CHAPTER 12
Dev stepped into the Intensive Care Unit and looked at Raidu. He no longer had the oxygen mask on his face. It had been a few weeks since he had confirmed that Rana was alive and had drifted back into silence. Anika and Sabitha stood by the bed waiting for Dev.
Dev looked at Anika. “Can he talk?”
Anika nodded.
Dev dialed Abhay’s phone number and put his phone on speaker. Abhay had sent Dev to talk to Raidu while he stayed on his brother’s trail.
“Where is Rana?” Dev’s voice held a plea.
“ I don’t know.” Raidu’s voice was weak.
“You took him from the temple.” Abhay’s voice resonated in the small room even though, he was on the phone.
“Yes, I took him to the orphanage.”
“Why didn’t you bring Rana back?” Dev sounded calm even though he was furious.
“I… I was scared.” Raidu was visibly shaking.
“Why?” Abhay demanded. “You have been with our family for years. What were you scared of?”
“I… let them in… I trusted them and let then into the temple.” Raidu looked at Dev.
“Who?”
“They were the men I grew up with, and they work for the Senanis. They said they wanted to talk to Vijay, and I let them in.”
“What happened?” Abhay’s voice was chillingly calm.
“I… I think I let the man who stabbed your mother into the temple,” Raidu sobbed.
Chills ran through everyone at Raidu’s words.
“Who is it?” Abhay asked softly, and Anika wished she was with her husband at that moment.
“I don’t know, he was with the men I knew, and all I remember is her loud cry. By the time I got to her, she had a knife stuck in her chest and Harshavardhan Prajapathi was holding her.”
“Did my father stab her?” Sabitha’s voice was soft but shaky.
Raidu looked at Sabitha blankly.
“Did Harshavardhan Prajapathi stab my mother?” Dev asked.
“No… no, he was the one who asked me to take Rana and leave,” Raidu said in a shaky voice.
Dev looked at the pale face of his wife but did not say anything.
“I was going to take Rana back to the mansion, but when I saw the explosion from afar, I knew Rani Devasena would slit my throat… I didn’t know what to do…” The older man cried.
“Who stabbed Mum?” Dev asked after a long pause.
“It has to be that man… the man I had not seen before.”
“How did the explosion happen?’ Abhay demanded.
Raidu shook his head. “When I left, the people were slaughtering each other, and I don’t know how the explosion happened.”
“How can we trust you? You ran away with our brother and never came back? What were you hiding?” Dev asked, trying real hard to maintain his calm.
“I was scared. I was burned with guilt… Vijay… I saw Vijay being stabbed… How could I face your grandmother? All I could do was keep Rana safe because I didn’t know what the region would turn into after what happened.”
“Who did you say accompanied the man?” Abhay asked.
“The Senani men. I knew them but not the man who was with them.” Raidu shook his head.
“The Senanis?” Dev scrunched his nose looking at Sabitha.
“Yes, they said they wanted to talk to Vijay so I let them in… I knew them… they were our friends.” The man wailed.
“Raidu… who shot you? Who wants you killed?” Abhay’s voice was soft even on the phone.
“I don’t know, I didn’t see who it was… I entered the hotel room, and I don’t remember what happened.” Raidu shook his head.
“Why did you come to India instead of talking to Abhay?” Dev asked.
“I was worried you would kill me before I could explain.” Raidu shivered.
“Who knew you were at the hotel?” Abhay continued his questioning.
“No one, I don’t know who wanted me killed,” Raidu confessed.
“Who did you contact as soon as you landed?” Dev snarled.
“I… I called Brahma Raja Senani,” Raidu declared.
“Brahma Raja Senani can barely talk, how did you reach him?” Dev asked. The oldest member of the Senani family, once a powerful man could barely move unassisted now.
“He had a person tell me what to do. When I told him I needed his support to tell you and your brother what really happened, he agreed to help me and asked me to meet someone at a certain location. I went to that location the next day, but no one showed up.” Raidu kept weeping.
“Raidu, thank you for saving Rana. Dev, I need to talk to you,” Abhay said, and Dev turned off the speaker. He nodded at the women who stood in silence processing everything and stepped out of the room.
“Abhay, do you think Senanis had something to do with the massacre and why would they want to kill Raidu.”
“Dev, there is more to it but we need to stay on Rana’s search.”
“I agree… did you get more information on the police officer.” Dev asked.
“The name of the police officer who arrested the pig is John Wesley. Find out what you can, and I will try to get as much as I can from the police records,” Abhay instructed Dev. Dev came to the city when Sabitha called to tell him about Raidu. He was going to work with his technology team.
The clue the goon had given Abhay in his anger about how his brother was the reason for his arrest, gave him the next clue.
“How is this police officer going to help us? What about what Raidu told us.”
