Chapter 30 | Him
Divit is nervous for the first time in my life, which to be honest is scaring me for real.
Last night our crypto got sabotaged along with all the hard work that we did on the stupid website to make sure she was matched only to me. And that’s not something that has happened like ever. Someone has superior skills; the sooner we accept this, the easier it will be to understand who exactly is behind all of this.
But of all the horrible things that we did, one woman could make us lose our shit... I never thought I’d see the day.
Disha sits cowering in the corner of the fluffiest couch in my living room, legs folded, arms crossed in front of her chest and with the expression of a terrified child just after a jump scare.
“Are you going to tell us anything or are we here for a staring contest D?” Divit says, huffing a pained breath. The humor is still there even after a night full of bloody garbage.
“The bastard by the way had such a good percentage of hemoglobin in his blood, it was sad we had to chop him. Was wondering if you’d want some. You know... the ritual and all...” He does a hand motion for smearing the blood on his face, finally drawing a reaction from Disha as she scrunches her eyebrows before speaking. “Gross!”
And all of us burst into laughter. Finally, she looks stable enough to talk.
I walk over to sit beside her and brush my hand down her wet hair warmly before resting it on her damp shoulder. “Are you okay baby... ready to talk?”
“Yes. I’m... ready,” She smiles at me weakly.
I smile back before signaling the others, pulling them in.
“So... where should I begin?” She clears her throat, to which Divit and Rayan crack a chuckle.
“Are you going to sing for us now...?” Rayan, the bastard speaks amusingly.
“Why are you guys making her uncomfortable? Back off and listen.” Mira comments on their silly behavior before turning to look at Disha, “What were you saying sweetie? Actually, begin from the threat... He threatened you I heard...?”
“Yeah...” D cracks her knuckles nervously, “He said I had twelve hours before they come and abduct me from my place, I guess. He might not be knowing I am here. Right?” Finishing that sentence, she flashes a questioning look at me.
“This place is quite safe, even the localities do not visit this end of the forest. There’s hardly anybody who would have ever seen this place. Plus, thanks to the thick tree line in this area, the house doesn’t show up on maps.” I tell her making my grip on her shoulder tighten just a little bit for reassurance.
“What did he look like?” Yuvraj speaks taking everybody’s attention to him.
Disha zones out, probably trying to remember, before continuing, “He was tall... like very tall even in the winged chair he sat in. All black suit... Almost our parents’ age. And he was snorting something that was definitely not normal.”
Even with all this mess around us, it’s hard to ignore just how adorable she looks doing those hand motions.
“He was wearing this mask that covered only half of his face. And judging by the lower section of his face, and also the accent, he seemed Slavic. Although I can’t be sure of the exact ethnic origin, but they talk with that kind of accent.”
Taksh’s brows furrow in confusion, “How do you know that?”
“Because, I’ve worked with people from that part of the world. Our clients are people from all around the world.” She pauses before remembering something, “In fact, my manager is a Russian.”
“Is she?” Divit cocks an eyebrow, knowing filling up his features. I know what he is thinking and I’m thinking about it too.
“Yeah, she joined only a few months ago. The weird thing about her was that she was looking at me like she had known me from somewhere, and even commented about having seen me somewhere. While I clearly remember seeing her for the first time.” She concedes, clearly confused.
“Last night this man told me that he knew my father. He told me that he knew where my family lived, and threatened me to send them a tape... the club tape.” She looks at me with an ashamed expression on her face, which is frankly pissing me off.
What’s there to be ashamed of?I give her the look, which she downright ignores.
“Holy smokes! You have a tape?” Mira’s eyes dancing like a ping pong ball from my eyes to hers. “How can you be so irresponsible Naksh?”
I wink and control my smirk, making her glare at me before coming over and comforting her, “Don’t worry, sweetie. We’re all going to work a way out of this.”
Wish I could tell her that I am hardly sorry for the tape thing. In fact, I have my own copy, which I love watching in my spare time quite a lot. Every one of our sweet love-making to be exact.
“Is it up on the site? Gimme the address...” Divit says, drawing angry stares from everyone around.
“Dude, it’s not funny.” Taksh signals Divit to stop.
“But I am not trying to crack a joke here. I want to know if we need to take it down. Aren’t you people ready to work a way out of this. Or are we going to sit and listen and gossip like aunties in front of the television?” Divit says.
