Terrorized By Love [ON HOLD]

Chapter 12: If You Admit It

In the car, Mahima was still sobbing, feeling traumatized all over again after seeing the conditions of the bodies that were torn apart by the explosive device. She hated terrorists, she really did, but who were they to snatch their lives from them? How could they decide that they couldn't live? How was it their choice to make?

"Here," Aditya said, taking out a handkerchief from his pocket and holding it out for her. "Wipe your tears... and snot..."

She sniffled, the snot dripping onto her lips, and she looked away from him.

Aditya sighed and grabbed her face, turning it towards him, before wiping her snot with the handkerchief himself. Then he folded it and used the other side to wipe away her tears.

"H - how could you just kill them?" Mahima asked.

"They would kill us if we didn't kill them," Aditya answered and put the handkerchief back inside his pocket.

"He's right," Laksh said from the driver's seat. "Our first priority is to protect you. Dev, phone call... can you answer?"

Aditya took the phone and held it to his ear. Mahendra, the boss, was on the line.

"Did you escape?" the older man's deep voice asked.

"Yes, we got away," Aditya answered.

"Good. Go to the backup place. I sent someone to meet you halfway so you could switch cars. They might have tracked down the license plate," Mahendra replied. "I'm hoping once they find out the condition of their men they realize the reality of this situation... so we'll hold off from killing her for now. She is our trump card. She is our biggest hope against the president, and for that, we need to keep her alive."

"Yes," Aditya replied obediently, yet he felt his heart sink at the thought of killing her.

"Great. Stay alert. Don't hesitate to kill them all," Mahendra said.

"Definitely not. I'll never hesitate," Aditya said, and his tone was filled with darkness. "I will never lose sight of my focus."

"That's why I'm proud to have you Aditya," Mahendra replied, sounding pleased. "I'll hang up now."

Aditya cut the call and handed the phone to Laksh at the front.

"We're switching cars halfway," he informed and Laksh nodded.

Mahima just sniffled and looked outside of the window.

Aditya then closed his eyes and rested his head against the window before falling asleep.

He was woken up when it was time to switch cars. Then he took over as the driver and Laksh sat in the back with Mahima. Mahima was still out of it.

"Don't worry. We don't hurt them unless it's absolutely necessary," Laksh told her comfortingly. "Where we're going next is near water. Maybe you'll like it."

"Water? I love water," Mahima said, her eyes lighting up.

"Great," Laksh said and then smiled at her. "It's very calming. We shouldn't be bothered there."

"Hey, how did they find out about where we were?" Aditya asked from the front.

"I think they recognized my face and followed my car," Laksh answered.

"We have to be careful then," Aditya replied, because his face was well known by the government army as well.

"How long will this last?" Mahima asked, her eyes welling with fresh tears. "I was enjoying being away from home... until today... until I realized how severe this was."

"Hopefully it ends soon," Aditya murmured.

Hopefully the president would give up.

When they finally pulled into the isolated area by a lake, Mahima noticed that there was a small cabin there.

"This place is nicer," Laksh explained, as they got out of the car. "There are two rooms. Aditya and I will take one, and you can take the other one."

Mahima nodded and went inside. It was dusty. There was a space for sitting down, presumably a living room area, and one for cooking, like a kitchen. Except they were in the same main hall. Then there were three doors - two rooms, one small bathroom. Mahima took a room that had a double bed inside it. The bed was softer than the one in the hut.

Aditya entered her room after her.

"I'm going to stay here with you," he informed her. "I need to look out for you."

"But Laksh said you're sharing with him?" Mahima asked.

Aditya gave her a look, telling her to stop asking questions, and Mahima smiled softly, knowing that the reason was that he couldn't be away from her while he slept, just like she couldn't be away from him now.

"So you want to spend the night with me?" Mahima asked playfully.

"What price do I have to pay for you to shut up?" Aditya asked.

Mahima walked up to him and wrapped her arms around him, hugging him, her heart beating so fast that she thought it would explode out of her chest.

"Why are you hugging me?" he asked her, ignoring the jittery feeling inside of him.

"You like me, don't you?" she asked him, feeling nervous yet confident at the same time. She really was not sure how she mustered this kind of courage. "If you admit it, then I will admit that I like you too."