Sushma's room
Abhi was quite shaken by what he saw Pragya go through. Purab offered him a glass of water to drink, but he refused.
"Woh theek to hai na Purab?" Abhi asked as Purab sat besides him, "Kuch problem hai kya use?"
"I don't know" Purab said, "par Sushmaji ne kaha tha ki she will be fine... so shayad unhe pata hoga."
Abhi nodded. "Darr gaya tha mein Purab" Abhi said, Darr gaya tha kya... abhi bhi darra hua hoon."
Purab nodded.
Sushma entered the room and Abhi got up and asked "Is she fine now?"
"She's fine" Sushma said, "Thodi der mein theek ho jayegi."
Abhi let out a sigh and said, "You know... maine use abhi tak aisa nahi dekha... I have never seen her so vulnerable. Kaafi kuch hua hai uske saath... and even Purab knows that ... but she has always fought ... not just fought, she has saved me many times ... aur use ab aise dekha toh..."
After a brief pause he asked "Hope she will be fine!"
Sushma nodded.
"And you said it has happened before?" he asked.
"Yes many times" she said, "lekin I think 6-7 mahine me aisa pehli baar hua hai. This used to happen at least once everyday when I met her. Australia jaane ke baad hi she had relief. Phir bhi mahine me ek ya do baar hota tha. Post traumatic stress."
"You mean because of the accident?" he asked.
"Yes..." she said, "but that's not the only reason. In fact she had mentioned to me one day about what you just said... ke she has been through a lot but never felt so scared... she had said that you were the reason she had the strength to go through everything."
After a long pause she continued, "there is more to the accident than you perhaps know about... and that's the reason for her ... for this reaction."
"Matlab" Abhi asked.
"She believes in something" she said, "and she has valid reasons to do so. In fact, until I talked to Purab yesterday even I believed in it."
"Kya?" Abhi asked.
"That you tried to kill her" she said.
"What?" Abhi asked.
"Like I said, she has valid reasons to believe it" she said.
'Kyun... why did you... why did you kill me?' Abhi remembered these words of hers.
"Ok... that's why she asked me why did you kill me?" he said.
Sushma nodded.
"But why would she believe that?" Abhi asked.
"Woh phone call... jo aaj subah maine tujhe poocha tha." Purab said.
"Phone call?" Abhi said "mein usi ke baare me baat kar raha tha us se... tabhi ye sab hua."
After a brief pause he asked, "Yaani she had called is it?"
Purab nodded and so did Sushma.
"Kya hua tha us phone call me?" Abhi asked.
"Abhi... not that I am doubting you" Purab said, "but ye matter itna sensitive aur important hai na ki it is important that I ask you."
"Pooch na" Abhi said.
"Tune Di ka woh call attend nahi kiya tha na?" Purab asked.
"Nahi" Abhi said.
"Ok... sorry on insisting this" Purab said, "but... Dadi ki kasam?"
"haan re Dadi kasam." Abhi said, "maine woh call attend nahi kiya".
"Toh fir we were right Sushmaji" Purab said, "woh Pradeep hi hoga".
"Pradeep?" Abhi asked.
"Woh phone call Tanu ne aattend kiya tha" Purab said, "Usne kuch kaha Di se, phir Di ko laga ki tune baat kiya, par actually koi aur tha... teri aawaz me baat kar raha tha. Bohot kuch bola... details Di ko aur Sushmaji ko pata hai... par briefly... ki you don't want her in your life, tune unke brakes fail kiye hai, maar dalne ke liye... aisa kuch."
"Oh Shit!" Abhi said, "isliye nahi aayi who wapas? God!"
After a brief pause he continued, "Woh Pradeep hi hai. He can imitate my voice. I've seen him do that."
"Kabhi?" Purab asked.
"Suna hai" Abhi said, "in fact usine Alia aur Tanu ko mere baare me khabar di hogi. Woh Alia ne properties ka kaand kiya tha na ... woh incident se kuch 1-2 din pehle ki baat hai. Mera ek chotta jhagda bhi ho gaya tha us se."
"Ohkaay!" Purab said, "so... hume us se jaake milne ki jarrorat nahi hai?"
"Nahi." he is the one.
