Story: Drawn Together (Chapter 10 Contd.)

Drawn Together- Chapter 10 (Hurt)

Radhika tried again dialling Sam’s number, but it went into thevoicemail altogether. Just great! Today was not her day too. She had to make up with Sam, at any cost and she also had to something else about another thing.

She determined her will andclamped down the rising uneasinesscompletely and walked towards her wardrobe, gettingthe fresh clothes, she showered, and got ready. Wearing a red chudidaar, Radhikaproceeded out to leave. But, not before wearing the golden hoop earrings and bangles, applying a little make up, alight mascara in her eyes and free flowing thesilkentressesdown on her shoulders in waves, she moved outof herroom.She went into the kitchen and grabbed the chocolate fudge, she had made, because she was frantic and anxious very much last night and did not go to bed at allafter the bone shivering nightmare. She went into the garage, got out of her green Nissan Ultima, and zoomed it out of the drive way.

Thank god, nobody was at home. If dad would have been there, he would have asked thousand of enquiringquestions. Hmm, now she wondered, no, he wouldn’t care about her that much. He had very muchwashed his handsoff Shaina without even blink, didn’t he and never bothered to maintain a contact with her till now over two years. Radhika missed her too much. She didn’t understand why Shaina had agreed to getmarried as such, and so fast. Something had happened that she didn’t know, Radhika understood the hushed outwhispers going about the house. She was in the hostel then with Sam.Dad did not allow her to come home even for the mehendi and sangeetfunctions of her own sister.She had arrived home the day of the wedding and had seen how dead Shaina looked. Even though and very well after that, Radhika still had a dailycontact with Shaina.

Radhika kept driving in the morning fog, she opened the car window and felt the breeze flow her hair about and a light smile creased her lips, it was six in the morning, and she felt already refreshed but a little drawn up since last night.

An hour later of driving around in the gatheringtraffic of Delhi streets, she parked the car to halt, inside a shiny big empire of a building, the last time she came here, Radhika had gaped like a complete loon with mouth hung, of countinghow many storeys had it, the hugemodernised art of architectural structure. It was bigger than her father’s office, which was an hour from her.

Radhika still did not get out but kept thinking. She gulped hard with ever rising uncertainty. Oh,for heaven sake, she fumed and got out of the car.

See him. Make sure if he is well,and…..Um, Radhika looked downat the box with an eyebrow raise, should she givethis chocolatefudge caketo him? As inlike a sorry foreverything about last night, because really shewasthe one who went to his mansion but not he.

Wouldn’t it be bizarre. Oh, whatever, move your feet, she told herself.

Radhika turned the large glass entrance of the revolving door in a flung. She got in and stared around. The office already bustled with activity.

She avoided sudden curious gazes, abrupt silence and hush hush conversations. Radhika didn’t look anywhere, but walked up to the lift and got in fast, punching in the fifth floor number. Heavens, she could the people’s daunting penetrating stares right into her head. She sighed a relief and felt the lift float above.

Five minutes she reached the floor, and moved her feet on the world’s most pristine white floor and the neatest aisle of the office. Radhika moved the red lacquered reception desk.

Sitting there was the most beautiful girl, she had ever seen, in but mundanelygrey office blazerand skirt, but even in that tasteless thing she looked very ethereal.

The girl about the same age as Radhika looked up sharply, and Radhika was graced with berry red lips, full pouty mouth, large grey eyes, wide cheekbones and straight shiny hair arranged in a bun over the even more pretty shaped head.

“Yes…may I help you.”The girl asked in a sneer looking at Radhika up and down.

Well, not so a great an inner personality then, Radhika thought.

“I came here to see Mr. Arjun Mehra.”Radhika replied, uncaring the looks of the girl.

Radhika’s eyes went to the identity badge of the girl. Ruha Singh.

A twist of a mocking appeared on the receptionist face.

“Do you have an appointment?”She asked still in that steel robotic voice.

Radhika’s mind derailed at that. Appointment? She didn’t get an appointment when she came here last time. Well, thinking about it, in the extreme burst of anger,she had taken the stairs from the other side to thereception areaand directly barged into hisoffice then.

Suits you well now. Should have takenthat option, than facing this porcupine lady.

“Uh..he is my to be fiancé.”She said in a very weird voice, because it still was strange of her to getmarried soon to a rather stranger.

The receptionist, the porcupine lady, Suha Singh, snorted out a laugh. Radhika’s face twisted in a scowl. What was so funny?

“Certainly.”She agreed in a mock.

Radhika’s eyes narrowed. A firmness entered into her demeanor. She was aafter allafather’s daughter, if she didn’t get his brutal nature, she at least got his determination. She could very well handle a bully, and this shouldn’tbe a hard thing tolet it under her control.

Radhika leaned in and narrowed her eyes more at the equally freezing look she got from the girl in a clash.

“Call him and say that, Radhika Mishra, had come to meet him.”She said succinctly, and in a no nonsense voice.

The girl stared at her some more frostily, but she took the receiver to the earand connected a call. She nodded her head and still looking across at Radhika in a cool narrowing of eyes. She put the receiver down.

“He is in a conference. You have towait near the waiting lobby as all theinterviewersdo.”She pointed out with a flick of a one raise of elegant hand.

Radhika’s curious gaze swivelled around to the closed office. Conference?

She sighed and turned around, but her back straightened in a strain, when she heard as raw throaty sneer of a office.

“Hundreds of these trampsstrut around his office, telling that he is their fiancé. Like as if we should believe….”

Radhika thought to slap the girl across her face, but really why should she soil her hand getting into a fight here. She tilted her chin in the air and moved towards the said lobby.

She sat down with a great stuttering sigh on the red couch thing. Her eyes strayed towards the shielded glass wall of his large rectangular office.

Why was she doing this really? She asked herself, but her mind stayed ever mute and unanswerable.

