Chapter 124: chapter 124

MADHAVI bounce my knees nervously as I listen to Sruthi and Gabe's conversation through the transmitter in the van.So far, Sruthi is playing her role perfectly—no tremors, no hesitation, nothing to arouse suspicion. But deep down, I know she isn’t just acting. She still finds it hard to believe her best friend is the culprit.“Why don’t you go save your wife instead of shaking this whole van with your nervousness?” the techie guy asks.We’re stationed in front of an abandoned building on the same street as Gabe’s house. Earlier, I called Vikram to convince him to stop Sruthi from making herself the bait. But shockingly, Vikram wasn’t against it. In fact, he sounded proud of his sister. I should’ve known better—there’s no underestimating the Ariyan blood running through them. And so, here I am, helpless, watching my wife walk into danger, hands tied, just praying she comes back safe.If something happens to her, I swear, I’ll lose my mind. I’ll burn this world down if I have to.“She’d hate me if I did that,” I mutter.“I’d hate you if you keep bouncing your legs like that,” the techie retorts. He’s young—early twenties, I think—and one of Vikram’s recent recruits. He’s usually quiet, buried in his work, but today he’s chatty, though I’m too distracted to care.“No one asked for your opinion,” I snap, still bouncing my legs. My ears perk up when Sruthi’s voice cuts through the static, asking  about a “gift” to Gaberiella. My phone blares with the alert I set when Sruthi presses the pendant I gave her. A screen pops on my pop showing Sruthi's accurate location.Gaberiella’s voice is icy. “I can’t give it to you here. You’ll have to come with me to a special place for it.”Sruthi’s response is slurred, her words heavy and sluggish. “What did you mix in the water? Poison?”Panic grips me. I throw the van door open, ready to sprint to the house, but Gaberiella’s calm voice stops me.“Not yet. Just a little something to put you to sleep.”Damn it. Vikram was right. Gaberiella plans to take Sruthi elsewhere to finish her off. I can’t act yet. Not now. I have to stay low, trust my wife, and hope she can handle herself until we step in. From the van, I watch a black car pull up in front of the house. Two bulky men get out and stride inside.“Is this her?” A gruff male voice echoes through the transmitter.“Yes,” Gaberiella replies coldly. There’s shuffling, and my stomach twists.Moments later, the men emerge from the house carrying a sack between them. They dump it roughly into the trunk, making me flinch. Gaberiella gets in the car with them, and I see Sruthi’s location shifting on my phone as the vehicle begins to move.“What do we do now?” the techie asks, sliding into the driver’s seat.I pass him my phone, the live location glowing on the screen. “We follow the signal. But not yet. Wait fifteen minutes. I can’t risk tipping them off.”❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥An hour passes. Sruthi’s been drugged for almost sixty minutes, and it’s been fifteen minutes since her location stopped moving. The techie and I are driving toward the spot. Vikram is already on his way and has instructed me to wait for him before doing anything. Apparently, there’s a minister close to Raj involved in this mess, and Vikram wants to catch him red-handed.The transmitter is silent except for the occasional creaks and bumps of the car Sruthi is in. At least she’s unconscious and can’t feel the jarring ride.“What do you plan to do with her?” A faint male voice filters through the transmitter. It grows louder as I realize Sruthi’s been locked in a room and someone’s approaching her.“Dispose of her,” Gaberiella’s voice replies, cold and calculating. “That’ll rattle Vikram. Once he’s distracted, taking him down will be easy.”“Great,” the male voice says with a chuckle. “Taking Vikram down will clear the path for us. If you can kill his sister and bring him down, I promise to monopolized you drug in the market.”The techie whistles under his breath, “Not happening.”So this isn’t just about Sruthi—it’s part of a larger scheme to destroy Vikram, politically and personally. I clench my fists. It’s hard to stay put, but I trust Vikram’s plan. For now.❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥By the time Vikram arrives, Sruthi is already awake. Through the transmitter, I hear her coaxing Gabriella to talk. It’s no surprise when Gabriella starts professing her love for Raj. But what sends chills down my spine is her talk of manipulation—how so many people crave control over others. If this drug makes it to the market, men like my father will use it to dominate their wives, lovers, and anyone else in their way.Why can’t some people understand that love isn’t about control?My phone vibrates. It’s Vikram, signaling me to move. I climb out of my hiding spot and meet him. We’re on the outskirts of the capital, surrounded by wild plants and overgrowth. But the large building ahead is anything but abandoned—it’s fully operational, complete with air conditioning and security systems.“So, shall we go in?” Vikram asks.I nod, adjusting the earpiece transmitting Sruthi and Gabriella’s conversation.“Damn it,” I mutter as a loud crash echoes in my ear. Sruthi is in danger. Gabriella has finally made her move.We advance toward the building. Strangely, no guards are stationed outside. It feels too easy—too convenient.The front door creaks open. Inside, the air is unnervingly cool, and the hallway is lined with many rooms. What is this? Some twisted “find the right door” game? We navigate the dim hallways, following the transmitter signal to Sruthi. My heart pounds as I hear Gabriella shouting at someone to hold her. We throw open room after room, but she’s nowhere.“Stay close,” Vikram orders, but I’m already moving ahead.Bursting into another room, I expect to find Sruthi but instead see a group of people in serious discussion. I recognize two of them immediately. One is the health minister, and the other is a well-known businessman from the food industry.“Who let you in?” a man from the group barks, but I don’t have the patience to deal with them.“Where is she being held?” I ask, ignoring their glares and stares. A woman picks up her phone, but before she can do anything, a shot rings out. My best friend makes a smooth entrance into the room, his wide grin as confident as ever and a gun in hand. The threat is clear in his eyes. If anyone tries something funny, then they will become a prey to his gun. And the thing is the group is scared because Vikram has a ruthless reputation when it comes to dealing with people who want to cause harm to his country. Running in the same circle, I am sure the health minister is aware of that.