Epilogue extended…

Five years later.

“Aai… aai… no white curry for me for me… I want red one…like baba…” little Vaani asserted her lassie rights on the dinner table even as Avanti and Keshav chuckled watching the four-year-old replica of Keshav frown. Vaani acted like a fourteen-year-old with the hormonal surge and objected to everything her mother gave her. She wanted things just like her father had. Whether it was choice of clothes or food. Keshav who ruled the corporate world with an iron fist was a mere putty in her little hands. He literally danced to her tunes and melodious tunes they were… that was one area she had taken after her mother perfectly to Keshav’s utmost delight.

Avanti let out an exasperating sigh. Today was an exhausting day. She had a full class in her music school where she worked part time and Rahul who was a partner covered the other classes in the evenings along with some old friend from her old school. Rahul worked a day job at Vedshastra where he had been elevated as finance head after Mr. Mukherjee was asked to retire. She didn’t want to press charges against the already broken man and he was now in an old age home. Rahul had returned three years ago after a bad break up with Anuj and Avanti and Keshav had stood behind him encouraging him to get back to his career and preventing him from spiralling into depression. Avanti hoped he would meet a life partner someday and start smiling like he did years ago…

The path breaking formula had changed the world perspective towards degenerative diseases and the treatments. There were other drugs made in similar fashions but Vedshastra-Novo-Supremo group had been the pioneers. Their patent was highly in demand and could have fetched them crores in the international market. Especially after the successful clinical trial on the other patients. In case of Keshav there was no change in the status at all and even as he repeated his MRI once a year there had been no progression as expected. He felt it was because of the drug. The other patients too showed halted progression or extremely slow progress of the shrivelling of grey matter or shrinking of brain parenchyma. Avanti decided to gift the patent to government of India. This was what her father would have wanted. Her mother and Arpita too gave their consent. She was felicitated by the union health minister on behalf of her father. In fact, they had now converted the drug to a generic medium and retained the name Ved Adbhut in memory of her father.

Kamya and Sahil had been married immediately after the clinical trials had ended. They spent a lot of time in Mumbai whenever Keshav was admitted during the two long years of the trial. The Kulsreshtras were a huge pillar of support and rallied behind them even though Avanti’s mother was there with her, Rama aunty going the extra mile during Avanti’s tough pregnancy needing bedrest from the second trimester till her C-section. Keshav had buried the hachet with the Kulsreshtra much before his trials. The D’Souzas too were very supportive during the two taxing years when Avanti juggled between hospital, home, and little Vani who got cranky whenever her father left for days together. Mrs. D’Souza had passed a couple of years ago and Avanti made it a point to visit Mr. D’Souza daily accompanied by Vani. Keshav and she also ensured the senior man didn’t have anything to worry about. Kamya and Sahil were married in Delhi and Kaamya looked radiant surrounded by her complete family. They recently had a bonny boy Vikrant and Keshav and Avanti were all set to travel to Delhi next month to introduce Vani to her cousin!

Rohini was in Hissar for last three years now. She had been there for Avanti and even recently for Kaamya during her delivery in Delhi. She had converted the old Haveli into a tourist resort with the initial seed capital from Keshav. Though she had vehemently declined Keshav had insisted she not spend her corpus. Now she had held her fort and for the past few months had started to rake in profits as well. Avanti had never seen the woman with such a sparkle in her eyes.

Vedshastra was now managed by a board of directors completely and they had appointed a CEO recently to oversee the corporate affairs. The guy in his mid thirties, Aman, as Keshav called him, came highly recommended from Keshav’s corporate circles and apparently had been an ex-serviceman. Keshav had great respect for the kind because of their discipline. The man had been a native of Pune and had recently got back. He also was provided a house close to the Khopoli office just in case he needed to save travel time. So, he stayed there during the weekdays and often visited his home during the weekends. The man was eloquent and intelligent and though he wasn’t educationally from the pharmaceutical background, his knowledge about the field was par excellence.  Avanti had met the charismatic man a few times and had been mighty impressed by his future goals and optimism. He had a neutral face full of old scars and she wondered what stories those scars had hidden in them. Aman always lighted up whenever she took Vaani with her to Vedshastra. She observed his smile didn’t reach his eyes… eyes filled with some kind of a fury hidden in its silent embers. She knew one because she had witnessed that in Keshav before they were married. She hoped the man would find his peace some day given that he was proving to be an asset to the company.  She wished her baba could witness the upward growth of his third baby…. Novo-Supremo continued to have their ties with Vedshatra intact

Everything had fallen into place after numerous tumulus initial hiccups. But as she lay in bed after putting Vani to sleep, she snuggled into Keshav’s warm body as he held her closer snoring lightly and she chuckled into his chest. He had been working too hard preparing for the launch of their new prototype a drug utilising the floral extracts as the chief component. He himself had grown the hybrid variety of flowers in his terrace garden and he hoped the drug cold be used for the regular TB and MDR (Multi-Drug Resistant) TB cases who couldn’t tolerate heavy anti biotics and often gave up the treatment mid-way. They were to stay in Delhi for a week and he had to hand over the work to his in charge.