“This is the man who brought the goon down. I’m sure he’ll know something if Rana was the reason this pig was arrested, and also about Raidu. There is more to know and dig up, but we need to stay on course until we find Rana,” Abhay reasoned.
“Got it. Also, my team is close to generating a new set of images of Rana at different ages, and we will soon start the matching. It’s gonna be a while because we have to comb through tons of images and videos.” Dev was hopeful but also getting impatient.
“We will find him, Dev, we surely will.” Abhay looked at the picture of his youngest brother.
“I know it’s only a matter of when.”
“Any other information on who shot Raidu?” Abhay knew Dev has had multiple teams investigating, and that’s why he suggested he go back to work closely with them.
“I’m sending Sabitha’s team of investigators to find out more about Raidu. I think we should stay on Rana’s trail,” Dev suggested, and his brother agreed.
*****
“Neil, whose house is this?” She stepped into the living room after showering and putting on comfortable clothes.
He looked up from his phone as she walked toward him. He was seated at the dining table and set the phone aside as she put her arms around his neck looking down at him. He slowly wrapped his arms around her waist, her eyes boring into his.
“My friend’s house.”
“Oh…”
“Get comfortable, we are not going anywhere for a few more days. I can’t take the risk of you being recognized. I’ve already messaged Raj about the delay.”
Shock waves passed through her body, and she pulled back to look at him, “What the fuck?”
“What?” He shrugged.
“Really, after last night, you are still talking about taking me to that moron,” her voice blared in the small apartment.
“Narmada… last night…”
She didn’t let him finish. “I will kill you if you tell me it meant nothing.”
He shook his head. “You don’t understand, I am not the man you want.”
“Really, how come you didn’t lecture me last night?” she spat.
He ran his fingers through his hair and turned away from her. She looked at him through angry tears. She stared at him, his back to her, and when she was about to say something, she noticed something on his t-shirt. It was a blob of red, and her eyes widened when she realized it was blood.
“Neil, you are bleeding.” She forgot what they were talking about and how angry she was with him and reached for his t-shirt.
He caught her hand before she could reach for his t-shirt. “It’s nothing.”
“Neil, let me look at it. What happened?” She ripped her hand away from his, and he immediately put his arms around her pinning her hands to her side.
“I need you to calm down so we can talk.”
“Neil, let go. I want to check it,” she growled.
“There’s nothing to check, it’s just a nick,” he assured her, but something about his tone told her he was lying.
“Neil… let me go.” Her voice was calm but firm.
She lifted the hem of his t-shirt and looked at the scars that were etched on his skin. “Who did this to you?”
He pushed her hands away covering his chest.
“Why do you need this life? Why can’t we be together?” She was angry and felt the sting in her eyes.
“Narmada…” he pleaded gently wiping her eyes.
“Why, Neil, after everything you did for me and even after I’ve told you how much I love you, you still talk about taking me to that moron?” She sobbed.
“I have to, I need to. It’s my duty to…”
“Duty to turn me in?” she barked interrupting him.
“My duty is to kill every soul who was behind ending the life of the man who saved me from that hellhole. My duty is the safety of the family of the man who came to become the father I never had,” his voice resonated in her ears.
“What about me? Do you not love me?”
“I got nothing but duty in my life.”
“Liar,” she spat.
He took a deep breath. “I’m not what you want.”
“I know what I want. How do you get to decide what I want?” She seared him with her eyes before turning away from him.
Narmada was devastated, but she was not going to let him see her cry, she was too proud to let him see her cry. He made her feel strong and want to fight back, but all she could think about was to hide in a corner and cry.
She was scrunched in a corner on the floor, her knees pulled into her chest, her eyes burning from the tears she refused to shed when she heard the door opening. She felt his presence in the room moving toward her, but she did not move.
“Narmada.” His voice was soft.
“Go away, I don’t want you here.” She pushed him away.
“I want to talk to you.”
She looked up at him, her eyes blazing. “Really, now you want to talk to me?”
“Yes.” It was a plea.
“Fine, before you tell me what you want to tell me… I need to ask you some questions.”
“Narmada…”
“No, Neil. You can talk to me only if you are responding to my questions.”
“Okay, I will answer anything you ask me if you eat this.” He stuck a bowl of what looked like sautéd mixed vegetables.
“No way… it’s too healthy for me.”
“It’s all I’ve got. Eat, because I know you are pining to ask me questions.”
She quickly took a few bites and put the bowl away. “Okay, how did you get all those scars? I know how you got the one on the side.”
“Some from my training and others while on a job,” he said softly.
“What training?”
He took a deep breath. “The goon… he trained me… trained me to endure pain, and he would from time to time stab me.”
She gasped unable to digest what he told her. “No.”
“As I said, something about you makes me human, feel vulnerable, and I…” his voice trailed off and looked at her blankly.
“Why didn’t you run away?”
