Beyond The Golden Skies

♛ Bonus Chapter! •

Suprise, suprise - the bonus chapter! Many lovely readers wanted to know what happened after Ayush and Sakshi eloped. So here's the first bonus chapter! Yes, there are more bonus chapters coming up too! Hope you enjoy! :)

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Ranveer watched the train fade away with his sister Sakshi and her husband waving at him with bright smiles. The smoke from a pile of burning leaves filled the air. As the evening sky turned dark, the train station lit up with white tube lights.

The officer who registered Sakshi's marriage walked out of the station with a bundle of cash, promising not to tell anyone about the secret wedding.

"You are a brave man, sir." A man placed a hand on Ranveer's shoulder.

"Gaurav, thank you for coming here with your family. I have something for you." Ranveer reached into his pocket and pulled out another bundle of money and handed it to Gaurav.

"I can't accept this, sir. We came here only to show our love for Ayush and Sakshi," Gaurav said.

"Get new clothes for Maanya and some chocolates for your son Chirag. Its a small gift from my end."

Gaurav thought for a moment but Ranveer quickly gave the money to Gaurav's little son.

"Chirag, this is a gift from Ranveer Uncle."

Little Chirag smiled and nodded. "Thank woo unkool!"

Ranveer tousled the boy's hair with a fond smile and turned to his father.

"Gaurav, don't breathe about this anywhere. It could cost all of us our lives."

"Of course I won't, even if I die," Gaurav said with a hand on his heart.

"Don't say such things, man! Go home now. Take care." Ranveer said as Gaurav and his family made a move.

Now all by himself, he sat on a cement bench and stared at the long stretch of railway tracks ahead of him. These tracks would carry his sister to a safe place, away from their terrible home and broken family. By tomorrow, she will be in her new home with her loving husband and her caring father-in-law.

But he had no where to run. He had to return to the suffocating mansion. He had to face his political party, his relatives, and worse, his father.

Would his plan even work?

He headed back to his jeep and twisted the keys. The engine roared to life and the lights turned on. He placed his hand on the seat beside him. An hour ago, his dear sister was right beside him in that same seat. Now, it felt terribly empty.

He sighed and drove the jeep through an abandoned mud road covered with thick trees and bushes. People rarely used it unless an emergency. His jeep's headlamp was the only source of light down the lonely track.

He didn't stop for a moment until he reached the end of the road which connected with the city highway. He rubbed his cold, sweaty palms on his pants and turned the jeep toward the river bank.

The fishermen would have gone home and no one would be there, he hoped.

He halted his jeep at a distance, pulled out a small plastic bag, and walked to the backwaters of the river. He switched his phone on, turned on its flashlight, and placed it in his pocket.

The cold wind brushed against his skin. He swatted away a swarm of mosquitos as he stepped into the water. Cold as ice. He gritted his teeth as the water stung his feet. He trudged further, sloshing though the water.

His eyes lit up seeing a bent tree branch extending to the ground and into the river. Perfect. He opened the plastic bag and took out one of Sakshi's dupattas. It was one of her favourites, the one she wore regularly.

He dipped it a few times in the water and tangled its end to the low branch. It looked natural, like someone had fallen into the water but their dupatta had caught the branch.

He brought the other item out of the bag. A gun. The same gun his father had given him to kill one of their enemies. He aimed his gun into the empty air above and fired six shots.

Just as he expected, he heard the confused voices of people from the fishermen's colony.

He stuffed the gun into his pocket and hurried to his jeep. By the time he left the area, a group of people had arrived at the scene with lamps and flashlights.

"Yes! It's done." He smiled to himself and drove down another route to his house.

His bones felt lighter with happiness. This crazy plan might actually work.

His jeep made a screeching noise as he stopped at the gate of the mansion. His throat ran dry as he dragged his feet into the giant but dull Kumar mansion.

The servants ran around like busy ants, preparing things for a wedding that would never happen. The smell of ghee and milk sweets wafted in the air.

Ranveer realised his shoes were still coated in mud and dripping with river water. It would add up to his fake story. He hated lying, but this time, he had to hide the truth to save his sister.

The elderly maid, Lajo, who had served the Kumar family for decades, trudged toward him with a warm smile.

"Son, did you get Sakshi's jewellery?"

Her gentle eyes were full of love.

All of a sudden, Ranveer felt himself breaking down in tears. He himself was shocked at his reaction. Was it the sadness of sending his sister away? Was it the fear of what his father would do? Perhaps it was both, but he couldn't stop the tears.

Lajo's wrinkled body shuddered. "What... happened?"

Ranveer stared at his feet, unable to meet the eyes of the old woman. She was like a mother to him and Sakshi. How could he lie to her?

The heavy thud of shoes echoed in the hallway. Ranveer didn't have to look up to know who it was.

"Ranveer! What's going on? Where's your sister?" Udayveer Rana Kumar's voice thundered in the mansion as he walked toward Ranveer.

"B-Babaji, can we please speak in private?" Ranveer managed to choke out the words.

"I asked you where the hell is your wretched sister?!"

Ranveer took the gun out of his pocket and dropped it to the floor. Clunk. It fell right beside his father's shoes.

Lajo gasped and covered her mouth with the end of her saree, breaking into sobs.

"Come to my room." Udayveer's voice was strangely calm.

Ranveer wanted to hold Lajo and gently tell her the truth, but he followed his father without a word. They stepped into the office room and Ranveer bolted the door while his father sat in a leather armchair.

Udayveer lit up a cigarette and breathed it into his lungs. "Tell me, my son."

"We were at the jewellery shop. She told me she was feeling dizzy and wanted to go to the jeep. I told her to take the bags of jewellery and wait in the jeep while I made the payment. But when I returned..."

"She was gone," Udayveer said.

"H-how did you know?"

"You let her go, didn't you? You stray dog! I should have never trusted you!"

"I wish I had let her go. I shouldn't have chased after them. At least she would have been alive."

"Alive? You're telling me she's dead."

Ranveer felt the tears stream down his face. It felt strange telling such things about his sister who just got married a while ago. He took a deep breath and spoke in a clear voice.

"I killed them, Babaji. I killed Sakshi and Ayush."

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Thank you for all the love and comments which motivated me to write further. ❤️😘