She only worried about the twins, especially Nirvi. Naman was always in his flamboyant self and visited them very often whenever he dropped into Mumbai. He was a pro football player and his club travelled almost throughout the year. He was also studying business management via correspondence and Keshav hoped that he would someday be interested in joining the company after he stopped playing pro. Nirvi however had turned a recluse. Especially in the last two years or so… Avanti couldn’t pinpoint the exact time or cause. Whenever she visited them which was a seldom in the last two years, Nirvi put up a happy front but Avanti knew something troubled the young woman. Now into the final six months of her internship she was just short of a few months from being a doctor. Avanti also knew she dabbled in fashion on the sly not known to her brothers or Kamya or even Rohini. She had only shared it with Avanti after she had seen some designs in her bag during one of her rare visits.  Avanti knew Nirvi was worked up because of her tough schedule and barely found time to talk or eat. Keshav had seen Kaamya go through the phase so he didn’t read much into it… but Avanti was dead sure. Nirvi’s eyes were a total give away…

As sleep won the battle that night Avanti made a decision to speak with Keshav about Nirvi once they got back form Delhi.

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Here’s where the next story begins.

I will get to it after I am done with the novel. So will take a while. I thank all readers for your love and support throughout!

Love

Priya                                                                  

Copyright Disclaimer: All content posted here is a work of fiction and original work based on the author’s imagination. There is no intention to disrespect any person or faith. Any resemblance to any person living or dead or any community is purely coincidental. No part of the content can be copied, reproduced or posted anywhere else either entirely or in parts, without the consent of the author.

Epilogue

Avanti threw up for the nth time that evening and as she emerged from the bathroom she was sapped of all energy. Consoling Rohini had emotionally drained her and she was yet to recover from the upheavals from yesterday. But Keshav had been mighty excited about todays dinner date and she didn’t want to disappoint him… he rarely asked her anything till date. She dressed in her favourite attire…a complete black evening gown not very tight and the material extremely comfortable and smooth for her tired skin. It wasn’t too flashy nor was it too simple and it brought out her complexion. She left her hair loose to fall over her shoulders and applied minimal make-up before moving out. Keshav had sent a car to pick her up and he was to meet her directly at the venue. She had returned home early from Vedshastra and he had stayed back to complete paperwork. She smiled to see the similarities between her baba and Keshav. Both were workaholics to the core but when it came to giving time to family, they always put everything aside.

As she straightened her dress, she remembered how Keshav had rushed to Hyderabad… he had confessed his love to her. The memories of the moment still gave her butterflies in her stomach… her heart fluttered every time she remembered his face as he had hesitated to speak out his feelings. A shrewd corporate honcho he was timidity personified. He had come a long way and now easily opened up to her. His MRI was due tomorrow as a part of the pre-trial test battery. She was nervous occasionally as the reality started to actually sink in… he would be away for days at a stretch during the trial phases as they would be monitoring him in the hospital along with the others registered for the trials. They would be apparently allowed video calls once a day but she wondered if it would be enough. Her eyes filled thinking about how much she would miss him. Nonetheless she knew he was doing it more for her and their unborn child, than for himself… and above all she trusted her father. Everyone said she was brave but it was actually Keshav who was the brave heart to register for the trial…just for her.

She walked out of the house and reached the gates of the compound where the driver waited for her. The journey was quite a bit and in about fifteen minutes she could feel her lemon juice threatening to push its way out of her throat. Somehow it subsided as she reached the destination. The driver came around her side to open the door but as she got out, she looked around for the restaurant. Where was this place…? It looked like a busy market area with many major showrooms… She stood before Kalyan Jewellers.

The driver walked upto her and gave her a letter. She smiled as she opened it.

walk straight inside shop no.40 right in front of you…

K

Shop no.40 was the Kalyan Jewellers showroom. Really…? What was going on …? She walked in and a uniformed attendant directed her to a dark room and made her stand. Everything was pitch dark around her and she began to worry when suddenly there was light music played and the lights came on one at a time finally lighting up the beautiful interiors of the storeroom. She looked around to see the storeroom filled with rings… and uniformed attendants smiling sheepishly standing with flowers in their hand. Oh goodness…it was exactly like her favourite movie scene from Sweet Home Alabama… Oh Keshav. Her eyes filled and as she wiped the moisture away, she saw him…her dear husband with a bouquet of red roses walk towards her and hand it to her. He went on one knee before her, holding her hand even as she sobbed…

“Dear Avanti… I never got an opportunity to officially propose to you… but here I am now… better late than never isn’t it…?” She laughed wiping her tears as he continued. “…Avanti…thank you for being my wife and now the mother of our unborn princess… yes…yes…I know you can’t know the gender…blah… blah… but I have a gut feeling it’s going to be a girl as beautiful as her mother…So Avanti… stay by my side forever…?”

She nodded. “Yes Keshav… always…” he whistled as everyone around clapped their hands and he took her around to chose a ring for her. After about an hour or so after both of them settled on an intricately patterned diamond ring they left to have dinner. But Avanti wasn’t able to tolerate the smells and they had to leave early from the restaurant and Avanti was dead to the world as they got home and Keshav had to literally drag her home!

The next day Keshav had his MRI… Kamya was constantly on call with her as well as the doctors. DR. Shetty was personally supervising the proceedings and later in the evening he met them up in his chamber. Kamya had joined on the call as well.