*********

Arjun was frustrated to an extreme. He had been a boar in the office, growling and shouting atnobody in particular atthe employees. The reason to it was, he couldn’t find out with moving heaven and earth around in a spiral, about who was responsible for destroying the breaks of his car. Who was bent on killing him? It seemed like a day’s plan. A carefully laid out plan. Enter into the shrubbery. Destroy the outside cameras. Break into the mansion garage and cut the breaks. With as heavy as thesecurity of the house, the intruder had the dare to enter into his premises taking the risk of even beingkilled.

With options all gone and nothing could he see in the dark, he finally called Rohan, and explained the situation. He had alsowarned him to not get the media involved in this. Rohan had agreed and curtly told him that, the details of it would be on his table by the end of the evening.

Arjun had the conference end in a success, and waited back in the office for the foreign delegates to leave. It was a gruelling two hour meeting and it had gone just as he controlled it to be.

He loosened the tight clutch of tie around his neck,and walked by the large glass walls of the window. He glanced around and moved forward several steps to the door, but his form froze and his hand stayed glued to the tie, and his feetremoved unmoved on the floor for a second. His feet back step slowly, without actually turning around, his body moved to the view of the glass walls, his eyes went back to the red flutter he had overlooked before just a second ago. His eyes looked sideways, and narrowed.

He turned around and moved closer to the glass wall.

His left hand went up and stayed attached to the wall.His eyes became a warm swipe over the huddled figure on the lobby couch. He moved back, swivelled his chair, removed his coat and slid it on the back, he slid down on it, and leaned back.

The phone of the buzzed through the reception area, Arjun picked it up.

“There is a girlhere, Sir, in the lobby, wanting to meet you?”The receptionist’svoice travelled into his ears.

“Let her wait.”He clipped, and cut the call.

He leaned back on the chair observing the vulnerable face, stirring uncomfortably, athin figure on the couch. The eyes large and almond abruptly moved towards his sideand peered. Arjun straightened, he felt the stare pierce into his eyes, travelinto his blood, and heat it to a boil. The hazel of that soft gaze moved away and looked around the aisle of his office.

He leaned back, and sat there staring, movinghis gaze all over, for morethan an hour, then he had toget on another meeting, which went on rather smoothly too, but his eyes strayed to huddledtime and again.

Morning went away and afternoon came in lazily, still she didn’t move away from the lobby. He sat there again, and his posture got stiff more and more when she refused the refreshment and even the lunch offered by the office assistants.

He had ten cups of coffee, still looking across at her. The eyes lost the sparkle and a swirling storm covered around the hazel, as she glared at the glass wall. Nothing could be seen fromoutside, except a dark shadow.

**********

Radhika waited and waited, and a deep burn of humiliation stung her too much looking at the smug face of the lobbyreceptionist. She felt like as if waiting for a cut throat job interview than rather meet and see…whatever to her, he was. What was she really doinghere?The reality of her situation started to dawn on her. There was nothing here. Nothingin between. What did she really expect, that someone for the first time in her life had understood her or connected with her, she had so many dreams of having a lovely wedding and a even more a beautifulmarriage, but she never expected the hit of this. She was fated to be ruined, in between people who only knew business to deal with but rather than have a care for others. Radhika was all locked upin a rock and a hardplace. A wave of disappointment and mortification coloured her face. Remembering the moments of little things about him she got up to leave.

“Hey, you’re being called in his office, now.”The porcupine lady announced out loud from behind her.

Radhika turned around, and froze her with a black glare. She started to wonder if she should go into the office at all, but well now, you don’t want to meet me then so be it, she thought and turned around and walked out of the aisle. The black heels she had onclicked on the floor while she did.

But, as she turned around the floor,her arm got caught by a from grip of a hand and was turned around in a spiral.

Radhika jumped and looked up and moved a little looking at a pair of angry brown eyes swirling down at her in a storm.

“Always have the habit of creating a scene, don’t you.”He glared down at her.

Radhika couldn’t do anything but stare open mouth, but she closed it when he pulled at her hand and made her to walk all the way to his office.

“Let’s get this over with once and for all.”He muttered down at her curtly.

“But, I…”She started to say, but when he looked down at her, the very breath caught in her throat looking at the warmth and heat curling around his eyes and the hard angles and planes of his face.

From the corner of her eye, Radhika saw the receptionist stare at the two of them in a gape.

Radhika struggled to out of his strong hold on her right arm.

He pushed open the glass and got her in and closed it behind them in a thud.

She gulped hard when he pushed away from the door and walked towards in a slow drawl. He got closer and closer and Radhika moved back and stuttered to a stop when her legs hit the large table. She leaned away as he got closer, and immediately she could feel the heat radiating off from his body and reaching to hers.

His leaned to hers and she leaned back. He put both of his hands on either side of the table and caged her to it.

“Why did you come here?”He asked in a burring tone.

Radhika blinked a little at the sharpness of his question.

She folded and went for something else, which came entirely stupid, as he looked down at her lips.

“I…I..I was just passing by.”She said stuttering.

Radhika saw his whole body freeze at that, and she too couldn’t believe how idiotic she sounded. She felt the need to beat her palm over her forehead.

“I meant that…uh.”She started to explain, but he cut her off frowning down at her.

“You were just passing by?”He asked a little amusingly.

His eyes turned less swirling and the tightness of his face softened a little. A shadow of a smile turned the corner of his lips up a little but it vanished before she could get her mind around it.

But a deep burn of red coloured her face feeling a little patronised a little by his tone.

“Yeah, I was just driving around and…”She started to say again, but he cut her off before she could speak any further.

“You were driving around and found your way to my office? Like three hours drive from your house?”He asked, tilting her head to side and sliding his gaze all over her features, catching her lie very easily.

Radhika narrowed her eyes at the sneer of a satisfaction brimming in his eyes while he looked down at her in a mock.

“I didn’t drive to your office. I was going to my father’s office. It’s just an hour from here.”She said ever nonchalantly, tilting her chin in the air.

His forehead creased as he really smiled now.

