Chapter 31
âConsciousness is only possible through change;
change is only possible through movement.â
He remembered the day when Vansh first asked for his assistance in the Randhawas project. It had been the first time in years Vansh had trusted him. Agreed he had not been the best uncle out there and not given many reasons for Vansh to trust him so canât really blame him for it. Somewhere it was his insecurity, inferiority which led to jealousy from his own nephew. He knew somewhere his nephew was better than him. He thought he could prove himself and went ahead trying to win another project worth 500+ crores but alas failed once again.
That boy to whom he took in his arms grew up into the man today he has become their shield and somewhere they all took him and his love for them for granted. Oh, love it was that he had for them all even with all their shortcomings what else it could for him to protect them from all the harm. None of them for once thought what that boy must have gone through in order to protect them. He was the elder here it should have been him doing what his nephew was doing for them. It would have been him therein the jail instead of Vansh had he took the responsibility and somewhere he knew the threats and dangers hence couldnât take over the business after his elder brother and Vanshâs fatherâs death.
It was his weaknesses that lead to unhappiness and dissatisfaction of his wife and son. His son that brat had more guts than his father ever had but sadly all of it was misguided and somewhere it was him who was responsible for it as well. He was scared and a coward and it was this the root cause of all his ill feelings that got diverted towards his nephew. His own weaknesses, Vansh was always so strong, stronger than him it led him to think and felt useless. If ever he did depend then it was always Kailash another person his younger brother who was stronger than him. Kailash was to Vansh what somewhere deep down he wanted to be for him.
A father-figure, someone he can trust and count on but due to his own weaknesses couldn't be. Though now he couldnât help but think about that very own brother of his. Did his strengths make him take a route that he shouldnât have? He couldnât help but remember what Vansh said before going, it wasnât him and beside him, it was only Kailash who was involved with those papers and Vanshâs signatures. Is it possible that the blames his Anupriya bhabhi put on Kailash were true?
Rudra thought while walking in his room lost in his thoughts.
********
Aryan had always been jealous of his elder brother his Vansh bhai but lately, he isnât sure what or how to feel about things. He wasnât sure but maybe it wasnât his brotherâs power and money that he was jealous of but the respect his brother has and he always thought the only way to have it for himself was to have the money and property his brother has for himself hence he always did things that he thought could make him have all of those things. Aryan had always been the spoilt brat, useless and good for nothing son of the house while his brother was the exact opposite perfect in every sense. His brother has always been the perfect grandson of their dadi, perfect elder brother to him and their sisters, perfect son of the house, and perfect businessman overall he was the best, and Aryan had to always bear the brunt of his perfectness by being compared to him all the time.
He was always been compared to his brother and had to always be in his shadows that was one of the major reasons that played role in increase his dislike towards his cousin. Somewhere that was also the reason for him hating his Riddhima bhabhi knowing fully well that girl had never tried to harm any of them intentionally or harbours any ill intentions towards them. Even on the cruise he noticed his bhai how he was with her and being the little devil that he was he went after her just to irk him and make him suffer.
His brotherâs perfections took away Aryanâs individuality and his own identity in the house ceased to exist be it his grandmother who seems to have her eyes only for her eldest grandson or his sister Ishani who does not miss the chance to taunt him or even his own parents who regret not having a son like Vansh bhai to give them that status and respect in the house as the elders of the house they should have after dadi which went to Vansh bhai which often leads to fights between his parents as a couple or be it his own fights with his father while Sia that sister of his was always been distant and never bonded with him though Aryan wanted to though for some reason couldnât find it in himself to be with her maybe because he did not want his toxicity to take a toll on her Sia wasnât Ishani.
He had always struggled to be seen, accepted, and appreciated as he is hence he did all shorts of the things most of the time wrong things to be seen even if for a few moments to have them all look at him for who he is even then he was ridiculed for it and once again compared to his brother. He knew his bhai had no fault in this in fact his Vansh bhai had always been a protective brother to him but often he wished instead of doing that his brother could just love him, understand him, respect him and maybe just be there for him without pressurizing to be in a certain way. He had always been a disappointment for his family and somehow he had always blamed his Vansh bhai for it.