“Vikram?” The health minister’s voice is laced with shock. Vikram throws a smirk at him, “Fancy seeing you here sir. This meeting has to be very important for you to ditch the cabinet meeting.”“It is no–” the minister starts to talk but Vikram presses another shot aimed at the ceiling. The room goes quiet after the loud bang. The minister shivers in fear.“I don't have time for your stories. The media is waiting outside. All your crimes are exposed. I can help you get lenient punishment if you quickly tell me where my sister is,” Vikram says with a straight face, lying effortlessly.The men and women exchange worried glances before a woman finally says, “The last room in this corridor has a bookshelf. Push it aside, and you’ll find the ent—”I’m already running before she can finish.I hear Sruthi muttering through the transmitter: “No matter what, I’m going to survive today.”That’s my woman. Hang on for a couple more seconds, Sruthi. I’m coming.The sound of shuffling and crashing grows louder. I burst into the room and immediately load my gun. With one swift motion, I push the bookshelf aside to reveal a hidden door. I shove it open, and the sight that meets me pushes me into action before I can think.Gabriella stands with a syringe in her hand, her intentions clear. I aim for her arm and fire. The shot is followed by a loud scream as Gabriella clutches her bleeding hand.Sruthi looks unharmed—no visible wounds—and two men lie sprawled unconscious on the other side of the room.Damn! She took them down herself. Despite the seriousness of the situation, I can’t help but feel a surge of pride for my wife. Our eyes meet, and I try to tell her without words that it’s over. I’m here now.“You’re late,” Sruthi says, her voice trembling but steady.“Sorry, honey,” I reply with a small smile. “I would’ve been here sooner—right when Gabriella started her ‘love’ speech about Raj—if it weren’t for your brother.”Speak of the devil! Vikram strolls into the room, his grin never faltering.“Don’t blame me,” he says lightly. “It’s not my fault the men in the cabinet wouldn’t shut up.”“What the hell is happening?” Gabriella groans in pain, glaring at Sruthi. “You told me no one knows where you are!”Her accusatory tone is directed at Sruthi, but Vikram is the one who answers as I make my way to my wife.“Come on, Gabriella, if you can tell countless lies, why can’t my sister tell one?”Gabriella tries to respond, but I’m too focused on Sruthi. I pull her into a tight embrace, the relief overwhelming me. How close to death she came today—yet she handled it so calmly.“Did I make you proud?” Sruthi whispers, looking up at me.I grin appreciatively. “You did.”Our tender moment is interrupted by a harsh scream. We turn to see Gabriella, fury blazing in her eyes as she glares in our direction.“This isn’t over!” she yells. “I’ll kill you all, just like you killed my Raj. No one can le—”“Raj is alive,” Vikram interrupts calmly, leaning against a counter filled with chemical equipment. He has an amused look on his face. As an anti-romantic he must find Gaberiella's outbursts hilarious.Gabriella’s disbelief is evident. “How can I believe you?”“You don’t have to,” Vikram replies. “But he asked me to tell you: ‘Add 829 with 77 for lasting results.’”Gabriella freezes. For a moment, no one speaks. The unconscious men groan softly, but the room is otherwise silent as Gabriella processes Vikram’s words.“No, no way. It can’t be true. There’s no way he’s alive. I searched every database. I hired the best hackers, and none of them found any information on him.”Vikram chuckles softly. “That’s because his case is off the records. He’s serving his prison sentence in Noghot—a jail that specializes in housing criminals kept out of public and governmental sight. Raj is one of those cases. Exposing his crimes publicly would make public  distrust doctors, so it’s all handled unofficially. There’s no record of him.”The fury and rage leaves Gaberiella's body. Slowly, her icy composure melts, replaced by a raw, unguarded expression of disbelief. Her breaths come in sharp gasps, her chest rising and falling. Her knees buckle, and she collapses to the floor, her face in anguish.“He’s alive. My Raj. He’s alive,” she mutters, her voice breaking with each word. It’s not loud, more of a desperate whisper, as though saying it aloud might somehow make it untrue. Her fingers claw at her hair, tugging at the roots, as if trying to wake herself from a nightmare. Her sobs grow louder, each one wracked with pain.Sruthi watches her friend with a mix of pity and fear, her hands twitching at her sides, uncertain whether to move closer or stay rooted where she is. Gabriella’s cries echo in the room, a haunting sound of heartbreak, disbelief, and rage. She may be the villian in our lives but she truly has feelings for Raj. I hope he saw her as something more than a pawn in his games.  I meet Vikram's eyes and understand the order he is giving me without voicing it out. He knows how to handle Gabriella. Sruthi, though, will need time to process everything that’s happened, and I need to be there for her. I intertwine our fingers and whisper, “Your brother will take it from here. Let’s go.”With one last pitying glance at Gabriella, Sruthi nods. We walk out of the room as Vikram turns his attention to the chemicals scattered on the counter.❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥A/N:One more chapter to go and then this series is going to end. Thank you for your overwhelming response for this series. Just something, I wanted to ask people who give my content low rating, please do mention the reason for why you are giving it low ratings...so that I can improve it. It is kind of frustrating to see my content get low ratings with no feedback. I am trying my best to give quality content but it is upsetting to get low ratings with no feedback and I feel struck not knowing what mistakes I am doing. You have all right to rate my content like you want and criticize it but kindly let me know what you think. To all those others who give reviews regularly and full ratings, thank you from the bottom of my heart, it motivates me and your love and support keeps me going.See you all soon in a long Author's note-H S Ragavi