“Your father isn’t there in his office. He is out of station, and if you were really going to there then, why did you stop here?”He asked again in that impossible arrogant, that made her blood boil.

Damn, he was good. How did he know about that?

She sighed, and narrowed her eyes looking up into his eyes. Fine then.

“I’m here to apologize for what happened last night.”She said flatly and honestly.

And alsoshe had been very much afraid of the look of freeze he gave her last night.

Immediately as she said that, the smile and themocking that coloured his features and lips wiped away and a shuttering of a shadow followed leaving a grind of his jaw and lock of his muscles. He pushed away from and folded his hands over his chest.

“What happened last night?”He asked in a cool tone, and his behavior looked like he had forgotten about it there and then about the accident.

Radhika gulped suddenly feeling a little peeved at his hard cut manner.
“I…I didn’t mean to take your car and..”She started to explain, but he cut her off with the whip of his left hand in the air.

He was wearing white shirt, and a half blazer with a white and grey plated tie and pants. He looked like a cut out hard core no non sensebusinessman.

“You driving around here for thatwasn’t necessary.”He said in a cold voice and moved towards the table, and started sorting out papers, but he looked when she stood there stillin absolute confusion.

He gave her a once over all her body and caught her eyes.

“Why do I feel that you are taking this marriage thing as a serious one.”He said in a dark tone.

Radhika’s body went cold at that, and burn of humiliation covered her skin.

He walked towards her carrying a document in his hand.

“You know what this is?”He asked, looking down at her in a stealth.

She gulped hard, her eyes brimming up a little looking at the paper.

“This is a piece of paper in whichyour father signed you off to me.”He continued in that terrible tone.

Her teeth grinded at that and she remained ever mute.

He caught her hand and Radhika looked up, but he seem to not care as he dragged her to the glass wall.

He pointed at a cabin, which can be look though from here. There were about more than fifty girls sitting there on the couch lounge. Radhika frowned.

“Look how many like you are waiting for a chance to meet me.”He said even in an even more cold voice in her ear, and pulled her around and held her up in his arms, almost dangling her in his arms….”Do you think you resemble in appearance with any of those.”His eyes like brown marbles looked down at her body in a slow swipe of a sneer…”Do you think..”He laughed a little, and bent down to her face, his breath falling on her lips in a hacking sound of anger…”with your very ordinary capabilities you have it in youthe means to ensnare my attention…. Look at yourself in the mirror twice before thinking as such.”He said the words in apoisonous sneer and with a curl of his lips, looking down at heover, he pushed her away and turned around.

Radhika staggered a little. A lone tear escaped her eyes at his sharp stinging of words, but nothing of her pride hurt her, as it was already tarnished by her father. She walked around him and ripped the paper from his hand, and tore it into pieces.

His eyes narrowed at that and looked into her eyes in a cool sharpness.

“I’m not going to be a part of this. I already had made it clear. You’re the one playing around this piece of paper and taunting it in my face time and again.”She said fiercely, covering the hurt very well in anger.

She tore the paper into more of the pieces until the humiliation and mortification of being a subject of a dealbetween the aristocrats would diminish and vanish in the air of her determined will.

Radhika took his words in, about her being a nothing compared to others, she absorbed that hurt but did let it flow into her veins.

She looked up, narrowed her swimming red eyes and rearranged her burning features into a wall of unhurt and threw the pieces into his arrogant face.

“I hope this will silence all your doubts about me wanting your attention.”She flung the words in the same tone of the disgust as he used at her, and turned around to leave.

What nonsense had she cooked up in her mind, that he wasn’t a smooth talking devil that he was? How wrong was she? As a new feeling dishearten and a break of something to unfurl in her stomach.

But, a hard cutting bite over her upper arm, made her wince and before she could turn around completely, he whipped her around and pushed her against the wall, grabbing and locking both of her hands beside her head.

His face looked angry. No, not angry. His features were twisted into a furious angry. Radhika’s breath stuttered. His vanilla breath fell on her lips as he whispered out more sharp words. His lips curved in a cool quirk of a smile.

“What did I tell you, my sweet.”He sneered…”That you aren’t the one holding the wires of control here but me. You are already my possession.”He smiled a little, and Radhika struggled more to free herself….” Or have you forgotten about the humiliation your familywould face if I ever cancel the deal and if you want such a thing to happen….then, I could very well be honestwiththe media and describe every word that had been exchanged by your father…”Radhika’s eyes widened at that, and a new fear started to ripple into her skin.

“You wouldn’t dare to do that…”She whispered, as her eyes started to sting again.

His eyes narrowed at her words and he moved away and started to turn his walk to the table.

“Do you want me to call your father right away and say that you’re here to break his consignment….I could explain your situation…”He went on again playing at her emotions, and drawing her very blood to freeze.

Radhika’s heart failed at that and her features twisted into an extreme fright.

Instantly the broken and beaten body of her mother came into her mind. No! Dad would kill her. He would pour out all the anger and god knows what he’ll do if such a thing happens.

“No! No! Please don’t do that. You don’t know what will happen if you do that!”She cried out loudly in panic.

His back went erect,his form froze and he turned around with face all curious and stealth catchingthe desperation, pain and fear in her tone very well. His brows strained into deep furrows and a shadow of suspicion crossed his features.

“What will happen?”He asked in an abrupt tone of softness.

Radhika covered her face into a shade of shutter, and she gulped the convulsing of fear down her throat, she just stared back into his dark brown enquiring eyes and questioned herself. Would he be an extremeheartless to do that to her? What about when he let down his guard and turnedhis actual self to her? Was it all a play? Play to make good with her? A tactic to let her stay meek and soft so that it would a smooth sailing business move. How did she ever fallinto his play? Radhika cursed herself for that,andnow he must belaughing at her, thinking that howdid she ever the silly mouse,sawherself as his equal. Radhika felt so small now. Her back steeled up and she veiled the unsettlement quickly into a disguise.

