One of us is lying

chapter 10

The darkness of the room had seeped into their souls, it seemed to be making them tired, the exhaustion made them close their eyes to doze off. But what it actually appeared to be, was them falling into unconsciousness that was induced upon them.

Suddenly, purvi felt a flicker of light flash across her eyes for a split second. It was quick, but it was enough for her to look around for it again. Only for her to follow the line of sight leading to the source of the light, it was a phone lying across the room that nobody had an idea about was there this entire while. She moved to it, as even a sound was starting to accompany the flashes of light, seemingly of a notification. She saw no one notice it, but her, as she immediately took to action, getting to grab hold of the phone.

She caught the phone, as it opened immediately to a video, ready to be pressed to play. She seemed doubtful, as to what it could be, wondering if she should press to play it or not.

"Purvi, kya hai tumhare paas?" questioned a voice from the back, as she looked to find kavin, and everyone else seemed to regain consciousness again.

"Yeh phone pada hai yahan, pata nahi kabse....video hai ismein koi....maybe we should play it?" informed purvi in reply to the question.

"Karna phir play..." stated dushyant promptly in response, as everyone seemed to agree, waiting eagerly.

The video played to a black screen, only pleading cries were audible, as it cut to kartik, ishita's son, crying desperately, wailing for help, as he was held to gunpoint, the hand of the gun holder being the same that held the butcher knife that almost killed her that day in the elevator.

"Mumma...please bacha lo mujhe..." murmured the poor child out of all terror he could muster to speak despite off.

Only for a text notification to arrive, on the same group they were unwillingly added to by the unknown blackmailer, as it read:

'Want to save your child? Be ready to drink poison....'

The text had left her baffled, obviously, as she seemed to be in a situation where she would blindly and instinctively choose to sacrifice herself. Only for then, a bottle to reach her, sliding across from a corner in the room which was hard to detect. It had the label for a poison too, and upon catching its sight, she knew exactly what to do.

But fortunately or unfortunately, as one may interpret it to be, the bottle was kicked off from her hands by dushyant, making the poison spread all over the floor, as the bottle broke into scattered fragments of glass.

"Ishita, tum...tum nahi kar sakti yeh...it's some sick game this person is trying to play with us and you don't have to do this!" insisted dushyant, enraged and bothered to a point which was deeply moving to witness, it only shows when someone really cares, after all.

The tension spreads in the room, the air catching onto it tightly, as suddenly, a beep hit the phone in purvi's hand again, as a text hit the group again.

'He's right...you don't have to do this...but he'll have to do something instead..'

They all exchanged glances, wondering what could possibly be in the twisted mind of the elusive threat looming over them.

'Just tell her the truth, of the night on 8th october, 8 years ago...'

The text made dushyant's face turn white from shock, as he reluctantly looked at ishita, who could sense that his confession held a truth she would not want to hear.

He swallowed a huge lump down his throat, before he revealed the truth.

"Ishita, maine tumse isliye break up nahi kiya tha kyunki main padhne dusre sheher jaa raha tha aur long distance nahi karna chahta tha because it's too difficult.....it was because, tumhare papa ne mujhe paise diye the, tumse door rehne ke badle mein....and i took it." confessed dushyant, as ishita looked at him in complete disbelief, shaken for a good second.