Recap
Then what was the reason for her being so distressed, if it was not about money?
Arnav watched Khushi as she greeted everyone cheerfully, trying to look excited. but he could see through her alright. Her smile didn't reach her eyes. As he climbed the stairs to his study to get some work done, he decided to check on her soon.
Khushi felt exhausted as she got home in the evening. She was both physically and emotionally drained. She was avoiding Arnav all day long which had made him so angry that he had finally given up and gone to the office. He had said that there was no point in working from home when she didn't want to be around him. Khushi had tried to stop him, but he had cursed himself under his breath and had stormed out. Everything had gone downhill from there. Added to that Buaji had called Khushi in the middle of the day, urging her to rethink her decision about getting married.
She sighed as she made her way to the back of the house. She needed to talk to him...tell him she is not ready for marriage right now. With what little interaction Khushi had had with him, he seemed like a nice person. She was sure he would understand. As she approached his room, she saw that the door was ajar and she could hear him talking on the phone. Just as she was about to knock on the door, what she heard made her hand still mid-air.
'I'll be there soon, Rani Sahiba. Please don't be mad at me. I'm stuck here with some work that I can't get out of. You know how it is! Yes, yes, I'll see you in a couple of hours Rani Sahiba' he was trying to pacify someone at the other end.
Khushi frowned! Rani Sahiba? Where had she heard that before? She scrunched her brows trying to think. But it only made an already pounding headache even worse. She slumped her shoulders in defeat and walked to her room. She just did not have the energy to deal with anything today. The thought of that familiar endearment kept nagging her though and she couldn't shake off that strange sense of trepidation. As she lied down on her bed tired, she fell asleep instantly.
Khushi had a very restless sleep. She tossed and turned, strange dreams invading her subconscious. As she heard her Amma and Buaji come in after their temple visit, she sat up abruptly. And that's when it came back to her, making her head spin. Lavanya! Lavanya had mentioned it several times that Anjali's husband called her Rani Sahiba. And everyone including Nani Ji had teased Anjali mercilessly, making her blush.
Khushi didn't know what to make of it. Not for a second could she fathom that this person, in her house, who wanted to marry her as soon as possible, was the same as Anjali's husband. How could that be possible? She shook her head. Her sanak was really getting to her, she mused as she finally got up to freshen up. She looked at the clock and it was 7 pm. As she went outside, her family was getting ready to head out again. It was their neighbor's daughter's engagement party. Khushi did not feel like going anywhere, so she excused herself with great difficulty and told them she just wanted to rest at home. As they left reluctantly, Khushi went to her father's room and made sure he was comfortable and switched on the TV for him. She then went into the kitchen to make herself some tea.
'Khushi Ji?' he heard his sickly sweet voice behind her.
She whirled around, startled. 'Rajiv Ji, aap?' she stammered
'What have you thought about my proposal? I wanted to ask Buaji today. But I thought I would speak to you privately. After all, times have changed. Your opinion is what matters to me the most' he smiled at her.
Khushi tried to return the smile but could only manage a grimace. There was something about him that raised her hackles. As Khushi felt that familiar prick in the back of her neck, she tried to step away from him a bit. Just as she was about to open her mouth, she heard her Babuji ring the bell attached to his wheelchair.
'I'll go see. You make your tea. Can I have a cup too, please?' he said as Khushi nodded.
As soon as he left, his phone rang and she saw that he had left it on the kitchen table. As she peeked at it, she saw that 'Rani Sahiba' was flashing on the screen. Khushi barely hesitated before she picked it up. Something told her that she had to do it. As she lifted the phone to her ear, she unmistakably heard Anjali's voice on the other end.
'Shyam Ji? Where are you? What time are you coming home? Arnav and Akash will be home early today. I thought we could all have dinner together' she sing-songed.