“You don’t deserve an answer to that. You’rea nothing to me.”She tilted her chin up in the air, and said the words as coldly as possible.

He just stared back at her, slicing his eyes all over her face in a slow assessment, trying to see through into her words. He walked towards her, but Radhika’s body turned alert. Her eyes became wary and tired. Her eyes widened when he suddenly grabbed her face, holding her head upputtinghis large warmhands on both of her cold cheeks.

His face became a soft whisper of angles and planes, as his lips touched a feature on hers.

“Don’t give me that determined backbone now.”He whispered huskily.

Radhika’s stinging eyes caught his in a swirl of emotions.

“What is it that will happen?”He asked softy, yet cautiously.

Her will stuttered and her breath caught at the sudden change of warmth circulating into his cold and hurtfulmanner. She just stood there suddenly able to connect the strings of attachment she felt all the while when hanging closer to his body, those that he severed the delicate ones with his bitter words. His left hand slid down and moved around her waist pullingher closer and up.

Her eyes started to water when she felt the heat of his strength started to curl around her wary spirit. Disgusted with herself forfeelingdifferent kinds of emotions all at once in his disturbing of intense presence she moved back, but he held her still in his arms.

“As I said before, you don’t deserve an answer to that.”She said looking down at the floor.

His body seem to turn stone at her reluctance, and she felt his jaw grind in frustration.

“Fine. Be that way,”He said in an impatient tone and pushed her away.

She staggered a little but held her ground firm in only a second of steadying herself.

Radhika walked across at the chair and got her purse, all the while keeping her eyes away from his, but she stuttered a little, but got out the fudge box and walked towards him.

“Enjoy your victory with this, but know this,I’m never going to let go of my dreams just because like that. You can use your fury or hell or hath, nothing could unsteady my will.”She flung the words chastely and threw the box at his chest.

She turned around to leave but his ever cool and drawly voiceto be held her to a stop.

“And you knowthis too, that, whatever the wordswhichgot stuck on your tongue, would not be a hard taskfor me find out soon.”He warned her sharply but yet in a softest of tone.

She turned to face him, flustered and flushed too much now.

“Why do you care all of a sudden?”She asked in a frustrated tone.

He held the box in his right hand and leaned his back on the table.

A shadow of something passed over his features. Something which she did not understand or could not decipher. He was like a page of mystery to her. He had depths of certain things she did not understand. His eyes turned a shade darker as his jawline smoothened in a set.

“I don’t care. I just protect what is mine.”He said shortly and very casually, but the words did not fail to provide it’s profound effect.

Radhika stared as her heart skipped a beat at his deep burring tone. She again steeled herself against his ever changing way of words.

“I’m not yours.”She said flatly and little annoyed too.

How many times shoud she have to make this clear, so that it could enter into his thick arrogant, ego filled bulbous head.

His eyes snapped to hers, and became lazy and warm all together.

“You became mine the first timeI saw you.”He declared, even more calmly than before.

“I’m not an asset to be yours.”She volleyed back.

His lips spread into a smile now, and Radhika’s head jerked back looking at it.

“Who is saying that you’re an asset, you might be a liquidity, for all that I know.”He taunted with eyes all like heavy lead.

Radhika face coloured up and her temper knew no boundsnow.

How dare hesay that she was a weakness.

“I hate you.”She said through a glower.

His eyes flashed but his face remained in a set of stone.

“And I’m glad that we are on the same page.”He said flatly.

She just glared back,turned around and let out some choice blasé words and moved forward, but not before she heard a deepbooming of a laughter behind her that seemto vibrate all around the walls and clashin her ears.

***********

As soon as she left the cabin, Arjun laughter just vanished intothin air ofhis anger as it surrounded and palpated around,and his teeth grinded a little.That was easy, to make her hate him, but the thing that passed over herfeatures. That sheer terror, when he said, he would call her father. What was that?

That pained tortured voice as it came out of her throat, made his back straighten in alert. What the hell would happen?

He slid down on the chair, and opened the plastic box. The smell of the chocolate flew up into his nostrils, and his hands reached to the cake. He started devouring it, bit by bit in extreme hunger.

The door of his cabin opened suddenly and he growled like a boar again.

His secretary stood there blinking at his cake spread mouth and at the box in his hand.

“What?”Arjun barkedirritatedly at the disturbance.

Karthik gulped and just shook his head, trying to get the image of his boss in such homeliness of attitude.

“Uh..Mr. Rohan Khanna is on the other line. Should I connect to your phone, Sir?”He asked in a robotic tone.

Arjun straightened in his chair and leaned back.

“Of, course, I was waiting for his call.”

His secretary nodded his head in assertion and went about his business.

Arjun wipedhis mouth with a paper napkin and got the call with his left hand.
“Yeah.”He clipped, and his demeanor darkened waiting for the answer.

“The man who cut the break wires of your car, had been in a follow up of your whereabouts since a few weeks now.”Rohan informed him through the line, in a hard voice.

Arjun brows furrowed at that.

“Who is he?”He asked in a calm deceptive tone, and his mind kept thinking and moving over the line of enemies he had made against his business.

There were many. He could think of in numbers who wanted to harm, but not one had dared of making it in reality than except thinking in mind of killing him.

A silence ensued on and Arjun stirred in the chair annoyed at the delay.

“Are you there on the line, Rohan?”

“It’s the man hired by Raghav Mishra. Your own to be father-in-law.”Rohan concluded, and the receiver almost slid out of Arjun’s hand at the words, but his grip tightened and his ears started to ring on and on.

“Alright.”He concluded, and put down the receiver.

His face covered in a sheen of sweat and heleaned his head on the glass table. A second later, Arjun beat his hand on it hard.

f**k the nerve of the old goat. So, this was the means he would apply to get the advertisement deal out of Arjun’s hand. To slither out of the his play, the man had goneto an extreme end.

Arjun sagged back on the chair, and his mind started to churn. His fingertips joined together.