“Look Keshav and Avanti… as of now there is no shrinking in any part of the brain which we should have observed had there been progression of the disease… it is status quo. So, given the age of onset, it’s all good. Also, the good news is there have been no symptoms of any kind for a while now and the stray ones that you have had could also be a case of hypoglycemia or lowering of sugar levels…. You now just a co-incidence… For all you know the mutation of the gene may have been for good. You haven’t manifested symptoms at all. So all’s well…”

Avanti heaved a sigh of relief and that evening they celebrated with the D’Souzas who had insisted on them joining the senior couple for dinner. Avanti was glad she had them as she relished the cinnamon pie… it was heavenly after she apologetically had thrown up her dinner a while ago.

That night as she went to sleep, she sighed… Life had come a full circle. Rahul had decided to move to Chandigarh where Anuj wanted to settle down and though she was sceptical about his decision she stood by him. She would be there for her friend if he ever needed anything. She had spoken with Arpita today morning even as she had waited for the MRI to get done with and her tai had stood rock solid behind her. She was glad to get her sister back. It may have been the circumstances that played a role but Arpita had sobered down and actured matured. Her mother was all set to return to their village and come back whenever Keshav went for the trial. Avanti had told Arpita today morning all about the letter and solving the puzzle… the black book in the locker, baba’s murder…and as expected Arpita had been shocked. She would have definitely shared the information with their mother. She knew aai would take a while to recover from whatever she got to know…

Avanti had barely known Keshav… but had met him accidentally, had fallen in love with him accidentally and then married him… He was the man of her dreams and had given her everything including the little life growing inside her. She was proud of him… he had faced terrible adversities in life but had finally emerged victorious. He was indeed the Phoenix rising from ashes. He was an honourable and a courageous man… he was her accidental husband!

Copyright Disclaimer: All content posted here is a work of fiction and original work based on the author’s imagination. There is no intention to disrespect any person or faith. Any resemblance to any person living or dead or any community is purely coincidental. No part of the content can be copied, reproduced or posted anywhere else either entirely or in parts, without the consent of the author.

Chapter 37

“Um…if you promise to let us go… I will hand over the formula to you right now…” Avanti declared her heart galloping at a pace she felt it would jump out any moment.

He stopped eating and looked up at her. “you… you have the formula…?”

She nodded. “Yes… we have it hidden the original copy of my father’s work and that could fetch you real money…”

“…Look Avanti I want the black book… and don’t look surprised…Mukherjee had told me about it long ago… I may not look like it …  but I am an intelligent man and if you think…”

“…Its on the terrace… near the green house…” She blurted out loudly enough hoping the listeners at the other end of the walkie talkie heard her. That meant they could enter the house using the code and she hoped Keshav was there to share it.

“…Ok then… you lead the way and I will follow… Ladies first!” he smirked.

Avanti walked with her spine straight hoping she could unsettle him psychologically. She hoped she could have some advantage over him…this was her house and she knew every corner of it especially the terrace where she had spent hours whenever she was lonely in the initial days of marriage or waiting for Keshav to arrive from work. She began to think about the places around the place that she could use in some way. She unlocked the doors and walked in the open and as the early evening breeze hit her bringing with it the faint noise of Pune bound traffic on Sion -Trombay road and the highway. She looked around the place, her sanctum whenever she was upset, it now helped her calm down.

“…now you better don’t jest with me… where is it…?”

“…um…It’s the black bound little notebook in which my father had written the formula derivation in detail…. I have hidden it here to prevent it from being stolen…” She had to stall him a little while more till it started to get dark…his visual acuity would reduce further by then and put him at a disadvantage.

“…Avanti… get going quickly and no playing games… you know I wouldn’t hesitate to slash your throat…”

“…its here… wait… let me search a bit…” she made the motions of going along the perimeter of the terrace area and tapped the soil around the edges. The aroma of earth was loved by Keshav and her as well and as she touched the wet soil kept moist by specialised intermittent water drips, she got a brainwave. She pretended to count the steps and walked towards the green house and close on her heels was Premnath. There was a tap right next to it and she knew it. Fortunately, the hose was connected to it and at around this time the municipal water came in full force.  She showed him a point in the soil a little away from the tap and said. “…the book… is hidden inside here… you can dig it out…”

“…you will do it… right now…” She could see he was running out of patience and that was what she wanted. As she moved towards the soil in the corner of her eyes, she saw movement. Pretending to rub her brow she saw Keshav and Akshat crouch in the corner of the terrace. Premnath must not have seen them because of poor peripheral vision. Thank God for mercies… Keshav nodded to her and she got a sudden infusion of courage. She bent to dig in with her fingers and removed a couple of layers of soil and with the corner of her eye she saw Premnath had moved to a side to watch her such that he could see the entrance of the terrace. So as of now Keshav or Akshat couldn’t make a move. She sat on her haunches panting as if she was tired and began to breathe heavily.

