Chapter 35
"Paro...What happened? Did I say anything wrong?" Rudra was distraught. He didn't except this reaction from her, she was supposed to be jumping with joy into his arms. He thought a simple phone call to her sister would assure her that she was doing well. At least until he found a way to take her across the border himself. And he got her a present because he thought girls liked getting presents. He had seen his bhabhisa glow when Samrat gets something for her and she makes his favourite desert as her way of thanking him. Though sweet treats weren't what he desired in exchange for his gifts. And a teary eyed Paro was definitely not what he wanted. Was it because she didn't like his advances towards her? But he felt her surrender into his embrace. She couldn't have been embarrassed there was nobody around. "What is something that I said? But I tried to be as polite as possible. Paro, why are you crying then?" he yelled, his patience was strained. "No, that is not possible anymore," she mumbled in answer. His heart skipped a beat, was that her answer, what was she saying, didn't she want to spend her life with him, did he misread her. Maybe she is just scared, after all the last two times she was a bride ended in disaster. He cupped her face tenderly and said, "Bewakoof ladki, there is no reason for you to be scared, you were brave enough to be my captive. I'm sure you'll manage just fine as my wife." She looked into his eyes overflowing with love for her. She thought to herself that she didn't deserve for him to love her this much. She had made a big mistake by trusting Laila, it was obvious that she meant the world to him. She was sure of that even though she had no idea what Laila meant to him. "I might be getting married soon Rudra" she told him and his dreams for their future shattered instantly.
Her nightmare she had stabbed his heart, her past experience where she refused him for Thakursa, nothing prepared her for the sight of him falling apart in front of her very eyes. She wanted to look away, but she couldn't. This was her punishment to look on as his eyes accused her of betrayal. Betrayal of every moment that meant something to them. The desert wind brought back a memory of Bindi telling him a lifetime ago of her wedding to Varun. He had appeared nonchalant that day, but today she knew how much of effort it took for him to maintain his composure. She would have preferred him to scream at her as usual. He would have felt better after doing so rather than glare at her. She looked away as he turned away. "I love you, Rudra Pratap Ranavat. And nothing is more important to me than your happiness. Even if it means walking away from me, going back to Laila. I will smile knowing that you are blessed with all the joy in the world" she told him honestly as possible. So that's why she did it, he thought to himself. Because she thought that his happiness was with someone else, that too Laila that she decided to wed another man. Why didn't she just confront him instead of walking away from him. "You have loved me from the moment we met. I know that, I knew it even before you realised it. I read it in your eyes, you had for me the instant you became conscious after the blast. I felt it everytime you fought with conscience because of it, when you were my captive. I basked in it every minute since we resolved our differences. We are both in love with each other, Paro. The problem is that, you weren't confident enough that I would love you back. You captured my heart, but still believed someone else had a right to it. You own my soul, but were still ready to spend your life with someone else. Fine if that is what you want, I won't stand in your away" he told her firmly and stood up. She listened carefully knowing that he was right and didn't argue. She shouldn't have let Laila baisa manipulate her. She needn't have agreed to marry the first man that was suggested to her. This was the second time she lost his favour, she felt so empty and desolate.
Paro wasn't sure how long she sat that way. She had become numb to the desert heat. "Ma'am, its getting late", came a polite voice bringing her back to the present. She looked up, it was just Rudra but the affection in his tone was gone. He was trying hard to be just a regular officer who had come to take her home. She got up and stepped into the car. The drive back home was quiet, too quiet. He didn't look back once at her though he could feel her eyes on his back the entire time. He parked the car and helped her out, just as Geethanjali opened the door for her husband. He saluted his senior and turned to leave immediately. "Rudra, where are you off to in her hurry? Stay for tea," she invited hoping that he would work things out with Paro. He declined saying that his father was waiting for him to return. The general recognized his old excuse, "Are you alright?" he asked, genuinely concerned. Rudra replied that he was fine and would report him at BSD headquarters the next day for his next assignment. "Rudra, I have decided you will be working along with Aman on the Tejawat case" he informed the major. He gave him an odd look and told him, "The Tejawat case is in capable hands. I would prefer to stay out of it, lest my priorities get mixed up again causing embarrassment to BSD." The general sighed and went inside where his wife and niece were waiting for him.
