Keshav tried to drag Krishna Bharadwaj into another room next door.
"Don't you dare to touch him with your filthy hands! If something happens to my father because of you, I will punish you in such a way that you wish you never lay your hands on anyone." Advay warned with gritted teeth even as the door slammed against them.
"Dev please calm down, this is not the time for this." Chandni pleaded.
Advay did bring his voice down to a whisper but was still seething with fury.
"How can you watch that and keep calm? It's entirely my fault, anyway. Or had someone come to know about the temple jewellery theft? Is that why they took Kishen Chacha?" Advay voiced his thoughts aloud.
Chandni walked near to him.
"What temple jewellery are you talking about?" She asked him confusedly.
Advay suddenly realised that Chandni still had no idea about what happened in Banaras. He hesitated for few moments whether to tell Chandni about it right now, under these circumstances but decided to not to hide anything from her anymore. She would have to know anyway and if the current situation is because of that jewellery, then its better she knows the truth from him rather than anyone else.
Briefly, his voice barely a whisper, and sounding not as harshly as he would like against Indrani, Advay explained everything Sadanandji told him about Indrani, Gangaram and their treachery towards his parents and towards the sacred jewellery later.
Chandni was shocked to the core as she began to realise slowly the level of wickedness and deceit shown by her step mother. She felt completely broken, her heart shattered again to know the real nature of her Maa. Is there anything actually good in her Maa? Was this the person she blindly trusted and loved all these years? How could she be so ignorant?
She staggered to the wall and slowly sat down, unable to trust herself to be standing as Advay watched helplessly. He knew what he was going to reveal would cause immense grief to Chandni, but a bitter truth is always better than a honeyed lie, in most cases. He reached her slowly and sat next to her. He felt suddenly frustrated that he is unable to hold her in his arms, and began to try unbinding the ropes around his hands.
****
Outside in the hallway, Keshav tried to drag Krishna Bharadwaj, but the elderly man quietly resisted and replied to him calmly.
"Beta I will come with you wherever you want me to; there is no need to apply force or act rough. Is there?" His calm and kind manner unruffled Keshav who is not used to being talked in such fashion.
He felt flustered and began to act even more angry to cover up for that.
"Oy Buddhe... no need to tell ME what to do. Just... Just sit down in that corner." Keshav yelled at him.
Krishna Bharadwaj obediently followed Keshav's orders and sat down. In fact he sat down cross legged, and closed his eyes and began to pray silently. Somehow the old man's submissive and such peaceful and devotional behaviour was making Keshav furious and confused, and for the first time he felt an unknown emotion...guilt!!!
He turned his face away, his heart and mind muddled.
He felt proud of himself that he accomplished such a daring kidnap of two captives just with his small team, and that too when he was so close to being caught. He wanted to call Ganesh Bhai directly but couldn't dare to. Instead he called Madan Bhai, and explained that he had Krishna Bharadwaj and his son captive and ready in the Farm House. He was still not feeling brave enough to reveal that he brought an extra captive along with Shiva. He wanted to explain this personally when Ganesh Bhai was here.
But he decided that must not mess up this job anymore. He asked the driver and Munnah to keep a look outside for any intruders, while Girish stood guard against the room where Advay and Chandni were held. He looked at Krishna Bharadwaj again and wondered why a gentle soul like him was being kidnapped. And he could make out, from whatever little he knew about people in high places and money, that the old man's son was wearing very expensive clothes and shoes to be the son of an ordinary priest like Krishna Bharadwaj. His mate Munnah literally cried when it came to throwing away the son's phone, because it was such an expensive model. There were a lot of things that looked odd in this kidnap case, including that wife of his. She looked like a well-educated girl from respectable family, yet she ran out on to street to meet and kiss her husband. He was more surprised as to how, in all that hustle, both the husband and wife clung onto each other so desperately. What was going on there? But he kept quiet since he knew it was not his job to ask such questions.
*****
Meanwhile Advay and Chandni tried to free their tight and heavy ropes by backing against each other. Chandni wasn't able to make much progress so Advay asked her to wait and proceeded, with difficulty to untie her ropes slowly, with difficulty. It took almost ten minutes but he finally did it. Once her hands were free, Chandni quickly untied Advay's hands even though they were very heavily bound.