Then everything happened in a flash…she turned around and with all her might pushed Premanth away even as is knife blade sliced her arm… but pain not withstanding she switched on the green house blower specially installed for temperature regulation but now since the blooms were removed the lids had been opened up and the hot air blew with full force. Avanti moved right in time but Premnath was disoriented. She rushed to the tap and switched it on full throttle. Before Premnath could compose himself, she picked up the hose and sprayed the jet of water on his face. His glasses fell off and he stumbled behind swearing loudly… When he moved to one side the blower’s blast of hot air hit him hard and when he swayed a little to the other side Avanti’s jet spray from the hose was aimed at him. This was the instant Keshav and Akshat were waiting. They rushed towards him and held him from both sides. She kept spraying him with water… the knife had fallen down long ago and he was at their mercy as he struggled to breathe. Akshat removed his belt and tied up Premnath’s hands and she didn’t let him move because of the water spray. Keshav rushed to the little corner shed which housed the gardening equipment and brought out a huge rope. Rahul joined them as well along with a terse looking Mr. D’Souza right behind waiting in a corner. Together the three of them tied Premnath even as he groaned almost giving up the fight.

Avanti finally looked up from what she was doing as the water flow stopped… Keshav had shut the tap and held her hand to check the injury. He was speaking to her but somehow, she couldn’t hear anything amidst the cacophony of chaotic thoughts in her head. The adrenaline now washed away; reality sank in… she had escaped an almost death. Her hand throbbed where she had been hurt and the world turned around her as bile rose in her throat. She swayed dropping the hose and even as Keshav held her close she swayed further towards him. She heard the footsteps of the arriving cops as they took Premnath into custody. But everything was a blur as she collapsed into the waiting arms of her husband and darkness claimed her.

Avanti felt the cold cloth on her head. Where was she…? She opened her heavy eyes with great difficulty even as she felt Keshav’s warm hand holding her cold ones.

“…Av…Avanti… sweetheart… are you OK…?” She heard Keshav frantically calling her out.

Finally, she looked around still feeling the nausea and attempted to sit up with Keshav’s help. Her mother sat at the foot of her bed wiping her worried eyes while Arpita stood beside her in an apologetic look. “…Premmm…Premnath…?” She asked her throat dry.

“He is arrested Avanti… and thanks to you we have all the evidence against him to put him away for good…” He held her as she sipped water from a cup.

“…He was out on… parole…” She retorted anxiously.

“…Yes, and he violated all the rules too…so he will be gone for a lifetime… I will see to it…” Keshav said firmly and the bedroom door opened as Akshat entered followed by a woman.

“Keshav Sir, Ma’am, this is Dr. Raji Sreedharan from the nearby nursing home here…” Akshat announced as the woman came towards the bed and Keshav moved to let her examine Avanti.

“…I will have to examine her properly so I would appreciate if one of you stays behind while the rest leave the room.”

Her mother stayed back with her and the others left the room.

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Keshav paced the complete length of the drawing room his anxiety touching the skies. Mrs. Sinha had been called and she was helping put up dinner, grumbling all along she should have been more vigilant. The D’Souza couple refused to leave till they actually saw Avanti hale and hearty. Rahul too was a silent spectator and Keshav knew he was worried about Avanti as well. Earlier he had called Avanti’s mother… come what may, they deserved to know about her health and the duo had rushed to their house. However, unlike their last visit they were not at all hostile. Even now Arpita stood staring outside the drawing room window and he actually felt sorry for her… dressed in simple cotton outfit with unmade hair and minus the war paint she was a far cry from her usual flamboyant self. She was lured with false promises and he only hoped she could cope up with the heart break. He knew Avanti was fine but probably shocked at what had happened… his brave wife. She had put up with so much and yet not lost her presence of mind… She deserved a bravery award for taking down that monster almost single handedly.

He had been on his way with Akshat when he had received a call from Rahul. He was at the D’Souza’s and had apparently been hearing the conversation between Avanti and the lunatic Premnath. On Rahul’s advice he had gone straight to the D’Souza’s home and waited along with the senior couple for the right time. Those were the worst moments of his life where he almost died every second but he knew any action from his side could have proven detrimental for Avanti. Also, he knew she was baiting Premnath in her own subtle way and the guy actually landed up playing into her hands. His heart almost stopped when she led Premnath to the terrace and he could not hear her voice anymore…but that had been their clue and the cops were ready as well…. having cordoned the perimeter of the building. Keshav and Akshat had rushed upstairs and had slowly entered the house… He had lost it when he had found the guard lying on the floor in the drawing room but Akshat held him from rushing upstairs and declared the guard was only unconscious after checking for a pulse. Rahul soon came after them and arranged for an ambulance. Akshat and he had crouched their way to the terrace and he had thought he would kill the man with his bare hands as he saw Avanti bending towards the soil while Premnath stood in a stance ready to pounce on her with his knife. He moved into the shadows on the right while Akshat moved to the left and it was then he realised, his Avanti… his darling wife had seen him. She was suddenly a tigress personified as she valiantly fought with Premnath catching him unawares.

She was hurt and that worried him but why did she collapse…? He had started to actually breathe only when she regained consciousness after a complete hour. Thankfully they had found a doctor nearby. What a day it had been…they had super success with Ved-Adbhut and tomorrow he had a press conference scheduled along with the FDA where every step of drug development and tests as well as clinical trials would be made public except for the identity of the participants of the clinical trials. But nothing meant anything to him now till he heard about Avanti and that she was not hurt anywhere else…

As they all waited anxiously, the doctor emerged from the room smiling. “Congratulations Mr. Goyal… your wife is pregnant… Here’s a list of investigations which you will need to do as a part of the protocol…”

“…Is she fine…? but… wait… what did you say…?” Keshav couldn’t believe his ears.