“I’ll assist you through it... We’ll get through this, right?” The anxiety behind those words is obvious, but that will be taken care of now. No one can touch her hair here in this place.
My gaze drifts from her eyes to her lips tracing the same path over and over again, spreading a heat, my veins have been craving for days.
Yuvraj’s voice breaks my trance, “It’s wild to see you blush dude... never thought we’d see the day.” He nudges Rayan before realizing what he just did; and then both of them start averting their gaze.
Douches!I laugh.
AT ABOUT ONE IN THEafternoon, I find her panicking in my room again. Pacing back and forth, checking her phone. Terrified.
“Are you okay? Did something happen?” I rush over to her grabbing her by the arms gently enough to stop the motion.
“He texted me. He texted me, Nakul. How does he have my number? I threw the sim they gave me back in my bedroom. This one was always switched off when I logged in. How does he know about this one?” She breaks down into tears again, “What have I done Nakul? How will I get out of this mess?”
I wrap her into my arms, making her sit on the bed, “Show me the message.” I demand.
She points towards the phone like touching it will send the bastard a signal that she’s still listening. I unlock and read the text from a private number. Looks untraceable for general people... for us it’s just stupid.
Unknown: Your time is up, sweetheart! I see you don’t want to part with me so easily. Non-compliance it is then! It’s going to be so much more fun now. Hide wherever you please. My men are going to drag you here as soon as you come out of your rathole. I’ll be waiting for you, Rose. P.S. Do not come out, or what happens next won’t be my fault.”
The text is scary for someone not exactly acquainted to the brutal realities of the world. She must have looked like an easy prey, maybe that’s why they’re targeting her. If it was Mira in her place, she would’ve kicked this old hag’s ass already. But she’s not Mira.
I put the phone away and take her hands in mine, “What makes you think I’d be letting you out of my sight for one single moment baby. No one gets to hurt you except me. Remember?”
I lower my voice down to a whisper, closing my distance, “And no one gets to love you... I’m lost, baby. I’m a sinner, and I’m lost. I need salvation... and you are it for me. Do you think I could let someone take my salvation away from me?”
I watch as she gets comfortable between my arms, our lips merely inches apart, “Your love torments my soul, it burns on your touch. And I am here to serve my penance. Because this fire is holy... my soul is healing in it. I don’t just want you, muffin. I need you... with every ounce of my existence.”
The way her eyes are searching mine, like she wants to dive inside my soul looking for answers to the questions she never managed to put to words; my own eyes drowning in hers, to depths I never want to recover back from.
But very slowly, her breathing shortens as the look in her eyes changes slowly into a state of fear. “Nakul, your eyes... he had your eyes...” She whispers breathlessly.
For two seconds, my mind numbs remembering the only other person I’d been cursed to know. It can’t be him! He doesn’t know where I am.
“I haven’t met many people in my life with these... but I’m sure there are many others out there. It’s a weird coincidence. Don’t give heed to it.”
But I’ll have to look more closely into it. Can’t take chances with my muffin. Especially not if there’s even the slightest bit of chance that it could be Satan himself.
“Nakul, he also said he knew you... and that you wouldn’t have a problem with all this if you learned about everything. He was confident that you wouldn’t mind leaving me be. What would he be talking about?”
My eyes widen for a micro second at the possibility. Of the few things that I regret the most in this life... is getting to be in the company of the only grey eyed man that I’ve known apart from the one in the mirror. And if it really is him – then this time – he’ll have the courtesy to die at my hands.
He destroyed me... he’s not touching my muffin. If it’s really him that is... Could it be him?
“I do not know what that must mean right now. But I can assure you sweetheart, there’s nothing in this world that would make me abandon you. Not even your will. You’ll be here...” I place her palm on my chest, “For eternity... No less if not more. And that’s a promise.”
She eases instantly, like that reassurance was all that she needed. But that’s a lie. It’s not all she needs now.
She needs protection... heavy protection.
And if it’s the man that came to my mind, she might need way more than that.
I control my own anxiety pulling her in, as my fingers comb her hair lightly. In this moment I know, even if the earth stops rotating or the world goes aflame, it wouldn’t matter as long as she’s this close to me.
I’ve lost everything to that monster. I’m not losing her!