Broken but Alive

12

  Vikram and Aditya was with Shraddha at Aditya's office. They wanted to get rid of the unannounced enemy, Sidharth Mishra. The only way to find out who he was, was to wait until he showed up. One thing was sure, if Aaryan and Kiara were together, Shraddha would pay the price. But the men were not ready to give up on her. The employees thought Aditya Mehra was having an official meeting with the business man Vikram Kapoor, and they wondered who the woman with Vikram was. They didn't have a specific plan but made sure Shraddha wasn't left alone if she stepped outside her house. They hid the name Sidharth Mishra from the others, confident enough that they could handle him, without knowing the power of the enemy.

Sidharth Mishra, a smart hacker, a white hat and a black hat in one. He was intelligent, good looking, and a part of many illegal activities for certain dangerous people, at the same time helped the government whenever they needed him, in a secret identity. A lone wolf, that was him. Money was his God. He had enough but never stopped making more. He had everything in the world except a family. An angry young man. Kind to those who are  good to him and evil to those who are not. Those who knew him closely, never knew him completely, but only what he chose to show them. He was an angel but also the fallen one. Somewhere down the road, he saw a glimpse of a beautiful woman, Kiara. He tracked her down and all information about her was in his hands. He had fallen deeply for her and couldn't bear to see her with another man. Everyday, he scrolled through her photographs on her Instagram and also some which he had personally taken whenever he had crossed paths with her. Even though he loved her so much, he was not a stalker. He wanted to be true to her and his love. The only thing left to do was let her know but it was already too late. He knew he was in love with her before the other guy was.

Aaryan, Alia and Shraddha was around the table along with their parents, who seemed to be happy after meeting Ranbir and his parents. Meena couldn't stop talking out of her excitement.

"Such a wonderful boy and what a friendly family. Alia, you chose the right man".

"Thanks ma", Alia blushed.

"I was wondering, why not Alia and Aaryan get married together. Kiara loves him so why would we keep it for later?", Meena told her suggestion.

There was a smile on everyone's face, except Shraddha. She immediately stood up.

"Shraddha, you don't want that?" asked Aaryan.

"No bhaiyya", she nodded.

"Who wants her opinion. We know what's best for our children. Shraddha, don't be jealous of your siblings. You couldn't find anyone, its your fault. So don't blame them", Meena began disliking her youngest.

"Meena, I don't understand your problem with shraddha but stop accusing her for everything", Sharma scolded his wife.

"Shradds, if you don't like it, we'll not marry on the same day", Aaryan said gently holding her hand.

She texted, unaware of what to do.

"Its not about the same day, its about you marrying Kiara", he read out loud. "Shraddha, what's wrong in me marrying her? Why would you say that?"

"I need some time. Its all happening so fast".

"Fine, take your time but I hope you'll be on my side", Aaryan said unhappy about her.

"I'm always on your side. Please try and understand bhaiyya".

"I cannot Shraddha, there's always something with you", he said and walked away to his room, leaving the food at the table.

"Aaryan please finish your food", Alia who was done with her dinner, took  Aaryan's plate and followed him to the room.

"Shraddha, sit down and finish your dinner", Sharma said. 

She sat down, lost in thoughts. She was suffocating without being able to talk to anybody about the real reason why.  She didn't feel like eating either. 

"How can you support her when she's against everything good that happens in this family. I cannot accept this behavior. Maybe she needs therapy. I'm disappointed with you Shraddha", Meena walked away.

"Papa...", her helpless eyes called out to her father.

"I know beta. Don't worry. I'm there for you", he assured her and her eyes welled up.

Shraddha exchanged rooms with Alia because she wanted to be alone. She was  lying down on the bed, staring at the ceiling. Hours passed, it was dark as the lights were turned off and the eerie silence filled the atmosphere. She heard a noise outside her window, which was not loud enough to wake everyone up. Shraddha opened the window to check what it was. A man dressed in a  black hoodie with a black mask and gloves jumped inside the bedroom, through the window. He held Shraddha tight, covering her mouth, standing so close to her face. His eyes scared her to death. She was already terrified but his grip was firm enough to not let her move an inch. She stayed silent.

"Hello Shraddha", he spoke in his deep voice. 

She recognized the voice and struggled to fight but he was big and strong. He pushed her to the bed tying up her hands and legs. 

"Remember when I said, we shouldn't meet again? You thought I was incapable of being a man of my word huh? Its time to show you what hell feels like. Say goodbye to your home". 

She let out her feeble voice as loud as she could even though she knew she had no voice. She tried pleading with her tied up palms but he wasn't kind enough to show her mercy. He grabbed her up on his shoulder and jumped outside from the window, closing it from outside, leaving no trace of entering the house.

Alia came to her room to get ready before leaving for work. Surprised to see the bed empty and neat like nobody had slept in. She checked the bathroom and looked outside the window but Shraddha was nowhere to be seen. She ran to her sibling and parents.

"Has anyone seen Shraddha? She's not in my room!"

"What do you mean, she never wakes up early. I didn't see her this morning", Aaryan confirmed. "Papa, Ma?"

"Something's wrong beta, she was not happy last night. I sense something wrong", their father was worried. "Meena, you need to stop being so rude and harsh on her. I've warned you so many times", he shouted.

"What did I do, I'm equally worried for her", Meena replied.

"Why would you be? You never value her when she is around".

"Papa, Ma, please don't fight. This is about Shraddha, she can't even ask for help if she's in trouble. We need to find her. We'll let them know and go looking for her. She'll be fine. Alia call Ranbir and Aditya. I'll call Vikram and Kiara".

"Okay Aaryan, lets go looking for her".

The siblings called up the other men and woman in their group to take the day off and look for their friend.  Without a second thought, everyone was outside, searching for her in all possible places where she could go. That's when Aditya and Vikram realized it could be Sidharth who took her away and he should no longer remain a secret to the others.