Chapter 33
"And what will you do? You're talking as if you're going to take her from here and marry her!" Karan challenged, snickering and bemused.
"I will!"
The words had come out themselves, spontaneous but confident, with no forethought whatsoever, and yet had seemed absolutely correct. The unambiguous truth. The most natural thing to do.
Driving here, as Rishabh's heartbeat finally began to calm once they were an hour outside Mumbai, he looked at a sleeping Madhu on his left and thought about what he'd screamed at Karan for the first time. Up until then, there had been no time to think of anything other than the most pressing concern of Madhu's safety. But now that she was here, now that they were together and safe, his mind began concocting new dreams of its own accord already.
Madhu, his Madhu. The girl he loved so much, more than his life, more than anything else. The girl he couldn't imagine being away from his eyes for even a second.
A faint smile lit up his face as he gazed at her sleeping form, a smile that held the promise of a better tomorrow, of an end to both their misery, of togetherness and joy. Of love.
And yet, the truth was, in his delusional hope he forgot that a marriage needed two. He forgot that while he wanted her, she wouldn't. He forgot that while she was his angel, he was, to her, devil incarnate.
"Madhu" he softly whispered and woke her up with a gently touch. She had slept off on the floor a few minutes ago, tired from all the crying. He would have just picked up in his arms if he wasn't injured, but there was no one else at home and from holding her hand earlier he knew she had fever. Wearily, she opened her eyes.
"Rest inside" he said and she woke up, groggy and frail. He supported her to the bedroom and gave her a tablet of paracetamol and water and covered her with the comforter as she drifted back into sleep.
**************************
Madhu slowly opened her eyes and found herself alone, in an unfamiliar place. The clock on the wall opposite her said 11:20 AM. That was late! Where was she?
That's when she remembered the events of the previous evening and remembered Rishabh had brought her to his farmhouse.
She heard the door of her room open and on instinct shut her eyes again and pretended to be asleep still. She wasn't yet ready to face whatever her new reality was. She took a deep breath as she heard someone walk around the room and move a few thing, but she her eyes closed. Her emotional outburst from the previous night had left her spent. Honestly, she couldn't believe she was still alive. There was a vile, metallic taste in her mouth that instantly reminded her of the panicked revulsion she had felt last night when she was certain Karan was going to force himself on her. For no logical reason, she had wished for Rishabh. Like a miracle, he had appeared and dragged her away.
But why? And where? And what was he going to do with her now? And Manav?
She heard the door close again and the person leave. Slowly she opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling blankly as she remembered her confrontation with Rishabh. She had been so frightened, so broken, so vulnerable, she had screamed her fears to him without thinking but now she wondered if the Rishabh she had come to know and understand had really the motives she'd accused him of. He hadn't said anything to her, but he hadn't even denied anything. Vaguely, she remembered him tucking her in the bed at some point at night. But it was clear from the state of the bed that she had slept here alone. Where was he? Had he left?
An inexplicable shiver of fear went through Madhu at the last thought, but before it could develop, she heard his voice outside and for a second she actually felt relieved he hadn't left her alone here.
"Saab...I have kept Madam's breakfast, the clothes and and the medicines you asked for in her room. Lunch is in the kitchen. Should I bring your breakfast?" a woman's voice.
"No I am not hungry. You can go now. Thank you Seeta." RK replied.
"Ok. I will come at 6 pm to make dinner. Do you want anything else?"
And then, silence again.
Madhu lay there for some more time, thinking about how to behave when she saw RK again, but finally gave up and decided to just ask him clearly what he wanted and where he'd kept Manav. She saw a kurta and salwar lying on the chair. It was loose for her, but it would have to do for now. She picked the clothes and walked into the bathroom for a much needed shower.
******************
"Hisss"
It was a faint wince but in the absolute silence of the farmhouse, Madhu heard it as soon as she walked out of her room. It was coming from a bedroom on the other side of the living room. The door was open and Rishabh was standing there, shirtless, facing away apparently trying to change his bandages. She saw the fresh blood on the discarded cotton he had used to wiped his head and shoulder wounds. Without the shirt, Madhu could clearly see the purple bruises on his back, the cast on his left hand which he hadn't bothered to support with a sling and the gashes on his right.
"Hiss" he winced again as he struggled to tape up his head wound with one hand and Madhu couldn't take it any more.
