Chapter 2
As
Khushi stepped into the building, she was met with greetings of
"Good morning Ma'am." She smiled and said hello to each agent
individually before going to her office and plopping down in her
chair. A new day has begun, she
thought and got up to make herself a cup of coffee.
Khushi leaned
against the counter and sipped her coffee, watching the agents in the
precinct go about their daily business. Men far outnumbered women
here, but to those women who worked for the CBI, they were given
respect. Everyone knew how strenuous training was, and only the best
women joined. It was for that reason that Khushi was so adored by the
agency.
Becoming the youngest Special Task Force Commander for the
agency that was equivalent to Interpol and the FBI was no easy feat,
especially not for one so young and a woman to top it off. It had
taken hard work and tenacity, but she had gotten where she was on her
own merit, not because of anything else. At the tender age of
eighteen, she had helped solve a double homicide when she was only
studying Criminology and Forensic Science in her University at this
point. From then on, her superiors had noted the efficient, no
nonsense way she worked and had made her work even harder.
They had
made her include a degree of Criminal Justice in addition to her
existing majors. Within two years, she had finished her required courses and
was a Police Head Constable, bypassing the other ranks. The director
of the CBI had seen her work and was very impressed. Instead of
continuing in the police force, he had invited her to join the CBI as
a junior agent. In less than a year, she had solved twenty seven
successful cases. From that point she was made a senior agent though
she was only twenty one years old. Just last year, the agency had
promoted her to STF Commander.
She was ruthless in
her work. Her life was dedicated to putting criminals behind bars. Of
course, she could delegate work to her subordinates, but arresting
people was something she loved to do. For a woman in a man's world,
she did exceptionally well for herself.
There were
downsides to her job of course, the main one being having no social
life. Sure she had friends, but she couldn't go to the bar or clubs
with them very often. The last party she had been to was thrown for a
couple celebrating their fiftieth anniversary. She had even missed
Akaash's wedding due to a case!
With a great sigh,
she went back to her desk and picked up the Singhania file and lazily
flicked through it. A simple robbery gone bad resulted in the murder
of Mrs. Singhania. All the evidence pointed towards the robbers
killing the woman, but Khushi knew that she had to look underneath
the underneath for this case. There was something a little more
sinister at hand here. Mr. Singhania's statements didn't add up, and
neither did his behavior that night. When they had questioned him,
Mr. Singhania didn't show the proper stages of grief. He was already
in the last stage which led Khushi to believe that not only was this
homicide pre-meditated, it was planned by Singhania himself.
"Atman-bhaiyya!"
She called to her right hand man. Agent Atman Kulkarni sauntered into
the room and grinned at her. He was a nice man, ten years her senior
and had been the big brother figure that she craved. When she first
got here, it had been scary, but he had shown her how to maneuver
through this jungle. In her rookie days, he had always made it a
point to help her no matter what.
"Khushi, what is
it?" He asked lazily sitting in the chair in front of her desk.
Khushi rolled her eyes at his relaxed behavior. If it had been anyone
else, she would have berated them for acting so casual in front of a
high ranked official.
"Bhaiyya, can you
take a couple of men and go to the Singhania house? I know that we
already combed the place through, but take a closer look, especially
in Mr. Singhania's room."
Atman's expression
turned serious and he nodded. "Will do boss. I'll be back in a
couple hours."
Just as he was
about to leave, another agent came rushing in. "Ma'am! A phone call
came for you!"
Khushi raised her
eyebrows but held her hand out for the phone. "Who is it, Joshi?"
"Arnav Singh
Raizada, ma'am. He says it's urgent." Joshi quickly handed Khushi
the phone and sprinted out of there after seeing the murderous
expression on his boss's face.
Atman's grin
widened and he too left the office, not wanting to hear the verbal
bashing Khushi was about to give to the poor man.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Arnav anxiously
held the phone to his ear, waiting for Khushi to say something. He
wasn't very surprised when she cursed loudly and said "Raizada!"
In that husky tone of hers.
He smirked, pleased
that he could irritate her over the phone as well. "Hello Rathod,
it's been a while."
On the
other end, Khushi controlled the urge to throttle the phone in her
hand by reminding herself that she was in the office. "What the
hell do you want, Raizada. If this is a social call, don't waste your
precious energy hitting the end
button, I'll do it myself." It was her turn to smirk as she heard
his pathetic scoff.
