Present…

 

Nina shuddered in the darkness.

She tried to fight away the waves of panic and dizziness once again. She squeezed her eyes shut, breathing in and out, hoping she was having a nightmare.

But a part of her knew it was real. And she had no choice but to figure out a way to get out of the situation.

Who could have possibly kidnapped her and why?

There were endless possibilities. But one of the primary reasons could be money. It usually was. She was the wife of a rich and powerful man. Holding her for a ransom could be very lucrative.

Nina hoped that was the case, because it would mean that if all the demands were met, she could still go back to her life with only a few scratches and wounds.

But what if it wasn’t a kidnap for ransom? What if someone wanted her either dead or badly hurt?

Her first suspect was her father-in-law. He had threatened her way too many times, saying he’d get rid of her and get his son remarried to a more suitable woman. A woman who could give him grandchildren.

Nina’s heart thudded in panic, because that would mean, she would not be left alive.

But logic or maybe it was just wishful thinking that said if it was indeed her father-in-law, then why wouldn’t he have her murdered right away and make it appear like an accident, rather than plan a kidnap?

Anything could go wrong with a kidnap.

The same logic held true if Harika wanted Nina gone from Suraj’s life. But Harika loved Suraj too much to torment him with his wife’s kidnap. A grieving husband was much better than a husband filled with hope of his wife’s possible return.

It may or may not be any of them.

There was another possibility, too. Some of the minority leaders held a considerable threat to Suraj. His office had received several threatening calls, and some of the newspapers had also covered articles where a few of the leaders had openly threatened Suraj’s safety.

One of the main reasons why Suraj had recently increased the security.

Then another reason of her kidnap loomed in her mind, jolting her.

No. It’s not possible. Not after so many years. Why would anyone come after me now, after nearly a decade?

Nina refused to even think of the possibility. Instead she thought of her husband. Suraj must be sick with worry. She was sure he found out by now that she was taken and must have begun searching for her. Nina badly wished she could ease his worry.

Groaning due to the slight queasiness that still remained, Nina tried to get comfortable. At least as much as being blindfolded and bound allowed her to. The bed made creaking noises each time she moved.

Where am I?

She knew it was sometime during the day because of the sounds of birds and insects coming from the outside. The sounds were quite loud and combined with the lack of sounds of vehicles or people talking, she knew she wasn’t anywhere close to her home. In fact, the clean and sweet smelling air also indicated she was quite far from the city.

The entire side of her body felt numb due to the lack of blood circulation. She tried to stir again, but she was tied too tight.

She froze when she heard voices and then sounds of approaching footsteps. Multiple footsteps.

There was more than one person.

Nina tried to keep her breathing even, although panic was overtaking her. God, let them be kidnappers and not murderers, she prayed.

The door opened and soon rough hands grabbed her and made her sit upright. The blindfold was untied, and then the ties around her hands and legs were cut. Nina flinched as circulation returned to her blood. It felt as though thousands of tiny needles were pricking her. She resisted the urge to curl down on the bed. Instead, she rubbed her arms and legs to ease the pain.

After a few moments, when the pain became bearable, she slowly looked up.

Her eyes first fell on the view outside a window. There was an endless stretch of dense tall green trees. She couldn’t see any other houses around.

With her heart thudding, she turned to the side and looked at her captors—masked captors. They had plain white masks covering their faces which exposed their eyes and part of their nose and mouth.

There were two of them. One was a bearded, possibly middle-aged or an old man with gray hair. He appeared anxious, since he was shifting slightly while holding a bottle in his hand. The other man was younger with thick, dark hair.

As soon as she saw both of them, Nina knew they weren’t the one who had drugged her and kidnapped her. These men were slightly shorter. Different from the tall man.

The older man stepped forward and held out the bottle to her. Nina hoped it was water and reached for it gratefully since she felt too dehydrated. Twisting the cap, she tipped the bottle up and took a gulp. She rinsed her mouth before chugging in the rest of the water in the bottle. Her stomach protested and threatened to push back the contents, but determined, she continued to gulp all the water.

After she finished, she looked at her kidnappers. “Who are you?” she asked. “Why was I brought here?”

There was no response.

“Is it money? You are holding me ransom for my husband’s money?”

The older man shifted uneasily. “Ma’am, please—”

“We don’t owe her an explanation,” the younger man cut in. “By the end of it, she’s most likely going to end up dead anyway.”

Listening to the man’s words, cold fear slid through her veins.