The phone dropped from Khushi's hand in shock. So she was right! He was Anjali's husband, Shyam Jha!! So why was he Rajiv Sharma, here? In this house? Why was he an orphan to them while he was married to Anjali Raizada? Khushi's head spun with more questions than answers. She also felt a slow fear creep up her body as she breathed heavily. There was something seriously wrong here. This man suddenly started seeming dangerous. As she hyperventilated, she could think of only one person! Arnav Ji! She had to tell him! Oh my god! How would this affect Anjali? From what Khushi knew of her, she was devoted to her husband. Khushi then realized why she hadn't met him before. There always seemed to be some or the other reason for them to not meet. She had never thought too much about it as everyone said he traveled a lot. But how had he found her? Particularly? And was it planned or a coincidence that he was here and her family was connected to the Raizadas?
She looked up as she heard him come out of her father's room. Khushi looked down and busied herself with the tea, while looking around for her phone. She had left it in her bedroom. She looked at his phone that was lying on the ground. She felt fear like never before. How was she going to explain that?
He came towards her, smiling. Khushi handed him his cup of tea as she then picked up her own, trying to act normal. She willed herself not to look at his phone on the ground. He put his cup on the counter and slowly bent down to retrieve his phone. He then looked up at her with that same smile, but Khushi felt a chill down her spine when she met his gaze. It was ice cold and downright menacing! He laughed, a little too loudly, making Khushi jump a little. She quickly gulped down her tea, not caring that it burned her mouth and tried to move away to her bedroom. Just as she had taken a step forward, his words halted her.
'So what did Anjali say? Did you talk to her?'
Khushi froze. The calm in his voice drove her over the edge as she swirled around, her eyes blazing.
'Who are you? Why are you here? What do you want?' she asked, equally calm, surprising herself.
'Tch, tch, tch, Khushi. What's the hurry? I'll tell you who I am in due time. But first let me tell you this...do not try to call anyone, least of all your precious Arnav Ji'
Khushi gasped. The audacity of this man to take her Arnav Ji's name with that filthy mouth. She raised her hand and slapped him hard across his face, enraged beyond words.
Shyam instinctively rubbed his cheek slowly as he laughed out loud. 'Feisty! This is what I like about you' he leered at her, disgusting her.
'You are married to Anjali Di? How? Why didn't any of us know? Then why did you want to marry me? This is all so confusing. You better explain yourself or else I'm going to scream the house down. This is not Shantivan. Here, the neighbors are 10 feet away. They'll come running in seconds' Khushi glared at him, unable to comprehend anything.
Shyam laughed that evil laugh again. 'You will do no such thing, Khushi. You have no idea who I am or what I am capable of. Let me show you' he said as he took her by the elbow and dragged her to his room. Khushi panicked as she tried to pry his hands away. But his grip was too tight for her delicate frame. He strode inside his small bedroom at the back of the house and pushed Khushi on the chair in front of the small table in a corner. He pointed to his laptop.
'You do know how to search, don't you? Open the browser up and I'll tell you what to search for' he ordered.
Khushi looked up at him. Her hands trembled. But curiosity got the better of her and she did as he told her.
'Jia Singh from Ludhiana, 2000' he said.
As Khushi typed it in the search box, the very first result made her jump up. She clicked on the newspaper clipping and read the short article. She found a bead of sweat trickle down her back and her palms get clammy. Her heart raced at the implications.
'Aha! I see you're really smart, Khushi. You seemed to have grasped the story pretty well. That guy, Kunal Singh, was me!' he laughed.
She clasped her palm to her mouth and turned to him in horror. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words would come.
'Tara Khanna, Indore, 2004'
Khushi couldn't bring herself to sit down and type the information as her heart thudded loudly. One more? She felt a strange fear in the pit of her stomach. He was not just a cheat, he was a murderer!! And what if she had agreed to marry him? What would he have done to Anjali Di? What would have happened to Arnav Ji? Nani Ji? Khushi shuddered again. She couldn't even fathom the implications.
Shyam clucked impatiently as he pulled the laptop towards himself and typed in the name. He then turned it towards her as she saw another article.
Tara Khanna was pretty much the same as the previous one. Wealthy family, orphaned, single child with a lot of inheritance. She was killed in a car accident. She was survived by her husband of a year, Manav Khanna. Again, they had no children.