"Please
Rathod. Why the hell would I make a social call to you? Why
would I call you in the first place? No, I'm calling you for a
personal matter, and it concerns you as well." Though Arnav
couldn't see it, Khushi was hurt by his blunt words. It was always
like this between them, no love, only hate. And the occasional time
they did show affection for each other, it never lasted long enough.
However, as soon as he had said that a problem concerned her as well,
she was on full alert mode.
"Arnav, what's
going on?" She asked. He could hear the seriousness in her voice.
It had been a good idea confiding in her, but he couldn't tell her
this news on the phone. They needed to meet face to face.
"Khushi...do you
think you can come to my office right now? It's urgent." And it
really was. His Di's life was at stake.
Khushi frowned,
confused by Arnav's tone. He sounded worried. Had something happened?
Why did he need her?
"Arnav..." She
said tentatively, putting aside the negative feelings she held for
him. Now she was even more convinced that something terrible had
happened.
Back at his desk,
Arnav suddenly felt very weak. The reality of what he was going to do
to his sister hit him. If Khushi was successful, then the love of his
sister's life would be gone and his sister would be broken.
"Khushi." The
way he said her name shut her up. He was desperate and pleading all
in one. The last time he had sounded like this was when his mother
died and he had cried for the very last time on her lap.
"I'm coming
Arnav. Just tell me that you haven't changed buildings and I'll be
there in fifteen minutes." She picked up her purse (which had her
gun) and walked out of her door. "Joshi! I'll be gone for a couple
hours. If Bhaiyya comes back just tell him I'm at Raizada's
building!" She called behind her not waiting for his response.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
True to her word,
she arrived at the AR building fifteen minutes later. It was
majestic, Khushi admitted grudgingly. No matter how many times she
had seen it, it still took her breath away. Arnav had done very well
for himself. But then again, so had she.
Truth be told, she
was excited to come here. It had been many months, nearly a year
since she had seen any of the Raizadas. She was eager to meet Akaash
and his new bride Payal. Nani and Anjali called her regularly to keep
her updated on what went on in the Raizada house, but there was
nothing like having a good old face to face chat. She wished she had
brought Akaash and Payal's wedding gift with her. Hm...maybe it was
time to pay a visit to Shantivan. Seeing the people she considered
family always lifted her heart.
She walked into the
building and went up to the reception desk. A woman whose name tag
read Pam was sitting there, typing away at the computer. "Excuse
me." Khushi said politely, yet firmly. The woman glanced up at her
and started typing away again.
Khushi was more
than slightly miffed. Her job demanded respect from other people. She
wasn't used to getting blown off by this...nobody
"Excuse me!"
Khushi said a little louder. Pam sighed in a theatrical manner.
"What?"
Khushi
hid a smirk. She was going to have to tell Arnav how his employees
treated guests. She was guessing by the next time she visited, this
Pam wouldn't be here
anymore.
"I'm here to see
Arn...Mr. Raizada." Khushi caught herself just in time. No need
for his employees to think there was anything other than a business
meeting between the two.
"Mr. Raizada is
busy. Why don't you have a seat and I'll let you know when he's
done." Pam said condescendingly.
Khushi was very
tempted to pull her badge out and show this woman exactly where her
place was, heck, she may even take out her gun. However she refrained
from doing so when she found a very familiar face looking at her
curiously. Her classic smirk appeared.
"I'm sorry, but
I'm a very busy person as well, and I need to see Mr. Raizada now!"
Khushi said, completely ignoring Pam's incredulous look as she
stormed into the work area.
Quite comically,
the entire place fell silent. Khushi reveled in the power she had in
making dramatic entrances. The people at AR didn't know how to react
to any type of intrusion of this sort because they were drab and
boring...most of them. Like boss like employees.
It was Akaash who
broke the silence. "Khushi!" He yelled and swept her into a hug
that lifted her off of her feet.
"Akaash!" She
said giggling. "Put me down!" He complied but kept staring at
her, and even pinched her just to make sure she was real. When she
slapped him on his shoulder, he grinned. Without another word, he led
her to a very pretty petite woman, oblivious of the looks of the
other workers who were currently wondering why boss number two was
hugging this woman in front of his wife.
"Payal-ji, this
is Khushi, Khushi Rathod, the ever elusive woman and my best friend!"
Khushi looked at
Payal who, to her amusement, looked slightly jealous of Khushi. Payal
really was quite pretty though, with large brown eyes and soft
features. She was the perfect complement to Akaash.