He turned, sensing her presence when she reached him. She extended her hand to take the bandage from his hand but he pulled it away. She didn't give up though and took it anyway - there was no way he would manage the redressing by himself, especially with one hand broken. She made him sit as she cleaned, applied medicine and bandaged the wounds. All through, their eyes didn't meet. Madhu looked at the wounds - his head, his right arm, his shoulder, ribs, the left leg which he had apparently already bandaged before she came. She could feel his pain every time her hands touched a sore spot and it made her restless. Even though she didn't say anything, she was freaking out at his injuries. No matter what, she couldn't not care for Rishabh.
"Thanks" he said as he stood up once she was done. He started to walk out, his eyes still away from Madhu's when she stopped.
"How did this..."she asked. He turned and saw her pointing to the injuries. She was worried and she still cared for him despite how much she hated him. That just showed how compassionate his Madhu was, RK thought to himself.
"Accident" he lied. There was no point going into the details.
He then handed her a packet kept on his sidetable. It had a cellphone and money.
"Keep this. There is a car outside and the number of a driver in your phone. You can go wherever you want, whenever you want. He will drop you wherever you say. You are free and you can go even now. But it is not safe yet and I would strongly urge you to stay here for 4-5 days and then do whatever you'd like. I will handle Tony and whoever else. Don't worry about him, that life is behind you. If you still want to leave right now, I will send bodyguards with you. Don't worry, they will not bother you and they will leave you alone when things are safe. However, I'd strongly prefer you staying here at least for some time. It's easier to protect you if you're front of my eyes..."his voice trailed, but quickly recovered " I will stay out of your way..."
He was interrupted as his phone rang. he pulled it out of his jeans packet and answered it.
"You're here. Ok. Come inside. I told the guard to let you in"
He disconnected the call and looked at a speechless Madhu.
"Manav is here. Again, I'd prefer if you both stay here for a few days. It's still quite risky. If you don't trust me staying around, I'll move out of the farmhouse. Anyway you should think through what you want to do and where you want to settle down. If I can do anything, please let me know. There's food in the kitchen. If you need to get something, tell Madhav Singh the guard or his wife when she comes in the evening. I have told her to bring some clothes and supplies for both of you on her way. And...uh...please let me know...before you leave, if you can...You don't have to run." His voice was hoarse and broke as he said the last few words, but by and large he was in control of himself.
He left the room before Madhu could say anything. She wanted to follow but the next instant she heard Manav's voice in the living room and immediately ran out.
*****
"Aap?" Manav asked as soon as he got to the visitor's room. He had been summoned from the class and he ran here wondering if it was his sister or the old man her sister had said she'd be sending.
Madhu had called him two days ago on Monday evening on his cell phone. She had sounded cryptic and Manav wanted to ask her so many questions. All she had said, however, was that his life could be in danger. She said some people were behind both of them, but didn't say who or why, but Manav worried if it was connected to Mukund. She had explained earlier that Mukund had tried hurting her. She just pleaded him to trust her and after the previous incident when she had come to Panchgani, he didn't want to say no. She said she will send an old man she trusted with a few things and instructions for him. Basically, she wanted him to run away without informing anyone or casting too much attention. She made him promise to be brave and to do whatever she said, and he had, but he had been restless and confused ever since.
Now, however, as he reached the visitor's room, he saw that there wasn't any old man but in fact the man who had come with Madhu the last time she was here. Her boss.
"Hi Manav. My name is Rishabh Kundra. I..."
"You are Didi's boss, right?"
"Yes. I am. I believe your sister told you something."
"Not much. She said I needed to run and she'd send some tickets and instructions for me. She said it's not safe."
"Yes. It's not safe. But I have a better plan now. We need to get you out of here without attracting attention. I promise I will keep you safe. Do you trust me?"
Manav looked at the man. He was badly hurt, somehow, but he looked sincere and honest. He remembered Madhu being with him, so it's possible he was saying the truth. But what if he was the danger Madhu and he were supposed to run from?
As if sensing the apprehension, RK took out a paper.
"Manav. I know it's hard for you to trust me because you don't know me. But I promise I won't harm you or Madhu. This is a letter signed by Madhu as your guardian. It says she is ill. I want it to take it your hostel warden and get leave sanctioned. Here's a second one with authority from Madhu for me to be your guardian and to take you along. Don't go to your principal or anyone in the school, just go to the hostel and tell them your sister is in the hospital." RK explained, once more grateful that Madhu had left a few blank signed pages along with her note for Manav with Patil.
"Is she..."
"No. She's fine." he gulped. "She'll be fine. She has to be. I will not let anything happen to her or you. But Madhu seemed to believe some people in the school administration cannot be trusted. I am not exactly sure why."
