*After Seven Days at Gangwal Mansion*
The Gangwals sat in the living room, tensed. Laxmi had been continuously crying. Nisha and Dolly were trying to calm her down, but failed. The aura of tension was broken when Ramesh's mobile rang.
Ramesh- Hello, Police Inspector, kahiye...
Police Inspector- Hume Highway ke paas ek dead body mili hai, and the girl is wearing the clothes you described your daughter was wearing before she went missing...
Ramesh- (shocked and scared) Kya?
Police Inspector - Hume shaq hai, yeh dead body Navya ki hai but the face has been damaged...
Ramesh- (broken) Nahi, aisa nahi ho sakta...
He fell down. Kabir and Saurav supported him. He broke the news to the others in the room. Laxmi started crying more, while tears trickled down Nisha's eyes.
Ramesh- I have to go to the morgue to identify the body... Laxmi, kya tum saath aa sakti ho?
Laxmi couldn't speak, she was still in shock. Taking that as a no, Ramesh walked out, followed by Saurav and Kabir, who knew that Ramesh too needed someone.
*Morgue*
The ward boy removed the cloth that covered the body. The face was too damaged to be identified, but the clothes and the gold necklace around the body's neck was enough for Ramesh to confirm that the body was Navya's. He started crying a lot.
They went out of the morgue. Saurav and Kabir were trying to console Ramesh but failed. They heard someone clear his throat, so turned. A woman, in her 40's stood there.
Woman- Hello Mr. Gangwal, main ASP Khyati Kumar, Mumbai Police...yeh case main handle kar rahi hoon...I know it's difficult to lose your loved one (Ramesh looked down and wiped his tears) but yeh meri duty hai... Forensic ke reports aane tak, hume aapke family se interrogation karni hogi... Hum kal shaam aapke ghar aayenge...
Ramesh nodded. She left from there, followed by the constable.
The whole day passed in pain and tears. Laxmi, Nisha and Ramesh were inconsolable. Kabir, Dolly and Saurav stayed with them that night.
*Next Day*
Khyati entered the silent living room. she looked at the faces of the family members and sighed.
Ramesh- Yeh meri badi beti, Nisha...
Nisha gave a brief nod.
Khyati- So last aapne Navya ko college ke liye jaate hue dekha tha?
Nisha- Ji, 25th ko, at 8.30... usually uski duty 9.30 shuru hoti hai, par usse jaldi jaana tha...Par College ke authorities aur uske classmates se hume pata chala hai ki woh wahaan pahuchi hi nahi
Khyati- Hmmm...travel kaise karti thi woh?
Saurav- She owned a car, jo missing hai...Tata Nano, MH 14 CS 5487
Khyati- That's surprising... Tawade, Nano ki missing case file karo, aur uske details saare police stations mein bhej do...
The constable set off to do his work.
Khyati- Uske college friends?
Dolly- Kirti aur Jwala...
Khyati- Unse bhi baat kar lenge hum...Ek baat hai, ki uske sim card ka last location iss area se 500 meters doori pe tha, and, woh do dino se off hai... Looking at the position of the dead body, bahut hi berehmi se maara gaya and doesn't look like an accident at all, because sarr pe attack kiya gaya tha... I would keep out business rivalry with you, Mr. Gangwal, since, aapki log respect karte hai, and in case kisine kuch kiya bhi, toh uske baare mein meri team zaroor investigate karegi, but now, let's focus on your daughter. Uski kisise dushmani? Relationship?
Laxmi spoke for the first time.
Laxmi - Nahi madam, meri bacchi kisise ucchi awaaz mein baat tak nahi karti thi...aur rahi relationship ki baat, toh that's also impossible, because woh har baat mujhse yaa Nishu se share karti thi...
Khyati- Hume uski room ki talaashi leni padegi...
Kabir led them upstairs. Khyati moved around, looking at the interiors, while the other two constables searched the room.
Constable1- Madam! (he handed her a chain with a heart shaped locket)
Khyati took it and looked at it keenly. She then opened the heart, and looked at Kabir, who stood there grimly.
Khyati- Yeh kiski chain hai?
Kabir- Nisha ko aisi cheeze bilkul nahi pasand, toh shaayad Navya ki hogi...
Khyati- Aur Navya ke chain mein tumhari tasveer?
Kabir looked at her in shock. Khyati showed him the locket. Kabir called out to Nisha, who came running.
Kabir- Nishu, yeh teri chain hai?
Nisha- Nahi, yeh meri nahi... Yeh Navya ki hai, she bought it when we had gone to the mall last month...
Kabir showed her his picture. She looked at it in shock.
Nisha- Iska kya matlab?
Khyati -Matlab toh ek hi hai, ki Navya bhi tumse pyaar karti thi...
Kabir-(trying to explain) Madam, main usse sirf apni friend manata tha, and she too knew it...
Nisha-(supporting him) We didn't know Navya's feelings for Kabir, Madam, trust us...
Constable 2- Madam, Navya ki personal diary...
Khyati opened the diary and NiBir looked at it in shock. It had only Kabir's picture on the first page.
Khyati- This confirms her feelings for you Kabir...and a reason to doubt you and Nisha.
Nisha and Kabir looked at her in shock. Nisha couldn't control her tears. All Kabir could do was hug and console her. Khyati went down as the constables continued searching the room. Laxmi and Ramesh were shocked to hear the new things that had been unfolded.
Khyati- Ab iske aage kya bolu, samajh nahi aata... But, we have two suspects, Nisha and Kabir...
Ramesh-(angrily) yeh kya bol rahi hai aap? Nisha Navya pe jaan chidakati thi, uske baal ko bhi dhakka pahucha toh Nisha bardaasht nahi kar paati thi, aur woh Navya ko hurt karegi? IMPOSSIBLE!
She was about to reply but her mobile rang and she answered the call and spoke for a few minutes.
Khyati- Forensic reports ke mutabik, Navya ke system mein sleeping pills paaye gaye aur sarr pe maara gaya and her face was damaged using a heavy material. Humne uss area ko dhoonda and we found a rock, covered with her blood, but without fingerprints. Toh, soti hui ladki ko uthakar, sheher se 40 km doori base hue jungle mein phekna, ek insaan ka kaam to hoga nahi... And also, uske body pe marne ke nishaan bhi hai, jo shaayad belt se hoga... which shows that she was abused before death, right?
Saurav- Toh aap kehna chahti hai ki, kisine usse maara, phir sleeping pills di, uske sarr pe injury karke uska chehra damage karke jungle mein chod diya?
Khyati- thanks for analyzing the situation for all of us Mr. Shikhawat...Also, interesting baat yeh hai, ki uske haat mein hume yeh kapda mila tha (She showed a plastic bag with a piece of cloth in it)Jo shaayad haata-paayi ke waqt uske pakad mein aaya, aur jaante hai, woh kapda kiske dress se milta-julta hai? Ms. Nisha Gangwal ke...So, aapko doubt karne ke reasons hai humare paas...
All gasped in shock. Nisha looked at the piece of cloth. It was from one of the tops that Kabir had gifted her.
Khyati- Hum abhi ke liye jaa rahe hai, lekin Nisha and Kabir, you both are not allowed to leave the city at all...
She left from there. Nisha fainted. All looked at her in shock. Kabir picked her in his arms and took her to Laxmi's room and laid her on the bed. Saurav called the doctor, who came in a few minutes and told them that it was just weakness, nothing else.
Anupamaa
Seher Hone Ko Hai