Khushi smiled at
Payal who tentatively smiled back. To Payal's surprise, Khushi pulled
her into a hug.
"I can't believe
that our Akaash is finally married! But seriously Bhai, after three
months of marriage, you're still calling her Payal-ji?" Khushi
teased him and Payal who blushed in unison.
"Khushi, what are
you doing here?" Akaash asked her after glaring at Khushi.
Khushi's smile
vanished slightly. "Your idiot of a brother called me here."
The
people around her gasped at this woman's audacity. She had called
Raizada sir an idiot?
If he heard this, she would be dead. Even Payal was stunned at her
callousness.
"Bhai?" Akaash
asked confusedly. "But why?"
Khushi shrugged.
"I'm not sure really, he called me a little while ago and said it
was important. I really should go though. You know how he hates
waiting." She laughed slightly. She didn't notice the footsteps
coming down the staircase and stopping right behind her. She did feel
the hairs on her back standing up though, and knew who was close to
her.
"Well
if you know how much I hate it, then why aren't you in my office
yet?" A voice that never failed to draw shivers from her said from
behind. Arnav. Just
his voice did wonders to her body. She controlled her emotions and
turned around, putting on what she hoped was an indifferent
expression.
He stood there,
handsome as ever in his three piece suit, arms crossed across his
chest, staring at her with such an intense gaze that would have
melted a normal woman. Khushi Rathod though, was made of sterner
stuff. She wouldn't succumb to him, no matter what. These two had
known each other since...forever. She could read him like a book, and
he could do the same to her. He was tense.
"Arnav." She
said in an exasperated voice. "I was just on my way. I haven't seen
Akaash in ages and I even missed his wedding! Give me a break."
"A
break?" He walked forward, expression never changing. "Khushi, we
had important matters to discuss. Akaash can wait. Plus, you called
me an idiot. So excuse me if I'm just a little angry."
His voice got progressively lower as he came closer and closer. They
were only a foot apart now. They glared at each other fiercely,
neither backing down. The people around them watched in fear as their
boss and this unknown woman had an intense staring contest. Their
eyes were shooting invisible lightning bolts at each other.
Akaash sighed at
their antics. "Bhai! Khushi! Please don't start! For once, can't
you two have a civil conversation?"
Both of them spared
one glance at Akaash who flinched under the combined pressure of
their gazes. It was like two Arnavs put together.
"No."
"Never."
Without another
word, Arnav grabbed Khushi's arm and dragged her all the way to his
office.
Those in the
workroom stared at Akaash as if demanding an explanation.
"That was Khushi
Rathod?" Aman asked his other boss. "The one that Sir wanted to
see?"
"Yep, That's our
Khushi." Akaash said nostalgically. "The only one who could
control Bhai's anger as well as raise it to very high levels."
"He looked as if
he wanted to kill her when he asked me to call her." Aman said
truthfully, fully aware of what would happen to him if Arnav found
out what they were talking about. ASR hated gossip.
"Was it that
creepy smile?" Akaash chuckled slightly. "Because if it was, then
that's a completely normal face when it concerns Bhai and Khushi. She
hates that face of his, she has since we were kids."
"You're childhood
friends then?" Payal asked quietly. Akaash grinned at her.
"Oh yes! She's my
age, so she and I were always very close, like siblings. NK Bhai and
her had a very interesting relationship. She loved to manipulate him. He pampered her so much, and she let him.
And then there's her and Bhai. Since the beginning, those two were
like fire and ice, never mixed but somehow remained compatible. They
fought constantly, and Di would have to come in and be the
peacemaker. She's like our sunshine, the person who even Bhai will
smile for...though, now that I think about it, Bhai smiles about her
when she's not in the room.." Akaash mused to himself, lost in the
memories of happier times.
It was then that Akaash realized that he
was still in the office and that he had the full attention of these
gossip mongers. They were like hungry dogs looking for more food.
"What are you all
doing! Get back to work!" He barked. Akaash may not have been as
terrifying as Arnav, but he was still a Raizada. And for the most
part, a Raizada could scare the living daylights out of anyone.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Arnav stared at
Khushi as she made herself comfortable in his office. She hadn't
changed one bit. Not from the proud tilt of her chin, to her kissable
pink lips, to her straight nose, to her hazel eyes, to her perfectly
straight hair. She was still the beautiful woman who he loved to
hate. But as his eyes traveled lower over her body, he couldn't help
but notice the things that he never wanted to notice. Like how her
blouse was cut low enough so he could see a hint of cleavage, or how
it didn't hide the soft curves that he knew she had. She might know
how to kill someone without blinking an eye, but she was still all
woman, something that he couldn't deny no matter how much he tried.
