CHAPTER 20
“Ram Prasad!” Kashish screamed, cradling Rudra Raheja’s head in her trembling hands. He lay unconscious, blood still seeping from his chest. Panic surged through her as she desperately tried to keep calm. Ram Prasad came rushing into the room, his eyes wide with shock.
“Rudra Bhaiya? What happened to him?”
“Call the doctor! Just call the doctor!” Kashish shouted frantically.
He fumbled for his phone and quickly called Dr. Sen, their family doctor. After explaining the emergency, he hung up and hurried to help Kashish. Together, they carefully moved Rudra to the bed. Kashish tore her dupatta, tying it tightly around his chest in an attempt to slow the bleeding until the doctor arrived.
“Where is everyone?” Kashish asked, her voice shaking.
“Daadiji’s at the Satsang, and Shekhar Bhaiya and Anjali Bhabhi haven’t returned from her mother’s house yet,” he replied, his hands still trembling.
Kashish’s mind raced. She didn’t want anyone else to know about Rudra’s condition until the doctor had seen him. Her heart pounded with fear as she glanced at the knife lying on the floor, still stained with Rudra’s blood.
Ram Prasad, visibly shaken, noticed the knife as well. “Th-that knife... What should I do with it?” he stammered, barely able to speak.
Kashish stared at the knife, her stomach churning with dread. The very sight of it made her sick. What if it had pierced deeper, into his heart? He could have died. Cold sweat formed on her forehead, and just as she was about to instruct him to hide the knife, Daadi stormed into the room.
She had returned from the Satsang, eager to give Rudra the Prasad, but the sight before her made her blood run cold. Seeing her grandson bleeding and unconscious on the bed, with Kashish’s dupatta tied around his chest, Daadi’s face twisted with horror. The Puja plate clattered to the floor as she rushed to Rudra’s side.
“Rudra? What happened? What happened to him?” she screamed, her voice filled with anguish.
Ram Prasad stood frozen, unsure of how to respond, while Kashish struggled to find her words. How could she explain what had happened? Would Daadi even believe her? Would she understand that she never meant to harm Rudra so cruelly?
“Call the doctor!” Daadi yelled.
“I’ve already called, Daadiji,” he responded, his voice barely steady. “He’s on his way.”
As Daadi’s eyes scanned the room, they locked onto the blood-stained knife in the corner. Her face turned white with fury, and a dangerous suspicion crept into her gaze. She turned sharply toward Kashish, her voice trembling with rage.
“You... you stabbed him, didn’t you?” she accused, her voice shaking with uncontainable fury.
Kashish’s heart sank. Stabbed? That wasn’t how it happened. But how could she make Daadi understand? Could she even explain the truth right now?
“Daadi, I didn’t—” Kashish began, her voice faltering.
Before she could finish, Daadi pushed her hard that made Kashish stumble.
“Call the police, Ram Prasad! Call them now! This girl tried to murder my grandson,” Daadi shouted, her voice breaking with rage and fear.
Ram Prasad hesitated. He knew how much Kashish despised Rudra, but could she really have gone this far? He didn’t want to believe it. Yet, under Daadi’s orders, he shakily dialed the police.
Kashish stood in shock. How had things spiraled out of control so quickly?
“Daadi, please... listen to me. I didn’t stab him. Yes, the knife was in my hand, but—”
“Don’t say another word!” Daadi interrupted, her voice sharp with disgust. “I know exactly what happened. You knew Rudra was alone in the house, so you seized the opportunity to kill him. Don’t think I don’t know how much you hate him! You’ve hated him for years, and now you’ve finally done what you always wanted—murder him in cold blood.”
Tears filled Kashish’s eyes as the weight of Daadi’s words crushed her spirit. How could she convince Daadi of the truth? Would anyone believe her?
The police arrived just as the family doctor did. Dr. Sen immediately began treating Rudra, while Daadi tearfully recounted her suspicions to the officers. They confiscated the knife, now sealed as evidence, still coated in Rudra’s blood. Kashish’s heart sank further. Her world was crumbling around her, her life spiraling into chaos in the blink of an eye.
“Daadi, I didn’t mean to hurt him... please don’t do this,” Kashish pleaded, her voice choked with emotion.
“Didn’t mean to?” Daadi sneered. “Look at him, Kashish. He’s lying there, unconscious and bleeding. Isn’t that proof enough of your intentions?”
“I swear, I didn’t do this,” Kashish screamed, her voice breaking with desperation. But Daadi refused to listen. She turned her back on Kashish, rushing to Rudra’s bedside while the police escorted Kashish out of the room.