However, now thinking about his brotherâs plight and remembering that fateful day how his brother had asked his father rather he accused his father of betrayal to be precise, of taking his signatures on those papers because of which he is in jail he isnât sure if he still harbours those ill feelings for his brother. Though he knew his father is innocent yet it was pretty clear someone from the family is responsible for his brotherâs ill fate and he is not sure if he envies him for that or not. In between his own struggles and petty jealousy feelings he never realized his brotherâs sufferings.
How does it feel to have his own family hate and conspire against him behind his back? He never knew and don't know if he wants to be in his place after thinking about that. Even after having a family no one to rely on, no one to trust, and even with a family so very lonely, Aryan didnât know if he envies that.
Lost in his thought Aryan was walking through corridors when he heard a voice.
âOpen the door. Hello is anyone there? Open the door I am in here. Itâs locked from outside.â
Looking around he heard the voice was coming from Sejalâs room going towards it he heard the voice getting louder entering her room Aryan heard her voice coming from the bathroom and she banged the door.
âSejal is it you? Are you in there?â
Aryan asked worriedly going near the bathroom door making Sejal come to a pause on the other side of the door.
âAryan is that you? Open the door itâs locked from outside.â
Sejal asked hearing his voice and replied to him.
Quickly opening the door Aryan, made Sejal come out. Coming out of the bathroom Sejal looked around in the room as if searching for someone and then turning towards Aryan asked
âDid you saw anyone here?â
âNo why?â
Aryan answered looking around mimicking her from a while ago then turning towards her.
âStrangeâ
Sejal mumbled to herself and looked towards her bedâs side table where her mobile was kept. Looking at it she walked towards it and took her phone up and started checking through it hurriedly. Then turning towards Aryan she asked once again
âAre you sure you didnât watch anyone near or leaving from here?â
âNo whatâs wrong?â
Aryan answered asking her with a frown on his face.
âNothing I was just wondering who locked me from outside. Anyways thanks for getting me out from there.â
Sejal replied looking a little lost than gathering herself up and looking at Aryan.
âNo worries you take rest. Iâll take your leave.â
Aryan replied with a smile and left from there while Sejal got lost in her thoughts with worry etched on her face and with a single thought
Why do I feel something is wrong somewhere?
*******
In a dark room, a figure was seated on a chair tied up with hands tied at the back and her head hanging on her shoulders unconscious. Coming to consciousness, looking around she saw everything was dark and she was in a room, tied up to a wooden chair with only the source of light coming from the space between exhaust that she could see on the wall ahead.
What the hell? Where am I? What is happening?
She thought and tried to remember what happened. Shutting her eyes she remembered
Flashback
âWell have got to knowâŚ.â
Riddhima began to say only to be stopped hearing a sound, making all the three girls turn in the direction only to get shocked seeing Anupriya standing there.
Anupriya stood shocked and stunned outside the room near the door, seeing and hearing everything
âHow dare you?â
Anupriya shouted while marching towards the girls.
âHow dare you girls betray me and my son like that? You dare played with us?â
Anupriya shouted enraged making the girls look at her and their faces went pale.
âYou three had been fooling us all this while. I warned Kabir to not trust you girls. I knew it. You just wait I will tell Kabir about you all and just wait till I expose you all in front of the entire family and get you all kicked out of the house. I won't spare either of you. Youâll pay for this especially youâ
Anupriya said with her finger pointing towards Riddhima and stormed out of here and marched towards her car lost in her thoughts with an evil and vicious smirk playing on her face and opened the door of her car to leave and inform Kabir and Kailash about these girls.
As soon as she opened the door of her car she felt a striking pain on her head due to the hit that she received from behind before she could turn around and look at her attacker she fell unconscious.
Flashback ends
Oh yes, that was it. Damn it, it must have been those girls she wonât spare them. She will kill them Anupriya thought furiously, struggling and trying to free herself from the bind she shouted
âIs anyone there? Hello, is anyone there? Get me out of here. You will regret it. You donât know who I am.â
Anupriya shouted at the top of her voice threatening and trying to intimidate her captor while still struggling to free herself.
âOn the contrary, I very well know who you are mummyji.â
Came a voice shocking the hell out of her and making her look up in astonishment. In came a very familiar but the most unexpected face.
âYâŚyâŚyou? Angre?â
Anupriya whispered in shock.