'That was no accident, Khushi' he leaned his head close to her face and whispered in her ear.
Khushi took a step back from him as she clutched the sides of her kameez in fear.
'Krithika Jaiswal, Jodhpur, 2007'
'Stop it! Stop it!' Khushi cried as she covered her ears. She could not do this anymore!
'Oh come now, Khushi. This is the last one I promise!' he laughed and did the search himself and pushed the screen towards her again.
Khushi looked at the screen in horror. She had died of a heart attack! At 26! Again, she was survived by her husband of 6 months, Vinod Jaiswal and they had no children.
'You see Khushi, I'm an old hand at this. And I've gotten pretty good at getting away unscathed. No one has even suspected me. I cover my tracks pretty well. And don't get me wrong, I have never dirtied my hands myself. I actually have people on my payroll who can take care of things like this for me with just a phone call'
'You are a monster!!' screamed Khushi. 'And just how did you plan to get away with all this, this time? Anjali Di is not an orphan like those other women. She has a loving family. She has her brother. Do you think you can take on Arnav Ji? Do you even know who he is or what he is capable of? You don't stand a chance against him! And what do you think I will do? Stand here and let you go scot-free? I am not afraid of you. Evil doesn't scare me! My Devi Mayya will never let me lose to bad people like you. I will tell Arnav Ji everything and I will also call the police right now. I'm sure they can find out in to time that you are the same as those people who killed their wives. And I am sure Arnav Ji will see to it that you are behind bars for the rest of your life. No one hurts his Di and gets away with it'
Khushi breathing got ragged. She felt a rage inside her that she didn't know existed. How dare he! She would lay down her life for her Arnav Ji and his Di. But she will not let this vile man harm any of her loved ones.
Shyam threw his head back as he laughed maniacally. He grabbed her suddenly with both hands and pulled her harshly against him. Khushi squirmed in his grip, unable to bear the physical proximity.
'Let me go!' she bit out. As she saw the mad glint in his eyes, Khushi took a deep breath in and screamed loudly. Shyam immediately clamped her mouth shut as he dug his fingers in her arm, making her yelp in pain.
'I am nice to you but that doesn't mean that I will let you ruin everything that I've worked so hard to build in the past 10 years. If you scream again, I won't hesitate to kill you, do you understand?'
Khushi nodded, scared out of her wits now.
'You have ruined all my plans as it is' he let her go slowly as he ran his hands through his hair. 'Anjali wasn't supposed to happen. I made the biggest, most stupid mistake of my life by marrying her. When I saved her from falling down the stairs at the temple, I was actually following someone else. But then I realized that Anjali is very rich...much richer than all of my previous 'wives' put together. She was much more beautiful too. And she was vulnerable. Her limp made her needy and clingy and it worked perfectly well for me. She was devoted to me from the get go. And she was...nice! She was so different from the rude and arrogant bitches I had married before. They were all spoiled. They were all high and mighty, running around in their rich circles, no moral values, conceited! But Anjali was so unassuming. I was getting tired of my games. I had more than enough money of my own. I thought I will give her a real chance and maybe give myself a chance. But her obsession with her Chotey started getting to me. She refused to leave her brother and move out with me. And her family, instead of trying to make her understand, encouraged her. And I slowly got reduced to a ghar jamai. And then, one fine day, I saw you! In Lucknow! You were so beautiful, innocent, with your loud chatter. There was something about you that drew me in. You spread happiness all around you, just like your name' he moved closer to her as he lifted his hand and softly caressed her cheek with the back of his palm.
'Don't touch me!' Khushi flinched.
Shyam grit his teeth! But continued.
'I wanted you! I wanted to let go of everything and just whisk you away from the world. But then, you came to Delhi, You wanted a job. I helped you. I didn't think Arnav would associate himself with a simple girl like you. But then it happened. And I couldn't let it continue. I cannot let it continue. I will not let anyone take you away from me!' he came towards her and pulled her in his arms, hugging her tightly. Khushi struggled to free herself from him, feeling suffocated. She pushed him wildly.
