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CHAPTER 11
As Akash left, Khushi hurried to Nalini's home and rang the door bell. But there was no reply. She remembered the maid had told her that Nalini and her mother-in-law would return after two days. "They will return tomorrow, I think..." She looked up at the sky and said, "How long are you going to make me wait?!"
*****
Khushi returned home, upset. She sat down silently on the sofa closing her eyes. Her thoughts went back to the Raizada Mansion. Her lips curved into a smile as she thought about Arnav. This meeting was different... But Khushi didn't know what was so different about it. She felt relieved after seeing Arnav. She felt safe. She thanked God again for bringing Arnav in her life. "God, please make Arnav get well soon... I can't see him like this... I can't see him in pain" her eyes watered as she said this. She then remembered her Papa. "Thank you Arnav... Thank you so much!"
Khushi closed her eyes again. Several thoughts were playing in her mind. "Ajinkya Kaka must be searching for me with the help of the police... I don't know what's happening there... I just hope Lavanya and Karan don't get into trouble. Nalini aunty is also not at home. I want to know more from them. And the cigarette butts! Who was it?" Khushi had answers to none of these questions.
Biting her lower lip Khushi thought about something. She quickly got up from her place and walked to the back door. "I remember we always used to lock the back door from inside when we used to stay here. But yesterday, I didn't see it locked from inside... Or maybe I didn't pay attention. I will just go and check..."
Khushi reached the back door and saw that it wasn't bolted from inside. She tried to push it open but couldn't. "That means this door is locked from outside!" Khushi analysed this and came to the conclusion that the person used the back door to enter the house and not the front door. "The main door lock seemed so rusty... It looked as if it wasn't used for years. If someone was entering the house frequently, the condition of the lock should have been better. Maybe that person used the back door" she said to herself thoughtfully. "If he had used the main door, the back door should have been locked from inside and not from outside..." Khushi rushed outside and went to the back side. She saw a big lock on the door. Khushi observed the door and the lock. The door was the same, but the lock seemed quite new. The shine of the lock was still intact. There was hardly any spot of rust on it. "This lock seems to be changed recently..." said Khushi holding the lock. "But who changed it? The one who changed it will have the key..." Suddenly Khushi's eyes widened as she remembered something. "The key!" she exclaimed, "Is that the key?!"
Khushi ran inside to get the bunch of keys from her bag. She stared at the lone shining key in the bunch. It seemed new just like the lock. Khushi's curiosity rose as she went back to the back door. Khushi pushed the key into the hole in the lock and turned it in anticipation. Click! It worked! Khushi couldn't believe this. These keys were always with Shashi before the accident. "Papa?" Khushi was surprised, "Was he the person entering our house?"
*****
"Please come with me... I don't want to go with them alone..." Lavanya was telling Karan to go with her to Pune. Karan could feel Lavanya's fear. "Please Karan" pleaded Lavanya. Karan agreed to go with her. He told Ajikya that he wanted to go with them to find his fiance. Anjinkya reluctantly agreed.
Ajinkya, Karan and Lavanya along with some 3-4 of Ajinkya's men, supposedly his friends, left for Pune. Lavanya was worried. How would she tell Khushi? Karan told her to relax and that they will find a way out. But Lavanya couldn't stop worrying. Now that they all were travelling in the same vehicle with Ajinkya, Lavanya couldn't even try calling Khushi or Arnav. "Oh God! Please help!" she whispered.
*****
Khushi still couldn't believe that it was Shashi who was coming to Pune every 3-4 months. "Why would Papa have come here?" thought Khushi. "He never told us... Or did Ma know?" Khushi was confused. "But what was the reason? Why did he come here secretly? And why did he have to enter from the back door instead of the main door?" Khushi was too tired to think about all this. And that she had had a sleepless night before, she didn't know when she fell asleep.
*****
Khushi woke up to the sound of the door bell. She looked around and realised that she had fallen asleep on the sofa. The doorbell was rung again. Khushi missed a beat. "Who might it be?" she thought as she walked towards the door. She peeped in through the eye hole and saw Akash. She sighed in relief and opened the door.
Akash smiled at her as she invited him inside. "Hungry?" he asked teasing. Khushi just smiled. "Get ready soon... We will leave then.." Khushi nodded and went inside to wash her face and change.
*****
Lavanya remembered that Arnav had called her from some other number which was not saved to her phone. "The other number!" she exclaimed in excitement. Karan's eyes widened at her sudden reaction. He told her through actions to keep quiet.
Ajinkya immediately asked, "Other number? What other number?"
Lavanya was scared as she missed a beat. She looked at Karan knowing not what to say. In order to handle the situation, Karan quickly said, "Lavanya, did you find a way to contact you colleague? You wanted to inform her that you are not going to office, right?" He purposely said it louder stressing every word and indicated Lavanya not to worry and speak on.
"Y-y-yes Karan! That's what I was saying... I remembered that I have her other number... Th-that's why I suddenly exclaimed... It would be a problem if I don't inform her..." Lavanya managed to say.
"Then call her immediately!" said Ajinkya bluntly.
Lavanya nodded. Ajinkya stared at her waiting for her to make the call. Lavanya pretended to call her colleague and acted to speak over the call. She "disconnected" the "fake" call. "Finally I told her..." she said showing herself to be relieved.
Ajinkya smirked and looked ahead at the road. Lavanya and Karan heard him tell the others that they would be reaching Khushi's home in another 20-25 minutes. They both exchanged glances. Lavanya couldn't call now. She didn't know what to do. She decided to send an SMS to the number, but she had no idea it was actually Amar's number.
*****
Amar was in Arnav's room chatting with his son. He received a message on his phone. As Amar read the message, he jerked his head saying, "Crazy people... Don't even check whether they are sending message to the right number!"
"Why? What happened?" asked Arnav curiously.
"See this message..." said Amar as he unlocked his phone to read out the message to Arnav.
Arnav listened curiously as Amar read out... "Kaka and we all reaching in 20-25 minutes... Please do something"
Amar let out a laugh after reading but something struck Arnav. He snatched the phone from Amar's hand. He recognised that it was Lavanya's number. "20-25 minutes?!" Arnav was shocked to know this. "Oh my God!" he exclaimed and immediately dialled Akash's number to inform him and Khushi to leave the place at once. But unfortunately Akash had left his phone at home.
"Khushi needs me!" said Arnav as he got ready to leave for Khushi's home.
"Where are you going beta?" asked Amar confused. "You are not well enough to go anywhere yet..." he said, concerned.
But Arnav was already gone.
*****
Lavanya was waiting for Arnav's reply to the message but she didn't receive any. "God... Please take care of this..." she prayed knowing not what was going to happen.
*****
Arnav was driving the car in speed. He only had fifteen minutes in hand now. He had to reach there before Ajinkya did. There was a mild pain in his head. But he didn't care. He just had to reach to Khushi before it was too late...
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