Playing with a lion’s meal now, are we Mr. Raghav Mishra, but a sudden thought raced his mind. He should act fast now.

He dialled back Rohan’s number. It rang for a while but got connected an instant later.

“Yeah?”

“Does he know that his daughter was at my mansion?”

Arjun’s hand still fisted on the glass table.

“Well, we don’t know about that, but the man as cunning as that would go to any lengths…. the guy he hired escaped out from our clutches and vanished into thin air.”Rohan’s voice came out frustrated and angry enough.
“Yes. He would go to any lengths.”Arjun agreed, an abrupt sliver of fear rankled his mind now.

He put down the receiver with a deep frown marring his ashen features. A lot was riding here on the marriage. His father’sland. His family’s last memory. His peace of mind, and someone’s else’sfreedom and dream too. Why not make a proposition? Both he and Radhika would be in advantage of this, but he wouldn’t go too trusting onher, after all she was his nemesis daughter. Bloodwill be blood, he thought disgustedly. Who knows it was all her father’s plan. He couldn’t help but wonder now. Was she involved in this?Maybe her father suggested to doas hesays if she wants to persuade her dream in New York, she has to do what he says. She was a bait then, was she aware about the vehicle being tamperedor she was just there as anteasing temptation trap carefully laid outfor him to fall into it.Something like ugly suspicion roared its uglyheadinto his mind. If such a thing as this was in the play, both of the father and daughter will have hell to pay. For that his mind already planned out a map.

He dialled a number and waited for it connect.

His jaw set in stone when he heard a familiar buzz of a voice on the other line.

“Do you think your dirty paws could even make a scratch at me.”He growled low through gritted teeth.

He heard a low chuckle.

“Finally I get the young pup on my trail…..what it was…wasjust a trailer… You don’t threaten an old experienced field player in the business game. Be aware young man. Be very aware of your back. You never will know from where the strike would come hitting your headas a surprise…”He started to laugh a little.

“I don’t frighten easily, Raghav Mishra… So, you and your god damn threats could go eat shit.”He said calmly in a whisper of a warning.

He didn’t get an answer but only laughter, and Arjun tightened his fist and asked the next question through gritted teeth.

“Did you involve your daughter in the dirty play too?”

The laughter stopped abruptly and there was only a silence for a while and Arjun waited with baited breath, for a negativereply.

“Of course, my dear daughter does whatever her papa’s says. She is one hidden soldier that one………”

But,before the old goat could continue, Arjun roared an hurled the phone across the cabin with a deep rising violence from inside his mind and heart.

The betrayal of her innocent facecame like straight out hard hurting punch to his face. Arjun pulled at his hair, his eyes watered and reddend with the affect of it.

The fool that he was, and his raging softness went and believed, and fell right into their trap. What kind of closeness was he afraid of now? They must be laughing at his state.

Arjun wiped away his eyes, and his face set in a stone of a mask. It’s about timehe take his payment with double the pain to give that he really did went through.

The man did a great mistake leaving his dear daughter all alone. To what extentshe would go for her dreams.. innocence be damned the acting of hers….. Once he wasdone with themarriage she would have nowwhere elseto turn.

He into the coat and set out of his office…

***********

In a far away place, and in a darkened corner of a high end expensive members only club, Raghav Mishra sat back in a leisure on the cashmere leather sofa couch andflung back the glass of fiery liquidscotch and smiled at a shadowed figure.

“Our work is done. We would get the marketing project soon enough.”He leered in a drunk state.

“You would throw your daughter under the bus to get what you want, this is not surprising.”Said a young deep drawl of a dry voice.

The old man just smiled at the shadowed figure.

“I would throw anyone under the bus, to get what I want, and don’t forget you are in advantage here too or have you forgotten about your revenge.”He leaned away and kept drinking.

The shadowed figure held a black scowl.

“How would I forget about that. I have a long vengeancehistory with the Mehra’s.”He gritted his teeth.

“I should commend you for the previous accident ploy too, but he missed just by an inch….the other vehicle driver died though. I wishhe could have died last nightof the break failure, but dammit…the fate is at his side…”Raghav went on gritting his teeth, and staring on his numerous failedattempts.

The young man, the shadowed in corner, who nobody knew just chuckled in reply. Who was he? And what was his motive is yet to be known.

The place around vibrated with the hate and feud against a person that the two drinking people despise the most, making way for a more sinister of plans to destroy two of the young lives..coating their existence in lies, doubts, suspicions and a cloud of betrayal….

*********

Radhika drove her car in the darkened street, tears stinger her eyes thinking of how such a fool she was, it started to drizzle now but she didn’t care as a deep hurt and sadness rose in a sob in her throat.

Humiliation and embarrassment covered her body thinking back and repeatinghis sneering words continuously in her mind. Why did she ever go to his mansion yesterday.

Two of the big tears rolled down her eyes, as she just drove aimlessly on the road. But a screech of some other vehicle behind her car annoyed her attention away from her saddened thoughts. She saw through the rectangular narrow mirror that a dark black car kept zooming closer behind hers.

What? Who?

She ignored the incessantly honking of the car. There was lot of space beside to her car. What the point in getting begin her vehicle, she thought frustratedly and shook her head.

But, everything happened in a zap and also in a slow, and the car behind her screeched forward beside to hers and moved forward. It turned and stopped right infornt of hers. Radhika’s eyes widened and she halted the car, before it screamed and just burst into by justan inch the one that stopped hers.

Her body propelled forward, all her tresses flew over all over her face, and her head hit the starting wheel hard. An immediate swarm of vibration rang into her ears. Radhika slid her right hand over the side of her forhead. A little of blood created her fingers. She squinted front with the pain, and all her blood leeched off her face.

The car door opened, and a leg came out. Radhika froze, when she saw full form get out of the car. The night’s light rain drizzled around as he walked forward in all his darkness. Radhika’s heart palpated looking at his hard face.

