Chapter 115: chapter 115

MADHAV“She is safe,” Vikram says, getting off a call from the hospital where Gabriella was admitted. “Still unconscious, but the poison was effectively removed from her body.”Sruthi lets out a shaky sigh and sinks into a nearby chair, her face pale and drawn. It’s been just an hour since Gabriella was poisoned, though it feels like much longer. The ambulance arrived quickly, taking her to the hospital within fifteen minutes. Sruthi wanted to go with her, but according to police protocol, no one in the refreshment area was allowed to leave until the investigation was complete. She’s been pacing the floor ever since, her eyes flicking anxiously toward the door, waiting for any news of her best friend.There were fourteen of us in the room when it happened. Excluding Vikram and me, there was Sruthi, Nisha, four middle-aged men sitting in the corner, an elderly couple, and three café employees.“I was supposed to drink that juice, Madhav,” Sruthi whispers, her voice breaking as tears fill her eyes. Her whole body looks frail. I squeeze her hand, trying hard not to let my own relief show, not to think about how glad I am that it wasn’t her who drank the juice. “I shouldn’t have given it to her. I shouldn’t have—”“Calm down, Sruthi,” I murmur, rubbing soft circles on the back of her hand. “You didn’t know there was poison in that juice.”There’s a emptiness in the room, a heavy silence that makes every small sound—the shuffling of feet, the hushed whispers of other guests, the scratching of police pens against paper—feel amplified. It feels like everyone in the room is reminded of what happened to Gabriella.A police officer who has been interviewing others gestures to Vikram and murmurs something in his ear. I watch Vikram’s face as he listens, his jaw tightening, his gaze flickering briefly in Nisha’s direction. She’s sitting next to Sruthi in silence. Unlike Sruthi, she doesn’t seem particularly shaken. But then, she and Gabriella were never close.I study her carefully, every gesture, every flicker of her eyes. A chill prickles at the back of my neck as a thought occurs to me—Nisha was the one who ordered the drinks. She was the one who brought them to the table. From the moment I learned those facts, suspicion has been quietly brewing inside me, casting a shadow over my trust. I’ve kept my doubts to myself,  because she works for Vikram. Cause he is careful about the people he chooses to trust.Could Nisha be responsible?But I trust Vikram’s judgment. Unlike me, Vikram is not careless with his selection of people. He only keeps those he can trust with his life by his side. I have faith in his choices, even if my own experiences have been less reliable. He wouldn’t make a mistake like I did with Vishnu. Vikram wouldn’t knowingly keep a dangerous person as his secretary. And yet… there’s something about Nisha’s calm, the way she holds herself, that makes my skin crawl.Vikram returns with a grim face, his eyes fixed on Nisha with an unreadable expression. He takes a deep breath, as if preparing himself. “Miss Nisha,” he says, his voice low but carrying, “you are under arrest for the attempted poisoning of Sruthi’s drink.”What did he just say?For a moment, I think I must have misheard. My mind stumbles over the words, trying to make sense of them. Were my suspicions correct?The room falls deathly silent, each of us absorbing the shocking revelation. Sruthi’s grip tightens around my hand, her knuckles white, and I feel the shock radiating off her. Nisha stands up slowly, her eyes wide with disbelief.“What?” she whispers, her voice a mere breath. She looks around the room, as if waiting for someone to tell her this is all a misunderstanding. “Boss, how can you say that? What proof do you have?”Vikram reaches into his pocket, pulling out a small glass vial. Inside, there’s a faint residue of green powder. “This,” he says, his voice steady. “This poison was found in the grape juice. And this vial was found in your bag, Miss Nisha.”Nisha’s jaw drops, her face going ashen. “That is not mine. I don’t know… I’ve never seen that bottle.” She looks around, desperation flaring in her eyes. “That bottle is not mine. It is not me. Blame the café for poisoning the drink.”Vikram sighs, his expression hardening. “Stop acting, Miss. Nisha. The evidence is against you. The café employees made two cups of grape juice from the same juicer, but there wasn’t poison in the one ordered by the men’s table. That clears them of suspicion. Besides, the only person who knew the grape juice was meant for Sruthi  was you. You were the one who brought her the drink. And now, the police have found this vial, containing the same poison that was used in the juice, in your bag. What other evidence do you need?”Nisha’s face twists, a mix of fear and anger in her eyes. “Did you see me put the poison in the juice?” she challenges, her voice low and defiant.“No, I didn’t,” Vikram replies, his tone sharp, his patience clearly thinning. “But of course, you wouldn’t have mixed it in if I was looking.”For a second, a flicker of something crosses his face—regret, perhaps? Or disappointment? I know Vikram well enough to see how much this accusation disturbs him. I always thought he had a soft spot for his secretary. It must hurt him deeply to have her betray him like this.