âHello mummyji, I must say you are one heavy sleeper and you do snore pretty loud. Oh, by the way, I am sorry to say this though you don't look you are pretty heavy to carry.â
Angre said with a pained look as if remembering something unpleasant.
âWhat the hell Angre you kidnapped me? Why? What are you even doing?â
Anupriya shouted confused, scared, and a little shaken up making Angre heave a sigh
âMummyji you take a lot of stress not good for your health. So, think of it as a long-overdue vacation of a few days then we will go back. Donât think too much and just rest okay and stop shouting like a banshee no one is going to hear you here and even if someone does they will just ignore you. You see we are in a very isolated place far away from the population and the only people here are my people and they had been given strict orders to not disturb you in any circumstances and make sure you have your much-needed rest here and don't go anywhere or get to contact anyone. Okay now you take rest and I will take your leave.â
Angre said and left from there leaving Anupriya alone shouting behind him and as he keeps going away from her, her voice gets fading in the background.
******
Coming to consciousness she felt a blindfold on her eyes and her hands tied and seated in a moving car as haziness started lifting and reality started sinking in Riddhima started feeling anxious. She could feel she wasnât alone and with that realization, she could also feel a slowly rising panic attack but tried to calm herself by taking deep breaths. The fact that she was blindfolded means she does not know who these people are and canât see them, having her hands tied also restricts her, and the fact that her present situation was very much a resemblance of her nightmares was making a way for her panic attack. Right now getting scared is not going to help her so she can only wait for the right opportunity trying to keep calm as much she can and see where it goes. Discreetly she tried to free her hands while doing so felt her watch was on her hands and remembering something she tried to feel it with her fingers and feeling a small button on it she pressed it. Not long after that, the vehicle came to a stop.
*******
Mohan was walking outside the VR Mansion while dialling the number to the very person for whom he was doing but alas for some reason the call keeps going unanswered. Strange it was. It never happened before. He was in the garden dialling again when he heard a mobile ringing sound searching for it he reached to a spot and saw a mobile was laying in the ground abandoned making him go alert. Picking it up he looked around him not finding anything and suddenly a beeping noise came and he looked in his phone seeing a signal and a location was displayed on it. Quickly without wasting any further seconds he went to his police jeep with his pistol readied and taking out his mobile he dialled a number and as soon as the call was picked he said
âI am sending you a GPS location signalling reach that place with a team of best men immediately. Keep track of the signal and stay connected, keep tracing it. Shooting could be involved I fear itâs a mafia group so come with full preparation donât worry about answering to authorities a kidnapping is involved of an important person. A young lady in her twenties her life may at risk. We have to save her at any cost.â
Inspector Mohan said with a determined face and disconnected the call and sped up to the location.
********
Riddhima was taken and put in a place. She could not see anything but could hear the sounds of people walking away leaving her probably the men who kidnapped her. She could feel she was alone but couldnât understand the purpose behind being abducted from her home like that. Though one thing was sure no one would dare to take her away from her home like that without an insider being involved and she possibly had a slight idea who could be behind it. Taking in few deep breaths she tried to calm her nerves. It wasn't more than a few minutes when she heard noises probably in some factory.
(Note: Hear it while reading)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzk-l8Gm0MY
Slowly noises started increasing making her heartbeats increase.
âHello? Anyone there why am I here? I know you can't be a stranger but a member of the family you are. What do you want?â
Riddhima asked in a little shaky voice, quite a silence no voice was heard except those machines' voices.
âAnswer me who are you?â
Riddhima shouted a bit louder still no answer but the voices of the machines kept increasing.
âAre you listening to me? Answer me. Let me go.â
Riddhima shouted this time desperately and a cry escaped from her. No reply came but the noise of the machines around her kept getting scary now. She started struggling and trying to free herself, everything around has started giving her a nausea feeling. It was dark in front of her eyes with only the sound of machinery, alone tied up it only raising a fear so terrible in her with each passing second. Trying to control her cries unsuccessfully she tried freeing herself while shuddering. With time passing by her cries and sobs could be heard even she stopped trying to control them. Slowly with the passing time, her courage was leaving her.
