Hello Arishans, back with a part...hope u like it...kids stay out from here...
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Thanks for all the prev comments and likes!
Chapter 19: Castles in the air!
After Shree leaves, Arjun twirls his pen and his thought process revolves around Aisha….He smacks her mentally "yeh ladki sirf paagal hi nahi bevakoof bhi hai"
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Next day……Arjun gets a call from Dhruv……"hello ACP Arjun"
Arjun: haan…aap kaun?
Dhruv: main Dhruv…..Aisha ka friend….uss din Pune mein miley…
Arjun remembers and speaks "yeah Dhruv"
Dhruv: I need to meet you urgently Mr Arjun…..Aisha ke baare mein kuch baat karna hai…..
Arjun: teek hai……aadhe ghante mein tumaare office ke baahar milthe hai!
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Arjun drove to Dhruv's office and met him outside his office building……soon they were at the terrace area which wasn't frequented by people…..
Dhruv had something very important and urgent matter to tell and it was a bit personal and only for his ears…..So they chose an isolated place…..
Arjun was a little impatient to hear him out…..he thought to himself "what was he going to say about Aisha?"
Arjun: ab bathao Dhruv…..kya kehna chahthe ho?
Dhruv looked a bit tensed as he pulled out 2 envelopes from his pocket…….and held out one for him…"yeh aap keliye hai"
Arjun took it from him reading…..it had "Arjun" written on it….so it was obviously a letter to him and from the handwriting, Arjun realized that it was from Aisha…..
Arjun was confused about why Aisha chose to write this letter and had passed it on to him through Dhruv and where the hell was she??? Why wasn't she meeting him personally?
Dhruv started off trying to answer all his unvoiced questions, "Aisha mere paas kal raat aayi thi…..she gave me these letters….par mujhse promise liya ke I will open mine only after 2 days and also will pass this to you after that…….but I couldn't hold it longer Arjun…..her intentions and talks scares me…..usske baaton se aisa laga ke woh kisi dangerous kaam karne waali hai aur shaayad phir dobaara kabhi nahi milegi mujhse…..she was kind of trying to settle things and that freaked me out……Aisha bohat ziddhi hai aur kabhi apne iraadhon se peeche nahi hattthi…….[When Dhruv said that, Arjun was getting impatient to read his letter, sensing that Dhruv voiced out] no…don't read it here Arjun….jab akele ho tab hi padhna…..[Arjun nodded and stopped…he could see that Dhruv didn't want him to read the letter in his presence]
Arjun enquired, "ab Aisha kahaan hai?"
Dhruv: Pune gayi hai Pari se milne…..
Arjun was really surprised at that and anger filled him……how dare she goes without telling him?
But then another side of his asked him why was he even bothering so much when she didn't care or rather what right did he have to question her? And why did he feel that she owed him a reply?
Arjun looked at Dhruv, he felt an urge to enquire about what she had written to Dhruv……Arjun's eyes landed on Dhruv's hands which held the letter…….Dhruv noticed that and told him,
" Aisha ke personal savings aur usske property ke baare mein hai….…….she has made her will and also made arrangements for Pari if she happens to…..[he couldn't complete the sentence but Arjun could read it from the lone tear that appeared in Dhruv's sad eyes…..Arjun was continuously smacking Aisha for having put him and Dhruv in such difficult situations……Dhruv gathered himself and added..]…..unn sab ke details iss letter mein hai……mujhe laga ke aapko inform karna chahiye….you are the only one who can pull her out of this Arjun….you are her boss and….[Dhruv didn't manage to complete that as well]
Arjun patted on Dhruv's shoulders assuring him, "don't worry…..usse kuch nahi hoga……main usske saath kuch bhura nahi hone doonga…trust me!"
Dhruv nodded and he knew that the man in front of him was the kind who would go to any extremes to keep his word and if he assures that he would bring back Aisha safe, then that was it…..Even if the world goes upside down, Aisha would be safe in his hands! Such were the power in his words and determination that reflected in those intense eyes!
Dhruv finally let out a sigh of relief and the tension seemed to drain away slowly from his face……Having poured it out to Arjun made him feel lighter and relaxed!
As Dhruv bid bye and contemplated about leaving, Arjun called him back…."Dhruv" [Dhruv looked back at him…Arjun had known Dhruv's mind in those last few minutes of their talk] you are in love with her, right?
Dhruv nodded after a few seconds because he was confused about why Arjun asked him that and should he even give him an honest reply……but yes, he decided to tell the truth….and the truth was that he loved Aisha more than his life……Even though, he had playfully proposed to her many times, the fun part and play were just plain pretence…..internally from within his heart, he was quite serious about her and had always hoped that she would some day take his proposal seriously and love him back the same way he did…..of course she loved him but he very well knew that it was not the love he had hoped for…She loved him as a friend…..not anything less nor more…….
Arjun replied instantly seeing him nod……"don't…..she is taken……"
Arjun didn't know why he said that but something told him that he had to tell that to the totally lovestruck guy in front of him……He didn't want Dhruv to nurture false hopes and build castles in the air waiting for Aisha and dream of a life with her because giving her away to Dhruv wasn't going to happen….no, not until he existed in this world!
Dhruv gave a faint chuckle and replied sarcastically, "I know….but she and the guy who stole her from me are the biggest fools I have ever met in my life…..they don't realize that they are madly in love with each other...and keep lying to their own hearts that its just not love! Khud bevakoof hai dono aur dhoosron ko bhi bevakoof samajhthe hai!"
He purposefully didn't let out the name of the guy who stole her heart but both men knew who he was referring to!
