31

Sensitive content ahead. Reader's discretion is advised.

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Third Person's POV

"How can you be so incompetent, Ridvansh? Khushi was out the whole day yesterday. She gave some lame excuse to Arnav regarding wanting fresh air, but I am sure she had some ulterior motive.

"I informed you about her disappearance right after I was notified by the bodyguard I hired. How could you not find out where she went?" Anjali said with an angry edge in her voice.

"How convenient for you to call me incompetent when you are the one who hired an incompetent bodyguard. If he had done his job properly, Khushi would not have been able to escape," Ridvansh raked his hand through his hair, frustrated by the recent events.

"This is not good, Ridvansh. Not good at all. She knows about us. She had witnessed what we had done. If she somehow found any evidence against us, we will be finished," Anjali said, fear starting to creep inside her after all these years.

Looking at her pacing the room with worry marring her expression, Ridvansh sighed and walked up to her. "If she had found evidence, don't you think she would have already done something about it? She would not have returned to the mansion. Don't worry, darling."

Anjali shook her head as she heard Ridvansh. "No. My intuition is never wrong, Ridvansh. And right now, I have a feeling that something will happen soon. Something terrible."

"You have contacts in the police, don't you? Ask them to check the CCTV footage of the cameras near that temple. Maybe we can find where Khushi went yesterday through that footage," Anjali said, and when she saw Ridvansh about to protest, she interrupted him.

"Do as I say, Ridvansh. We cannot take this matter lightly. I feel Khushi is up to something, and we must do everything we can to protect ourselves. We cannot let that chit of a girl destroy us."

***********

Arnav was working on his new project in his office when he heard a knock at his door.

Looking up, he smiled as he saw his sister at the door. "Anjali, what a pleasant surprise! What brought you to our office today?"

"I had come to meet my friend who lives nearby. As I was about to return to the mansion, I thought to visit the office and talk with you about something important," Anjali replied, and Arnav frowned at the seriousness of her voice.

"Is everything ok, Anjali?"

"It is about Khushi, Arnav," Anjali said, and Arnav frowned at her.

"What about Khushi?" He asked.

"I feel like she is planning something against you, Arnav. I know she has promised to give you another chance if you made her fall for you again, but I think she is lying.

"I feel she hates you and is back to the mansion only to destroy you," Anjali answered carefully, pretending to be concerned for Arnav when she is only worried about her crimes being exposed.

"At times, I feel that way too, Anjali. But there is no way she can destroy me. She has nothing on me. Also, I have now taken away her phone, and she is not even allowed to leave the mansion after the little stunt she pulled yesterday. So, even though she hates me or plans to destroy me, she has no means to do so," Arnav told her, and Anjali shook her head at his overconfidence.

"Have I not taught you never to underestimate your enemies, Arnav? Although Khushi is your wife, under the circumstances, you two got married, and then what happened after your marriage, she must have harbored deep hate for you. She will not stay quiet and wait for you to make her love you again. She will definitely do something. I can feel it," Anjali said to Arnav.

"What do I suggest I do then, Anjali? How do I stop her from even thinking of destroying me?"

"Make her fear you, Arnav. Rouse so much fear in her that she would tremble from even thinking of doing anything against you.

"People say fear is your worst enemy, but I think fear can be your greatest ally when you use it with proper planning," Anjali told Arnav, and he nodded thoughtfully.

"Well, I do have her—" Arnav was saying but was interrupted when his phone rang.

Looking at the caller ID, he saw it was from the hospital where she had transferred Khushi's parents yesterday.

"Just a moment, Anjali. This is important," he said and received the call.

His eyes widened as he heard what the person on the other line said to him.

"What the fuck do you mean by they were taken away? Who took them away? How can you let a random stranger take them away without a family member's permission?" Arnav felt his heart race as he heard the reply from the other end.

Gritting his teeth, he cut the call and threw it across the office, breaking it into pieces.

Anjali gasped as she witnessed Arnav's anger and stood up from where she was seated. "What happened, Arnav? What made you so angry?"

"You were right, Anjali. Khushi is indeed planning something."

"What do you mean? And how did you know about it?" Anjali wanted to know.

"After Khushi suddenly disappeared yesterday, I transferred her parents to another hospital so I could use them to have my hold over Khushi.

"But I just got a call from the hospital that they had to discharge her parents because Khushi sent a signed document. The document stated that they were moved to that hospital without her consent and she would sue them if they did not let her transfer them to the hospital of her choice," Arnav replied to Anjali.

"Khushi is locked in our mansion, Arnav. I have ordered all the bodyguards to keep an eye on her and not to let her step outside the mansion for even one second. They would have informed you or me if she had somehow escaped. So, how could she have gone to the hospital or got her parents transferred?"

"She must have an outsider helping her," Arnav said, the wheels in his brain churning. "This is bad, Anjali. This is really bad."

"You are right, Arnav. If she can do this being locked in the mansion, I wonder what other plans she has under her sleeves." Anjali again felt the same fear she had felt when she was with Ridvansh earlier.

***********

Sitting in the corner of Arnav's room, Khushi continued to stare at the mobile phone in her hand, waiting for Nisha's call.

After she had run away yesterday, she had known Arnav would take away all sources of her freedom, including her mobile phone.

This is why she had borrowed a phone from Nisha so she could contact her to discuss their plan.

After learning about her parents being transferred to another hospital by Arnav last night, she immediately called Nisha and told her everything.

Then Nisha pulled her sources to find where her parents were transferred and got them out of that hospital with the documents containing her forged signature with the help of her contacts.

Nisha had told her she would call her by 1 pm, but it was already 2 pm, and there was no call yet.