She started breathing heavy, as she saw him turn at her side. His eyes held such a shadow that she drew back a little in surprise. He opened the car door, and he caught her hand. All the while she could just stare open mouthed at him. He dragged her out of the car, and Radhika stumbled on her feet.

His hold was brutal, she couldn’t do anythingbut gazeat his averted face now.

He just dragged her to his car, and that’s when she got out of the trance, and started to struggle against his hold.

“What are you doing here? And just…”She grabbed at his fingers that but into her wrist, and she winced in pain.

“Get in.”His voice burred down at her coldly, and Radhika’s body locked in surprise at his too far away a tone, and something of a punishing gruffness to his voice.

“What?”She asked in a whisper and jerked back.

His eyes narrowed at her face, and his jaw ticked in danger.

“Get in.”He bit down, in her face.

Radhika felt her heart rate spike up. The drizzle and cold covered around their bodies in light wetness. Beads of water dropped dampened the sharp spikes of his locks. The shiny water droplet from his one dark lock of golden for head and travelled down in the air and it then fell on her heated right cheek. Her lashes blinked downon her eye and her body banged into motion.

“No.”She whispered and moved forward to escape from his hold.

But, he caught her waist from behind, and her eyes bugged out at that. An immediate panic set in at that and she started to shout and scream.

“No! No! I said I’m not going to get in!”She shouted, but her throaty scream just fell on deaf ears as she whipped her in thebai, and a round and pushed her into the backhis limousine.

He pushed away from her as if burned, and slid opposite of the seat. Radhika’s eyes went to the car door, but he locked the doors before she could reach for it.

She tried to pull it down but it didn’t budge at all.

Her chest moved up and down rapidly, looking across his shadowed face suspiciously.

“What is this? Where are you taking me?”She asked cautiously, andher wild eyes peered out of the car window in rising anxiety.

He leaned back and his hand went across at the top of the seat in a leisure support.

He stared at her like that in that hateful insolent gaze of his brown eyes.

“Someplace very far. So far and out thatyou couldn’t reach anyone even if you wanted to desperately.”He said in a calm voice, that raked shivers across her skin.

Radhika’s heart gave out at that in fear. Her face paled and her lips lost the colour.

“You…you…you’re kidnappingme?”She asked in a convulse of a breath.

He just remained silent and dark. A shadow of a light beard appeared over square jaw hard mean jaw. His eyes lost all the warmth and the sharpness of a edged angles appeared on his face.

Her mind went into utter panic and fright.

“You can’t do that.”She gasped incredulously and in disbelief.

The look he gave at her high cry, surprised her to the core. His brown eyes swirled such disgust that she had to move back to escape his eyes. Why was he looking at her like that? Her mind rankled on and on. Something was wrong here. Too wrong. She could feel it in her blood.

He leaned forward and his face arranged in a sneer down at her.

“You’ve no idea of what things I am capable of or what things I can do.”He whispered.

His body warmth turned into a heatstoke that burned her skin. The vehement and censorious tone of hisjabbed at her senses. Why was he talking to her like that? Like she was somecholeric resentment in his life.

Radhika too leaned by the car and moved it up and down. She breathed hard.

“Somebody of my family will find out and come looking after me by the night.”She narrows her eyes and sharpened her too.

He leaned away and laughed in a jeer at that.

“Who would come looking?Yourfather?”He asked belligerently.

His laughter vanished and he leaned forward… His eyes turned molten lava, and Radhika’s hand froze on the handle.

“Before anybody would find out, everything will be sorted outby then.”He whispered sinisterly in her face.

Radhika stared and stared in drawing sorry that raise goosebumps all over her skin.

“What is going to be sorted out by then?”She asked in a low breath and stuttering of tone.

Her very life seem to flash out from her life. It raked. It rippled. It burned. It denoted. It cleaved. It heated.Looking at the shadowof extreme hostility in his face.

In a sudden movement he was on her and clutched at her hair. He pushed her face up to his. His hot breath mixed with hers and her scalp hurt at his hold.

His eyes ran all over her face in an irascible antagonism. His jaw set in a rankling.

“Does your father always throw you as a temptationat the men he deals with? This is howhe does the way of business.”His lips curled in a disgust…..”By pushing his daughter as a display.”He slandered in an umbrage, and pulled hard at her hair strands.

Radhika winced and flinched, she grabbed at his hand to free her hair, her face flamed at his shameful words. Whole of her body ravaged at what he said.

What the hell was he talking about? Her swimming eyes slid all around his face, but she could see a seeth and rage. She did not like it at all.

“I should commend you though. This mask of innocence lead me almost in, but you know what, I only have revulsion for the likes of you.”He said in a loathand pushed her aside and moved away.

Her body hit the seat hard. Histone filled with extreme repugnance waterer her eyes too much. Her jaw grinded and her eyes narrowed. She slid upright on the seat.

“You can’t make me do anything against my will.”She said fiercely, trying to gulp down the rising tears.

He just smiled sneeringly.

“Not even when dies in your family? Even then you wouldn’t do as I say?”He asked her innocently in a taunt.

Radhika blinked and she gasped at his words. Her heart failed. He wouldn’t? She just kept staring in a shocked widening of eyes.

“You wouldn’t do that.”She breathed in a broken whisper.

Her face and the whole of her self contorted in pain.

He only stared back at herewithin the seat opposite in utterflatness of look.

Her blood boiled and her hand raised in the air to hit right across his face a slap, but caught hold of her hand, and pulled her body on his in a splat. His face went into her neck, as his arms went around her waist.

His lips slid across her skin a whisper. He groaned low in his throat.

“Your skin is like pure silk. No wonder you’re put as a temptation.”He murmured in a husky tone.

Radhika felt disgusted at his last word, she tried to free herself. His lips formed and trailed in heated feather of kisses all along her neck and jaw.

“How much are you ready to give of yourself for this play, huh?I don’t really mind now until I could have you anytime and anywhere.”He whispered in a hotbreath in her ear.

His lips touched warmly over her cool skin along her ear shell.

