Limits

caved in

Strong waves crashed against jagged rocks. The sky above rolled in dark clouds with the promise of a heavy rainfall.

Water splashed against Vansh's black boots as he came to stand in front of the cave's mouth. He was handed a lit torch by one of the appointed men. Taking it, he entered the darkened hole. The crashes of waves soon faded away to the trickle of a silent stream and the fire flickering as it illuminated his path.

After a few minutes of walking, he finally came to a wide clearing. The ground was dirty and rough, and there were a few creatures lurking about that only dwelled in the dark. Vansh swished the torch and they scurried away from the bright light.

He climbed down the uneven steps and came before the only two odd entities in the space. He first eyed the large metallic box, then directed his attention to the opposite wall where a man sat coiled against a large boulder. Vansh walked over to this man and squatted before him. The newly polished metallic chains were in direct contrast to not just the secretive location, but to the dirty and bloodied state of the man it was keeping in bounds as well.

Vansh smirked, seeing drool drip down Kabir's mouth and his head loll downwards.

Squeezing his face, he gritted, "Aankhein kholo Kabir."

The other man managed to do so with much difficulty. "Vansh." He spoke barely above a whisper.

"Haan Vansh. Tumhari maut ban kar aaya hoon." His voice echoed across the cavern as a haunting song.

Kabir, with great effort, rested his head against the rock, stared hazily at Vansh.

"You won't get away with this." He spoke with labored breaths.

That earned a laugh out of Vansh. "I already have Kabir. Humari saalo ki dushmani aaj finally khatam hogi. You know, jab humara akhri amna samna hoga, mujhe humesha aisa lagta tha ki there would be a lot more guns involved. You know, like an epic showdown jahan hum dono ek dusre ko khoob marenge, pitenge, khoon nikalenge." Pouting, he gave a small shake to his head. "But dekho na. Bina maar peet ke meine tumhe haara diya."

"You call this a victory? Mujhe aise bandh kar, bhashan dena jeet nahi hoti Vansh. It's called playing dirty." Kabir argued.

"Oh on the contraire, my friend," Vansh replied, "you're the one who's been playing a very dirty game. Aur jo gunah tumne kiye hai, uske liye toh mujhe itna khaufnak saza deni chahiye ki sab ko yaad rahe. But kya karun Kabir. Zindagi bhar ka karz rahega mujh par." With a slight raise of his brows, he elaborated, "Tumhare khudgarz karan ke vajah se mujhe Riddhima mili hai. And she's everything that I ever wanted from life." He smiled softly. "Issi liye," he stood up and walked towards the large metallic box, "mein tumhe jaan se nahi maar ne wala. You will be kept alive here." He looked around the darkened cave.

"You can't do this to me." Kabir huffed whilst struggling against the chains.

"I already am Kabir." Smiling, he rested his elbow against the metallic box. "But like I said, I'm not that cold hearted. Jaise tumne meri wish puri ki hai, I thought it would only be fair if I do the same for you. Tumne mujhe Riddhima di, mein tumhe tumhari Maa de ra hoon."

Kabir's eyes popped as he glanced between Vansh and the metallic box. "Maa?" He whispered.

"Why yes." Vansh stepped aside and illuminated the box with the torch. "Your mother's in here." He told Kabir. Then, knocking on the metallic door, he called out, "Hello? Anybody there? Zara aankhein khol kar toh dekhiye ki kaun aaya hai." He laughed at his own silliness. "Oops. How could I forget? She can't see anything in there." He kissed his teeth. "How sad. Itne saalo se chup chup kar apne bete se milti rahi aur ab jab puri zindagi bitane ka mauka mil ra hai, woh kar nahi sakti." He looked at Kabir, "Kinda ironic, don't you think?"

"Vansh!" He growled. "You will have to pay for this."

Vansh looked at him in mock offense. "Why Kabir, I didn't know ki tum itne badtameez ho. Meine tumhare liye itna acha taufa la kar diya aur tum aise behave kar rahe ho? I mean look," he gestured towards the box, "she's even packaged tightly for you so that she doesn't get lost or break!" Vansh shook his head. "That was really rude of you. I don't like it at all. Tum dono ka ration kaat diya jayega."

"Ration?" Kabir asked, confused.

Vansh squinted and bowed down to look him in the eye. "Sar par kuch zyaada chot aayi hai kya? Meine tumse kaha na you'll be kept alive here. Toh obviously tumhe ration milega. Haan, but it'll only be two meals a day now. Isse zyaada aur kuch nahi." He straightened himself out. Glancing at his watch, he said, "Chalo, mera jaane ka waqt aa gaya hai. Meri pyaari biwi ghar par mera intezaar kar rahi hogi." He winked. He had taken a few steps forward when he turned back to tell him, "If it's not too much to ask, why don't you both try to kill yourself as quickly as you can? It'll save my man the trouble of having to make the trip here every day."

Smirking, he made his way out of the cavern. From behind, he could hear Kabir screaming and struggling against the tightly coiled chains. As he headed towards the entrance, Vansh saw more night creatures scuttle away. At least there would be something to give Kabir company other than Anupriya.

He hurried his way once he saw the light and handed the torch back to one of his men. His boots splashed across the cold water and he had to lift the collar up on his trench coat to protect himself from the harsh winds. He quickly finished his trek back to the helicopter that was waiting for him atop the bluff. He strapped himself in securely, and he was soon lifted into the skies.

Vansh watched as the cave in which he held captive two of his greatest deceivers, first shrank then completely disappeared from his sight. Neither he or his family would ever have to worry about being backstabbed by them ever again. Now, he could simply focus on what mattered the most - being with the one who loved him the most.