“…She is absolutely fine… just facing the normally seen nausea in early pregnancy…called morning sickness… don’t worry…see a gynaecologist for regular check-ups now on…” the doctor smiled and nodded as she moved towards the entrance and Akshat followed her.

A stunned Keshav walked into their room following Arpita was eager to see her sister. Avanti sat up on their bed with pillows propped up and her mother was helping her take a sip of water. Her mother saw him and nodded and holding Arpita’s hand dragged her away from the room. Rahul wished them so did the D’Souzas who were in tears. Mrs. D’Souza hugged her and promised her cinnamon pies which would be good for her stomach and she wouldn’t throw up either. Keshav thanked his stars for the super senior couple who had held the fort for him. They exited the room shutting the door behind them and he moved towards Avanti. He sat next to her facing her as tears which he had held back for hours now flew freely down his face.

“hey… Keshav…come here…” Avanti opened up her arms and he went closer pulling her, crushed her to him. He cried out his anguish, his fears as he dug his head in her hair taking in the fragrance of her shampoo, his hands feeling her body. “…Keshav… its ok… its over now… everything is fine… right…?” He moved away wiping his tears and nodded.

“…Avanti… I was scared… I was never so… sca..scared ever before in my life… oh God…I almost killed him today…”

“…Keshav… all’s well that ends well… right…? And see, we have so much to celebrate…”

Keshav nodded and touched her now flat belly lightly rubbing it, but suddenly a thought crossed his mind and his hands stilled.

“What is it Keshav…?” Avanti asked with a cute frown between her brows. “…you want the baby, don’t you…?”

 “…of course, Avanti… it’s like my dreams are all coming true… but I am still scared about the baby… what if…” He was cursed with a legacy and no matter what kind of medical miracle he was hoping for, there was a chance that his progeny could have the mutant gene.

“Keshav look here…” Avanti spoke softly as he looked into her reassuring eyes. “…Keshav… life is totally unpredictable… one may be walking on the road and meet with an accident and either die or be disabled for life… we have heard of healthy people go out for a jog and collapse with a cardiac arrest, haven’t we…? we know so many such cases…” He nodded as she continued. “…take my baba for instance one moment he was with us and the next he was no more… but you know, Keshav…? I have learnt something very important… we should value our present … just do our duty and leave the rest to the Almighty… just let’s live in the present Keshav…lets be grateful for the happiness we have… lets look forward for a lifetime of togetherness…why bother about an unknown future entity…?”

Keshav chuckled at the lucidity of her words… they were deep and penetrated his heart. He wasn’t scared anymore because she was with him…she believed in him. He helped her get out of the room and they all sat together for dinner. Keshav requested Avanti’s mother to move here to stay with her when he would be away for the first phase of his clinical trial next month and both, her mom and Arpita readily agreed. Well, that was a huge relief. Avanti didn’t need any more stress. Akshat had joined them too and after dinner they all sat together as Akshat gave them the updates. Though it was close to 11 PM everyone was eager to know the details.

Akshat told them how they had zeroed in on Premnath and the best part was, his cronies, a couple of druggies who lived in the shanties near his house were caught and they spilled the beans. Though Premnath had been cautious, they were overcome with their craving for their next fix and had come looking for Premnath and had been caught. The police sealed Premnath’s home and found many documents linking him to various crimes. He had almost killed his brother years ago and then after he was out of jail, he had killed Dnyaneshwar Rane, followed by Prantik and Shamsunder Valmiki. Prantik had helped him obtain the chemical used in the burning of the house as well as that found in the crash site. It was the same chemical he had forced Mr. Mukherjee to leak out to hurt Keshav hoping to scare Avanti and pull him out of Vedshastra…so Premnath could push its sale. Today Mr Mukherjee didn’t go home but went to his native to get away from the mess. Based on what Premnath spoke, Rahul had conveyed information to the police who had gone with a bomb squad to the Mukherjee residence but had found nothing. The insane man had just thrown the false news probably to confuse Avanti and scare her further. Even as the showdown happened here the police had raided Premnath’s house. They confiscated the special rifle hidden inside the closet and were now going to get the ballistics done to check if the bullet used for murdering Shamsunder Valmiki and Prantik were from the same rifle. They also found passbooks with dubious transactions from Italy and some from Middle East. All in all, besides these evidences his self-confession which was auto recorded in both the walkie talkies now in police custody was enough to seal Premnath’s fate.

As they went to bed that night, Keshav held Avanti sleeping peacefully in his arms and smiled at his good fortune. He was just going to grab it with both his hands…

The next day they had a successful press conference where the who’s who of the media world came up to take a few bytes. Avanti sat in the audience and that boosted his morale multifold. After the reporters dispersed, he came back to Vedshastra with Avanti and officially announced a bonus to all the employees to their utmost delight and everyone in their own way conveyed their pledge to work hard to achieve more such success. Kamya and Sahil were to come down for a week in a couple of days to spent time with them and he looked forward to some quality family time before the clinical trial began. Sahil’s parents were coming along as well and he had already planned to visit them to talk things out. Nothing pleased him more than re connecting with Rama aunty who had been there at a few crucial moments in his life before his father had blown it away.

