The Vile.

Chapter : 38

The unveiling.

"How is everything over there?" Digbijoy asks over the video call.

"To be honest I couldn't really see this place yet baba. You won't believe if I tell you that I woke up just an hour ago. I don't know what happened to me." Vasudha responds.

"Seems like the journey and it's stress." Digbijoy says.

"What about the check up?" She asks, concerned.

"Oh, it went totally okay. Raju is always with me and no matter how much the whole situation bothers me the huge bills are always paid anonymously even before my arrival, you know." He answers.

"That I know." She answers with a sad smile on her face.

"Sudha, are you okay?" Her father asks looking at her.

"Yes I am baba. But my calculations, they are confusing me. What I planned for, what I thought and what I am seeing right now are totally different. I thought Danuj D' had a purpose. I thought he was using me as a pawn to achieve something even bigger. But his behavior is confusing me. Either he is another very good actor, just like me or he is genuinely protective and caring about me. No matter how much I try to hate him, no matter how much I try to pull away the mask from his face, he proves me wrong." She responds furrowing her eyebrows.

"Whatever you do I'll be always with you. But I still don't know why were you so adamant about visiting his Delhi mansion. Just tell me you're not up to anything dangerous Sudha? I don't know where your brother is, I can't spend my whole life worrying about my small daughter as well." Digbijoy asks, suddenly feeling nervous.

"No baba, you don't worry. Whatever I am doing, I am doing it knowingly and with every bit of calmness." She answers.

"But I am your father. I can sense that your perspective towards that man has changed to a huge extent. Do you like him?" He asks.

"I know you understand everything. But trust me my feelings can never change things. And about liking him, I won't dare to dream that big, baba. Don't worry, I'll be safe." She says as the call gets disconnected and then she talks to herself.
"Take this as a part of my prolonged acting skills baba. We will be nearing the climax pretty soon and that day he will treat me just the way he treats every other enemies of him. The day he will get to know that I too had a motive, he will hate me with everything that he has." She whispers to herself as her eyes tear up.

Flashback (One year and six months back):

"S-sudha.. can you hear me? Listen, do you remember I told you about Danuj D'? Hello? Hello....? Sudha.." Abhay's voice shouts from the other end.

"Where are you?! What is this network problem? Why don't you call me once you get back home, dada?" Vasudha asks as she opens the door to her room.

"There.... there is no time. Listen, I told you about Danuj D', remember? He is.. he is...." The call gets disconnected.

No matter how many times she tried afterwards the calls didn't connect. So she decides to leave for Delhi the very next day. She goes to her brother's place and finds it totally empty. She goes downstairs and calls the landlord. He informs her about how Abhay left the other night and took away all his belongings overnight. This is nothing new for her. Her brother has always been a fickle minded person. But the phone call she had with him was a little unsettling. He was trying very hard to say something. Something about Danuj D'? She remembers him fangirling about him a few weeks back when she was at Delhi but just like the other times she found that unimportant and didn't bother to concentrate on whatever he had to say. Something she regrets now. So, she does the inevitable, she visits the only person who she thought could give her some informations. Ekansh Sachdev. Who in turn tells her how her brother suddenly decided to resign and left. Again, this isn't something new but the uneasy feeling keeps bothering her.

She waits for one week, keeps calling on his and his friends' numbers. Everyone gave her the same answer. He left without any explanation. Defeated, she goes to the Police station and files a missing diary.

Everytime her phone rings she will run to it with the hope to hear something positive, to receive a single phone call from their end. But she gets nothing. With time she convinces herself that her brother will come back eventually. Just like the good old days.

But he never did.

Then one fine evening, she saw this scarred man fallen face first on the muddy road. She rescued him without even knowing who the man was. And her fate took a different route.

She got approached by none other than Danuj D'. A terrifyingly powerful man who tends to forget these unimportant persons scattered around him like ants. But seems to remember her brother, because what else would be the valid reason for him to keep her in captivity? And that's it. That's what she needed. A way, a light that could lead her towards her brother. She jumped into it without considering the consequences.

She knew from the beginning that she needed to act, she needed to earn his trust to make him spill the beans, to take her to Delhi, to make the way easier for her. She kept on bringing topics related to her brother, just to get something out of him. But nothing happened. He never acknowledged or showed any kind of sign that could tell her that he knew Abhay. She decided to keep on acting until and unless she found any clue. No matter what. There has to be something.

But then she gets to know the man more and more with time. The man who has so many scars all over his body, the man who seems to have an otherworldly level of tolerance, the man who returns home drenched in blood, the man who sneaks into her room only to see if she has fallen asleep properly, the man who cooks for her and keeps the tiniest details about her likes and dislikes inked in his mind, the man who is taking every responsibility of Ashroy and also her father, the man who mumbles things in his sleep and hardly gets to have a sound slumber. Deep down she knows he had a bad past, a horrible past. Did she misunderstood the whole situation?Is she being unfair? Does he truly have nothing to do with her brother? And about the acting she decided to do.... is she acting anymore?

The knocks on her door pulls her back from her thoughts. She looks up to find Nihal standing at the edge of the bed with his hand extended towards her. She slowly hands him the phone. He looks at her furrowing her eyebrows.

"What's wrong V? Is your father okay? Do I need to call Da.." Nihal doesn't get to finish his words.

"No.. no! He is doing okay. I.. I was thinking about a tour of the mansion? What say? " She asks hesitantly.

"Great. Then why ask for the small piece when you can have the big one?" He says pulling her off the bed with her arm.

"Meaning?" She asks.

"Meaning, this is 1200 Acres property. It has a lake of it's own and a huge natural garden." He winks as her jaw drops.

"You're joking." She says, smiling sarcastically.

"You'll see, little V." He says as he drags her down the stairs.

¤¤¤¤¤

The never ending lake surrounds the whole huge mansion. There are stone made benches here and there and so many trees that she couldn't keep a count even if she wanted. So many types of flowers, so many colors that she can't believe her own eyes.

"You see that small cottage like thing over there? That's Danuj's private study. He spends most of his time there. And allows everyone of us." He says as Vasudha looks at him with a blank face.
"Just kidding." He adds poking his tongue out as Vasudha punches his arm lightly.
"He allows no one there, you know. Very surprising." He says, dramatically.

But all she can hear is "He allows no one there? That means he can hide there anything he finds important. He can keep things there and no one will get to know." She thinks to herself.
"No one, except me. Because I have to go there."

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Love, Puja. ❤