"Mukund..."
"What?"
"Mukund bhaiya...he knows people in the admission office and one teacher, but that teacher left now. He got me admitted here. But Madhu didi said we can't trust him. He...he tried to hurt her..I am not sure."
"Yeah. Ok. I understand. We can't trust Mukund or anyone he knows. I will come with you to the warden. We need to get leave sanctioned for you for two days. Then go to the room and pack all your stuff. It is still class time so the hostel should be empty. Pack everything you need, we are not coming back here."
"We are not?"
"We can't. I am sorry you won't have the chance to say goodbye to your friends. Maybe later...but for now, it's not safe and it's better if you're gone before anyone realizes."
"Ok. In that case I will not get all my stuff. I will only take what I really need so it will look like I'm coming back"
"Hmm. That's good. Thank you Manav." he said gratefully. This would have been much harder if Manav didn't trust him. He had Madhu's note, but he didn't want to show it to him and freak him out.
--
"Manav, I need to go help your sister ok." Rishabh explained as the car they'd left the hostel in stopped half an hour out of Panchgani. They had been talking and Manav had somehow come to trust Rishabh. Besides, he seemed to know Madhu and even had papers signed by Madhu.
"I have to go back to Mumbai, but I cannot risk taking you with me. That car...those are bodyguards...my men. They will take you to Pune. There is a hotel room in my name. Just ask for the key at the reception. You stay there and don't go anywhere. Ok?"
"I will be there alone?"
"For now. I will be there as soon as I can. But I need to get Madhu, and it is too big a risk to have you with us. I will bring here along as soon as possible, I promise."
"Is Madhu di going to be okay?" he asked, almost crying. Rishabh hugged him and caressed him just like his sister.
"She would be fine. She has to be." He muttered, both to himself and to Manav. "Okay. You have your cellphone?"
"Yes."
"Ok. Let me feed my number on it. Call me if anything happens. If you need to leave me a message and can't get hold of me, you can dial my home number and tell Patil kaka anything. But if you sense any danger, anything at all, call the police, ok? These men will protect you and they know how to reach me, but still, I need you to be careful. Don't talk to anyone from school or otherwise...or that Mukund..if you need anything, tell these people and they'd get it for you. And take this money too. You'd be brave for your Madhu didi, won't you?"
Manav nodded, understanding. For an instant he had worried about RK's intentions when he saw the armed men, but hearing the genuine care and concern in his words made him want to trust him. Besides, he was asking him to call the police if there was any danger. He surely wouldn't do that if he wanted to hurt him.
"Thank you Rishabh bhaiya" he suddenly said and gave him a light embrace. Moments later, Rishabh hugged him back and Manav was smiling when they parted, suddenly more confident in Rishabh than afraid for himself and Madhu.
****
"Didi!" there he was. He looked safe and happy. He ran to her embrace as soon as he spotted her. Behind him, two muscular armed men, both armed with AK47s stood in the living room. They gestured something to RK and left.
"Manav! How are you my child? Did anyone hurt you?" Madhu kissed him on the forehead and looked him from head to toe to make sure he was fine.
"I am fine didi. Are you okay? I was so scared after you had called on Monday."
"How did you get here?"
"Rishabh bhaiya came to my hostel yesterday. He brought me." He answered and Madhu looked at Rishabh who was standing at the other end looking wistfully at them. Even from the distance Madhu could see the moisture in his eyes and she felt massive regret for thinking the worst of him. She had accused him of imprisoning her and Manav for his pleasure, but in fact, he had rescued them both. She didn't even know how he had managed to do that. How did he know about Manav? How did he know where she was? How did he get Karan Mathur to let her go?
She opened her mouth to say something but Rishabh was already back to his room, shutting the door.
"Didi...I am so sorry didi...I was so rude to you when you'd come to see me last time. I know you said on phone you'd forgive me but..."Manav cried.
Madhu wiped the tears off her crying brother's face.
"It's okay Manav. I am not angry. I am just so so relieved that you're here, in front of me and safe. Nothing else matters, trust me." she reassured him, kissing his forehead and hugging him again, trying to make herself believe that this was really happening even as more tears fell. This seemed better than anything she had dreamed of in the last 3.5 months.
She was really free. Her ordeal was really over. And Rishabh, who she had called a brutal monster less than twelve hours ago, was in fact her savior?
Her guardian angel.
Edited by teekay - 10 years ago
Arjun