****************
“Shekhar!” Daadi cried out as soon as he rushed into the room, two hours after the incident.
Rudra lay still, unconscious on the bed, but the doctors had managed to stop the bleeding. Daadi immediately wrapped her arms around Shekhar, her voice trembling with panic. Anjali followed, her face pale with concern.
“Shekhar, look at what happened to our Rudra! That girl... that snake stabbed him while we weren’t here! I should never have left them alone,” Daadi sobbed, her voice filled with grief and anger.
Shekhar couldn’t believe it. Kashish... stab Rudra? It was impossible.
“Kashish?” he muttered, trying to make sense of it. “Daadi, no, there has to be some mistake. Kashish could never do something like this.”
Daadi’s eyes flared with fury.
“Mistake? You think Rudra lying here unconscious, bleeding, is some misunderstanding? Shekhar, I’ve seen enough. That girl deserves to be punished.”
Anjali quickly intervened, trying to calm her.
“Daadi, please sit down. You’ll make yourself sick. Come, sit,” she urged, guiding Daadi to the recliner. Shekhar, desperate for answers, turned to Dr. Sen.
“Doctor, is he alright? Has the bleeding completely stopped?”
Dr. Sen nodded; his expression serious. “Yes, thankfully we managed to stop the bleeding in time. If I’d arrived even ten minutes later, Rudra’s condition would have been much more critical.”
Shekhar exhaled in relief. “When will he wake up?”
“He’s under heavy sedatives. By tomorrow morning, he should regain consciousness,” Dr. Sen assured him.
Though relieved, Shekhar couldn’t shake the unease gnawing at him. Where was Kashish? He glanced back at Daadi.
“Daadi, where is Kashish?”
Daadi’s expression turned cold. “Where she belongs. We’ve nurtured a poisonous snake all these years, Shekhar. She never cared for the love and efforts we gave her. She’s betrayed this family.”
“Daadi, please. Just tell me where she is,” Shekhar asked, his voice tightening with worry.
“Where do you think?” Daadi spat bitterly. “She’s in police custody. I handed her over myself.”
Anjali and Shekhar froze, the weight of Daadi’s words hitting them like a punch. Without a moment’s hesitation, Shekhar dashed out, racing to the police station.
****************
Kashish sat in silence on a cold, hard bench, surrounded by officers who bombarded her with endless questions. Tears streamed down her face, her throat constricted with pain. The accusations hung over her like a dark cloud—attempted murder of Rudra Raheja. But her mind was elsewhere, haunted by the memory of his anguished words, the way he had laid bare his suffering, his guilt, his desperation. He had begged her to end his life if it would bring her peace. And now, everything was spiraling out of control.
Inspector Kadam, the senior officer, dismissed the others and took a seat across from her. He studied her with weary eyes.
“Miss Bedi, if you stay silent, we won’t get anywhere. Savitri Raheja has filed a formal complaint against you for stabbing Rudra Raheja. We’ve sent the knife for forensic analysis. If your fingerprints are on it, a full charge will be filed. Do you understand what that means?”
Kashish’s lips remained sealed. She didn’t respond, barely even registering his words. Kadam sighed in frustration.
“Alright. We’ll wait for the forensic report,” he said, rising from his seat and walking away.
Kashish felt nothing. Just emptiness. Her entire body trembled as she tried to process the storm swirling around her. Rudra was the only one who knew the truth. But he was unconscious, unable to help her, trapped in his own torment.
Suddenly, she heard Shekhar’s voice from across the station. He was arguing with the officers, desperate to see her. After a few minutes, he rushed into the room, his face etched with worry.
“Kashish!” he called out, horrified by the sight of her behind bars. “How could they bring you here? I know you didn’t do this. You’d never harm anyone, not physically.”
But Kashish didn’t say a word. She stayed cold, distant, her mind consumed by Rudra’s confession—his pain, the torment he had endured as a 16-year-old boy, falsely accused and abused. The thought of him being molested, starved, and treated like a criminal haunted her. He had begged for redemption, but all she had done was push him further into the abyss.
Shekhar gripped her arm, trying to reach her. “Kashish, please. Tell me what happened? How did Rudra end up like this? Why won’t you say anything?”
But Kashish remained frozen, trapped in her own thoughts, her soul aching at the thought of Rudra’s suffering. She couldn’t speak. She couldn’t relive the nightmare. She just couldn’t.
******************
Few Hours Later
“Don’t hate me... don’t,” Rudra Raheja whimpered in his sleep, his voice fragile and broken. Daadi, sitting beside him, gently stroked his hair, her heart heavy with worry.
