Memories

29

Karthik

The air was thick with excitement, laughter, and the clamour of endless preparations. Everyone seemed to be running in different directions, carrying flowers, arranging chairs, checking on the caterers. Tonight was supposed to be about joy—Anjali's last evening as a bride-to-be. But instead of savouring the glow of her happiness, I found myself darting around the venue like a man possessed.

Because Shivani was missing.

And if that wasn't enough to set my nerves on fire, Anjali was spiralling into full-blown panic. Pre-wedding jitters, they called it, but what she was going through didn't feel like harmless nerves. She was pacing, her hands trembling, her eyes brimming with worry. And when Shivani wasn't around to calm her down, the weight fell on me.

So, there I was—searching every corner of the decorated hall, the balconies, even the garden outside—calling out for Shivani. Nothing. Not even a trace.

Then another realization struck me like a stone in the chest. Manoj Uncle was missing too.

I froze for a moment, dread coiling in my stomach. Coincidence? No. Something wasn't right.

As I hurried back toward the main entrance, I spotted a familiar figure cutting through the crowd with urgency. Bharat. But he wasn't alone. Several uniformed police officers followed him, their presence sending ripples of unease through the guests. I rushed forward, my voice low but sharp.

"What are you doing here with these people?" I asked, trying to mask my anxiety.

Bharat didn't flinch. His face was grim. "Didn't you know? Shivani called us. She said she'd found another huge transfer from the same account. The money was sent to a new destination. She couldn't trace the exact location with her tech, but she was certain—there's going to be another attack on you. She wanted me to warn you. Didn't she tell you?"

My heart sank. "No," I muttered. "She didn't. Because right now... she's missing. And so is Manoj Uncle. I've searched everywhere. They're gone."

For a moment, Bharat's expression hardened into something unreadable. Then he placed a hand on my shoulder. "Then we don't waste time. We split up and search again. Every corner. Every exit. We meet here in ten minutes."

I nodded, jaw clenched, and we scattered like hunters into the night.

Shivani

Darkness.

That's what I woke up to. Thick, suffocating, endless darkness.

I tried to move, but my wrists and ankles burned under the pressure of coarse ropes digging into my skin. I was tied to a chair—tightly enough that every attempt to shift only made the knots bite deeper.

Panic welled inside me, threatening to swallow me whole. But I forced myself to breathe. Think. Listen.

The silence was broken only by faint whispers. Low voices, just out of reach, like shadows murmuring secrets. I couldn't make out the words, but their tones carried menace, certainty. Whoever they were, they weren't here by accident.

I strained my eyes, trying to adjust to the faint outlines of my surroundings. It wasn't much—a small, empty space, maybe a storeroom. No windows, only a single bulb hanging from the ceiling, flickering weakly like it was deciding whether to die out.

My throat was dry, my mind racing. Who had brought me here? Was it the same person who had funded Karthik's accident? The same one from the Varma family pulling strings in the shadows?

Then, suddenly, I heard footsteps. Slow, deliberate. Each step reverberated like a drumbeat of doom.

A silhouette appeared against the dim light. Tall. Broad. Silent.

I wanted to speak, to demand answers, but my voice caught in my throat. Before I could react, a cloth was pressed against my face. The pungent chemical scent hit me instantly, burning my nostrils, clawing its way down my lungs.

"No—" I tried to scream, but the sound dissolved into nothing. My head grew heavy, my limbs numb. The whispers faded. The light blurred.

And then—darkness again.

Karthik

When we regrouped, the dread in my chest solidified into a chilling certainty—Shivani was gone.

Anjali was pale as snow, her hands trembling uncontrollably. She clutched at my sleeve, her eyes wide with fear. "Karthik, where is she? Where's Shivani? She wouldn't just disappear like this!" Her voice cracked, and I could see tears threatening to spill. "I can't do this wedding if she's not here. I can't..."

I pulled her close, trying to steady her. But my own voice betrayed the storm raging inside me. "We'll find her. I promise."

Bharat joined us, his expression grim. "Whoever has her... likely has Manoj Uncle too. This isn't random. It's coordinated. They've planned this."

The word kidnapped hung unspoken in the air, heavier than anything I had ever felt.

We scoured the venue inside and out—every guest room, every corner of the garden, every parked vehicle. Nothing. Not a single trace of Shivani. It was as though she had been swallowed by the earth.

Anjali's fear grew by the minute, her body shaking violently. She wasn't just scared—she was broken. "They've taken her, haven't they? This is because of you, Karthik. Because they want you dead. And now... now Shivani is paying the price!" Her voice trembled, but the pain in it cut me deeper than any blade could.

I had no answer. She was right.

That's when Bharat spoke again, his voice hard but focused. "There's one way. If we can't find Shivani by searching, we find whoever took her. And the only trail we have is the money. We'll use her laptop. If she couldn't track it before, maybe I can with our resources. Every digital footprint leaves a trace."

His words struck something in me, and suddenly I remembered.

"No," I said, my voice firmer than before. "We won't just rely on that. I already placed a tracker on Shivani."

Both Bharat and Anjali turned to me, shocked.

"What?" Bharat asked.

"Yes," I admitted. "A small device, just in case. I didn't tell her. She would have been furious. But I had this gut feeling—she's always diving headfirst into danger. I couldn't risk it. If she's been taken, that tracker is our only chance of finding her."

For the first time that evening, a flicker of hope lit Bharat's eyes. "Then let's move. We'll find her before they can lay a hand on her again."

But deep down, my heart pounded with one haunting question: What if we're already too late?