IPKKND FF:Justice Comes At A Price[Epilogue Upd!] - Page 26

Arnav didn't sleep well that night. He had many dreams and fits of disturbed slumber. His mind was conflicted regarding Khushi. On one hand he thought about her suspicious actions and on the other hand there was that amazing kiss. His mind urged him to find out more about what she was doing and not trust her so easily but his heart only wanted her. Nothing else mattered when he thought about that magical moment between them. What was he supposed to do? She might have something to do with his jeejaji's murder and his thoughts wandered over to his Di. She was miserable right now and his heart wrenched as he remembered her helpless sobs and bloodshot eyes. No. He would not trust that girl so easily. He had seen enough in life to know that people were not as simple and good as they portrayed themselves.

...

Detective Inspector Kashyap walked into the house only to be greeted by the grim face of Arnav Singh Raizada. He had known him for many years now. After all, he had been Lavanya's friend for some time. He was a reserved person who never displayed any of his emotions. He thought with his brain and kept his heart out of the way. He was brutally honest and the most straight forward man he had ever met. There was absolutely no way of determining what was going on in his eyes unless one looked into his eyes. And that's exactly what Inspector Kashyap did.

"Anything wrong, Arnav?"

"Yes. I think Khushi's got something to do with Jeejaji's murder."

Inspector Kashyap was startled by this sudden revelation.

"Really? What makes you think so?"

He listened as Arnav elaborated on everything he had seen in the past two days - Khushi examining something and jumping out of her skin when he called her, Khushi rummaging through the waste paper basket in the study, Khushi's generally odd behaviour.

"That is curious. In fact, I also had a feeling that Ms. Gupta is keeping something from us."

He noticed that Arnav's face lost a bit of it's colour and his jaw clenched.

"You know Arnav, often in life we judge people according to what we see. And we only see so much. We really have no idea of the reason behind it. When you judge the action alone you may get a clear solution but the conflict which we face when we take the person into consideration is what ultimately helps us make the right decision."

Arnav was left stunned as Inspector Aditya Kashyap went into the garden to consult his junior officer.

...

Gardening - that's what he did whenever he was in distress. It was his way of releasing his emotions. He trimmed and watered, pulled out weeds and sprinkled fertilisers, tended to and nurtured each and every plant in his poolside garden. That's when his eyes fell on two different pots.

He had just cleared out many weeds from one of his exotic flowering plants. And right next to it was a grape vine. They were both winding themselves around a stronger stem. But their reasons were very different. The weeds were harmful and they choked the host plant, depriving it of it's nutrition. The grape vine on the other hand was using to host to support itself as it grew on it's own. The action was the same but the reason behind it varied immensely.

When you judge the action alone you may get a clear solution but the conflict which we face when we take the person into consideration is what ultimately helps us make the right decision.

So did that apply for Khushi as well? He had seen her rummaging through some stuff and examining something carefully. He had automatically assumed that she had returned to the scene of the crime to get rid of some incriminating evidence. But know that he thought about it, her actions didn't immediately point towards her being guilty. So what else could it mean? Maybe she was looking for something? Or maybe she had found something. Something which could lead her to the killer. What if the killer realised that she was onto them? That would mean...

"Khushi!"

...

"So Lavanya, long time no see."

Lavanya turned her head and looked at his genial face. They had been good friends in college but they hadn't kept in touch after graduation.

"Well, you decided to join your dad's company and cut yourself off from all your friends except ASR."

"But what about you? You could have tried to stay in touch even if I was too busy."

"I was studying abroad for two years and I only returned to Delhi two months ago. I wasn't able to stay in touch with any of my college friends. ASR used to visit Switzerland frequently on business trips so that's how I kept in touch with him."

NK nodded his head and smiled slightly. Initially he had found Lavanya very annoying and spoilt but he had gradually started to like and appreciate what was underneath that superficial exterior. And even after two years of no communication, he couldn't help feel happy that they could talk like they used to in college.

"I should go now. Di's sending a lot of stuff for me to take home to Mom, Dad and Bhaiya."

"Yah I heard Anjali Di frantically arranging for things to be packed in the morning. I saw the stuff with my own eyes. You'll need some help loading it into your car."

Lavanya smiled as she and NK began putting in containers of different sizes into her Audi.

...

Khushi was sure of one thing. Parvati was definitely involved in some way. She had evidence and all she needed to do was go into her room and confirm that her theory was correct.

It was three in the afternoon and Parvati had gone for her weekly spa appointment. NK was out with Lavanya and she had heard Anjali say that Payal had gone out. Her Bhaiya had left for some work early in the morning and the police had finished their daily investigation. It was the perfect time to put her plan into action.

She walked down to the second floor and made her way into Parvati's room. She looked around and was stunned to see the amount of vanity products this woman possessed. God was she spoilt! But how could she be like that when her brother was so nice and down to earth? Genetics would always remain a mystery to her. One by one she opened each drawer by the bed side table. She didn't find what she was looking for and went towards the cupboard before opening it cautiously. She checked every nook and corner of it but couldn't find what she wanted. She was about to leave the room disappointed when she caught sight of something shiny behind the sofa. She bent down and was about to see what it was when she felt a sharp pain in the back of her head. Her vision blurred as slowly her surroundings became pitch black.

"Arnav..."

...

Anjali dialled the number for the fourth time in the past ten minutes. She frowned as it gave her the same reply once again. Where was Payal? Laxmi said that she had gone out at around noon and she hadn't said anything about where she was going or when she would come back. And to top it off, her phone was switched off. How could she be so irresponsible at a time like this? What if the Inspector wanted to ask her something? What would she say then?

She tried her phone once again but in vain.

...

"Khushi! Khushi where are you?"

Arnav had become frantic now. He had searched the entire house but he couldn't find her anywhere. He knew that she hadn't left the house because the officer stationed outside had told him so. His heart pounded in his chest as he wondered where she could be. What if something had happened to her? What would he do then?

Please wait for me Khushi. I'm coming.

...

So there are going to be three more parts to this story. Hope you guys liked this chapter. 😊

Chapter Eight - Finding You, Finding Me