They walked into his cabin only to see a completely defeated Rohini waiting for them. Avanti went forwards and hugged the woman as the latter cried her heart out. For the first time Keshav felt bad for her… whatever it was she didn’t deserve to be treated like the way Premnath did. He ordered tea for them as they sat and Avanti held the woman’s hands trying to console her.

“…Avanti…Keshav… I am sorry…so so…sorry… I didn’t know Parminder…or Premath… or whoever he was… I just didn’t know… you were hurt because of me…. So sorry…” Rohini wailed.

“…No Rohini… that man took everyone for a ride… he fooled all of us… he was a rotten man to the core… he was cruel Rohini… just try to forget him…ok…? We are all with you…?” Avanti spoke softly.

“…Rohini… Avanti is right… we don’t blame you…” He spoke as well, hoping to reassure her.

Rohini nodded and opened her purse to take out an envelope and handed it over to Keshav. “here… I don’t think I need it anymore Keshav… I have been unreasonably greedy… I will transfer the money as well tomorrow…”

“… Rohini…” He stood up as he spoke. “…I didn’t give this to you because you were getting married… I gave it because you deserved it… for giving the precious years of your life to our family…I shudder to think of what would have happened to Kamya had you not been there for her those days… so… rest assured its all yours and you are and always will be a part of the family…”

Two pairs of wet eyes looked at him. One filled with gratitude and the other… well… he couldn’t read Avanti this time… nonetheless he was pleased to see her reaction and hoped to fine a lone moment with her for the surprise he had planed for her later in the day. She was busy consoling Rohini but that’s was his Avanti… full of love and always giving.

Copyright Disclaimer: All content posted here is a work of fiction and original work based on the author’s imagination. There is no intention to disrespect any person or faith. Any resemblance to any person living or dead or any community is purely coincidental. No part of the content can be copied, reproduced or posted anywhere else either entirely or in parts, without the consent of the author.

Chapter 36

Keshav emerged out of the laboratory ecstatic at the success of the special creation… he was so overwhelmed when the lead scientist declared the final results, that he almost cried. He conveyed a mental thank you to Dnyaneshwar Rane and immediately walked towards his cabin to take out his cell phone to call Avanti with the good news. He knew she would be on tenterhooks as well… and had taken refuge in music. That was his Avanti… beneath that tough veneer there was this nervous as hell soft woman, but he read her like an open book just like she did him. She knew exactly what he wanted just like that last night rendezvous in bed. She had shed her demure inhibitions and in its place was his greedy vixen who sucked him dry… he chuckled as he grew hard and immediately looked around hoping no one saw the sudden tightening of his trousers right there… he had to rein it in. He was acting like a teenager getting hard at the sight of nude women on some stashed away adult book covers or after watching porn in secret. He rubbed his face and used his key to open the drawer to remove his cell phone. But it wasn’t lighting up… what the fuck… did the battery die…? He immediately placed it for charging but of no avail… did the instrument decide to conk off at this crucial juncture…? No…

Right then Akshat walked in. “hello Keshav sir… I got your original phone… you can put back the SIM card in it and start using…My guy has restored all the saved documents. And there is something I have to tell you…”

As Akshat helped him change the SIM he continued… “…Uh…Keshav sir… I dug deeper into Narendranath’s fourth son. Everything else points towards him… He had the motive and the need to make it big to go against his family. I even found he had made an attempt on his brother’s life years ago just because the guy had ratted him out to their father and he was thrown out of the share in business…” He handed over the phone to Keshav which now buzzed with message alerts. He saw three messaged from Avanti… she must be definitely checking out the status. He looked up as he missed what Akshat just said.

“…I beg your pardon… what did you just say…?”

“…Sir… that fourth son is the one whom you and Rane sir had put behind bars with the complete support of his family… he is out on parole now after five years. He had apparently changed his appearance so that no one from his past recognised him…”

“…So, you mean he is around us… committing all these crimes…?” His blood boiled to think of that slime. The bastard killed Dnyaneshwar Rane and attempted to do so the same to Avanti…? “…what’s his name…? Prem something… Narendranath Sisodia’s fourth son…” He tried hard to recall the name.

“…Its Premnath Sisodia, Sir…and I caught hold of one of his two-bit cronies… the man now goes by the name…Parminder…”

Wait… where had he heard the name…? Oh yes… Rohini’s boyfriend… He was there at Kamya’s roka too but at that time he had been furious and his vision had clouded by anger… He immediately checked Avanti’s texts with trembling hands.

‘Hey… I hope all’s fine… I got a call from Silas hospital…they want some of your reports for the upcoming clinical trials. Their team of doctors got specially for the purpose are going away… I need to give them the reports before 4PM…’

What on earth…? Silas hospital…? Since when were they involved in anything…? He dialled Avanti but she didn’t answer.

“…FUCK…FUCK…FUCK…” he yelled, startling Akshat. “…Akshat something is wrong… call Dr. Mehta from Silas… he knows me. Just check whether someone from their hospital called Avanti today afternoon… about a couple of hours ago…”

Akshat nodded and went ahead with the call while he called Avanti again in vain. His heart in his throat now, he then checked the other messages.

‘I am on my way home in the cab and don’t worry dear… Rahul is with me…I will drop the reports and call you… hope your phone will be reachable by then.’

