting and missing. In the process of running, she had slipped and twisted her foot, forcing her to sit down. Crawling to hide herself, she had made a sound which he had heard and had hurled himself on her thinking of her as his target. Frightened at the sudden ambush, she had nearly cried out, but he had stood frozen with the gun pointing at her head. Too scared to say anything she had continued to gaze up at him before he spoke and asked her name.

As the seconds had passed, her fear had ebbed away and she had agreed to his words. She had held onto his hand for support and protection. Paro had little respect for men. Apart from her Bapusaa, all the others she had come across had only vile thoughts in their heads when they leered at her and her Jija. Tejawat was no less. Despite him giving her sister money, he was a cruel man who had first trapped her Bapusa and then her Jija.

But something was different about the man who had rescued her. Despite her initial misgivings about him, she had not cringed away him from as she often did with other men. She had given up herself into his arms without thought or fear. His strong arms had made her feel safe. When he had lifted her into his arms effortlessly, she saw his power and determination. She had seen the honesty in his eyes when he had promised to look for herJija. Her heart had started beating faster when he had looked into her eyes.

Paro was unaware of these sensations and they confused her. Something about him had reminded her of the conversation she had long gone had with her sister. Had this man really come for her? Had he come to be her savior, her protector? she had wondered while he had carried her in his resilient arms.

But reality had struck her and it had struck her hard when she heard him heave the accusations and cruel words towards her. How could she have even thought that this man was actually her knight in shining armor? They were just not meant to be.

Sudden loud noises from the hallway brought Paro to the present. Slowly getting off the bed, she walked towards the door, while holding onto the room's belongings for support. Hiding behind the curtain she saw Rudra's straight back clad in uniform. Opposite to him was his mother with whom he was arguing with.

"Try to understand Maasa. The girl cannot stay here. If you want I will put her into witness protection, but there is no way she stays in this house" Rudra told her firmly despite knowing that he was fighting a losing battle with his mother.

"Are you done?" Mala asked her son pointedly. "Good. Now you listen to me. Paro will stay here until her leg heals and till you find her sister. Till then, she won't go anywhere no matter what you say. Also, I won't talk to you either until you properly apologize to her for your behavior today. So not another word from you." Saying so she walked away from Rudra who stared at her in disbelief.

Turning around he saw Paro hiding behind the curtain peeking at him nervously. After few moments of deep gazes exchanged and no words said, Rudra turned around and walked away and Paro placed a hand over her thundering heart to calm the storm.

CHAPTER 5- COUNTING MOMENTS

It had been 5 days since Paro had arrived at the Ranawat haveli. She was amazed at how easily she had felt at home there. Maasa had taken such good care of her and Paro would be forever indebted to her and Prakriti.

Mala had insisted that Paro call her Maasa and had taken care of her just like her real mother. She had seen to it that every need of Paro's was taken care of. She had personally tended to Paro's foot and it had nearly healed and Paro could now move around, albeit a little pain. Mala had also promised her that Rudra would personally lead the mission to find her Jija. When Paro had insisted that she would leave, since she had already troubled her family for so long, Mala would hear none of it. Mala had firmly maintained that Paro would not leave until Tejawat was caught and put behind bars by Rudra. Mala had explained how Tejawat would now target her and her sister and her staying at home was a much safer option. Moreover Paro had also witnessed the numerous times Mala had fought against Rudra where he kept insisting that she had to leave the house and Mala had vehemently denied every time. Seeing Mala care so much for her had filled Paro's eyes with tears and had finally given into Mala's wishes to remain at the haveli.

Another delight for Paro at the haveli was Prakriti Ranawat, Mala's daughter who had happily welcomed Paro to share her room. The first time Paro had seen her, Prakriti had come bounding into the room. Seeing a stranger in her bed she had awkwardly questioned Paro who she was. Fumbling, Paro had tried to explain about herself, but she had realized she hadn't done a good job of it as Prakriti still kept staring at her in silence. Moments later, Mala had arrived and explained the situation carefully and Prakriti had been more than welcoming. There hadn't been even a hint of displeasure when Prakriti had promised Paro that she would help her mother in taking care of her. Overwhelmed by the concern, Paro had started crying and Prakriti had hugged her and asked her not to. Prakriti would be mostly away at college during the day but she would spend her time in the nights with Paro. She would tell Paro everything that happened at college that day and Paro would be fascinated hearing the stories. Prakriti made Paro listen to songs on her mobile and Paro's favorite was Kuch Kuch Hota hai, which she had listened to long ago when she had seen the film along with Jija in her village. A strong bond had developed between the two girls in just a short span of time and both cherished it equally.

If there was one thing that perturbed Paro, it was Rudra and his behavior. After the yelling match that had happened in the bedroom, he had refused to speak to her. They would bump into each other at times but he would just ignore her and walk away. Just yesterday, she had suddenly tripped while climbing the stairs, but out of nowhere, his sturdy arms had reached out to stop her. Holding her securely he had looked intently at her face. She thought he wanted to say something to her, but all of a sudden he abruptly let go of her and walked away leaving her confused about his conduct. Seeing how his mother was also siding with Paro, Rudra hardly spoke to her either. But Mala was just as spirited as her son and she continued to ignore him too. But Paro knew that he was working hard to find her sister and she would be eternally grateful to him for his efforts. He would spend most of the day at the police station, sometimes wouldn't even return in the nights. At the times that he was home, he would spend his time reviewing the case files and planning the next course of action. Paro was struck by his determination. But, she hadn't forgiven him for his hateful remarks and Rudra hadn't made an effort to apologize to her either.

