Chapter 4

Everyone was about to get in the SUVs, when Saakshi got a call. She listened to other sides words and cut the call.

Saakshi : Sameer, I've to go .I'll catch you guys up later.

Rathod : Where are you going? Don't go alone, take someone with you.

Saakshi : No, Sameer (signals him with eyes). I'm going to meet my friend, she has found something. I'll go & check that...

Arjun : (cuts her between) Then we all are going with you. Get in.

Saakshi : But...

Arjun passed her a hard look & Saakshi took the back seat silently.

...

After half an hour, the SUVs halted in front of a mansion. Saakshi hopped out and ran inside the mansion.

The team followed her but an aged man stops them.

Man : Plz aap log hall main wait kijiye. Babyji's coming.

After 5 minutes Saakshi came with a pretty girl wearing a heavy scarf entangling her neck.

Saakshi : Guys, meet my friend and ex- colleague , Sonali Mitra. Sonu , they're ETF, my colleagues.

The team except Rathod and Arjun shocked for the second time in that day.

Arjun : You are Jay Vadera's fiance, right?

Sonali : Right, plz seat guys. I've a lot to share with you.

Arjun : Tell us, what've you found?

Shree: (nudges Aisha) Isse kya milegi? Yeh koi detective hai kya?

Sonali : detective nahi, but I'm also an investigation journalist. Like Sasha I mean aapki Saakshi.

Arjun passed a I knew it' look to Rathod.

Sonali : And I must involve in this because it's just not only my personal matter now, it's my responsibility to dig out the truth behind all this. Mehra Mansion have a dark history of its last 25 years. It has been belonged to the bank for so long because the bank could not pass off it to anyone. Whoever bought it, cannot posses it for long, so ultimately each time this mansion came back to the bank.

From 1990 to 2013, 17 people tried to occupy that mansion, and all ended up to nothing. In 1991, a Marathi family came to live in the mansion, but they flew within 3 days. Same incident occurred with next 5 owners.  Then, it became famous as a haunted mansion and the bank get into trouble with this. So they tried some other way, by giving it for rent or lease, but they failed again. Mansion kii so called ghosts ne sab ko vaga dia.

Arjun : We already know that, but is there Any details about those incidents, aisa kya dekha tha un logon ne?

Sonali : Actually kuch zyada nahi, wohi dekha jo generally haunted places main dikhta hai. Shadows, scary sounds, feeling anxiety like someone looking at you etc.  

Rathod :Precisely kya dikha kuch pata chala?

Sonali : Well, sabse zyada ek blue shadow ki bare main bataya gaya hai. Piano & pipe organ kii automatically baazne ko dkha hai kuch logon ne. Around 96, two paranormal experts gaye the investigate karne, but they ran out before 12am, they said about feeling strong apprehension, they also mentioned about those piano & pipe organ incident, sudden temperature fall, cold wind flow, a lady in white sharee, and a blue ghost in the projection room. According to them, there is something strange was present in the mansion that strongly affects our mind...In short, that mansion terrorizes people.

Aisha : That's all?

Sonali : There's much more actually. In 2002, a film actress, Roma. Had a bet with her friends & went to stay in that mansion.  Although the bet was to stay whole night, she ran out screaming around 7. Hr statement was same as that experts but she added about some mist surrounding her. She named it The Fog of Fear.

Aisha : That means, this mansion only scares people. There were no such lethal incidents.

Saakshi : No, actually there were, Sonu?

Sonali : In 1994, some goons tried to make that mansion their shelter, but they never succeeded. They got scared and started firing to something. In that shootout, 2 were dead, 1 injured and the rest 2survived. Their statement was also as same as that expert and Ms.Roma. (She stops to catch some air)

Not only that, in 2006, 2 smugglers were found dead in the driveway. They were shot. Postmortems said they shot each other. And when the investigation team went there, they lost one of them. After two days, his dead body also found in the backyard. Cause of death- Heart attack.

Aisha : Further investigations to hui thi na?

Sonali : Team to gaye the, but woh vi darr ke wapas aa gaye, and the case was closed.