He rubbed his face… something was terribly wrong but there was a bit of solace since Rahul was with her.  Why the hell was his phone not working? He looked at the drawer and saw the chipped wood near the lock… he asked Akshat to check the security footage and was shocked to see Mr. Mukherjee exit the cabin in a hurry… what the fuck…? Akshat immediately called his man on standby to catch hold of the old man. Keshav was blank and just called Rahul but his phone was switched off… His heart fell now and he had never known fear could take such magnitude of proportions, as his hands trembled after months. He was angry at himself… how could he be so careless… he shouldn’t have let her go out of sight. He knew what the bastard wanted and he would give it to him willingly if he would get Avanti back safe and sound. He took out a folder from the locker and the black book as well. Akshat knew what was happening as realisation dawned on him and Keshav devised a plan. No matter what, he had to get back Avanti safe… that’s all mattered now.

Akshat got off the call from Dr. Mehta who had reverted. “Keshav sir… there was no call made from Silas hospital… that means…”

Akshat didn’t have to say anything more. Keshav already knew it. “…Akshat… call the cops and inform your guys in the building to be ready but no one should take matters into their hands… got it…?”

“…Fine Keshav sir… I have already texted the head of security… and he is making the arrangements… but are you sure about this…?” Akshat pointed at the folder and black book.

“…Yes… yes I am… there is no time to waste… what’s the GPS status…?” He was glad Avanti’s phone had the GPS tracker recently linked to his phone and Akshat could keep track of both their locations. He had made this arrangement till the intruder was caught.

“…Sir…she is right in the house…”

“…then let’s hurry before that lunatic goes overboard…”

They travelled at full throttle breaking all traffic norms, a car journey had never been more arduous. He blinked back tears as he thought of possible outcomes…his rational mind not at all functional. He couldn’t afford to lose Avanti…couldn’t afford to lose her smile, the sight of her beautiful kohl rimmed eyes, the priceless camaraderie that he had with no one else, couldn’t afford to lose his soul mate who loved him unconditionally, Huntington’s or not…he just couldn’t lose it all. She meant just everything in his life…

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“Par…Parminder…?” Avanti whispered, heart thudding overtime. “…how did you…? Silas hospital…?”

“…oh it was easy to find a willing patient to make that call… just cost me a thousand bucks you see…made it authentic…” He chuckled

Avanti gasped as the shock penetrated her her body gripping her chest tight. “…Parminder…” She could only take his name.

“…well…its Premnath… Premnath Sisodia… ring a bell…dear Avanti Dnyaneshwar Rane…?”

Why did the name sound familiar…? She tried racking her brains clouded with anxiety. And then it struck her like lightening. Her father had been furious about a buyout offer from an old friends’ son years ago. He had investigated the man and found him to be a crook of the greatest order and the worst was this man had tried to sabotage his own family business. Her father and Keshav had caught him on time and that had opened a pandora’s box with more skeletons falling from his closet. Many witnesses came forward with their complaints as to how he had fleeced them of their fortunes. He was eventually arrested and was sentenced to seven years of imprisonment since his family totally disowned him. But not before her father had almost fallen sick with the mental turmoil the investigation had caused. She had overheard the name umpteen times whenever her father spoke over phone in his study. She shuddered… Did he now want revenge…?

“looks like father’s little princess does remember after all… your father… and that bloody husband… they ruined my life…” He started to walk closer and she moved backwards. There was no way she could run without being stabbed or shot, if he had a gun. she had to keep him talking.

“…but what did Keshav do…? And Baba is no more…” she wailed.

She looked around the room subtly as the man chuckled lightly. Her eyes fell on the walkie-talkie behind the row of books. She had kept it for charging and had forgotten to keep it in her cupboard after disconnecting the wire. God was great indeed… And she moved towards that wall gradually. Since it wasn’t the exit he didn’t care as he continued in his forlorn tone. She halted as she stood before the instrument and pretended to hold the showcase stand for support while he looked at the exit for a moment, she gently pressed the button of the walkie-talkie.  “…Wait… you… you killed my baba…?” She knew the answer but she had to get it out the horse’s mouth. She was sure he didn’t see her subtle movements given his visual deficit else he would have caught her by now.

His maniacal laughter filled the room. “…oh my… the princess took so long to figure it out, did she…? It was payback time… five years Avanti… five bloody years in that hell hole… do you even know what it’s like…?”

“…but it was your faulty as well… wasn’t it…?” she had heard the faint crackling of the walkie-talkie and knew Mr. D’Souza was hearing her and hopefully Rahul wouldn’t do anything rash. “…and my husband…he only aided my father… but your family was the one who did you in…” She stressed on the word hoping the listeners at the other end would get an idea.

“…My family will soon be paying… there will be retribution on their part as well… but before that I need my trump card… I have worked hard to get here and I am not letting it go down the drain…”

“…what about Rohini… what was her fault in all this…?” She remembered Rohini telling her about the glasses to be replaced which meant she had hit him and broken his glasses the other day and that’s why he had stumbled.

“…oh, that dimwit woman… it was so easy to lure her into my web… I am the arachnid whom you can’t escape, you see…” he chuckled again, the sound piercing her heart as she tried to calm herself down. She hoped her plan worked.

