Caught In The Cyclone Of Love (COMPLETED)

Chapter - 55

ANOTHER WONDERFUL UPDATE FOR Y'ALL MY DEAR READERS!!!

I looked at the person standing beside Karthik and did a double take. I could not believe my own eyes. I rubbed my eyes and looked at her again, thinking that I am hallucinating, but she was there. In the short time that I have known her, she became so close to me. I initially thought that Raghunath would have killed her for helping me out. But Ranjani ma is standing right in front of me. She has few bruises on her arms and a plaster on her forehead. Still, she gave me a vibrant smile and spread her arms wide for me. I ran to her and hugged the hell out of her.

She slightly winced, but did not let go of me. If possible she hugged me even closer and her head reached my shoulder. "I am glad you are ok", she whispered in a hoarse voice. "I should be the one telling you that. I thought he had done something horrible to you", I said as I caressed her head and inspected her hands. "This is nothing much Kanna. I have been working for him for so many years. I have seen worse", the way she said the last sentence brought tears to my eyes. I know what she had gone through in her life; I have seen the multiple bruises myself. "You are a fighter Ranjani ma", I cried and hugged her again. "Umm ladies, sorry to interrupt your hugging session, Would you mind introducing her to us, Sana?", I detached myself from the hug when I heard Sharanya ma's slightly irritated voice.

"Ma I am sorry. I was so happy to see her again that I forgot to introduce her. She is Ranjani ma. She helped me to escape from the place Raghunath was holding me in", I said as a manner of introduction. "Ranjani you have changed a lot", a surprised Anami aunty was up on her feet in a flash and pushing me away she hugged Ranjani ma. "You both know each other?", Karthik and I exclaimed at the same time. But they took their sweet time reuniting, before they parted and looked at us with a smile each. "I know her through your mother Sana. Ranjani and Manasi went to school together. I have seen her with your mother so many times.", she beamed.

I looked at an equally shocked Karthik and then at the beaming duo. "You didn't tell me anything Ranjani ma, why?", I whispered in a sad voice. I had stayed with her for a whole week, yet she did not even tell me she knew my mother more than the word 'knowing' a person means. "It was not in my intention to not tell you Kanna. But I could not tell you. If I had told you all I know about your mother, he would have killed you", she looked at the floor. "What are you saying? What do you know about my mother?", the change in her voice when she said 'all I know about your mother' urged me to question her. She sounded broken and guilty.

Ranjani ma was reluctant to open her mouth. She looked at the floor as if it would miraculously start speaking instead of her. Sensing her hesitance, Anami aunty led her to the couch and made her sit and drink some water. "Karthik where were you? And how did you find Ranjani?", she asked her son. Karthik did not speak; he did not even look at his mother. His gaze was trained on the spot where the flower vase he broke in his anger once was. He looked so deep in thought. Ranjani ma was contemplating something and after a while she raised her head and looked at me.

"He came to me when I was on one of my rare visits to the market today. He was waiting near one of the old building adjacent to the mansion. He was waiting to talk to me for two days, it seems. He introduced himself as your friend and talked me into going with him to meet you", she said looking intensely at Karthik as if willing him to speak. "Why did you go meet her?", Praveen bro looked skeptical. "Karthik are you going to tell us or not?", Anami aunty used her mother voice on him and it worked and he started speaking, finally.

"Umm... Mom, after Praveen bro talked to me, I started thinking about the possible ways to enter the house without alerting the guards. I was thinking of every possible difficulty we might face, when a question popped in my head. 'What if we are going after a false hope?' I wanted to be sure before taking the risk. So I went to Chennai and tried to meet her. I could not for the past two days. But today I saw her coming out of the house early in the morning and used that as my chance and approached her. I asked her about the cottage and..." He said and blew out a sigh morphed as a breath as if what he is going to say next is causing him physical damage.