"Arnav." Khushi
snapped her fingers in front of his eyes. He had a glazed look,
something that he had never had before. Things must be really bad.
"Arnav!" She shook him slightly which made him glare at her.
"What?" He
snapped. She looked at him in disbelief.
"Excuse me? I
come to your office on a split seconds notice and you have the gall
to not talk to me?" She nearly yelled.
He had
the decency to look slightly
sheepish. He couldn't tell her that he was checking her out. It would
mean a lifetime of humiliation. "Khushi...sorry."
She gaped at him.
Had he really...said sorry? Gently, she reached over and placed her
palm on his forehead. "No fever." She muttered. "Are you
feeling alright?"
Arnav shot her an
angry look which made her back down. When Arnav was like this, he
just needed to vent. But the anger dissipated to what looked like
fatigue. She noticed the circles under his eyes. Had he been sleeping
properly? There was a tick to his jaw. He was irritated...and
anxious. Khushi got up and went to sit on his desk so she was right
in front of him. Her proximity startled him.
"Arnav." She
said in that tone that always calmed him down. "Talk."
For the first time
in a long time, Arnav Singh Raizada averted his eyes from the person
who was talking to him. Instead, he got up and paced around the
cabin, aware of Khushi's burning gaze.
She was patient,
letting him take his own time.
"You were at Di's
wedding, right?" Arnav finally said, though he already knew the
answer.
"You know I was."
Khushi chided gently, gesturing for him to continue.
He looked at her,
holding eye contact for a long time. "Did you ever find
anything...odd, about...jijaji?"
Khushi stood up
straight, not liking where he was going with this. "Arnav, are you
saying what I think you're saying?" What he was implying was not
something she liked in the very least.
He wearily nodded
and sat back down, his back to her.
"So when you said
that this problem concerned me...you meant that Di might be in danger
and you need my help?" Khushi concluded slowly.
All of a sudden, a
patronizing smirk appeared on Arnav's face. It was one she knew very
well. "Oh good, I was beginning to think that you forgot that you
solved crimes for a living."
Usually, this would
lead to a big fight between the two of them, but not now, not when Di
was in danger. "Arnav, just stop. I'm not in the mood for this.
Tell me everything that you suspect, and don't leave out the
slightest detail." She pulled out a notepad from her purse and he
could glimpse the gun she held in there. If Arnav had any doubt she
was a cop, it was gone now.
So he told her, all
of his suspicions, Shyam's odd behavior, the money, everything. She
paused him every so often to ask a couple more questions.
"Arnav...has
he ever...you know...hurt
her?" Khushi asked quietly. If that monster had, she would rip him
apart limb by limb.
Arnav turned
around so fast, she thought he might fall. He had a wild glint in his
eye. "He wouldn't dare."
Khushi got up and
put her hand on his shoulder. "I know, but I had to ask." She let
her hand linger on his muscled arm, drawing in his heat, and he let
her. It felt comfortable.
"Di's happy."
Arnav growled. Khushi didn't move, not even when he got up and
grabbed her. "She's happy with the man who is most likely stealing
from her, cheating on her, and ruining her life! He... He...!"
Arnav couldn't go on and Khushi didn't urge him to. He stepped even
closer to her, invading her personal space, smelling her scent,
letting it fill him. Roses and gunpowder...that was Khushi, unique to
only her. It was an odd combination that seemed to work, sweet and
musky. If he leaned even closer, her head would fit right under his
chin...
No! He
stepped away from her in the next instant, trying to rid himself of these pesky thoughts.
He didn't think of Khushi in that
way...did he? Whatever the case, he had to get her out of his head.
They were here for Di and Di only.
Khushi sensed the
turmoil withing him and couldn't help but pity him. "Arnav, it's
good that you called me. What you said about the money appearing
suddenly in his account made me think of a case from a couple weeks
ago. Someone was embezzling funds from a research company, and the
money was being deposited in the West Indies. Though the situation is
different, perhaps we can connect some dots. I'll have my people look
into it."
Arnav
was enthralled by the way she chewed her pen, signaling her
anxiousness. Yet that was the only sign of her discomfort with the
situation. Now, she was in her 'zone' as NK had always called it.
