Fates Intertwined (Tere Bin AU)

6. Laa Hasil

Murtasim boarded the plane to London. He hoped that Anwar Chacha's address was the same as 5 years ago. Otherwise he would have nowhere to look for Meerab.

As soon as he landed, he went to Anwar Chacha's previous address. Much to his dismay he no longer lived there.

Murtasim searched for Meerab for a whole week looking in libraries and other public places. He even visited universities that allowed visitors unsure of where Meerab studied but that turned out to be a dead end too. Unfortunately London was too big a city for a man to cover by himself.

With bitter disappointment and heavy heart, Murtasim returned to Hyderabad. He decided to go again with a few of his loyal men and search again. However their visa processing would take some time and he needed to wait.

"Nahi mili Meerab?" Maa Begum asked him when he returned.
He shook his head.
"Oh Khudaya meri bachi ki izzat ki hifazat farma."
"Ameen."

Murtasim was back to smoking. Marium had made sure he quit it before she got married but now no one was there to stop him. He didn't have the authority in London that he had in Hyderabad. Otherwise it would have been a piece of cake to find Meerab.
"Uss din agar uss se larne ki jaga mei uss ki bat sun ke usse rok leta tou ye sab na hota. Meri hi ana ne meri muhabbat ko aag lagadi. Mei hi kusoorwar hu Meerab. Tumhari izzat pe anch ayi tou maaf nahi kar sakunga khud ko. Baba tumhara hath mere hath me de ke gaye thy. Un ko kese muh dikhaonga mei." Murtasim buried his face in his hands and sobbed.

---

Meanwhile Meerab was busy with her exams. She was barely getting time to sleep or eat properly, the exams were really tough but she managed to pull through them.
In a few weeks she'd be graduated and could start practicing at a law firm. She wanted to make enough money to go to Hyderabad on her own. Baba would never take her there and she could no longer bear this separation from Murtasim.

After much wait, the day of graduation finally arrived. To her surprise and delight, Baba attended the event and also took her pictures. Maybe, just maybe he had finally realised his love for her, Meerab thought.

Once they were back home, Baba handed her a wooden box. It was a beautiful box that had a unique design carved onto it. It seemed like a jewellery box from the 20th century.
"What is this Baba?" Meerab asked, her eyes filled with curiosity.
"Something that your mother left for you. She had told me that I should give it to you on the biggest day of your life and I thought that your Graduation Day would be perfect for this." Baba actually smiled.
Meerab smiled too, her eyes glistening with tears.

Meerab happily took the box to her room. This was the best gift anyone could give her. Finally a sign of her mother's love for her. She excitedly opened the box to reveal an antique jewellery set.

As she picked up the ornate choker to admire it's beauty, a yellowed piece of paper fell out.
Meerab immediately picked it up and unfolded it. It was a letter addressed to her.

---

Murtasim was leaving again for London accompanied by 4 of his loyal men and Bakhtu. In this long period of time he had visited a dargah multiple times to pray for the safety of his Meerab. He had also prayed that he finds her before she goes into the hands of the Maliks.
Murtasim divided the search party into three so that they could cover as much area as possible within a day. He didn't want to involve the police because Meerab was his izzat but he had decided that if he didn't find her within 3 days, he would seek help from the police.

The first day turned out to be a waste. Murtasim sighed. What if he was already too late? What if Malik Zubair had already taken her? He couldn't sleep with that thought. He decided that it'd be best to cruise around the city and look for Anwar Chacha. If the deal had already gone through then only Anwar Chacha would know the whereabouts of Meerab. If he was unable to locate him then he would certainly take the matter to the police. He wasn't sure about what he'd tell them, but the police were his last hope.

It was 2 pm in the afternoon and he had decided to go to the police when he saw a man who looked very familiar. He was walking on the sidewalk looking tense and worried. As Murtasim went closer, he realised it was Anwar Khan. Almost all of his hair had turned white and he looked very old which is why Murtasim didn't recognise him earlier.

"Chacha ap?" He asked as he went closer to the man.
"Murtasim? Tum yaha kya kar rahe ho?" Anwar was shocked to see his nephew.
"Meerab ko dhoond raha hu. Kya kiya hai uss ke sath ap ne?" Murtasim growled in anger.
"Beta wo aj subah hi ghar se bhag gayi hai. Mei bhi usse hi dhoond raha hu." Anwar replied helplessly.
Murtasim grabbed his collar. "Aesa kya kaha tha ap ne uss se ke wo ghar se bhag gyi. Bhagi bhi hai ya ap apni harkato pe parda dalne ke liye Meerab ke kirdar pe ungli utha rahe hain." Murtasim half shouted.
"Bhag gayi hai wo. Usse koi pasand tha. Shayad ussi ke sath gayi hai."
Murtasim's heart shattered into a million pieces. He didn't want to believe his Chacha because he never trusted him but the pain and worry etched onto his face made Murtasim believe he was telling the truth. Kya waqayi wo kisi ke sath bhag gayi thi? Uss ki muhabbat itni kamzor thi ke uss ne ek bar phir apni Meerab ko kho dya tha? "Jan se maarna chahti thi tou goli chala deti Meerab. Itna tarpane ki kya zaroorat thi?" He said to himself.

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What was written in the letter? Is that the reason Meerab ran away or was Anwar lying? Will Murtasim ever find Meerab or has she already been married to Malik Zubair? I know this chapter has raised a lot of questions and I'll be answering them soon.

Target Votes: 100
For the next chapter.