Chapter 4

Bloomie

@bloomie

Part 3 [MEMBERSONLY] [NOCOPY]

He stormed out of the room banging the door shut. Her trembling hands went to her lips. They quivered reminiscing the brief second of disgust. She threw herself on the pillow and burst out crying cursing her fate……………………….

After almost an hour, she collected herself. Sitting up, she wiped her tears. She knew she would have to do something now. The last words of Shree haunted her. He was right, a simple drug in her food and he could do whatever he wanted with her. The realisation frightened her.

All this while, the only reason she didn’t try to escape was because of the guards. There were a minimum of 7 guards inside the house at any given point of time. They didn’t stay in her room but her window had three of them on the outside. The bathroom window was tiny and she could easily see the high walls and fencing through her bedroom window. Even if she somehow managed to bypass the three guards double the size of Chotu she would be easily caught in the grounds by the rest of them.

Riya mv “oh God! Please help me….kya karu? kaise karu? (fresh tears rolled down her face) please help me…koi toh raasta hoga, at least kisi ko message pahunchaane ka….please.”

An idea popped into her head but the next second it was clouded with doubt. Would it work? What if he didn’t take her? She wiped off her tears and stiffened herself. She had to try….else she had no rights to call herself an ETF officer.

4 days later-

The team was in the conference room, discussing a case.

Rathore: Ayesha, tum aur Chotu us peon ke ghar jaa kar pata karo, lagta toh nahi ki khoon khud usne kiya hoga but shayad paison ke liye zehar milaya ho

Arjun: Shree, call records ka kya hua?

Shree: company se aaye nahi sir, jaise hi aate hai main aapko batata hu

Arjun(sternly): firse phone karo! Legal matter hai!!

Shree hid himself behind the laptop: ji sir

He called up the company again and threatened them with legal repercussions if the information was not given soon. Finishing the call, he had almost placed it back in the pocket when it rang.

Shree: hello?....(shocked) KYA?!?! (all eyes turned to him) Kaise? (Arjun squinted seeing the silent fire in his eyes).......kaha? theek hai, main aata hun

He disconnected and turned to Rathore.

Shree: sir, kya mujh half day milegi please? Meri behen ki tabiyat achanak bahot bigad gayi hai

Rathore nodded: ha Shree koi baat nahi jao, agar zyaada leave chahiye toh bata dena

Shree: ji sir, thank you!

Chotu: oye khayal rakhna, kuch chahiye ho toh bolna

Shree smiled as he packed his bag: ha baba, bolunga, bye guys! Bye sir!

He picked up his sling and left. Arjun continued to stare in the direction he walked out from mv “behen ki tabiyat kharab hai toh woh gussa kaisa tha? kis liye? aur achanak gayab kaise ho gaya? woh bhi aisa gussa? Aisa lag raha tha jaise ki woh puri duniya ko aag laga dega…chal kya raha hai?”

He picked up his gun and stood up.

Rathore: ab tu kaha jaa raha hai?

Arjun: kaam hai!

Without bothering to explain himself further, Arjun left the room. He saw Shree wearing his helmet as he neared the parking lot. Shree kick-started his bike and drove out of the gate. Arjun rushed to his SUV and drove after him.

He kept a safe distance as he followed him. He didn’t know why he was suddenly so bothered in his team mate’s life. True, he did care for them but this was weird. On top of it, the micro-expressions on his face were troubling him. He had never seen him like that. His gut was itching and so was his curiosity.

Shree drove into a hospital, confusing Arjun mv “iski behen ki tabiyat itni kharab hai ki woh hospital mein hai? kahi main khamakha iska peecha toh nahi kar raha hai? (he was about to take a U-turn when a prickly feeling covered him) ab yaha tak aaya hun, toh dekh hi leta hu ek baar.”

He parked the car outside the hospital premises and walked in. He saw Shree slipping into the elevator.

Arjun: Dammit! Ab kaise pata chalega ki ye kaha jaa raha hai?

He waited almost 10 minutes for the same elevator to come down again. Entering inside, he showed his ID to the liftman and Shree’s picture on his phone.

Arjun: ye kaha gaya?

Liftman(surprised): woh saab, 6th floor par

Arjun nodded. The lift stopped at the 6th floor after stopping at two other floors.

