Chapter 13

~ CHAPTER 13 ~

Arnav Singh Raizada had known fear before. But never had he realized how it could literally paralyze a person. Now as he tried Khushi's non responding phone, he felt the chill of that debilitating feeling seep through his bones slowly. Why wasn't she picking up her phone? he thought with something akin to dread, as he pressed the speed dial once more. When he had come out of that interrogation room after handing over that piece of scum to Marco, his heart had almost stopped seeing 14 missed calls from Khushi. But his voice mail remained conspicuously empty, raising his already elevated tension some more. What if she believed whatever crap it was that Sheetal had concocted and sent to her? What if she actually left him...NO! His mind screamed silently as that thought even crossed his mind. Khushi cannot leave him...he won't let her! Arnav thought desperately as her phone rang away to glory.

"Arnavji..." The low voice from the other end startled him, pulling him abruptly from the brink of torturous worst case scenario imaginations. "Thank God Arnavji ,you called! I really wanted to talk to you!"

"Khushi...Where were you?" Arnav asked at once, as his galloping heart calmed "Why weren't you picking up the call?"

"I was in the Mandir Arnavji. That's why I didn't hear the ring"

"At this time?" Arnav frowned as a new concern took over. "It must be quite late there, Khushi. What was the need to go to the temple now?"

There was a momentary silence on the other end.

"Khushi...? What happened?"

"Arnavji, Do you know how many times I tried to call you? I have to tell you something..."

Arnav felt the frigid chill trickle through his veins. He totally understood the phrase "heart is in the mouth" for the first time ever in his life.

"Yes, Khushi...?" Arnav winced inwardly as it came out as a croak, and cleared his throat to cover up.

"Arnavji..." Khushi began hurriedly "I wanted to warn you!"

Arnav blinked. Did he hear her correctly? Did she actually say...?

"WARN ME? Did you just say you wanted to warn me? About what?"

"Haan Arnavji" Khushi stressed as she explained. "Someone is trying to frame you. Today evening when I got home I found a courier waiting for me. It had a letter and..." Khushi tried to cover the catch in her voice "...and photographs of you and Sheetal, Arnavji" Describing the photographs and the contents of the letter, she went on to caution him further. "Even I was shocked for a moment Arnavji. But I knew it couldn't be as it seemed. My Arnavji is not like that. It was obvious someone was trying to frame you. I don't know how they came to know about us but Arnavji, you should be more careful from now on. Someone seems to be creating trouble for you"

Arnav felt like how Alice must have felt in Wonderland, not sure of what was happening around. He had been expecting that whatever the plans of Sheetal, Khushi would at least be hurt and accusing. But here she was cautioning him against a conspiracy, which was actually true. But Khushi, even without being aware of the perfidy of Sheetal, had enough faith in him to see through the false allegations and trust him! He felt truly humbled. She had completely disregarded all the evidence and trusted in him, in their love.

"Khushi..." Arnav swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat before he spoke. But Khushi didn't hear him.

"So, I came to the mandir to think and to pray. Devi Mayya always gives me strength. I also made a special prayer for you Arnavji, so that whoever it is won't be able to harm you..." Khushi was busy talking not realizing the emotional impact her words were having on the person at the other end.

"Khushi..." Arnav said once again, a little more firmly than before.

"Hmmm...Arnavji?"

"I love you"

Khushi was surprised at the sudden avowal "I love you too, Arnavji..." She said with a smile, which was apparent even over the trans-oceanic call "And I miss you. You will be back by new year na?"

"I miss you too, Khushi" Arnav replied ardently "And I WILL be there with you for the new year, come hell or high water. I have some unfinished business here. I will be closing it up before coming and after that no one can separate us anymore" He contemplated on telling her about Sheetal's drama but decided he would surprise her after he had cleared everything. He didn't want raise her hopes and then have Sheetal put some other obstacle in front of them.

"Okay Arnavji..." Khushi hesitated a bit before shyly speaking "Um...I have a surprise for you when you come back..."

Arnav could hear the shy inflection in her voice and wished he could see her blush "Is that so?" he asked slowly "Now I can't wait to get home to see your surprise. Waise, I have a surprise for you too..."