She tried to get out of his arms more now. Her eyes watered at his sneer of the words. He was talking to her as if she was a person who had no self esteem.

“Let go off me.”She said firmly, pushed at his shoulders hard, but he tightened his hold around her waist more.

“You shouldn’t struggle like this, my sweet. It would hurt you more if you do.”With a chuckle on her skin.

The limousine suddenly halted, and Radhika’s heart spiked upand dread crippled her body to an extreme.

“Finally.”He growled in her neck, and moved his face out her hair.

Where had he brought her? What was going on?

He opened the side door, still holding her hand, he got her out. Radhika pulled back, but her mouth gaped. It was some kind of a far away dark castle kind of a large house.

It was big and grotesquely lonely. It lookedlike some kind of a ghost ridden mansion.

The wind blew up around and her red scarf flew up in the air. It spread around his face, and he tied it around his wrist moving it up and down in his hand.

He looked down at her and smiled a mocking one.

“Come on, let’s get tied down, it would be a dreamy one,like the way you would have never imagined even in a nightmare.”He said in arankling impatience and embitter of rage.

It colored his face and distempered his features. He didn’t look like himself. He was seething and shaking with enraged temper.

“No!”She cried out in agitation.

Hot tears rolled down her cool and pallor of the skin.

“Don’t do this.”She sobbed, and clutched at his hand.

But he didn’t listen and just dragged heracross the towering castle steps. He flung open the door. The interior was the modern one capared to the outer look of it.

“You’re mistaken about something. I don’t know what it is, but please stop with this…”She started again brokenly.

“Oh, do stop with the f**king tears and the act. It wouldn’t work on me now.”He grated in a sneer, with his face still averted from hers.

She wailed inside at his manner.

He took her inside a wide beige carpeted room. There was a black suitedpot bellied guy over a wide table. He got up immediately at their entry.

“Hello, Murthy, have you arranged the papers as I told you too?”Arjun asked from behind her.

“Yes, Sir, they are ready.”The man whispered looking at the two of the them in a wide smile.

“Act along. You know what I can do, if you don’t agree to this.”He whispered in a threaten.

Radhika smiled a watery one. He moved her forward.

“Here is my fiancé. She was too exited to get a registered marriage, that I had to move heaven and earth to get you out of the court and made you come here.”He chuckled, and slid his hand over her waist and pushed her forward.

Registered marriage? Radhika eyes bugged out. The man in his mid forties just perched the large glasses over his eyes and looked keenly across at their features.

He just cleared his throat, and counted the papers and slid a few across on the table to towardsthem.

“You need to sign on these papers right away then.”He murmured disinterested a little, looking at the too touchy and feely couple.

She just stood there staring down at the papers in a hurt of her heart. Her eyes stingedand flowed too heavily.

“Uh…I don’t see any engagement rings in your hands, though?”The man in keen observation.

She looked across at Arjun, her gaze glared in a freeze at the man who was bent on ruining her life., but he only smiled down at her and took out a blue velvet box from his coatpocket.

“My fiancé is such a romantic, she says that we should put on the rings while we signthe papers.”He said in an act of saccharine sweetness.

Her breath caught in her throat looking at the box, and when he opened it, the caught up breath left out of her body all together.

It was the rings that they chose for each other that day. The same day, he had bent her will and today too he was doing the same. But, there was anoceanic difference of manner. That day too he had threatened her and this day too he was just the same, but there was certain coolness then. Now he was all nettled. More furious and angry. What caused the sudden change? She looked up and tried hard tocatch his gaze,but he caught hold of her left hand.

The hot tears of her eyes rolled down, and fellover his wrist bone, his eyes snapped back to hers and stayed locked there. His brows furrowed in a pain. His eyes went soft a little looking at her while he slid the ring over the heart finger. The hardened features of his face became grave. He shook his head, and pushed his ringon her hand and made her to push it into his heart finger. His jaw ticked in unfeeling while doing all this. A sob rose in her throat but she but the inside of her cheek to not bawl. He was going to regret this. Whatever it was thathe was under a misunderstanding, if and when the truthcomes out and whatever the accusations he was snarling downat her, he would regret it all quite heavily that too.

He didn’t glare down at her but calmly signed the papers one by one. Radhika’s heart almost gave out when he slid the pen towards her. She just stood there unblinkingly, feeling a wealth of pain course into her body.

Arjun chuckled beside from her.

“She is just too shy.”He said in a false explanation.

The court just grunted and went about his business sorting out other papers.

She felther now sneering fiancé grabbed ather waist and got behind her. His warmlips touched her cool skin of the ear.

“Sign the papers, my sweet.”He whispered into her ears.

The last two words, those familiar drawl of his words, the terms of endearment, said in a tauntfelt like a tight slap to her face.

When she didn’t move, his right hand slid on top of hers. He made her grab the pen, and folded her fingers on it. He tightened his hold on the pen over her hand and made
her sign the first paperforcefully.

She struggled but he caught her waist and held her still, and he gripped hard in a brittle hurting hold and made her sign all of the documents in one go. He moved away and Radhika’s hand slackened down and the pen away on the floor in a roll from her hand.

Everything is done now. Over, her mind emptied out.

“Well, good….I will submit these on Monday then. Today is Saturday and it’s already past time….so the ministry will be closed.”The man explained and moved away and out.

When he walked out of the room, she was flung and pulled hard into the hard wall of a chest.

“Why not seal the deal with a kiss, huh?”He said fiercely, and his mouth fell on hers brutally.

He kissed her with such forceful possession that, Radhika beat at his chestin protest. His hands tightened on either side of her hair, ashe tried to pull a response out of her. His lips became less demanding suddenly, and whisperfeathered on her lower lip over and over in softest of deep heated kisses. His breath all stuttering and hackedmingledwith hers.

“Kiss me back.”He whispered in a hoarse husky voice.

Radhika remained ever impassive in his arms, but a sudden rack of tears and sobs attacked herbody and held both of his shirt collar sidesand pulled hard in demand.

