The Murderer of Aarav Singh Raizada

Confide In Her

"Need help?" her voice hit his ears.

"Nope! It's almost over!" he said and continued cutting the dead leaves off the plants.

"Good to see you back on gardening!" she said softly and sat on the near poolside dipping her legs in the pool.

He smiled and said, "And you are back at business! Is today's dabbas over?"

"Yeah, jiji will manage the rest!"

Arnav kept down the scissors and stood up. Dusting off his clothes he walked next to her and dipped his feet in the pool.

"You look good!" he commented and flicked her wet hair. She smiled and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Ah no!" he slightly pushed her, "I'm sweating as hell!"

"It's fine!" she said and wrapped her arm around his torso.

"Arnav ji can we go to orphanage again?" she asked.

"Didn't we go there yesterday?"

"Yeah...but I feel like spending time there...with the kids and...."

"You lost your son" Arnav said cutting her in, "And you find solace in the midst of kids!"

"And so did you! You too lost your son!" Khushi whispered.

"I have ways to find solace!"

"Like?"

"Gardening...." drawing her close and wrapping his arm around her petty frame, he whispered, "You"

She smiled and hugged him tight.

"Now....it's just you and me Khushi....you have to accept that"

"It's hard....to believe that he is gone" she whispered and he could feel his shirt getting damped.

"How long are we going to cry about it Khushi?" he asked hoarsely.

"Aren't you upset?" she withdrew from the hug and asked, "Don't you feel like crying out your heart?"

"I do but if I do that....everyone here would break! I cannot be weak! I've to hold on for you, for di, for everyone here in the house!"

"You're his father! You've every right to be weak" she whispered and cupped his cheek, "Don't hold it inside you! I can see it! You don't speak to me anymore. You don't tell me how your day was, what you did during the day....nothing! You go out in the morning and come at midnight and..."

"Khushi there is a murderer out there!" he hissed, "I cannot sit back and mourn over my son's death! I want to find him, the person who killed my son! Especially when he challenged me!"

Arnav bit his tongue realizing his slip.

"What did you say?" Khushi whispered.

"Uh. Nothing!"

He tried to get up but she clutched his arm, "You said something about the person challenging you, didn't you?"

"No Khushi, I meant that he/she killed my son and I have to find....."

"DON'T TWIST THE WORDS" Khushi said angrily, "Tell me what it is! Did the murderer contact you? What did you mean by challenging you? Tell me Arnav ji!"

Arnav sighed and said, "You've to promise me that you'll never tell this to anyone! Not even Payal, not even di!"

Khushi nodded. Arnav could see the fear in her eyes and sighed, "Khushi this is hard! You don't have to do this!"

"No! You have to tell me! I want to know!"

Arnav sighed and stood up. He walked to the room and she followed him. He pointed to the bed and she sat there frowning. She saw him walking to his laptop and....

"What is that?" she asked shocked.

Arnav shrugged and Khushi said, "You have another layer of that....what do you call that thing....why do you have a black shield kind of thing under your laptop?"

"To hide these!" Arnav said and took out some papers. Khushi frowned and Arnav forwarded her one paper. "Read it!"

Khushi took the paper and Arnav walked to the door closing it shut.

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"I told you didn't I? You don't have to do this Khushi" he whispered as she cried her heart out hugging him.

"Why didn't you tell me all this!" she withdrew from the hug and clutched his collar, "You didn't have to go through this alone Arnav ji...."

"Khushi listen....you cannot tell this to anyone!" Arnav said sternly. Khushi sniffled and nodded.

"And....there's something else I didn't tell you! The commissioner told me something that he found from Aarav's post-mortem reports!"

"What?" Khushi asked fearfully.

"Khushi.....he was sexually abused!"

Khushi gasped and covered her mouth with her palm.

She clutched her heart and looked at him, "Aarav..." she whispered, "He...he had go through....so much and....we didn't know....how could we not see that....?"

Arnav sighed and Khushi asked, "Does this have something to do with Aarav's real father?"

"I don't know Khushi. That's what I'm on search for!"

Khushi looked at the photo on the wall – the one which had Arnav and Khushi sitting on a rock during their Shimla trip and a 15 year old Aarav hugging them from behind. "I thought we knew him! He shared everything with us....that's what I believed...."

Arnav wrapped his arm around her shoulder and she whispered, "But he was in pain...even when he was smiling for this photograph, he would've been crying inside!"

Turning to him she asked, "Weren't we good parents? Why didn't he tell us anything and confide in the person who killed him later? Did we ever make him feel that he is not our blood?"

"I don't know" Arnav said honestly.

"I want to find him Arnav ji! Him or her...whoever! I want to know why he threw my son off a cliff!" Khushi whispered angrily.

"We've a fourth letter to read!" Arnav said took out the letter. Khushi nodded and both of them looked at the paper.