"Why does Rudra think he will embarrass the BSD, he is one of your best officers, isn't he?" came the soft voice of his niece questioned. He replied that Rudra tends to follow his heart rather than his head, this sometimes lead him to trouble. Both women waited for an explanation, so he gave an example of how he ended up killing everyone in Paro's baraat in his patriotic fervour. Because of the lack of witnesses to prove him right, he was court-martialed. Paro remembered how he almost lost his job and how desperate he was that she signs in his favour. "Is this because of the article?" Geethanjali enquired knowing that there will be some heat for talking to the press unnecessarily. The general then explained to Paro, how he spoke out in her defence even though he wasn't allowed to comment about a mission. She read both articles and didn't know what to think. She was overwhelmed by this gesture but she wanted to know if he got into trouble because of this. The general shook his head and told her,"No my dear, I love that boy like he is my very own. I have spent ten years in grooming him into the person he is now. I will always watch over his shoulder and stop him from getting into trouble. Even if he rushes in guns blazing, I will pull him out and fix things for him somehow." Paro was confused, she thought her uncle hated the major and that's why he was sent away "No Paro, there have been times, I have wanted to kill him with my bare hands because of the stunts he pulls but then he goes and does something so sweet like this article, that all my anger just dissipates. I will never hate him. I only sent him away because I wanted him away when I wanted to clean up this mess without his interference."
"He has a good heart, don't you think so?" Geethanjali asked the young woman in front of her. Paro nodded, Rudra had a beautiful heart, one that was almost hers. "Why did he seem upset with you, I was the one he has reason to be angry with?" her uncle asked. She confessed that she had agreed to meet Mrs. Sisodia's nephew because she thought that Rudra didn't care about her. And that she had just informed Rudra of her decision. "Why would you do that, didn't you know how he feels about you?" her uncle asked. He turned to his wife and asked, "Geetu, you have seen them together. You know how much he cares about her. Why did you allow his to happen? And didn't your friend Padmini see them at the party? Why did she even consider Paro for her nephew?" he scolded his wife. His wife argued that her friend saw Paro and found her agreeable. So she approached the girl. They argued for awhile as to why they were not spoken to, why the hurry to finalise the wedding, why she had to go away. "Its my fault, please don't fight, I should have asked her to speak to you. I was so confused after talking to Laila baisa, that I just agreed to whatever she said before I even thought about it. I didn't expect her to rush everything like this," Paro interrupted them. Geethanjali knew from the look on her face that she didn't want this at all. The girl was convinced that Rudra didn't have a place for her in his life so was stepping aside gracefully. But who was this Laila, she had known Rudra for a very long time. He never mentioned any woman, she certainly couldn't be that important to him. Paro had to be mistaken, but she couldn't have made this decision based on haste. There had to be something more to this situation. "Laila is just his informant, she has been that for the last 8 years, Paro. I don't think she has any friends of her own other than Rudra. She is supposed to be a dancer who is always following him, from one post to another. Some say, he saved her from a tight support, so she is very loyal to him and tries to help him in everyway, passing on information she gets through shady methods which nobody questions. Some say she is in love with him and thinks that he belongs to her. I don't know where such ideas come from. He hates beautiful women and doesn't encourage any of them to be a part of his life. Ask your aunt she will tell you, how my bravest officer will run the minute a woman tries to establish any personal connection. And my men wonder if this woman has trapped her with her feminine wiles. As for Rudra, he doesn't seem to care about her at all. Beta, you should talk to him if that is bothering you so much. He will yell and scream at first, but I have a feeling he will be honest with you", the general told her what he knew of the woman, hoping that she will fix things soon.
The cup slipped from her hand as she heard the door bang open. "Beendani, what is wrong with you? Didn't your mother tell you that tea is cool and soothing to the skin?" she mocked wiping it off her hand. Maithili started to apologise but before she finished a sentence, they heard the violent sounds. It was coming from Sumer's room, they rushed upstairs. Rudra was furious with his cousin and couldn't stop beating him, "What is wrong with you? You rushed into a strange tunnel leaving an SMS?" Sumer shoved him hard and rushed to shut the door as he didn't want anybody to overhear. "Rudra, that tunnel reaches straight to Tejawat's Haveli. I bet he used all those underground tunnels and dungeons to hide his work and secretly transport weapons" he guessed excitedly. "That's doesn't matter Sumer, not if you ended up killed by his men, who may still be using that tunnel. You're done with this mission, you can stay in Jaipur and just focus on your tourism gig. Stay away from this case", he held him by the collar and warned him. Outside the women saw the locked door and Maithili rushed to get her husband, the doors had to be broken open. "Rudra! Sumer! Open the door!" Mohini shouted as she banged it as hard as she could. Sumer was shocked, he loved being an informant. "No, I want to help. If Maasa hadn't gotten scared after Taausa lost his leg, I would be in BSD too fighting with you," he argued. Rudra tightened his grip around his cousin's neck and slammed him on the wall. Samrat and a worker had started to force the door open. "No, Sumer, I don't need your help anymore, stay out of this." But he wasn't ready to back out yet, he told him that Aman appreciated his help, so he will stay on as his informant. Rudra didn't like the way things were turning out. "I can't do anything if I have to keep worrying what you are upto all the time," he told him honestly. The door swung open and she screamed seeing her son trapped in Rudra's death grip.
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