It had been five hours since he had talked Khushi. With each agonizing second, Arnav felt ready to die. He had practically searched the entire city but in vain. Her friends were clueless – they had last seen her rushing after class to meet him. The police had completed their interrogation and were puzzled. They hadn't ruled out kidnapping but it was bewildering that no ransom call had been made yet, and noone could come up with another motive.
Dejected, he came home where the atmosphere was a reflection of his state of mind. Khushi's mother and his mother had tears rolling down their cheeks, and any attempt to console them proved futile. His father was making anxious phone calls to everyone and anyone who could help find Khushi. Anjali was sobbing. Arnav glanced at Khsuhi's father, who sat silent in his seat, his expression unfathomable. Arnav walked upto him and kneeled before him, "I'll find her Uncle, even if that's the last thing I do." He simply patted Arnav's head and said wearily, " I know you will son."
Arnav sat on his bed, staring numbly at their wedding picture framed on the wall, sending him off to another reverie. …
"Arnav!" Khushi whined . "Get up and help me hang this picture."
Arnav pulled the comforter over his head and groaned, "Khushi leave it. I'll do it later." Khushi marched towards the bed with the intention of his dragging him off the bed but in a flash, Arnav pulled her into his arms and mumbled, "Did I tell you I love you?". Khushi did her best to not smile and punched him lightly. "Arnav singh raizada, you are not wriggling out of this. Get up right now and stop trying to distract me!" she scolded him as he ran his finger up and down her back. Arnav just gave her his signature bad boy grin and pulled the covers over them muttering, "Later."……………
He broke out of reverie when he felt his mother's soft hand on his head. She held his face and asked in a soothing voice, "Do you want to cry?" He said nothing for a few seconds, then slowly placed his head on her lap and cried, finally letting some of the heartache out. Ratna felt helpless, her son had always been her pillar of strength- she had never seen him broken down like this. He cried till he had no tears left but it still wasn't enough. He only needed one thing – Khushi.
Khushi opened her eyes but her vision was still blurry and her whole body was aching. When she could finally open her eyes without hurting them, she looked around and panicked when she was unable to make out the surroundings. She was tied up in the basement of some building. For a moment, she could not comprehend anything and her head started spinning as she remembered that she had been kidnapped. She reached out for her cell but it was missing. Suddenly a menacing looking man who looked like he had never taken a bath appeared before her. He roughly handed her the cell and barked at her, "Talk to your husband." Khushi snatched it and waited with bated breath to hear Arnav's voice on the other end.
Arnav got up with a determined look. "I am going to find her." Just as he was about to leave, the phone rang. He sprinted towards it and said desperately, "Hello. Khushi?" Khushi feared that her tears would clog her throat but she managed to speak. "Arnav please save me! I don't know where I am. Arnav .." she was cut off as the phone was snatched from her.
"You heard your wife. Now listen to me. Cancel your contract with the European Fashion Week and hand it over to the Jaiswals. We have your wife with us and she is safe, but for how long cannot be guaranteed. We will be waiting for you at the Jaiswal's warehouse at 7:00. It's already 5:00 so get the papers ready. We haven't done anything to her yet but resisting such a gorgeous woman is not easy so you better hurry up."
Arnav's blood boiled at the last comment and through gritted teeth he warned him, "Touch her and you won't be able to recognize your bloody face the next day. I am coming." He put down the phone and rushed out, ignoring everyone's questions.
Khushi could feel tears streaming down her face. Arnav had worked day and night for this project. She remembered how ecstatic he had been when he won the contract. He had coming running to their room and had twirled her around, screaming in joy. She was the first person he shared this happiness with.
But what perplexed Khushi was the fact that she had heard the name Jaiswal before, and not as Arnav s biggest business rivals. She racked her brains but could not remember. Then the door burst open and she groaned. How did it not click? Aman Jaiswal.
"Hi Khushi" he greeted as if this was an everyday routine. "I am glad to see you here without that guard of a husband. How about catching up on a few things?"
With the vestiges of her limited self control gone, Khushi screamed," I should have sent you to jail at the first chance I got! I should have known, rottenness and you go hand in glove! So you changed your profession huh? From a potential rapist to a foul kidnapper?"
Aman smiled, Khushi wondered why she had never noticed how cold it was. "Tsk Tsk, that nasty temper of yours is still all the same. You need anger management classes. As for your question, the kidnapping was Dad's plan – your dear husband won a contract that was too prestigious to lose. The dutiful son that I am, I simply helped him."
Khushi laughed scornfully, "Insanity runs in the family."
Aman's expression darkened. He came closer and touched her face. Khushi shuddered, she could not bear anyone but Arnav touching her. Aman was too close and her attempts to mover were useless- she was still tied up. In a dangerously soft tone, he started, "What does he have that I don't? We were friends. We've known each other for much longer yet you never returned my feelings. I was drunk that night Khushi, I wasn't in my senses. Can't you forget that?"
Khushi looked at him in shock and tried to reply without screaming. "You were drunk then. But are you drunk now Aman? When a man is drunk, he doesn't become a different person, he just loses his inhibitions and does what he really wants to. You were my friend right? That hurts more, I never expected you to hurt me but you did. Badly."
He was pleading now. "Khushi why don't you understand? You are forcing yourself to believe you love Arnav so your marriage works out. I can keep you much happier."
Khushi breathed deeply before replying. She would have felt sorry for him under normail circumstances but this man was obsessed, beyond reasoning. "For the last time Aman, I love Arnav. Nobody forced me, he never made me do anything against my will, never used the authority of a husband till I was ready. Now if you have a little shame left, just get out of our lives and let us live in peace."
Aman blew his top. He slapped her across her face. Looking livid, he screamed, "What the hell will it take to convince you? I get what I want, be it anything. I have wanted you for long enough Khushi. "
"Want?" Khushi scoffed. "You have proven my point yourself. You asked me to go out with you and I refused. Maybe you were hurt but it was your damn ego which couldn't handle it. You talk about love? You don't even know the meaning of it! This is the difference between you and Arnav.."
Aman was moving towards her but Khushi kicked him in the stomach and he fell down. The ropes had loosened due to her persistent struggle while distracting Aman and she managed to make a run for it. Aman was doubling up in pain and she silently thanked Arnav for the karate moves he had taught her. She opened the door and banged head on into someone. She was going hysterical right now and beat furiously into his chest, sobbing. She stopped only when he caught her wrists and forced her to look at him.
It was Arnav He embraced her tightly and rubbed his hand on her back, soothing her till she calmed down. She clung to him, refusing to let go and Arnav wouldn't have let her anyway- he himself had gone to hell and come back, the past few hours had been the scariest of his life. He could feel his own eyes stinging with unshed tears and the police rushed in while he was still holding her.
"Khushi" he said hoarsely and slightly pulled her away to see if she was alright. Her lower lip was bleeding where Aman had struck her and she was trembling. Arnav slowly moved his hand and touched her there, the blood coming on his finger. He held her tighter and asked in a shaky voice, "Who did this?" Khushi saw his eyes, they were stormy. "Aman, he is Mr. Jaiswal's son" she whispered. "I am going to kill him" Arnav said and ran inside, where Aman was being handcuffed. Arnav held his collar and punched him, again and again. He only stopped when the policemen forcibly held him back and screamed, "Mr raizada your wife!" Arnav looked back. Khushi was holding her head and was slowly falling. Arnav ran to her and caught her before she fainted dead in his arms.
