ENCHANTED - BY INNOCENCE (ongoing)

67

Target for next chapter: 1500 votes and 750 comments

Word count: 4400+

Follow me to get a virtual hug...you can also get info on when the next update will be instead of asking it in the comment section haha

I usually make an announcement if there are any delays

And to all my existing followers...I see you've picked up some traits from the characters haha...You will always have my hug...you are my cute little devils and sweet little sisters...I am even considering making a song...let's see how it goes haha

*** Shanthi ***

I woke up from resting my head on the table when I heard the door lock click. I looked up to find Vinnu locking the door and walking towards me.

"Is everything okay?" I asked, worried.

"You haven't eaten yet, sweetheart?" he asked, noticing the untouched food still on the table.

"No, but that's not important," I replied immediately. "What happened to you? Why do you look devastated? Didn't you crack the Ratnu case?"

"No," he shook his head, eyes glassy with unshed tears. "I'm considering giving up the case and apologizing to the General."

"What?" I asked, surprised. "Why?"

"Because... because, Shanthi, none of it makes sense..." he said, hurt and frustrated. "The absurdity of it all is killing me alive..."

"Tell me what happened," I said gently, placing my hand on his cheek to calm him down.

"General Sir registered Meenakshi under his family name," he replied. "Which means he basically adopted her—something that legally isn't allowed unless we find out about Ratnu. And... he went to the same orphanage as Ratnu. Which means he knows who Ratnu is. He knows enough to know that Ratnu is either dead or alive, but unwilling to face Meenakshi...he knows enough to decide that he wants to adopt her....despite not being involved in the case....he cracked it....the king also knows because he signed the damn papers...."

"Everyone knows," he sighed, frustrated. "The King, Pritham, General Sir... everyone knows. I'm the only fool who doesn't know anything, who couldn't figure out anything...." he said as he collapsed into the chair.

"No, Vinnu, that's not true," I assured him, sitting beside him but then a sudden idea struck my mind. "Maybe... could it be possible that General Sir is Ratnu?" I asked.

Vinod shook his head.

"That was my first and most obvious intuition, sweetheart," he whispered. "But the numbers don't add up. According to the records, General Sir is two years older than Ratnu. It cannot be the same person"

I fell silent.

"What I don't understand it, " he continued, "If General Sir already knows the answer, then why does he keep making a fool out of me? Why can't he...." he paused, then looked away as if forcing himself not to speak against the General.

"I'm missing something so obvious that everyone else is seeing," he whispered sadly. "Am I really that stupid, Shanthi?" he asked, looking at me with tears in his eyes. "Am I not worthy of being a soldier?"

"Not true, Vinnu," I whispered back, my heart breaking with every word.

"But it feels like it," he said as he looked away, tears rolling down his cheeks like a child's.

I stood frozen for a second, watching the man I loved crumble in front of me. He sat there hunched in the chair fighting emotions he didn't know how to carry, disappointment evident in his otherwise playful eyes.