Once his hands were free, Advay hugged her tightly in his arms and began to kiss her fiercely all over her face.
"Chandu, I know how sad and angry you must be about the jewellery business, but I had to tell you. You need to know the truth right?" He choked, looking into her eyes as he cupped her cheeks.
Chandni nodded her head softly and hugged him, burying her head into his chest.
"I am so sorry Chandu. I was just careless. I shouldn't have come without security to the hospital like that. But I was just so desperate to see you. Now I have put Kishen Chacha's and your life in danger because of my ...."
Chandni lifted her head, closing his mouth with hers and kissed him softly. Advay pulled her up against him and plundered her mouth and Chandni dug her fingers into his back, trying to get as close to him as possible. They tried to soothe each other against all the pain and anguish they were feeling for the past few hours through their touch and caress.
Even though their kiss began fiercely, it mellowed down slowly. Advay kissed her softly, as his hands caressed her cheeks and hair, hoping to convey the reassurance to her that, no matter what happened, he was there to protect her.
After sometime, Advay rested his forehead against hers and Chandni closed her eyes briefly, feeling a lot more in control, her fear and anguish now replaced by hope and a sense of dare.
"I am equally to blame Dev! The security guard asked me to stay where I was, but after watching you through the window, I just rushed out to you. But come to think of it... how would they know we both will be there at that moment?" Chandni asked incredulously, as she began to think clearly of the chain of events.
"Yes this whole thing looks quite planned as if they were waiting for us. But I am more worried about how Chacha got pulled into this whole thing. Was it just because he was with me? And why did that guy take him out first? I was thinking I would be the main target here. I can bear anything, but if something happens to you or Chacha, I will never be able to forgive myself." Advay's anguish was still evident in his tone.
Chandni smiled at her husband, they truly are the opposites, each complementing the other perfectly. He was her strength and she was his weakness. Without her he became too uncontrollable and ruthless, while his presence made her strong and courageous enough to guide both of them, and moderate him if necessary.
Putting her thoughts aside, she helped him survey their room again, now that they were more free to check everything meticulously. The door was locked from outside and couldn't be opened without alerting their captors.
There was just one window which was heavily glazed and shuttered, and this made any plans of escape from that room looked impossible. Besides Advay was more worried about Kishen Chacha's condition and what these thugs were doing to him than their own welfare. Chandni seemed to be fine otherwise. Then he suddenly remembered.
"Chandni!!" He whispered again and showed her the tracking device by pulling it out of his socks.
"This will help our security agency to track and even the police. All we have to do is make sure Chacha is safe along with us till some rescue arrives."
Chandni smiled in relief.
Just then they heard another car arrive in the drive way. Their room was the first in the farmhouse to the left before the main living area, and it backed towards the driveway.
Advay tied the ropes back on to his hands loosely and asked Chandni to do the same, just in case the thugs re-enter their room.
*****
Indrani, Ranjit and one of his henchmen were the first to reach Ganesh's farmhouse soon after he informed them that his men had Krishna Bharadwaj and his son as captive. Ganesh Bhai asked them to finish all the questioning quickly but not do anything stupid with the captives. He warned Ranjit not to linger in the guest house more than few hours, because he wanted to finish off his contract killing of Krishna Bharadwaj before the police come after them.
Ganesh informed Ranjit that he will arrive after few hours to finish the job once the questioning is over, but neither he nor Madan informed Keshav about this.
So when Indrani and her men turned up at the Guesthouse unannounced, Keshav was initially taken back, because he wasn't expecting a high class woman like Indrani to be involved in Kidnap and Murder. Also he was expecting Ganesh Bhai to be here as well when Indrani and her people spoke to Krishna Bharadwaj.
He tried to stall Indrani and Ranjit from questioning Krishna Bharadwaj in his own clumsy way, but Indrani put a stop to it very quickly.
Advay and Chandni moved slowly to the locked door and tried listening to their conversation, and were shocked to hear Indrani's voice.
"Look I don't know who you are, but we are the people who gave this kidnapping job to your boss Ganesh Bhai and it is our money at stake. So I don't care whatever you and your boss feel about this, just bring Krishna Bharadwaj here in front of me right now if you know what is good for you." Indrani warned.