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At the police station:

"I am s-" He fumbled.

"Look I know I shouldn't have said something so hurtful, it's just that.." He stopped midway not knowing how to continue further.

He tried again. "Maasa told me that you had been crying and since I was the reason for it, I should make amends and..." Sighing and realizing how lame that sounded he gave up.

Frustrated, Rudra ran a hand through his hair as he kept pacing around his work desk. He was going nowhere with this apology. Rudra knew he had to do it one day or another, but what he had no idea was to how to go about with it. It didn't help matters that he would be completely robbed of speech every time he came across her. Just yesterday, when he had stopped her from tripping on the stairs and held her in her arms, he had thought that it was the right time to apologize. But the close proximity had disturbed him. While it did things to his body, it had completely numbed his brain and he had just kept staring at her before leaving gruffly without a word. His mother was against him too and had conveniently chosen not to talk to him until he apologized to Paro.

Closing his eyes and breathing slowly, Rudra tried it out one last time. Conjuring up her demure face in his mind, he spoke out loud.

"Forgive me. Forgive me for not understanding your state of mind. I know that the things I told you, shouldn't have even entered into my mind in the first place. I was frustrated and I took it out on you even though I didn't mean to." Sighing he continued, "Look I don't know how to apologize or console other people. I am bad at it and I have no intentions of changing for anybody. But I do owe you an apology because I behaved in an extremely immoral manner and I shouldn't have. So... I'm Sorry!"

Opening his eyes, Rudra saw Aman standing in front of him, with a smile threatening to break on his face.

Realizing how it must have seemed, Rudra pulled himself together, cleared his throat and asked Aman irritably, "Aman, didn't you pass through a door on your way in? Did it ever occur to you that knocking it before coming in would be a good idea?"

Composing himself, Aman apologized and said, "Sir, We have new information about the undercover operation at the Geetanjali lodging Hotel."

His senses alert in an instant Rudra asked Aman to continue further. Rudra had been working hard along with his team to find Paro's sister. Their efforts had borne fruits to an extent after they had come to know that a woman of her description along with many others were held captive in the cellar of the Geetanjali Hotel, another "investment" of Tejawat. Rudra had ordered for one of his men to go undercover and work as an employee to find out more about the matter.

"We were right about our suspicions Sir!" said Aman. "Our man has confirmed that around 15 women are being held captive in the cellar of the hotel which includes the woman who matches the description given by... Parvati Baisaa" he hesitated before finishing.

"Parvati Baisaa?" Rudra thought to himself. It had never occurred to him to call her that. He had addressed her by what she had told him. Paro'. Concluding to himself that Paro sounded simple and better, he proceeded to give orders to Aman.

"Tomorrow" said Rudra giving out the instructions. "Tomorrow, we raid the place and rescue all of them. Get the troops ready. We start our operation in the evening. First, you and I shall enter and scan the place and then the troops will come in. As per my sources, Tejawat will be busy at that time at a political dinner, so we can carry out the operation right under his nose."

"Sir!" Aman nodded and saluted smartly before leaving the room and Rudra grabbed his jacket off his chair and proceeded to go home.

At the Haveli:

Rudra entered the Haveli massaging the back of his neck. The continuous labor of the last few days had begun to take its toll and the fatigue had started to set in. All he wanted to do was get a few hours of sleep before tomorrow's action.

As he neared Prakriti's room, he heard music from inside with chiming laughter in between. As he slowly pulled back the curtain, he was mesmerized by the sight infront of him. Paro was dancing. With a smile on her face, she matched the steps to the rhythm of the music. Joining her in the gala was Prakriti who was close behind Paro in following the steps.

Try as he might, Rudra couldn't pull his eyes away from the swaying beauty before him. Her eyes sparkled as she continued to twirl to the tune. Holding her lehenga she turned around and it swirled into an array of colors around her waist drawing his attention towards it. The alabaster of her skin stirred something deep in him. As his eyes went to her long neck, the sensations in him intensified.

Suddenly the music stopped breaking his thoughts. Paro and Prakriti hugged each other and continued laughing as they finished their dance. Looking at them both, Rudra smiled. He was happy for Prakriti. He didn't allow her to leave the house often because of his job and enemies. She had a few friends in college, but otherwise she was mostly alone. But Prakriti had never complained, and for that he admired his sister. Having seen her gel with Paro so easily made him happy.

What enticed him was Paro's face. He had seen her hurt, aghast, scared and confused. Even in the past few days she had smiled, yet there was a sadness and worry ever present in her eyes. For the first time today, he saw her laugh and smile without any inhibitions and her laugh was infectious as Rudra sensed his smile widen.

Adjusting the curtain back, Rudra made his way towards his room upstairs making up his mind to apologize to her tomorrow. He would do it for sure.