“I didn’t do this,” Nisha insists, her voice strained, her gaze wild. She turns to Sruthi, with pleading eyes, “Sruthi, tell him. Tell him I wouldn’t do something like this.”Sruthi hesitates, her eyes filled with confusion and disbelief. She looks from Nisha to Vikram, then finally to me, as if searching for guidance, for something that makes sense in all this. She doesn’t want to believe Vikram’s accusation. She wants to believe in Nisha’s innocence, but the evidence says otherwise.I squeeze her shoulder, leaning close, my voice cold. “We’re sorry, Nisha. But the evidence points to you.”Nisha’s eyes darken. “That’s what I’m saying. None of this makes any sense! Why would I poison Sruthi? What possible reason would I have?”Vikram grabs Nisha's wrist. “That’s something only you can answer,” he says, his tone final. “Enough with the denials. Don’t make me handcuff you.”The color drains from Nisha’s face, her mouth set in a hard line as she stares up at him. “You don’t believe me?” she whispers, her voice cutting through the room like a blade. “After five years of loyalty, you don’t trust me?”Vikram’s expression is as cold and unyielding as stone. “I trust the evidence, Miss. Nisha.”A bitter, humorless laugh escapes her. “Alright,” she says, a steely edge in her voice. “I’ll come with you. But mark my words, boss—if I’m not the real culprit, I hope you’re prepared to get on your knees and apologize.”“If that were the case,” Vikram answers, unflinching, “then I would. But it won’t come to that. Now, stop making a scene and come with me.”For a moment, she stands frozen, her mouth open as if to argue further. Then her shoulders slump, resignation settling over her like a shroud. She pulls her hand from Vikram’s grip and turns, her gaze sweeping the room one last time before she walks toward the entrance. There’s a finality in her steps, as if she knows that by leaving this room, everything she’s known here is over.“Take care of my sister,” Vikram says to me, his voice softer, before following Nisha out of the room.As soon as they vanish from sight, I feel Sruthi slump against me. Her body is still shaking, her gaze locked on the door as though expecting Nisha to burst back in, denying everything. My mind churns with conflicting thoughts. Part of me wants to believe it was Nisha who orchestrated the attacks on Sruthi. But the Nisha I know… she doesn’t seem capable of such things.“How are you feeling?” I ask quietly, glancing around at the police, still busy collecting details from the others. The expo continues outside, a distant hum beyond the doors. I’ve already instructed my employees to keep guests away from the refreshment area. Vikram doesn’t want this incident to gain public attention. He has his reasons. People would panic if they knew the defense minister’s family was targeted, and that could unravel years of public trust. He’ll do whatever it takes to keep this buried—bribes, threats, favors. This incident will never see the light of day if he can help it.“I don’t know,” Sruthi says, her voice barely above a whisper. She turns to me, and I can see the confusion and turmoil in her eyes. “I don’t know what to believe anymore, Madhav. I’ve known Nisha for years. She may not be my closest friend, but I… I trusted her. Why would she do something like this?”I sigh, rubbing a comforting hand up and down her back. “It’s hard to wrap your head around, I know. Even I find it difficult to believe. But the evidence…” I trail off, feeling the words catch in my throat. “The evidence seems pretty solid.”Sruthi shakes her head slowly, looking down at her trembling hands. “I just don’t understand. Gabe didn’t deserve this. None of us did.”Before I can respond, she straightens up, a sudden determination in her eyes. “Can we leave this room now? I need to check on Gabe. I can’t sit here another minute, just waiting and wondering.”“I think we can,” I say, glancing over at the police officers, who seem to be wrapping up their enquiries. I walk over to one of them—a middle-aged man with a tired expression, still scribbling in his notebook as he speaks with the elderly couple in the corner.“Excuse me, officer,” I say politely, waiting for him to finish instructing the couple to keep the details of what happened here confidential. “Is it alright if we leave now? We’d like to go check on the victim.”The officer looks up, meeting my eyes with a brief nod. “Yes, of course, sir. The investigation here is nearly concluded, and with the suspect in custody, you’re free to go. We’ll visit the hospital later to get a statement from the victim, once she regains consciousness.”“Thank you, officer.” I turn back to Sruthi and give her a small nod. “Let’s go.”She stands up, her movements still shaky, but there’s a new focus in her eyes as she heads toward the door. We pass the elderly couple on our way out, and they give us both a pitying glance, that only makes me realise how messed up our lives are that we couldn't even have a single day of peace.❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