Arjun whispered to the liftman and he walked out: muh band rakhna apna!

He scoured through the corridors. Turning left, he jerked back seeing Shree talking to a female doctor. Being careful to not make a sound, he peeked around. 4 heavily armed guards were standing outside a door. Shree and the lady went in the opposite direction as they talked, presumably to her cabin.

Arjun mv “guards? Yaha kyun?....what are you upto Shree?”

A cleaning boy was moving with his trolley when Arjun stopped him.

Boy: kuch chahiye saab?

Arjun flashed his ID. He stiffened.

Arjun: ye log kaun hai?

The boy peeped and looked back at him: mujhe nahi pata saab, doctor ke ilawa kisi ko bhi andar jaane ki ijazat nahi hai

Arjun: toh tum log safayi nahi karte?

Boy: ki thi sir, guard bhi aaya tha andar saath mein

Arjun(thoughtfully): acha? Aur andar kaun hai?

Boy: mujhe nahi pata saab, koi ladki hai

Arjun: hmm…..ek coat milega?

Boy: ji saab, main lekar aata hun

Arjun nodded and the boy left to get a doctor’s coat from the storeroom nearby. He brought it along with a stethoscope and handed it over to him. Arjun took both of them and wore the coat. His gaze fell on the boy’s ID.

Arjun: card do

Boy: par sir, photo hai

Arjun: koi baat nahi

Confused, he did as told. Arjun pinned it up the other way round so the back side of the card displaying only the address and shift timings would be seen.

Arjun: yahi ruko, aur chahe kuch bhi ho jaaye ki si ke bhi saamne muh mat kholna warna samjhe ya samjhau?

The boy gulped in fear: ji saab

Straightening the coat, Arjun confidently walked upto the room. He proceeded towards the door when the guards stopped him.

Guard 1: ruko! tum andar nahi ja sakte

Arjun: kyun?

Guard 1: allowed nahi hai, niklo yaha se

Arjun: ye ward mera hai! aur har patient ki zimmedari meri hai tum hote kaun ho beech mein aane waale?

Guard 2: ae! Zyaada zabaan mat chala warna….

Arjun: warna kya? Raaste se hato warna tum sabko naukri se nikalwa dunga!

Guard 3 stepped forward threateningly: kya re? bahot charbi hai tere andar? Hai kaun tu? Pehle toh dekha nahi

Arjun glared at him. Just then the cleaning boy entered the scene with the trolley.

Boy: are doctor saab aap yaha kyun khade hai?

Guard: ye doctor hai?

Boy: ha, aur nahi toh kya safed coat mein terrorist hai?

The guard glared at him. The boy cowered. He turned to Arjun.

Guard: jaldi jaa kar dekh le

Arjun went forward and opened the door. He felt relieved as the door closed behind him. A girl was sitting on the bed with her knees to her chest and head on her arms. The sound of the door alerted her and she looked up.

The ground swept off beneath their feet. Arjun ran to her.

Arjun: RIYA?!!?

Riya hugged him, crying hysterically: Arjun sir!! thank god!! Please help me….Shree…

Arjun: Riya tum…

But she didn’t bother to give any explanation: Shree bahot khatarnaak hai, bachaiye mujhe…mujhe yaha se nikaliye….please….kisi ko pata nahi chalna……

Arjun was still in his dazes when the door opened. He reflexively grabbed her wrist pretending to check her pulse. Riya shut up on seeing the guard. Wary of the presence, he put on the stethoscope and placed the other end on her chest.

Though he was no doctor, he was sure her heart rate was off the chart. He could hear heavy thuds in his ear. Her heart was beating wildly. She was sweating and shivering at the same time. Taking the sphygmomanometer, he wrapped the gauze around her upper arm. He pumped air a few times and an above normal blood pressure was recorded. He kept it back in his place. A file on the table caught his attention.

He picked it up, hoping it was her case file. Riya subtly glanced at Arjun from the corner of her eyes praying for Shree to not turn up. Arjun read the report. Apparently she had not eaten for the past few days causing a drop in her glucose and sodium levels which had made her faint. He eyed the IV drip going into her arm. He took out his pen and pretended to make a reading but made sure that no marks were made on the paper. He remembers Shree’s anger.