"Really? What is it...?" Khushi asked eagerly forgetting all about her previous shyness "Bolo na, Arnavji"

Arnav chuckled at her impatience. "You really can't handle waiting for surprises, Can you Khushi...? But you will have to wait a couple of days before you get this one..." he added with a smile.

He could literally hear her pout as she conceded finally, but not without some more drama. "Fine...You are so heartless Arnavji. Now I won't get any sleep for 2 days thinking about what my surprise might be"

"Emotional blackmail won't cut it Khushi" Arnav said with a laugh. "Just wait for a couple of days and I will be there, with your surprise"

"All right. Bye Arnavji" Khushi said warmly "Please be careful..."

"I will be...Bye, Khushi ...Love you!" Arnav hung up and shook his head fondly at her childishness. Then his attention turned to the recorder in his pocket and his manner turned more serious. He had work to do before he could be home with his love when the clock struck 12 at midnight of new year, the start of an year when he would be finally free of his shackles. When he would finally be free to choose his love, his Khushi.

-----xxx-----

Arnav could hear the commotion outside the lawyer's office, where he was seated currently with his overseas lawyer Mr.Maxwell. He realized Sheetal had arrived finally. They had been waiting for over half an hour for her. Suddenly the door banged open as Sheetal came in screaming.

"What's the meaning of this?" she demanded furiously "I cannot have a meeting without my lawyer, Mr Jha. And certainly not with this murderer!" She began to cry "He killed my Dhruv...He killed my baby...I won't be in the same room with him"

Arnav rolled his eyes at her drama and spoke up wryly "Put a lid on it, Sheetal. We all know you are faking it, So, cool down the deranged act a bit" He smiled coldly as he took in her shocked glance "And as for your trusted lackey, he has been indisposed indefinitely. So you will have to deal with us personally whether you wish it or not. Anyways I see that you have brought another lawyer with you, so I don't see any problem here..." He said looking at the other man who had entered with Sheetal.

Sheetal recovered her composure and whispered something to the other man who nodded and began to speak "Hello Mr. Raizada and Mr. Maxwell. I'm George Manning, Mrs. Khanna's Lawyer in the absence of Mr. Shyam Jha. I would like to urge you to speak respectfully to my client, Mr. Raizada. She has a medically recognized mental disorder and her mental state is fragile"

"Fragile mental state, my foot!" Arnav muttered as he looked at the pompous man and struggled to hide his irritation "Mr. Manning, I suggest you be up to date on the newest developments in your case before you demand something from us. If you haven't heard it yet, The doctor who issued that certificate to your client has been arrested a few hours ago from his house and his license is in the process of being revoked by AMA. And in order to reduce his sentence, he is blabbing like a parrot to the police about all his illegal and unethical activities. Also I believe issuing your client's false medical certificate was one of the few charges he has already accepted" He relished the look of utter horror on Sheetal's face and smirked "Now, I URGE you to advise your client to not make more of a scene and sign on the divorce papers promptly. I'm rather in a hurry myself"

Arnav leaned back in his seat, relaxed, as the duo opposite them conferred furiously in whispers. He looked at the time. He needed to wrap this up quickly to reach airport in time. His private plane was slated to fly back in another few hours.

"My client would like to speak alone with her husband, before coming to any conclusion." Mr. Manning pronounced as they straightened and looked at Arnav and his lawyer. Arnav nodded at his lawyer in assent and both the lawyers left the office.

"You think you have won because you exposed my doctor to be a fraud, don't you?" Sheetal laughed wickedly "But you are forgetting what I tried to do when you tried to divorce me first. Do you want your Dhruv's love's death on your conscience as well as his?" She clucked her tongue at him "Or is this about that girl you have been keeping, what was her name...Khushi...? But I doubt after the little gift I sent her, she would be waiting for you" she laughed evilly.

Arnav didn't say a word and switched on the recorder. Sheetal blanched as she heard her own voice spilling her plans to deceive ASR.