Even a ruffian like Keshav was unnerved by the menace in her voice and gaze.
Reluctantly, he brought Krishna Bharadwaj to them in the large living room; but this time Keshav was careful not to handle him in any rough manner.
Indrani sat in the lounge, one foot above another and smirked at Krishna Bharadwaj as he walked inside with hands bound behind his back.
Krishna Bharadwaj straightened his back and looked straight into Indrani's eyes, and all that loathing she ever felt towards him, rushed back to her as she observed that his gaze was filled with pity.... not with fear or even anger.
And she was more annoyed that he began speaking first, thus stealing the opportunity from her to dominate the conversation.
"Hmm I am not sure how to address you anymore. In the past, I was forced to address you as Mahantani even though neither you nor your husband ever deserved to be in that position; now that I have realised that you are nothing but a common thug, who can't speak to people unless they are held captive for you, I don't even feel like calling you by your name." Krishna Bharadwaj looked at her in contempt.
"Keep your clever words to yourself Krishnaji, I don't need to listen or even speak to useless people like you, held captive or not. You are not important enough for me to waste my time like this. So let's get straight to the point. Why did Advay Singh Raizada meet you? What was he doing in your house? What did you tell him?" She tried to look calm and careless, but the eagerness in her voice betrayed the anxiety and fear she held in her heart.
Advay and Chandni who were hearing this, looked at each other in understanding. So Kishen Chacha was caught just because he met them? Indrani was afraid that Kishen Chacha might leak something about her past deeds to Advay. Advay shook his head in exasperation.
Indrani watched Krishna Bharadwaj with hawk like eyes, but he held his gaze firm without even showing slightest sign of fear.
Instead Krishna Bharadwaj began chuckling loudly which irritated her further.
She looked at Ranjit and his assistant. As Ranjit's thug kicked straight into his stomach, Krishna Bharadwaj groaned loudly.
Advay's blood boiled as he heard Chacha's groan and for the first time, he cursed himself for his helplessness.
*****
The moment Keshav and gang's black van turned right after crossing the Tamas River, ACP Siddharth got the alert and he convened an impromptu meeting of all his team members along with Veer and friends. They checked the local map and found that few farmhouses were there in that area; quite isolated from each other, with a lot of trees and bushes in between. Once the van reached the farmhouse, and they could pinpoint the exact farmhouse, they decided to travel as far as possible by their vehicles and ditch them far enough, so as not to alert of their presence to their kidnappers.
Once they were half a kilometre away from the farmhouse, ACP Siddharth and his team were careful to keep themselves hidden in the trees, but were observing the arrivals at the farmhouse using powerful lens. He saw Indrani and Ranjit with one of his men arrive in a car. They waited for a few more minutes to make sure no one else was coming, and began to surround the farmhouse, on foot, walking stealthily.
ACP Siddharth gave one of his team's radios to Veer. As the security agency kept updating Advay's position through the tracking device, Siddharth passed on the same info to all the team members now spread widely around the farmhouse. Siddharth asked Veer and his friends to approach the farmhouse in the opposite direction, as they can ride on their bikes through the river side without creating much noise. Veer and his friends dragged their bikes through the muddy banks of the river for the last few hundred metres, parked their bikes and began to walk towards the farmhouse from the back end.
Three victims to be rescued from seven thugs including Indrani. ACP Siddharth knew that he had the upper hand in numbers because he had come prepared to deal with every situation, including the worst case scenario of Ganesh and his gang appearing on scene.
He would rather die than let any harm come to Advay, not only because he was his friend and a dear, but he promised his old friend all the help when he had come back to Allahabad, after all these years, to restore his family name and pride by bringing out the culprits. And most importantly, Advay was also the head of a multimillion dollar company where thousands of lives depended on him; any harm to him will be damaging not only to the business world and political circle, but would bring irreversible damage and shame on their police department.
ACP Siddharth had to push back very hard all the help from security agency, because they were keen to send their guards with police. It was a matter of pride for him and his force, and he was sure that they will be enough and do their damn best to bring everyone safely back. He alerted everyone on the radio one last time as he came closer towards the farmhouse.
*****
Krishna Bharadwaj straightened up slowly after the initial punch in his guts.