All this while a man stood watching everything through a glass wall with evil, and a satisfactory smirk playing on his face. Kailash was looking at the girl in front of him. It wonât be long before she would succumb to her fears and that is why he brought her the way he did he heard about her nightmares which is why he made sure to have little recreation of them and let her live the golden moments of her life once again and some new beautiful memories to remember wonât do much harm. A little something the girl would always remember only if she survived this. He smirked while thinking it when suddenly police sirens were heard.
âHow the hell they reached here?â
Kailash asked who was caught off guard looking at his men who looked equally alarmed.
âLook out find how many of them are?â
He instructed his men
âYeâŚyes sirâ
Replied one of his men little out of his wit when another of his man came running and informed them slightly panicked
âSir, itâs an entire team. It seems as if they have come prepared. I am sorry to say sir but if we stayed we might get encountered. We will have to leave.â
Just then a sound of firing was heard making all three men look in the direction from where the sound came. Looking at the place they could see one of their men was shot dead while a team of skilled lawmen was coming inside from different directions. They were surrounded Kailash realized, however, he wasnât the one who gives up easily once again giving a look to the girl who was now laying on the ground curled up in a fetal position, without removing his gaze from her he said
âFind the escape route and evacuate this place immediately.â
Then turning around he left from there.
*******
âLook around everywhere. Arrest the ones you can. If they fire in protest do not hesitate to return the favours. Priority is to save the lady so look out for her and in no circumstances should they escape with her.â
Mohan ordered and commanded in his authoritative voice. Looking around for Riddhima while still keeping an eye out for any pest hiding and lurking in the shadows. He came to a still when he saw a figure on the ground unconscious. Hurriedly rushing towards her, he sat down in a squatted position. Turning her around, he saw her paled-out face and patted her on cheeks calling out her name.
âGet the ambulance. We need to take her to the hospital.â
Mohan shouted to his comrades while some firing of gun sounds could be heard in the background.
It had been hours since they took her god knows for how long the girl had been tormented mentally and emotionally like this. He can only hope for the best and give nothing less than his best.
He thought while checking for her pulses which were slow making him tensed. Scooping her up in his arms he took her out of the place and placed her in the ambulance which was standing outside.
âSir, they ran away the head along with a few of his men. Four of their men are dead while one of them had been caught alive.â
A voice came from one of his colleagues, a senior, and one of his most honest brave hearts.
âCease this place, take the captive to interrogation, and try to gather as much information you can from him and identify the bodies, find what you can of them. I am taking the lady to the hospital. You take the charge here I will catch you all up later. Inform the department and call for a little backup and other teams.â
Mohan said getting a nod and a salute with a Jai Hind in return while answering with his own Jai Hind he left.
*******
Sejal had been feeling uneasy for a while now tossing and turning on her bed. No able to stop herself any further she left for Riddhimaâs room in hopes of finding some peace only to find it empty. Not able to find her in the room she searched for her in the entire house only to get disappointed and increase the unknown fear that had been rising up. Not finding her anywhere she dialled her number a couple of times which went unanswered. Tearing up she dialled the number again and this time it got picked up but before she could rant at her best friend for scaring her like that the voice on the other end made her go pale with each word that came out from the person on the other end making her rush out of the house like a madwoman.
******
Mohan was sitting beside Riddhima had it not been for his training and years of experience in such cases he would have lost it by now. Trying to bring the girl to conscious he kept calling out for her when she slightly opened her eyes making him a little relieved. She was trying to speak something and some incoherent words came out while Mohan took his ears near her mouth and tried really hard to hear her
âViâŚvideo galâŚgalleryâ
was all she said making Mohan remember her mobile which he picked up from the garden and was carrying with him bringing it towards her. She tried lifting her fingers noticing it he brought her phone near her finger taking its imprint it opened "see" what is all she said before going unconscious once again. Mohan did as asked and skimmed through the gallery till he saw a most recent video recording opening it he was left shocked and his face hardened. Just then the same phone rang and the name Sejal displayed on it. Picking up the call he informed the girl of the present situation while they reached the hospital.
Written by @BhataktiAtma
Contributed by @Abhyudaya
Until next update - be safe, healthy, kind and courageous :) and do share your reviews
Chapter 32 - https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/topic/5197552?pn=100#155489960
Edited by Abhyudaya - 5 years ago