Shree : Yeh sub bankwalon ki saath nehi hota hai kya?

Sonali :Bank kii aadmi harr 6 months main ek bar wahan jaat hain, maintenances ke liye; woh bhi at morning. Generally 10-12 am they do their works, and these abnormal incidents occur after sunset.

Arjun : Achcha information collect kia, but yeh sub kya Mr. Vadera ko pata tha?

Sonali : Yes. He knew everything. He had every details about Mehra's, specially Yatin Mehra. In fact, I got this information from his assistant.

Arjun : Achcha? To what else did he knew about Yatin Mehra?

Saakshi : I've arranged them in the file, Arjun.

Arjun : ( to Sonali) Jo file main nahi hain woh bol do, ( turns to Saakshi) tumne kuch jagah par red color se more to add' mark kia, uski baare main puch raha hoon.

Sonali : He has an architecture degree from US. Acting was his passion, so he chose it as his carrier. Moreover, he loved scaring people and to be scared. He used to scare people. He had so many innovative ideas of scaring people. Black magic was his hobby so that he redesigned the interiors of his house on horror theme.  For that, he collected materials from haunted places, like seakales from old indigo fort, Dandelions from some haunted palace, wood for window panels and other interiors from some haunted house; even he brought the main doors from some haunted fort of 17^th century. He used to through party each week and in each party he targeted any one of his guests and mad him scared. Thus, he made many enemies also.

Chotu : Waah! Kya hobby tha!! Logon ko darana achchi baat hai kya? Iss aadmi ko koi achcha hobby nahi mila?

Sonali : (Smiles) Tha na, Birds. Specially Pigeons. Achcha khasa collction tha iske paas. Rare and expensive birds collect karne ki hobby tha iska. Besides, yeh aadmi ke nut thora dheela tha, jab jo mann aata tha wahi karta tha, issi liye to sab kuch gawah baitha. But abnormal deaths ki taraf  ek alag hi attraction tha uski. If fact, he always wished an abnormal death for himself. He told it in several interviews.

Aisha : Issiliye unki death vi abnormal tha.

Sonali : (Smiles) yep, he committed suicide.

Rathod : What?! How can you say that, according to reports, he died in an accident.

Sonali : (raised an eyebrow) Achcha!! Zarroor tumne who police ki files dekhi, right? He committed suicide and Mrs. Maya Swami had confirmed it. She still has his diary and some of his letters including his suicide note. Moreover, Sharma's son has given me the same information.

Arjun : But the question is, if Mr. Vadera knew this, then why he decided to buy this mansion?

Sonali : Even I also want to know the answer, Mr. Arjun.

...

The team returned to the office. They have a lot to think.

Rathod : I can't get this damm it, Why a father want to gift his only son a haunted house? That's too as a marriage gift?

Arjun : Saakshi, did this father- son had a grudge? Or any differences between them? Specially regarding your friend?

Saakshi : As far I know, NO. In fact, Sonali always had been the Vadera's First choice for their son. Jay also loved her. Nobody imposed her on him.

Aisha : Are you sure? But media ke hisab se toh Mrs. Vadera ne...

Saakshi : Look, I know Sonali and Jay for more than 10 years. They're childhood friends and lovers. They never left each other alone. In fact, I used to say, "God na tum dono ko fevicol se chipak ke veja hai. Koi kisiko 1 minute ke liye vi akela nehi chorta!" They were meant to be together.  Besides, Vadera's and Mitra's are business partners. This marriage was profitable for both of the families. Whatever happened in that day, it's just a spur of the moment. Mrs. Vadera never meant that. She loves Sonu just like her daughter.

Arjun : Matlab iss side se sochn ka koi faida nahi.

Rathod : Kaun si side se?

Arjun : Kuch nahi, chalo mansion hoke aate hain. Baaki baad main dekhenge.

Chotu :Now? It's almost evening sir.

Arjun : So it's the perfect time to meet those ghosts, right? Let's go.

...
 (Next update will be interesting...so just bare with this boring one, plz.)