Arjun: bhook nahi lagti ya fir upvaas tha?

Riya came out of her thoughts: woh…(glancing at the guard) upvaas tha

Arjun understood that she did it on purpose: fruits zyaada khao, body mein nourishment rahegi, main chart likh kar deta hun kal

Riya nodded getting the hint that he would do something. Arjun placed the file back on the table. He went to the drip to check the flow. He blinked slowly assuring her. Her eyes moistened. He glared softly nodding his head subtly in a no, gesturing to the guard. She composed herself and looked away.

Arjun turned again and left the room. He walked straight, around the hallway to the end of the corridor where the cleaning boy was waiting for him. He returned his things and moved out of the hospital in a daze. In the same trance, he sat in his car and closed the door. The sound of the door closing somewhat pulled him out.

Arjun: Riya…..zinda hai?!!?

“Shree bahot khatarnaak hai”

“Mujhe yaha se nikaliye”

“Please help me”

Her words rang in his ears mv “iska…iska matlab, Shree ne use….use kaid karke rakha hai? lekin kyun? Kyun kar raha hai woh aisa? Usne Riya ko….lekin woh zinda kaise hai? humari aankhon ke saamne hi toh usne dum toda tha toh fir…aur Shree ne hum sab se baat kyun chupayi…Shree khatarnaak hai? itne saare guards? Itni tight security? Kis liye? (thinking about her skills) kyunki woh bhaag na jaaye? Par…..(banging his hand on the steering wheel) Why Dammit?!!? Why Is He Doing This?!?! Kyun sabki nazro mein dhool jhonk raha hai woh?”

One thing was clear though, Shree was no ordinary tech freak, hell with that! He was no ordinary man. He had easily managed to fool the entire police department for 6 months! 6 freaking months!! 6 months had passed and nobody knew Riya was alive! Whose body was it then? Who had they given a gun salute?

His phone rang bringing him out of his thoughts.

Arjun: ha Rathore?

Rathore: ek lead mili hai, care to come?

Arjun straightened: aa raha hun

He went back to the office. The bank statements had revealed a hefty phishing sum. They arrested the business partner who took revenge on the man for the fraud. The peon too was arrested. He had been paid to add poison in the food of the victim.

Rathore wrapped up the case and told everyone to go home after the basic formalities were over. He saw Arjun in his thoughts throughout the confession, barely paying attention. Wondering what had suddenly happened, he placed a hand on his shoulder.

Rathore: Rawte?

Arjun: huh?

Rathore: kya hua? Kaha khoye hue ho? is everything ok?

Arjun ha kyun?

Rathore: you don’t look too good

Arjun: ha woh…bas, thodi thakaan hai (taking a deep breath) main chalta hun, kal milenge

And he left before Sameer could ask anything else. He was barely convinced. Sameer stared at his back as Arjun left, mv “Arjun Rawte aur thakaan? Impossible! Kya chupa rahe ho tum?”

Arjun on the other hand drove straight home. He stared out the window with his cutting in his hand. His head was spinning due to the information he had stumbled upon. His gut was right, something was wrong, majorly wrong.

Riya….his Riya had been held captive by one of their own all this time. He cursed himself to not notice the fake body. How did he not recognize her? How did he not recognize that it was an imposter? How did he not notice Shree’s slyness before?

At the same time, he thanked his lucky stars that he decided to make the right decision to follow Shree. Else god alone knows how long she would have been there? How many times she would have to put her life on the line in an effort to escape? How many more months it would have been or years for that matter?

Arjun mv “main tumhe waha se zaroor bahar nikalunga Riya”

Hospital-

Riya was lying on the bed, sleep far from her eyes but relief in heart mv “I know Arjun sir, ab aapko pata chala gaya toh main zaroor jaldi yaha se azaad ho jaungi

Arjun mv “main tumhe Shree ke changul se baahar nikal kar rahunga, fir bhale hi mujhe uske liye kuch bhi kyun na karne pade!!”

Riya mv “mujhe pata hai jab tak ye gutthi nahi sulajti aap chain se nahi baithenge”

Arjun mv “main tumhe aur dard nahi sehne dunga, I promise!”

Riya mv “aap zaroor meri madad karenge, is baar bhi ant mein jeet aapki hogi”…………………….