"Thank you for your concern over my love life. I assure you it's just fine" Arnav smirked "Now will you sign here or shall I take this evidence to the police?" he asked sliding the divorce papers to her.

Sheetal knew she was trapped. She had to sign the papers if she had to get out of here without being arrested. She slowly took the papers and Arnav called both the lawyers back in to witness the signatures. Sheetal looked up after signing and was infuriated to see the satisfaction on Arnav's face.

"Don't think you have won. I'm... I'm going to expose your cozy little arrangement to the press. I am a damn good actress. I will play the betrayed wife to the fullest. Your reputation wouldn't be worth 2 cents after I get though with you!" She screamed wildly as she saw him pick up the signed copies.

"Are you blackmailing me yet again?" Arnav asked coolly, his expression blank.

"You bet!" Sheetal hissed as her lawyer looked on in dismay and tried to stop her. But Sheetal was too far gone in her rage. "The previous threat would be nothing compared to what I will do in future. I will drag your name through mud along with your Khushi's. You better keep paying me if you want me to keep my silence. After this it's going to be my terms. But first, I want the shares you gave that b****!"

"ENOUGH!" Arnav stood up furiously and leaned forward menacingly, both hands on the table "Now, YOU listen, and listen carefully. If even a hint of rumor or accusation against me or any slur on Khushi's character reaches the media, All the evidences, including the CCTV footage of this office, would be going directly to the authorities. You better pray than no one ever writes anything wrong about Khushi or our relationship, because if it does, you'll be deadmeat. I could have avoided this whole situation by having you arrested on the basis of your confession to Shyam Jha, and the courts wouldn't have hesitated in granting me the divorce. But I didn't do it because however false your affections were, you were the reason Dhruv was happy in the days leading to his death. Just for that, I'm letting you go free. But if you try anything against Khushi or me again, I'd not be so lenient. I hope you got it!"

Leaving a shocked and panicked Sheetal behind, Arnav strode out of the office as his lawyer collected the papers to file. Sheetal saw her blank check disappearing out of the door and sank into the chair, defeated.

Arnav came out of the lawyer's office and stood breathing in the fresh breeze that blew on his face. It was over. It was finally over.

At last, he was free.

-----xxx-----

Khushi saw the clock once more as she flicked through the channels on TV. Only one hour to go for new year and Arnavji still wasn't here. His phone was coming switched off which meant he could still be travelling. Khushi sighed and willed the time to go slow, so that Arnav could get here on time. She wanted to welcome the new year with him, and not alone. Khushi sighed once again and turned her attention to some year-end program going on in one of the channels.

After a while she got bored with the program and checked the time again. 11.20 p.m. She switched off the TV and went to the balcony to stare at the stars. After talking to her parents for a few minutes, Khushi thought back to the year she had had. It had been an eventful year for her, beginning with her decision to join ARI, which had changed her life irrevocably. She had moved into her own home in the year past, found love and finally felt like she belonged somewhere and to someone. However imperfect life might be, but she wouldn't trade it for anything. Arnavji belonged to her and she belonged to him, whatever the world thought.

She was still in the balcony when she heard the doorbell alerting her of the arrival of the person she had been waiting so desperately. He hadn't taken his key with him while going abroad. Her face lighting up in a broad smile, she sprinted to the door and pulling it open jumped into Arnav's arms.

Arnav staggered back slightly at the unexpected attack, but hugged her back after the initial surprise. For a minute, both of them didn't speak anything but just stayed there in each other's arms contently. Arnav pulled back slowly after a while and kissed her softly before they went inside hand in hand.

Once inside, Khushi turned to Arnav and glared at him, belatedly remembering his close call. "Do you know how worried I was Arnavji? It's 11.35 now, I thought you wouldn't make it!"

Arnav put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer to his side, looking properly chastened. "I'm sorry Khushi, but due to bad weather our flight was delayed for a couple of hours. I was worried I may not make it at all"

"Hawww Arnavji. You flew in bad weather?" Khushi looked horrified at the prospect."Why didn't you wait until the weather cleared? What if something had happened? You are so careless always!"

Arnav looked flabbergasted "But Khushi, Just now you were annoyed that I was almost late for the new year!"

