His Captive 21+

52

"A... num... Anum..." Irtaza mumbled, still half-conscious. Though his eyes remained closed, he kept repeating her name as he gradually regained his senses.

Anum's heart clenched as she listened to his weary voice. Even in such a fragile state, he was calling out for her, seeking her presence.

"Irtaza," Mariam murmured, caressing his hair while wiping her tears with the other hand.

He slowly opened his eyes only to close them back as the bright lights attacked his vision, blurring everything before him. He opened them again, slowly this time, to adjust his view and found everyone staring at him worriedly.

"Tu theek haina? Bohat dard horaha hoga na tujhe." Mariam sobbed. (Are you okay? It must be hurting a lot.)

"Ami, me bilkul theek hun. Mujhe kuch nahi huwa hai." (Mom, I'm perfectly fine. Nothing happened to me.)

His eyes impatiently scanned the room, looking for his wife.

"Aise kaise theek hai? Itna khoon nikla hai!" (How can you be fine? You've lost so much blood!)

"Ami ap please mat royein. I promise, me bilkul theek hun." (Please, Mom, don't cry. I promise, I'm perfectly fine.)

"Doctor ne bola hai agar goli zara si bhi dil ki taraf lag jati toh..jaan bhi..jaan bhi ja sakti.." (The doctor said if the bullet had been even a bit closer to your heart, it could have... it could have been fatal...)

She couldn't complete her sentence and began sobbing again. Ibrahim pulled her into a hug to comfort her.

"Mariam, tum bewajah pareshan horahi ho aur Irtaza ko bhi stress de rahi ho. Look at him, he is perfectly fine. Our son is a brave man." (Mariam, you're worrying unnecessarily and stressing Irtaza. Look at him, he's perfectly fine. Our son is a brave man.)

She nodded, wiping her tears.

"Anum, tum wahan kyun khari ho? Come here, please," Ibrahim said, looking over his shoulder at Anum, who was standing timidly in a corner. (Anum, why are you standing there?)

"Ap theek hain?" she asked softly, approaching Irtaza, who just nodded in response. (Are you okay?)

"I think we should leave now," Ibrahim said to Mariam, who frowned at him.

"Kya matlab hai ap ka? Aise kaise?" (What do you mean? How can we just leave?)

"Shayad tum bhool rahi ho hamari chaar ghante mein flight hai Rowena ki taraf," he said, referring to Mariam's sister, whose daughter was getting married. (Perhaps you've forgotten our flight to Rowena's in four hours.)

"Par Irtaza- (But Irtaza)

"We should give the couple their privacy." He whispered quietly into her ear.

"Ami me sach mein theek hun. Ap log jayein please." Irtaza said with a assuring smile. (Mom, I'm really fine. Please, you should go.)

She kissed his forehead lovingly. "Apna khayal rakhna." (Take care of yourself.)

"Ap bhi." (You too.)

Mariam and Ibrahim left after giving their blessings to Anum and Irtaza.

Suddenly, Anum's phone rang.

"Hello."

"Yes."

"Kya?" (What?)

"Me abhi arahi hun." She quickly left the room after disconnecting the call. (I'm coming right now.)

Irtaza signaled one of his men with his eyes to follow her.

"Mujhe mere kamre mein jana hai." (I want to go to my room.)