Love Around Law

Chapter 12

"Sir Ji I have send two Constables to Shivaji lane in civil dress, as per your instructions. And we are keeping an eye on Neil Kashyap as well. As mentioned by Hakim, Amey Kolapuri and Bhav Kamat are not in Mumbai but men are searching for them," says  Head Inspector Chaudhry. Sidharth looks at Chaudhry and asks "Do you have any pictures of Neil Kashyap?"
"Yes Sir, the constables have captured quite a few pictures of him in college and they have kept a track of him outside his house too. Men have been disguised and they are keeping a strict eye on him." Chaudhry hands him an envelope which has the pictures. Neil Kashyap is a tall boy about 5 feet 11 inch height and has a lean body. In the pictures he is seen smoking while sitting on his bike, he is seen with some girls and he is seen near a liquor shop. Sidharth takes another picture in his hand and his eyes are fixed at the picture.

'Shehnaaz?' He questions himself after finding her picture with Neil. His blood boils imagining Shehnaaz with Neil. Though it has not been proved whether Neil is a criminal or not, but he was the step brother of Amey Kolapuri, the man who is accused by another criminal Hakim. 'Shehnaaz might be with someone who could harm her', Sidharth thought. He was concerned for her safety. But a part of him suspected her too. He is a police officer, he should not let emotions affect his case. 'Should I call Shehnaaz for an interrogation?..Maybe Neil and her are college friends, I am just overthinking. But Shehnaaz is somehow related to the case...is she a part of this case? Or is she a victim? Or is this just a coincidence? '
Seeing Sidharth staring at the same picture for so long makes Chaudhry suspicious. "Sir? Is everything ok?" It takes a moment for Sidharth to answer."Hm" comes his short reply.

"Sir we will leave for the meeting with the Principal Miss Jaiswal in half an hour. The meeting is in two hours. As you said I have collected the details of Kanika, which I could. We can request Miss Jaiswal to show the admission forms of Kanika so that we can get her details and contact her," says Constable Deshmukh. Sidharth nods and says "Chaudhry and Deshmukh I want you all to accompany me. As soon as we get the details of Kanika's location we will go to her place." Deshmukh looks at Sidharth's phone vibrating. He read the name, 'Shehnaaz.' Both Deshmukh and Chaudhry have been observing that he was avoiding all the calls from his family, including Shehnaaz. They did not know who Shehnaaz was, but they knew he was she was important to her. They had seen Sidharth speaking to her  while he was hospitalized due to typhoid. Chaudhry gains the courage to say "Sir Ji your phone is ringing." Sidharth looks at his phone and immediately switches it off saying in a stern voice "Get ready for the meeting."

Sidharth was infuriated and concerned at the same time after seeing the picture of Shehnaaz with Neil. He walks towards the secluded corner of the police headquarter buildings and lights his cigarette. He takes a smoke and shuts his eyes. 'I need to talk to Shehnaaz before drawing conclusions.' He was about to switch on his phone and talk to her when a constable calls him saying that someone is calling her. Sidharth walks towards his cabin when he sees a woman in police uniform standing there. Her hair neatly tied in a bun. He smells a strong cinnamon perfume and he instantly recognizes the smell. He walks towards the woman and faces her. She is has a round face with a perfect physique. She is a year or two older than Sidharth. She looks in his eyes are says with a smile "You haven't changed Shukla." Her voice reminded him of the thousands of memories which he had kept securely deep in his heart. Unable to say anything Sidharth restlessly asks "A..re y..ou ok...ay?" The woman forwards her hands and says "Hello ACP Sidharth Shukla. I am Inspector Akriti Goenka. Nice to meet you." Her voice had a certain kind of authority, which gave Sidharth to get back and grip the reality. He realised the environment in which he is. He firmly forwards his hand and says in a professional tone, "Hello Inspector Goenka. Welcome to the headquarters. Good to see you."

Sidharth gets down from the car, Chaudhry and Deshmukh join him as well. He switches on his phone and finds missed calls of Shehnaaz. He looks at Chaudhry and Deshmukh and tells them to wait for him in the car. He starts walking and calls Shehnaaz. She answers the calls within a few seconds.
"Sidharth tu theek hai? Why was your phone switched off?"
"Shehnaaz...can you...can you come outside your college now? I am a few minutes away from your college." Shehnaaz senses that he had to say something important so without further arguing she tells him to send the location.