“…How…did you know I would be here… or even the other day…We have checked there are no bugs around to record our conversations…” She stressed on the word and sincerely hoped the message got conveyed across.

He laughed again and she realised, stroking his ego would definitely stall the megalomaniac before her. “oh, my dear Avanti… you like Rohini are indeed so dumb… how do the shrewd Goyal men fall for the likes of you…? Do you think I would place bugs here when I know Keshav got the place swiped regularly…? I had a better plan you see…I had an informant right in your camp…”

Now that made sense… the timing was almost perfect and she was alone too. “Who… who gave you the information…? Were you there near Kune falls the other day…? Did you shoot at me…?”

“…Oh, ho ho…. So many questions dear… well I am glad to answer. We have time to kill anyway till that husband of yours comes in with what I want…” He started coming closer and she was scared he would see the instrument behind her. She had to divert his attention away. She walked towards the nearby couch and straightened the cover even as the guard’s legs from beneath stared at her.

Suddenly it struck her… Prantik was feared dead…and given the people who knew her whereabouts in Vedshastra there was only one other person besides Rahul and Keshav so it meant… “…Wait… Mukherjee uncle…? Did he pass on the information…?”

“…oh, you aren’t an idiot after all. Yes it was him… it as easy to manipulate the old man using his nephew as bait…the moronic nephew whom I disposed of almost a month ago but you know  what Avanti…? Senior Mukherjee too was becoming a liability to me… so today was his last bit of information…In fact he even told me Keshav’s phone isn’t working today…He set it up… so you see fortune has favoured me all the way… The oldie will reach home for a wild surprise…he will open the door and then boom…” he gestured to simulate an explosion and Avanti’s heart caught in her throat.

“…you killed Prantik…?” she couldn’t even look at the man in the eye as fear gripped her throat.

“…not just Prantik… that stupid man Shamsunder Valmiki too… both pieces of crap and nothing more. One a druggie who lived off his uncle and the other a bit too greedy… I could leave them right…? I like to clean up after me but then…that day in Kune… you turned up…”

“…So, you shot at me…I could have died that day… wasn’t killing my baba enough…?” she squeaked, her voice barely audible.

“… hold on Avanti… if you remember Rohini had mentioned I am an athlete… well I am a pro at rifle ranges… I couldn’t pursue it as a career because it didn’t generate money… but I am very good…If I wanted to kill you that day I could have but then it wouldn’t have been of any use to me… I just scared you off…but then you know now, I can go to any lengths…” his soft chuckle gave her the goosebumps.

“…what is it you want now…? Do you want to ki…kill me as well…?”

“…oh, give me a break Avanti…I am not a mass murderer… even that man lying down there is just unconscious… and he knows not to act smart with me…even if he wakes up soon…”

“…so, what is it…then…? what are you after…?”

“…Of course, the formula…from your father’s prised black book… I tried my level best to extract it by various means… do you even know the amount I have spent looking for it…? That foolish Shamsunder was to retrieve it for me before your father died… but the bloody fool didn’t… I then had to even humour that stupid sister of yours who thinks the director is going to tie the knot with her… He is an acquaintance who was using her to pry information from you and I had convinced her to sell Vedshastra to my buyer… this would have been good then… all this wouldn’t have happened… but you my dear…had to refuse… just because of your husband…”

“…You arm-twisted Arpita…? No wonder she was suddenly interested in selling Vedshastra…” Avanti was furious.

“…stop the melodrama Avanti… I am now all set to claim my due from my wretched family… I need the formula for that and you… my dear… you are my hostage now…and we wait for that husband of yours to make his entry… I know by now he must have realised what has happened…”

“…how… how did you manage to escape the security…?”

“…oh God…don’t insult my abilities Avanti… who would stop an old frail delivery man trying to work in his geriatric state…?” He laughed ending in a continuous flow of cough and she could hear him wheeze… She had to keep him engaged.

“…Why do you need the formula… you aren’t any scientist or bio-chemist…?”

“…I am going to sell it to the highest bidder…the pharmaceutical world is a vast ocean and all I need is a jug of water from that… that’s it… it will set me for life as I take the ownership of my family owned company which is loss making anyway… I have it all well planned… that stupid Rohini has pledged a couple of crores for my investment… at least she is useful in some way…”

“…you are pathetic Mr. Sisodia… crime will never bring you success…”

“…enough of the righteous crap Avanti and while there is still time for your saviour to make his way so why don’t you serve me some lunch…the least you can do for all the trouble caused…”

What? Was he insane…? But in a way it was buying her time. She knew he needed the formula and while he ate, she could think of something. She had to save Keshav and since Rahul hadn’t made an appearance as yet meant he was definitely with the D’Souzas.

She served him the lunch prepared by Mrs. Sinha while he still had the knife blazing out. She sat as he wolfed down the food and while he ate, she suddenly knew what she had to do. She had to take him away from the room so that help could arrive. No matter what, the formula couldn’t get into wrong hands.

Copyright Disclaimer: All content posted here is a work of fiction and original work based on the author’s imagination. There is no intention to disrespect any person or faith. Any resemblance to any person living or dead or any community is purely coincidental. No part of the content can be copied, reproduced or posted anywhere else either entirely or in parts, without the consent of the author.