Chapter 9: chapter 9

SRUTHIRelief spreads through me at the sound of my brother. All I wanted to do after talking with Shalini was to go inside the house and gather my thoughts. The only reason I was looking forward to this party was Praveen. I didn’t expect him to leave the party so soon without informing me. I would be lying if I told I was not upset with him. I am disappointed but I also understand that he has a big business company to run. I left the party to have an alone moment with myself to gather my thoughts. But the last thing I expected was to be grabbed by Madhav. Madhav is many things but I have never seen him lay a hand on a woman.  “I was trying to get into the house but he grabbed me all of a sudden,” I say throwing a glare at Madhav. He still looks unfazed by my outburst and that only adds to my irritation. Madhav walks to the door of the house without giving any explanation. To my utter disappointment, Vikram follows him. Reluctantly, I follow them. Madhav stops just in front of the door and points to something on it.There are three holes in the mid portion of the door. Each hole is separated by a few millimeters. I don’t remember seeing the holes when I was trying to open the door. I hear a sharp intake of breath from my brother. Vikram looks angry but the anger is not directed at Madhav.“How?” he asks Madhav with a grim expression. A very grim one.Madhav is deadly serious as he answers, “Snipers. I followed her here. I saw a  red dot on her back. I acted on instincts and pushed her out of the way. If my guess is correct, then it was shot from the lighthouse.”His words send a wave of shock through me. I may not like violence but being born in a family that dedicates itself to the country’s defense means you know the names of weapons and how deadly they are. I look at the holes again and realize that they are bullet-sized.“What is happening?” I ask in a trembling voice. Vikram gives me a sheepish look and all of a sudden his weird behavior for the past week makes sense. “Viky, what are you hiding from me?”“Nothing—” he starts but Madhav cuts him off by saying, “Dude, we can’t always keep her in the dark. It would be better if she knows the truth.”Vikram shoots him a warning look to which Madhav casually shrugs. I narrow my eyes at my brother as the puzzle pieces fall into place, “Is there any threat to my life?”❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥“I am sorry, Sru. I never meant to keep you in the dark. I wanted to protect you,” my brother says as I pace the living room. Madhav is sitting on a chair watching my movements with sharp eyes.“How did you think hiding the truth from me is protection? Just imagine, what would have happened if Madhav wasn’t there to push me away from the door. I would have been dead by now.”My brother flinches at my word but I am not done, “How could you hide this from me?”“I didn’t want to you worry.”“Of course, idiot, I would worry. Who would not worry when their life is under threat?”I don’t stop the pacing. I am still in shock from the fact that someone is trying to kill me. My brother suddenly pulls me into a tight hug. Though, I am angry at him, I don’t push him away.  Because, at the end of the day, he is the only family I have and I understand his reasons for trying to hide the truth.“I won’t let anything happen to you,” my brother says ruffling my hair.“I will take your word on it. But, the next time, if there is any danger to my life you should inform me,” I say pulling out of the hug.“There won’t be a next time,” he says in a fierce tone. A throat clearing draws our attention to the Madhav who is watching us.“It is nice to see you both get all emotional and sentimental but there is a perpetrator who is out for her blood and we need to find him as soon as possible.”“That reminds me,” Vikram says, his face hardening. “I need to go to the party to ensure it completes without any hitch. Madhav, you go to the lighthouse to see what Vishnu has got there.”Madhav gives a nod and Vikram gives me a look, “Sru, don’t breathe a word of this to anyone. Praveen is an exceptional case.”I sigh, “We can’t postpone the wedding until the perpetrator is caught, can we?” Vikram shakes his head, “I am sorry, we can’t. You know the prime minister is coming for the wedding and there can be no change of plans at the last minute. Besides, you know the scandals that would break if the marriage gets postponed.”I nod in understanding. I may not be active in politics but I know how ruthless the politicians and media can be. I don’t want to give them a juicy topic to dissect and discuss for weeks. As much as I want to get married in peace with no killer on my trial, I also don’t want any scandals attached to my name. No one outside my close circle knows about my Hemophobia and I don’t plan on making it known to others any soon. “Take care,” Vikram says in a soft tone before turning to his friend, “Look after her.”Vikram leaves the room leaving me and Madhav all alone. All of a sudden, I am suddenly conscious of myself. Maybe it is the fact that he saved me but the usual fear I have towards Madhav is nowhere found today. I wait for him to say something. He always has something to say to me. Strangely enough, he is silent today. “I am sorry for yelling at you,” I apologize  breaking the silence. “Thank you for saving me.”I still hate Madhav but he saved me today risking his life. What would have happened if the shots had been fired a moment earlier, he would have been injured. Madhav gives me an amused smile. He always looked handsome when he genuinely smiled.“You don’t have to thank me,” he says with a shrug walking to the door. “Just don’t go around anywhere unannounced.”I nod. Despite the situation I am in, I feel tired. I still can’t believe that I am getting married tomorrow. Speaking of marriage, I look at my phone and see two missed calls from Praveen three hours ago. That would be the time he must have left the party. I give him a call but he doesn’t attend it. I text him to call me as soon as he sees the message. I look at my room. I don’t think I can get an ounce of sleep with the threat looming. But, I need to try because tomorrow is my wedding day and I want to look my best for it. Because I get married only once in my life and I am not going to let some killer spoil it for me.❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