The Blazing Heiress

21|| The Weeping Night

"In the wild world, there's no more desperate a creature than a human being on the verge of losing love."

- Atticus

***

Kabir observed Viransh's retreating figure striding out of the hallway. Left alone in the desolate corridor, he wrapped his arms around himself, his gaze straying back to the portrait. His doe eyes were disquietingly direct, his thick brows slightly dipping as confusion tightened on his innocuous countenance, mystified by the sudden deviation in Viransh's disposition after staring at the artwork.

Chewing on his bottom lip, he glanced away and barreled in the direction Viransh had left. The cool breeze caressed his hair, the night wind sending an icy chill on his skin as he exited the manor. His face scrunched up in bewilderment when he saw his elder sister rushing behind Viransh, yelling his name, but it appeared as if her cry dwindled on deaf ears as the man didn't acknowledge her presence. However, terror marred the teenager's profile when his hazy eyes caught his sister's frame falling into the water.

"Di." He breathed, a jolt of panic surging up his spine as he tottered toward her. On reaching the hardscape, his dark eyes peered at her deft hands raising in the water aimlessly, struggling to slither up. "Di, hold on. I'll save you."

The loud claps of thunder didn't terrify Avni Desai, nor did the cold rustling winds prickling her skin. She relished raindrops kissing her cheeks and minuscule waves of tumultuous sea grazing her feet, but the raging depth of shallow water intimidated her. She couldn't fathom the deepness and the odd tinkling of the rippling undercurrent underneath the hushed brutalities of the water. Ergo, she never sought to decipher their conundrums, terrified that the tranquil waves would lure her, ebbing her in, except that today, she couldn't scorn its profundity as they tried to engulf her in their nonchalance.

Like his sister, Kabir detested swimming. He scanned around, seeking to unearth something to rescue his sister, before he heard a loud splash of her torso sinking deeper into the bleak water vessel. "Di!" He yelled, dropping to his knees, conscious of the wetness on the frigid surface. "Di!"

His strident cry boomed throughout the quiet atrium, rendering Viransh frozen. The dark-haired tycoon instantly whirled around, the gloomy veil of his fuzzy mind finally receding and his face blanching in an alarming shade as he hastily approached the teenager huddled on the edge of the pool, his trembling voice calling out for aid.

Viransh's heavy footsteps grabbed the young boy's attention, and he stared up. The concerned amber orbs clashed with the oppressed brown ones glistened with unshed tears. "What's wrong?"

Kabir gestured toward the pool, his lower lips wobbling. He swallowed hard, struggling to ease his parched throat. "Avni d-di, she fell into the pool. S-she can't swim." He sniffled between phrases. "Please save her."

Once those words fled past the terrified boy's lips, Viransh discarded his suit jacket and shoes before inhaling deeply, pushing the air down into his lungs and diving into the cold water. He extended his hands in the front, trying to locate her underneath the complete darkness. He came up for the oxygen and brushed off the pessimistic thoughts that slowly dwelled on his mind as he held his breath, wading down again. With a powerful kick, he dipped deep into the water, his hands flying in different directions, and when he felt he couldn't find her, his hands grazed delicate fingers. Like a vice, his fingers locked, touching cold skin, dragging the body toward him and pulling up before he could no longer comfortably hold in the air. Her raven-cloaked head was the first thing he saw, and he quickly drew her against his chest with one arm wound securely around her waist.