Once Khushi focused on something, she could never be deterred from
it, much like himself. She loved his Di as much as he did, and he
knew that she would do anything for her. Anjali had always been
there, cheering everyone up, breaking up the fights, sacrificing her
'me' time for those younger than her. The very thought that her own
khushi was being
threatened hit both of them hard.
"It's my fault."
Arnav admitted softly. Immediately, Khushi knew what he was talking
about and tousled his hair lightly, just like she used to back in the
day. It didn't exactly have the same effect because his hair was
laden thick with gel. However, it elicited the response she wanted
from him: annoyance.
"Seriously yaar,
that has always been your problem. You blame yourself for things you
have control over! Not everything that goes wrong is your fault,
Nav." That was the first time in years she had used his childhood
nickname. Those were also the same words she had used when his mom
had died.
He must have recognized it because his head snapped up. She
gave him a smile, a real one this time. "Don't be so glum, Arnav!
I'm going to help you...she's like my Di too you know. I can't stand
the thought of anyone hurting her, especially not jiju. Should I even
call him that anymore? What should I do? I mean I can't just pull my
gun out and shoot him right? Argh!"
Arnav shook his
head at her mindless chatter and stood up. "Come on, let's go back
down so those idiots I call employees don't think that I called you
here so I can have my way with you." Arnav gave her a naughty grin
to which she couldn't help but blush. She smacked him on the arm.
"Oh
shut up."
They got out of the
office and made their way downstairs, walking in companionable
silence for the first time in decades.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Akaash
saw them first and blinked...once...then twice...and then thrice.
Bhai and Khushi...together...not shouting...not even
scowling at each other? This...it's a miracle! Just what were they
doing in Bhai's office? Could it be...were they... No Akaash...don't
have thoughts like that. That's your best friend and your brother,
the two people who can never get along. I'm sure there's a good
explanation for this...
Arnav walked Khushi
to Akaash's desk. Akaash grinned at his Bhai and Khushi. "What's
this guys...no fighting, no split lips, no bruises. Khushi, where did
all of your fighting spirit go?"
Khushi laughed and
ruffled Akaash's hair. "See Arnav, this is hair that I can mess up.
Lose the gel next time I come and visit."
Arnav scowled at
her while Akaash's eyebrows rose at what she had just implied. Bhai
let her touch his hair...and didn't kill her?
"Thankfully
Khushi, there won't be a next time."
Khushi just smiled
mysteriously. "Don't be so sure about that Raizada." With a quick
hug to Akaash and Payal, she turned around and started walking
towards the main entrance. Just as she was halfway there, Arnav's
voice stopped her.
"Oi Khushi!"
His shout made the entire place quiet down. He watched as she turned,
an annoyed look on her lovely face.
"What, Raizada?"
"You're coming to
dinner tonight." He said authoritatively, using his ASR voice and
knowing that it would never work on her. Though, he really should
revert back to his ASR personality when dealing with his stupid
employees who all were gaping at their boss. It was annoying!
Although he
wouldn't admit it, he wanted Khushi to get started right away on
putting Shyam behind bars so Di would be safe. What better way to
get Khushi to come over than dinner?
Khushi knew exactly
what he was doing and complied. She wanted to look at Shyam with
fresh eyes. Hopefully he would be there, and plus she would see
everyone again.
"Same time as
usual?" She asked. The Raizadas always ate at 7:30 sharp, no
exceptions. Even when Arnav was working late, dinner was always out
at that time.
"What do you
think?" He retorted.
"Fine by me. Now
I can give Akaash and Payal their wedding gift too!" Khushi
exclaimed. She guessed what he was going to say next and stopped him.
"Don't worry about sending a car Raizada. You're not the only one
who has cars and people to drive them." She turned around again,
concealing the smile on her face at his flabbergasted expression.
As she passed the
reception area, she caught sight of Pam's frozen face. Khushi smiled
sweetly at the woman. "See, I told you Arnav wanted to see me."
Khushi watched in satisfaction as the woman gulped. She was feeling
particularly vindictive at the moment so she added, "And the next
time you deny me entrance, you will be fired." Khushi smirked when
Pam frantically nodded her head.
The last thing she
heard as she existed the building was, "Bhai, are you staring at
Khushi?"
Which was followed by a vehement denial. For some reason,
that just made her smile much wider.
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Edited by vedu22 - 11 years ago
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