Keshav was watching the proceedings with a wary eye. As much as he loved beating up people, he drew a line when it came to old men and women. He looked again at Indrani and was glad his own mother wasn't like her.
Indrani continued to mock at Krishna Bharadwaj.
"That was just a sampler Krishnaji and do you want our man to continue? Please don't waste my time anymore and answer my questions." Indrani hissed.
"What secrets in your past are you trying to hide? What are you so afraid of that you have got me kidnapped, and brought all the way up here? What do you think an old man like me is going to say to hmmm what's his name.... Advay Singh Raizada?" Krishna Bharadwaj questioned her back.
Indrani was infuriated. Instead of answering her questions, how dare he insinuate that she was trying to hide something? Why was this guy still not afraid of anything and acting so confident? May be he knew about the fake jewellery that she suspected him of anyway. But he cannot prove anything against her... not after all these years!!
Is there anything else he knew? He was on the scene when the mob attacked the Mahant and Mahantani. Had he heard or seen anything he was not supposed to? She had to know and she had to put an end to him and his clever rhetoric.
She knew that Krishna Bharadwaj wouldn't crack or reveal everything to her easily, that's why she asked Ranjit and Ganesh to get his son kidnapped as well, so that they can use his son as leverage to get him talking..... but she hoped she didn't have to do it for a long time.
Krishna Bharadwaj too was thinking furiously. He would have to try his best and drag time and stall everyone, till the police or some help arrive here. His life is of no use anymore but he must do everything to protect Dev and Chandni, and not let these goons bring them in front of Indrani. He very well knew what a venomous woman she was, and what atrocities she was capable of. He had to protect those kids at any cost.
"Why are you so silent Indrani when someone asks you about your past?" He continued, hoping and praying someone would find them all here in this farmhouse very soon.
"You bastard!! How dare you talk to the Mahantani like this!!There's no point asking this guy anything right now. This guy is not going to talk till we bring his son over. Then he will sing like a canary." Ranjit said impatiently.
Indrani sighed and nodded silently. She seemed to have no choice.
"Oy hero!! Bring the son here" Ranjit demanded looking at Keshav.
Now Keshav suddenly felt embarrassed. He possibly can't hide the fact that the old man's daughter in law was also here. That's why he was desperate to see Ganesh Bhai before these guys came barging in. Now he had no choice but to reveal everything.
"Hmm....Yes! Girish go and get them." He said.
"Them? What do you mean them?" Indrani asked sharply.
"Well... when we were kidnapping the son, his wife was also there, and she clung on to him or rather he clung on to her so hard that we couldn't separate them in that hurry. And we had to make a quick getaway. So we brought his wife along as well. You will see."
Ranjit laughed out loud but stopped once Indrani glared at him.
"What kind of a thug are you if you can't even overpower a simple girl? Seriously Ranjit, are these the only people you could come up with?" She asked in frustration.
"Oh Madam, we all know why you hired us, so please don't give lectures to us. Should we bring them out or not?" Keshav asked recklessly. He wasn't ready to take any flak from anyone other than Ganesh Bhai, and especially not from a woman like Indrani.
This kidnap was getting messier and more infuriating than it was worth, Indrani fumed inwardly and signalled to Keshav to go ahead.
Girish opened the door cautiously. But he need not have worried. Advay and Chandni were waiting obediently with hands behind their back inside the room.
He signalled them to come out, and they both walked slowly out to the living room, one behind another and Indrani and Ranjit got the shock of their life.
"Hello Saasumaa!! Looks like you really liked your jail life and can't wait to go back there, even when you are out on bail. Don't worry, this time I will make sure that you will spend the rest of your life there and enjoy it to the hilt."
Advay Singh Raizada mocked at Indrani with his trademark smirk.
^-----------------------------^
Hello everyone,
The next chapter is up and I am eagerly looking forward for your feedback on this. Hope you liked the way things are progressing in this mishap kidnap.
Even thugs have hearts and Keshav is an example of that while people like Ranjit are a disgrace even to the name of thug. And Indrani.... well where do we start with her!!!
Now that Advay has come out in the open against Indrani, what do you expect will happen next.
If the beginning is so bad, one can only wonder how bad the end is going to be.
Would love to hear your thoughts.
Love
Sesi