'You must be crazy!! I will never ever agree to get married to you. And how can you even dream of something like that? That too after you have shown me your real, pathetic face? You are a monster and a murderer! And I will expose you in front of everyone!'
'You think I will allow that to happen? Do you think I'm such a fool?'
'And how exactly are you going to stop me? By killing me too?'
'No Khushi! I will not kill you, jaan. You're the reason I breathe. But if you try to open your mouth, I will kill everyone who has ever been dear to you, one by one. Like I said, all I have to do is make one phone call. And don't think I won't be watching your every move, because I will be'
Khushi felt her eyes well up with tears. 'You will not!' she cried.
'Oh I will! I have many, many ways of making it look like an accident'
'You won't be able to do anything. I won't let you!' Khushi made to rush out of the room.
His next words, stopped her in her tracks.
'I already have!'
Khushi turned around to face him, when she heard the bell in her Babuji's room.
The next instant she watched Shyam stride into the room. She ran after him.
'Don't you want to know how he got to such a sorry state?' he asked her as he went near the wheel chair and slapped her father hard across the face.
'Babuji!!' Khushi screamed as tears flowed from her eyes. She clawed at Shyam's face. 'You bas***d! Don't you dare lay a hand on my Babuji!'
'Khushi, Khushi, Khushi! You are so naive. Your Babuji is in this state because of me. You see, he caught me with Anjali in the temple. Ever since your Buaji agreed to my proposal, this man was behind me. He started inquiring about me and then one day he caught me red handed putting sindoor on my dear wife. So I had to shut him up! So I used my old trick and induced his heart attack. I was hoping he would die. But this old man survived. Luckily for me, he also had a massive stroke'
Khushi collapsed on the ground at her father's feet, unable to comprehend what was happening around her! He had done this? To her Babuji? How?
'And if you don't do as I say, guess who will be next in line?' his eyes glinted madly as he bent down to her eye level. He tilted his head and raised his eyebrow. 'Your precious Arnav Ji!' his voice was dangerously low. 'One wrong move by you and you'll never see him alive again. There are hundreds of ways an accident can happen and I know them all...I can even write a book on it. And guess who will die with him? His precious brother Akash. Then what will happen to your Jiji?'
'You are despicable! You will never get away with this!'
'Oh, but I will! I already have my men everywhere! In his office, within his security detail, around his house. I have cameras in every corner of Shantivan. I'll be watching your every move! His life is hanging by a thread and only you can save him!'
Khushi put her head in her Babuji's lap as she saw his helpless tears. She felt equally helpless. This man, who had killed so many times before, was a maniac and he was capable of doing anything if provoked. She tried to clear her mind and think calmly. She could not get agitated. She had to handle this delicately and smartly.
'What do you want me to do?' she asked him as she stood up wiping her tears and looked him squarely in the eye.
Precap
'Khushi, sweetheart, what's wrong? Ssh...sshh...Khushi, stop crying, please! I can't see you like this'
Khushi looked up at him, her heart awash with love for this man who had turned her world upside down. She cupped his cheeks tenderly.
'I won't be able to survive if something happens to you'
'What? Why would anything happen to me? Khushi, what's happening? Why are you behaving strangely from the past couple of days? Tell me what's wrong and I promise you, I'll fix it! You know I will'
Khushi shook her head. She stepped closer to him as he took her in his arms. For a minute, she tried to forget everything and just sighed in his embrace, cocooned in his warmth and in his love. Fresh tears poured out of her eyes, drenching his shirt. She pulled away slowly as she looked around.
'I...I...have to go. I can't let...I won't...I just won't...nothing can ever...no one can...I need to go' she whispered, almost blabbering and rushed out of the pool side.
Arnav called after her, worried out of his mind. What was happening? Why was she acting like this? And why was she afraid something would happen to him? What was bothering her? Something was very wrong and he would be damned if he didn't find out!
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