She waited anxiously, hoping everything went smoothly without Arnav getting a whiff about it before the transfer.

She was startled out of her thoughts when she felt the phone vibrate. Seeing Nisha's number on the screen, she immediately received the call.

Khushi: "Nisha, did everything go well? Are Maa and Papa safe?"

Nisha: "Don't worry, Khushi. Everything went according to plan. And we gave fake paperwork to the hospital from where I just transferred your parents. So, Arnav will never know where they are admitted now."

Khushi: "Thank you, Nisha. Thank you so much."

Nisha: "That's alright, Khushi. I told you being a crime reporter has its perks. One of them being the influential contacts. It is because of that perk I was able to submit the paperwork to the hospital with the signature I forged for you, and they accepted it without any question."

Khushi: "I am sure they would have already informed Arnav about the transfer by now. He must be on his way now."

Nisha: "Will you be safe, Khushi? Tell me once to come to get you, and I will do that. No one will be able to stop me from taking you out of there."

Khushi: "No, Nisha. This is the end game now. I need to be brave. I need to face Arnav and Anjali and bring them to their knees. After everything that has happened, I cannot give up now."

Nisha: "I understand that, Khushi. But they are dangerous. After seeing that video, we know how evil Anjali is. And you had told me how much influence Anjali has over Arnav. That only means red flags for you, Khushi."

Khushi: "I have suffered at their hands, Nisha. I have witnessed their cruelty. So, I know how dangerous they both are. Don't worry. I know how to take care of myself. I will be fine."

***********

Khushi paced in Arnav's room, wondering why he had not returned yet.

She had expected him to come barging through the door as soon as he heard about her parents' transfer from the hospital, but almost ten hours had passed since Nisha called her about their plan succeeding, and there was still no sign of Arnav.

"Where is he?" She asked aloud and gasped in shock when she heard Anjali's voice.

"Missing your dear husband, Khushi?" Anjali asked as she entered the room.

But Khushi froze in fear as she saw the man with Anjali.

He was the same man she had seen in the basement—the man who had threatened Anusha.

The man she had seen with Anjali when she had witnessed that bloody scene.

And now, that same man entered the room with Anjali, dragging an unconscious Arnav with him.

Ridvansh dropped Arnav to the bed before walking to where Anjali stood. Both of them now smirking at the fear due to which Khushi was shaking in front of them.

"Ah, how lovely it is to see you trembling in my fear," Ridvansh said menacingly, his smirk widening as Khushi started backing away from him.

"It is always so exciting seeing you hunt your prey, Ridvansh." Anjali sat on the recliner, watching the scene in front of her with a twinkle in her eyes.

Khushi clenched and unclenched her hands, trying to ebb away her fear, but she could not get a grip on herself no matter how much she tried.

"Wh..whyy are y..yoouu h...hee..here?" she stuttered, her mouth dry due to the fear.

"Speak more, girl. Come on, speak more. I love it when girls stutter in fear." Ridvansh kept walking toward Khushi with her backing away when finally, Khushi's back hit the wall, and he was able to trap her between the wall and himself.

Ridvansh raised his hand, wanting to tear away Khushi's sari from her body, when Anjali stopped him.

"What is the hurry, Ridvansh? She at least needs to know the reason behind us being here and Arnav being unconscious," Anjali said, and Ridvansh groaned.

"Why? Let me have my fun first." Saying that, Ridvansh again raised his hand, blood rushing through his veins as he saw Khushi tearing up and shaking more.

But before he could lay his hand on Khushi, Anjali caught his hand and pushed him away from Khushi. "I said we would tell her the reason first. How dare you not heed my words?"

Ridvansh sighed, knowing how Anjali gets when he does not listen to her. "Fine then. Tell her. But after that, I get to have my fun. Ok?"

"Oh, yes. You will have your fun, Ridvansh, and I, too, will have my fun watching you ruin her," Anjali said with an evil glint in her eyes and turned to Khushi.

Clutching her jaw harshly, she glared at her.

"Did you really think you could ever plan anything to destroy me, Khushi? I had told you to meekly stay here and be Arnav's little plaything. But no. You had to sprout those rebellious wings and go against me.

"So, now, I need to cut those wings and crush everything in you so you can never even dream of going against me.

"At first, I tried to egg on Arnav. I told him to do everything he did after he married you to instill more fear in you, but he told me he has given you his word not to touch you without your consent.

"That is why I had to mix something in his drink to make him unconscious while Ridvansh and I had our little fun with you with your husband passed out in the bed," Anjali said, and Khushi could only look at her with disbelief written all over her face.

"N..noo you c..caan't." Khushi felt angry at herself for being scared. So much so that she could not even say one sentence without stuttering.

"We can, girl. And we will," Ridvansh said, and Anjali smiled.

"We definitely will," Anjali said, walking away to sit on the recliner again.

From the corner where she was slumped, Khushi looked up to see Ridvansh approaching her.

She squeezed her eyes shut, praying to get enough strength to fight them.

She won't ever forgive herself if she fell weak now. She cannot let them win this time. She cannot let her fear overcome her this time. She cannot.

'Stand up and fight, Khushi. Stand up. Stand up,' the words kept running through her mind as she finally opened her eyes and slowly stood up.

Her body was still shaking in fear, but there also was a warmth of her tiny but growing strength.

"Don't you dare come close," Khushi said, feeling proud of getting that sentence out without any stutter.

Both Anjali and Ridvansh frowned when they heard Khushi.

"The more you will resist, the more I will enjoy breaking you," Ridvansh said, continuing to walk toward Khushi.

"Your choice then. Break me tonight, and tomorrow every social media platform will run the news about you two being the serial killers," Khushi said, smirking in satisfaction as she saw the blood drain from their faces.