"Don't interrupt me Arnavji!" she continued glaring. "You think I would have wanted you to fly back in bad weather...? We could have safely celebrated tomorrow...You take far too many unnecessary risks" she shook her head as if minding a particularly difficult child. "Now come on, I'll make you coffee...You must be tired after that long flight...In bad weather, no less!"

Arnav meekly followed her to the kitchen, deciding not to rile her further. After he had his coffee Arnav went to freshen up. He came out wearing his tracks and sweater after an ultra quick shower and checked the time. Only 5 minutes more to go for 12'o clock. He quickly opened his bag and removed the box he had kept inside and placed it on the bedside table. Just then he saw Khushi's silhouette as she stood at the door, the light in the living area reflecting her outline while she remained in the relative faint light of the bedroom.

Arnav straightened slowly and stood there mesmerized as Khushi slowly advanced forward into the room and dropped her robe, exposing her exquisite body clad in a miniscule pink nightwear. It flowed over her body sinuously and lovingly as she swayed in self-consciously. She stopped when she was right in front of him, jerking him out of his trance with a snap of her fingers.

"Khushi...You look..." Arnav struggled to get the right word which would do justice to the goddess in front of him "Like a dream..." he finished faintly, not able to find something worthy of her ethereal beauty.

Standing on her toes, Khushi weaved her arms around his neck and whispered softly in his ears "So, you liked my surprise huh, Arnavji...?" Her smile went positively feline as Arnav's arms came around her like a vise like grip to clasp her tightly to him, and she felt his body's reaction to her .

Arnav having recovered his lost ability to think clearly after looking at her in that excuse for a night dress, whispered back "Liked it?" he pressed himself closer still "What do YOU think?"

"Oh, I think you liked it just fine, Arnavji..." Khushi whispered in a husky voice and then giggled spoiling the effect, just as they heard the countdown going on for new year begin from outside.

5...

4...

3...

2..

1.

"Happy new year, Khushi..." Arnav said just as beautiful fireworks began to illuminate the night sky, marking the arrival of the new year, and kissed her. He kissed her sweet and long, last week's misery of staying apart dispersing away with the heat of the kiss as the lovebirds lost themselves in the sweet passion of their love. As they pulled away at last, Khushi wished him back softly and hugged him tightly.

"Happy new year to you too, Arnavji...I missed you so much..."

Arnav slowly pulled back after giving her a soft kiss on the forehead "Now it's time for my surprise. Khushi close your eyes"

Khushi promptly closed her eyes and waited eagerly. Arnav took the small box he had kept aside and flicked it open to reveal an incredibly delicate but beautiful diamond and emerald ring. He slowly bent on his one knee and reached for Khushi's left hand, just as she opened her eyes.

Khushi watched Arnav kneeling at her feet and was confused for a moment as to what he was doing. Then she noticed the ring in his hands and her hands flew to her mouth in stunned surprise.

"Arnavji..yeh...?"

"Khushi...Will you marry me?" he asked smiling.

"But Arnavji..."

"I know we are already married in our hearts and in front of Devi Mayya, but I want to marry you in front of the world now. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife, Khushi?"

"But Arnavji, Sheetal...?"

Arnav shook his head "It's over Khushi. I'm free now. There are some legal formalities pending but it's as good as done. I'll explain everything later" he looked at her eyes widening at that news and grinned "So, will you marry me and put me out of my misery finally, Khushi? My knee is killing me..."

"Yes...yes..YES!" Khushi screamed as she hugged him, tears of happiness rolling from her eyes. "Yes Arnavji, I will marry you" Arnav placed the ring on her finger and kissed it softly, before standing up.

Khushi hugged her hand close to her chest and squealed "Arnavji...it's so beautiful"

"Nothing but the best for my Khushi..." Arnav said just as he lifted up in his arms and carried back to the bed, to show his proper appreciation for her surprise. A long while later, both of them fell into a dreamless satiated sleep, securely snuggled in each other's arms.

A bright new dawn awaited them.

~ END OF CHAPTER # 13 ~

[NOCOPY]