“Rudra... it’s alright, you’re safe now,” she whispered, trying to pull him from the dark clutches of his nightmare. But Rudra remained trapped, wrestling with his dream, lost in a haunting memory. Daadi shook him harder, and finally, his eyes fluttered open, though his body trembled from the lingering effects of the dream.
It was one of those nightmares again. The ones that had tormented him for years—where he saw that 13-year-old Kashish, her face twisted in anger, hurling stones at him, screaming how much she hated him. No matter how fast he ran, no matter how desperately he called out, she always slipped further away. He could never reach her.
“Rudra... I’m right here,” Daadi soothed, caressing his cheek. Slowly, the present began to settle in. He saw the doctor standing next to his bed, Daadi’s teary eyes fixed on him, and Anjali silently weeping in the corner. His chest throbbed painfully beneath the bandage, and his heart skipped a beat as the memory of Kashish surfaced—how he had collapsed in front of her after baring his deepest wounds.
“Kashish... where’s Kashish?” he asked, his voice weak, turning to Daadi.
“She’s being... taken care of. You need rest, Rudra. Please lie down,” Daadi tried to divert him.
“Taken care of?” Rudra’s voice rose, a sharp edge cutting through the room. “What do you mean by that?”
The nurses began checking his vitals, but he shoved them away, urgency overtaking him.
“Where is Kashish, Daadi? I want to see her, now!” he demanded, his desperation palpable.
Anjali, unable to hold back any longer, blurted out the truth.
“The police... they took her. She’s being charged with attempting to murder you, Rudra.”
Rudra’s entire body froze. Murder? Kashish didn’t hurt him—she didn’t do anything. Rage and guilt flooded through him.
“She didn’t do anything!” he shouted, tossing the duvet aside and struggling to get up. Daadi tried to stop him, but Rudra pushed past her.
“Rudra, please, you’re still injured!” Daadi pleaded, but he ignored her, his focus solely on Kashish.
“Why did you let them take her, Daadi? She’s innocent!” he cried, his voice breaking. His own actions had put Kashish in this mess, and now he had to fix it. Weak and unsteady, he stumbled toward the door, grabbing his phone from the bedside. The doctors tried to restrain him, but Rudra was beyond reasoning. Nothing could stop him.
“Mohan, get the car!” he barked, and his loyal driver raced to obey.
Anjali quickly dialed Shekhar, who had already left the police station but was shocked to hear that Rudra, despite his condition, was heading there himself to save Kashish.
Despite Daadi’s desperate pleas, Rudra refused to listen. He slipped into the car, with the need to get Kashish out of the hellhole he had caused.
In 15 minutes, they reached the police station. Rudra staggered out of the car, supported by sheer determination, and his lawyer, Roy, joined him at the entrance. Without wasting time, Roy headed straight to the senior officials while Rudra scanned the station. His heart clenched painfully when he saw Kashish through a glass window, sitting alone in a room, surrounded by officers who relentlessly questioned her. She looked distant, drained—an image that tore him apart.
“Kashish,” he called out. For the first time in hours, her eyes met his and she was relieved to see him fine.
Her gaze locked onto his, disbelief etched on her face that despite his condition he came all the way here. For her. Rudra’s heart pounded, his guilt suffocating him. He had dragged her into this, into a situation she never deserved. But now, he was here to pull her out of it. Without saying a word, he reached her, grabbed her arm, and began walking her out of the room. She didn’t resist, didn’t protest. She followed him silently.
The senior officer blocked their path.
“Mr. Raheja, you can’t just take her. She’s being charged with attempted murder.”
“She didn’t do anything!” Rudra growled, his voice cutting through the officer’s words like steel.
“But the forensic report shows her fingerprints on the knife,” the officer countered.
“And you’ll find my fingerprints on it too! I’m telling you, she didn’t harm me,” he replied with unshakeable conviction.
“But... Savitri Raheja filed the complaint herself.”
“Drop it. My lawyer will handle the formalities. I’m taking her with me,” Rudra stated with finality.
Without waiting for another word, Rudra dragged Kashish out of the station and towards the car. When he opened the door for her, she stood still, staring at him as if trying to decipher his every move, his every intention. His patience was thin.
“Get in!” he barked, his tone sharp, desperate.
Her expression remained unreadable, but he didn’t have time for hesitation. He grabbed her arm, guiding her into the car with gentle force, then slid in beside her. As Mohan drove them back towards the Raheja Mansion, Rudra’s mind whirled with the weight of everything that had just happened, and the haunting realization that Kashish had endured this all because of him.