Arjun was a little furious hearing Dhruv's talk but then he controlled himself thinking, "may be he was right! Else why was he feeling so restless and impatient when he couldn't meet her…..why were a few days of her absence affecting him so much? Why was the risk she was taking upon herself irking him, annoying him and driving him so mad? Why was he hell bent on bringing her back safely? What did she mean to him?"
Questions clogged his mind and he was yet to find replies…….
Dhruv didn't wait for a reply but just walked away leaving Arjun to find his own answers……
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Two days passes by…..Aisha deliberately avoids Arjun and his calls……But Arjun appeared calm and cool, as if he was quite sure of his plan and it wasn't going to fail……He didn't try hard to meet her or talk to her…He knew it was better to let her go in her route and follow it up with her in his own style!…
His plans were only known to him and yes of course, a part of it was known to Shree too…..
Sameer was a bit frustrated by the turn of events and the secrets that his officers were keeping away from him…..But he knew that the head strong people weren't going to listen to him…And Aisha had the commissioner by her side as well…..so he couldn't question her further!
But Arjun assured him one thing when he left office for the day..."Nothing will happen to her!"
It was the same day when Aisha ufff Laila was gonna meet Mr Jatin Bansal!
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Aisha was dressed in a skimpy outfit…she pulled over a long black cloak over it as she stepped out of her house…..she wasn't comfortable wearing it…..yes she had worn such outfits long back but she didn't know why she was feeling awkward wearing it now…..her closeness, not just that but her unnamed relationship with Arjun seemed to have brought this sudden change over her…….
Somehow she felt that she belonged to him and no one else had the right to see her like that but then, that thought meets its logical end then and there, because she couldn't let her heart rule over her mind……
She couldn't let anything come in the way of her mission…even if that was her love for him…yes love….it was love..Pure and undeterrable love! She couldn't deny it any longer…..Wasnt that why she had written that letter to him pouring out whatever she feels for him…..whatever she has for him…..it wasn't a love letter but it was much more…..she had just laid down her heart and soul open to him……things that she would never be able to tell him on his face….She couldn't tell it when her physical form existed in this world…..she could never tell him that she was in love with him, deeply, madly, truly…..but if something happened to her in this mission, her soul would never rest in peace with this burden hovering on her…..so she decided to let it out to him and got Dhruv to promise her that he would pass on the letter only if she never returned……And somehow, she felt that Dhruv would stick to that promise……..
She breathed a sigh of relief and satisfaction as she got into the cab she had booked…….
Soon she was on the way to the place fixed mutually by her, that's Laila and Jatin Bansal…..
Why she had picked Jatin Bansal? That was her pure guts and intuitions that told her that he was the man she was looking for……Sikandar, he was behind the faade of Jatin…..She had done a lot of background work on Sik and had known in and out of him though she never met him……..Sik had his trademark ways of fixing deals and handling people…..something in the bid and the way he left the note indicated that it was him behind it…….
Be it a underworld deal or women, Sik always wanted it exclusive only for him…..He wouldn't allow anyone to take it before or after him…….He would fix it exclusively for him and him only……And that was exactly what he had done in that bid….he had marked it as exclusive….he wanted an untouched girl and from that day, she would belong to him, just him………cost never mattered to him!!………
No other bid had that clause!
Aisha's thoughts wandered back to Pari and of course Arjun…two important people of her life…..she knew she was doing injustice to Pari but she really didn't have a choice……but she knew, Pari would be safe with Arjun if she………[her thoughts ceased and she flicked away the tear from the corner of her eyes, with it flicked away the last bit of any double thoughts or doubts in her mind!]
She had settled everything and she was ready for everything now!
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She reached the beach hotel booked for the night………it wasn't highly expensive but was luxurious and well hidden from the crowd……Of course, Sikandar would have his own places and dens which were all bought and managed under various false names and groups……
Nobody would even get a whiff of what really happened in such places or who was behind all that!
This place was totally new to her…………she didn't know why he chose this place but then, such people had their own fantasies, she reminded herself why she was here….Though it was a mission for her, for Sik, she was just another call girl who was there to satisfy his lust and fantasies for the night!
Her steps faltered a bit as she stepped out of the cab…….it was the first time, she felt a bit nervous or may be guilty of what she was going to do…though it was for a mission, she was going to cross the moral boundaries of the girl in her…..and in the process, she could lose her life and even more than just her life!…but she had to be confident……pose and ooze confidence in her dealings from here on…..
She had her weapons ready on her……..hidden from everybody in her body……nobody could catch it….no she didn't carry a gun….she left the gun with the long cloak well concealed inside a bush that adorned the lawn area making sure that she escaped the CCTV camera that was fixed at the entrance to the hotel!
Shree had given her a microchip which she hid in her earrings…but she didn't switch it on because she had doubts on Shree's credibility…..Afterall, he had let out her secrets to Arjun!
She enquired at the reception…….The guy at the reception counter looked at her head to toe and gave her a double meaning look and nod…..perhaps the dress did give him evil thoughts!...
"Men!" she sighed to herself!…….
He grinned as he gave her the spare key to the cottage that was booked for the night and the directions to it……
She walked to the cottage ….it was at the far end of the hotel…..and required a good 3 minute walk along the cemented pavements…….She could see the sea which appeared very calm today unlike her own heart which was as restless as a tide!
She climbed the steps and reached the door…..
She took one long moment and an even more deep breath and opened the door…..
The lighting inside was dim and she couldn't spot anyone there……she called out "Mr Jatin"
She saw the blurred image of a guy in a casual white shirt and a jeans with a drink in his hand walk into the room from the open sit out area voicing out sarcastically
"Yes Miss Laila……ufff Mis Aisha Kapoor…."
[To be continued]
so how was it?? pls do reply...
and all BBs, no its not a start of another SR...its gonna be more intense and emotional!
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Anupamaa