“Why did you do this?”She cried out indeep pain wrecking tears, and her eyes blurred too much.

She kept pulling at his shirt collar and repeated the same questionin a blistering rage and and such violence that, all of the buttons ripped away and fell on the floor.

But, nothing deter his motives, nor his body moved back while she went all agitated at him. He remained on the floor firm and umoved as a good cut marblestatus.

“As I said before, this all melodrama would not work at me anymore.”He said flatly, and caught hold of hand again.

He dragged her across a dim lit kind of a hall, Radhika did not have the energy o resist anymore. He made a walk of ten minutes and burst open an door. A large elongated room with white washed walls and with beautiful painting hung around everywhere came into view.

He pushed her in it, and moved closer to her body. His hands grabbed at her upper arms, as he pulled her up and off the floor and bent down his head more closer to his face.

“For three days you will stay in this mansion with me. For three days your father will forlook for you everywhere frantically. Finally they won’t find me too. It doesn’t take a genius to put two and two together and find out that you eloped with me. In these days thoughts would creep into people’s mind…..”He smiled a a slow one….”That, we have already done the deed many times in the process of the days…”He said lasciviously, but Radhika turned head away disgustedat the meaning behind his words.

His lips touched her earshell.

“And in three days, my sweet, our marriage document would reach the ministry and in three days we will man and wife officially and nothing could be done but people to accept the truth that I married you out of pity…. So that your name would not be creased as a fallen woman…..for the people I will be your saviour and you will bethe damselin distress….”He breathed in a whisper into her ear.

He slid his left hand forefinger under her chin and turned her face to his.

His eyes sparkled too much and the lines on his face softened.

“How is the story, my sweet?”He grappled at her nerves with those words.

He grinned abruptly at her black scowling blistering of a glare.

“That right. It’s a great story with hell of a whirl whirled drama given to the public.”He concluded in an ill humouredhumoured chuckle and moved back.

The smile left his face as he started across at her in a fierce intense look. He stayed like that for a minute and turned around to leave finally.

“I will run away from here!”She cried out vehemently, and saw his body lock in a freeze.

He didn’t turn around but his head tilted to the right side.

“Feel free…but please inform me too, as how to cross the wild thick forest and the crocodiletrovein the process while escaping….and also close the windows as the cheetah is let loose on the prowl from around here.”He flungthe words casually over his shoulder and went away walkingout of the bedroom.

Radhika gulped hard. Wild forest? Crocodile trove? Cheetah?

With wild beat of heart, she moved towards the large window, where the night’s breeze passed into the room in a cool refreshedair. She peered over and looked across up at the moonlight. It was all dark outside, except she make out large trees and opening of a forest. Radhika suddenly assumed two big yellow animal eyes staring back at her from the darkened night. She immediately bolted the fivelarge windows in atight shut. Extreme fright hit her mind and heart. What is this place? It was right in the middle of the jungle.

She paced about for more than an hour making upof ways toescape the place.

Tired out emotionally and bodily, she finally moved towards the bed and slid down on her back. She closed her eyes to let the events of the the daybe just a nightmare.

The ring on her finger and her sign in the papers. Please god, let it be a bad dream that would pass away. Her eyes drooped down in ashuttering like that, thinking and crying too many tears.

*********

Arjun sat on the bed with arms folded and head leaned down, he kept glaring at the ring glittering on his left hand.

He stood up paced the room in frustration. Something new and hurtinggnawed and tore at his conscience but he ignored it and moved out of the room in a set of stone.

He crossed an aisle and went into a different alley of the many antiqued decorated interior corridors.

Arjun reached the room and pushed opened the door of it slowly. It creaked but opened up in a stealth.

His eyes looked all around in a wild swipe, but finally they located and settled on a sleeping figure of her on the bed.

He walked forward and stopped beside the bed. The silky long tresses covered the pillow in a cloud of darkness. Her lips, eyebrows and the tightness around her features looked drawn up and pained. His jaw grinded looking at a red dried up blood spot over the left side of her forehead.

He muttered out a curse, and pulled at his hair. He just shook his head and went towards the reading table. He pulled out the glass drawer slowly and cautiouslyand got out a first aid box.

He moved towards the bed, slid down beside to her and opened the plastic box. He got out an antiseptic liquid, poured a few drops on the cotton swab and slightly dabbed at the little wound. Her forehead creased and she moved restless on the bed. Arjun took out a small plater sticker and removed her hair from over her face. He firmed himself against her innocent angelic face and got about the process of sticking the plaster over the cut as unfeelingly as possible. His eyes though strayed time and again to thefull redlips and the porcelain fairness of her creamy smooth and soft skin.

His eyes became lazy warm and caressing all over her slender yet curvaceous body. She had the curves in all the right places. He could feelher softness filling out of his hand when he grabbed at her waist.

Arjun got out of the bed in a flash. He felt disgusted with himself for caring and becoming a loony over her yet again. He just shook his head, and hardenedhis will against her and prowled out of the room.

*************

Next up Part— Debt Paid So Heavily…Sufferance Is His..

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Long chappy of DT ? forgive the toooooo many typos?
Sorrrrrryyyy wasn’t updating it for a while? Hope u likeeeeeeee this part. Really excited really really excited for u guys to read?
Plsssssss do tel how do u like da part means a lot if u do dears??

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Been bad days since Monday guys so couldn’t cm up here and talk of even update?
Will update DT2 next for sure.

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Somthng about me: I literally break into a dance anytime anywhere…cept outside though…dey will put me in an asylum if I do dancing like crazy outside haha?

U know what tune I dance on: mai nagin nagin nagin nagin dance nanchna….I literally curve my hands over my headand start hissing hahaha?

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I’m sooooooooo wiped. My eyes like too bleary. Its 2:30AM, so this night owl saying nighty night to u?

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Til den, love u, tight warmhug,keep smiling, loving and caring and ever rockingggggg my lovelies?

Credit to: kfar