“I got stabbed every time I tried to run. The last time I was caught, he told me he would stab my friends. So, I stayed.”
“Who is this idiot, and how did you get out?”
“He is in prison, and he is alive because he is behind bars. I got out of it when I put him behind bars with the help of a police officer.”
“Who is the police officer? Is he the man you talked about?”
“Yes, he was the Deputy Inspector General, and he caught me pulling off a job and took me to the police station.”
“How old were you?”
“Maybe… twelve.”
“What do you mean job?”
“I was out pulling off a job for the deal the goon made with other goons.”
“You started killing people when you were twelve?”
“Do you understand why you don’t need someone like me in your life?” he interjected.
She ignored his comments. “So, what happened?”
“The DIG knocked some sense into me and set me up to work for him in return for getting all the kids in the warehouse freed, and the goon killed or in jail for the rest of his life.” His voice wavered like it was too painful for him to talk.
She looked at him in silence watching him steady his breath before he spoke again.
“Four years, the best time of my life. I finally had a family because the DIG adopted me and took me in as his own. He hired teachers to homeschool me and just when I thought things were looking up… the fucking bastards killed him. They killed him because of me.” He clenched his jaw.
She moved closer to him and hesitantly put her arms around him. Her anger was no match to the pain she saw in his eyes, and it made her stomach clench. “I’m sorry.”
He slowly brought his arms around her. “My hunt for the killers started that day, and I’m still hunting.”
“Why did you come to work as my bodyguard?”
“Three years after the DIG was killed, I had the support and the ability to go after the men who potentially had him killed. The DIG pulled off the biggest bust in the entire police department with the information I got him, and there were too many people who wanted him dead.”
“Why did you kill our neighbor six years ago?” she asked softly taking in the warmth from his embrace.
“He was the head of the snake, and every goon who was arrested worked for him in some form. I knew he was the one the DIG was after so I started with him. I tried to get a job at his house but did not and ended up as your bodyguard.” Holding onto her gave him the strength he needed to keep talking.
“I’m glad you came, Neil. You were my first friend and the reason I still have friends in my life.” She pulled away to look into his eyes.
He went silent on her, and she gave him a few moments before continuing. “Why did you leave?”
“I had to…”
“Why?”
“You were getting too close to me. So close, I forgot what I was there for and ended up staying even after my job was done.” His voice was rough.
“I hated you for leaving without saying goodbye,” she growled.
“I had no choice.”
“Did you get everyone you suspected as the DIG’s killer?”
“I thought I did until I pulled a job for one of Raj’s contacts. He tells me he knows who killed the DIG.” He took a deep breath to steady himself.
“How do you know he is not lying?”
“He showed me proof… a conversation between two people planning the attack on the DIG. I am convinced I got to everyone, but I can’t take a chance…”
“And that’s why it’s important for you to take me to Raj,” she finished for him.
He nodded.
“If you know you got everyone, who else could have done it?” Her voice was a whisper.
“The network that was busted was a worldwide one that had its nucleus here… those bastards may still be out there.” He gritted his teeth.
“How long can you keep doing this?” It was a question he had never asked himself, and it sent a shudder through him when he heard her words.
“I… I don’t know.”
“Are you willing to do this for the rest of your life?”
“If that’s what keeps innocent people safe, I’m okay to do it. I have no one in this world for me, and I can go on.” He sounded angry.
“Neil… you have me, I am yours. Stop this madness because no matter how many people you kill, the man you loved as a father is never coming back.” Her voice was calm yet insistent.
“I can’t…”
“Yes, you can… let me be yours, and I will take away all of your pain.” She gently kissed him on his cheek fighting back the tears.
“I can’t,” he declared roughly and pushed her away. “I can’t walk away from my duty.”
He swiftly got off the floor and started walking away from her.
“Neil… you can go kill every soul out there, but before you tell me you don’t love me, look me in the eye and say it.”
He turned to look at her as she walked to him.
“Say it, and I will do what you want me to do. I will go be Raj’s wife or mistress, thinking about you for the rest of my life.”
“Stop,” he growled.
“I love you enough to last me the rest of my life, and I will do what you want me to do for your duty, but tell me you don’t love me, and I will never discuss this again.”
“I don’t,” he growled looking away from her.
“Look at me and say it to my face. Say you don’t love me and will never think of me again.” Her eyes blazed at him.
Neil could not utter a word. He looked at her hoping she would stop challenging him, but he knew he had no fight left in him when it involved her. She controlled his every thought, every move. She had an invisible grip on him like nothing else.
She was everything he had ever wanted, the only person who saw him for who he was and made him want to kill anyone who came close to hurting her. He couldn’t help but want to be with her, draw the calm she gave him, and find his inner depths.
He gave her a long stare before turning away and leaving the room.
A sly smile formed on her face when she realized she still had hope. She was going to take advantage of being close to him, to get close to him, the next few days.