Her Dangerous Obsession

Chap 30 - "He ran away."

Author's POV

The atmosphere inside the wedding venue had shifted from vibrant to suffocating in mere minutes. The guests, who only moments ago had been laughing, and exchanging pleasantries, now looked around in confusion, as whispers grew like wildfire.

Something was wrong there, and everyone could feel it clearly, though, no one dared to say it aloud.

Upstairs, Barkha’s heels struck the marble floors sharply, as she stormed down the corridor, Pranay at her side. Her face was twisted into fury, her breath heavy with the humiliation, she could already sense crawling through the air.

They checked room after room — each one empty, each one adding fuel to the fire brewing in Barkha’s chest.

"Check every damn room!", Barkha ordered, her eyes flashing.

Gaurds tore through the rooms, curtains pulled back, cupboards thrown open. But every corner remained empty, untouched. The rage in Barkha’s chest rose higher, with every unanswered call of Adhrit’s name.

"He might be here somewhere.", she snapped, her voice low, deadly. "No one leaves this place without being seen. Find him."

Pranay’s eyes narrowed, his movements brisk, purposeful. "We should go to the security room."

When they pushed through the heavy door of the security chamber, the guard on duty jolted up nervously. Barkha didn’t waste time on pleasantries. "Show me the footage of one hour ago.", she ordered, her tone cutting like glass.

The man fumbled, sweat gathering on his forehead. He pressed a few keys, the screens flickered — and then came the silence. Black screens, every single one of them.

"They’re switched off!", Pranay said, his jaw tightening.

"Switched off?", Barkha’s voice rose an octave, her rage barely contained. She grabbed the guard by the collar, dragging him close. "Who gave you permission to switch them off?"

The guard stammered, "I-I don’t know, madam… some… some men came earlier, the hotel staff, they said it was orders—"

Pranay pushed him back violently against the wall. "Orders from who?"

The man trembled, unable to answer, and the truth became obvious without words. Adhrit wasn’t in the hotel anymore.

Barkha’s eyes blazed. "He’s gone."

Outside, the gossip had already begun to circulate among the guests. Soft murmurs floated like poisonous smoke.

"Why is the groom not here yet?"

"Has something happened?"

"I think, there would be some sort of problem... Maybe, not that much serious!"

"No, no, didn't you look at Miss Barkha’s face. Something is wrong. And it is definitely serious. Otherwise, the groom should have arrived by now."

The scandal began to ripple through the crowd, their words spreading faster than the flowers, that decorated the mandap.

At the mandap itself, Anaisha sat dressed in crimson and gold, bangles jingling faintly, as her restless hands tapped against her lap.

The scent of jasmine in her hair mixed with the burning ghee from the havan kund. At first, her lips were curved with a smile — radiant, triumphant. This was the day she had waited for, fought for, dreamed of. Adhrit, hers, forever.

She had built this picture in her mind so many times, that it felt more real than the mandap she sat in.

But as the time passed, her smile faltered. The expressions on the faces of her family members already told her clearly, loudly, that something was definitely wrong.