"Aur kuch bataya Pragya ne?" Sushma asked.
"Haan..." Abhi said, "woh keh rahi thi Alia ke business ke saath kya kya kiya tha, detail nahi bataya but she did a lot."
Sushma nodded and said, "Did she tell you something about it? That she actually did it against you and not Alia?"
"Is it?" Abhi asked and laughed, "Oh my God! Well... thank you Alia I guess. If it was me I would've had a tough time."
"Ok..." Sushma said, "hope you dint feel bad about it knowing this... because she did all that believing you were the one who tried to kill her. And we never knew you left home or your businesses. We had assumed you are living happily with Tanu."
Abhi smiled and shook his head, "me with Tanu... Pragya... how can she even think that?" and laughed, "God... feel like giving her a bear hug now."
Pragya's room, Few hours later
"And ma'am... just one more thing" Pragya's secretary said, "You really look happy today. Good to see you like this".
"Oh...Thank you" Pragya said, "and have a nice weekend" and called off the video meeting.
She stared at the screen of her laptop... 'I look happy today? But I just had another attack!'
She realised she was. She had slept peacefully since what felt like ages. That felt like heaven... 'yes... mujhe takleef hui jab unhone us phone call ke baare mein baat ki. Par, jis tarah se unhone woh poocha... seems like he doesn't know anything about it.' Lunch time had gone well too with him. they had not talked but everything felt normal.
She got up from her work station and walked over to the window... 'kya unhe wakehi me kuch pata nahi? Par woh phone call aur unki aawaaz? Unki aawaaz ki nakal to bohot log karte honge... Rockstar jo they! ... God... is that what happened?'
The thought gave her a rare calmness, a depth of peace she hadn't felt for a long time. Sighting a parrot on a tree, she somehow felt reassured of the same. 'Yeah... wahi hua hoga. Alia... Alia will surely know someone who can imitate his voice ... and Tanu ko bhi help kar rahi thi... God! Please... please tell me this is what actually happened!'
Pragya thought about calling up Sushma,who had gone out with Abhi. She felt it may be inappropriate but decided to call her up. She walked towards the window and rang up Sushma but the call was not received. She heard a knock on the door and saw Purab walk in.
"Purab" she asked, "Ye aur Sushmaji aaye nahi ab tak?"
"Nahi di" he said.
She heard her phone ring. It was Sushma's call.
"Sushma aunty ka hi phone hai" she said and picked up the call.
"Hello Aunty." she asked, "Kahan pahunche aap?"
"Jaanke kya karogi" Abhi asked.
"Aap?" she asked, and after a pause, continued, "Kahan hein aap donon?"
"Bahar" he said.
"Bahar yani kahan?" she asked.
"Kamaal hai yaar" he said, "ab sab tumhe bolke jaavu kya?"
"Achcha... Sushma aunty kahan hai, Unhe phone deejiye" she said.
"Woh mere saath hai aur mein phone kyun doon?" he asked.
"Aap aise kyun baat kar rahe hein? Sushma aunty ko phone dijiye na." She said.
"Unse tum baat nahi kar sakti" he said,
"Kya?" she asked and continued, "dekhiye aap mazak mat kijiye... unke medicines ka time hua hai.. lunch ke baad unhe medicine khana rehta hai, bas unhe yeh poochiye ki unhone medicine khaya ya nahi."
"Nahi khaya to?" he said.
She felt that creepy sensation again crawling up her spine.
"Yani?" she asked.
"Yani tum mujhe kuch bhi karo mein woh bas dekhte jaavoon aur mein kuch na karoon?" he said.
She felt scared and hesitated as she asked "kya... kya matlab hai aapka".
"Matlab" he said, "Matlab to tum hamesha dhoondti thi na. Jo tumhare fayde ka hai woh karogi. Baaki sab ko jo hona hai use hone do. Hai na?"
"kya?" she asked and continued, "dekhiye, woh sab choddiye Sushmaji kahan hai?"
"Ab to woh mere paas hai" he said, "par bohot jald woh wahan pahunchengi jahan tumhe jaana chahiye tha – do saal pehle."
"Kya?" she asked.
"Sushmaji ne tumhe bachaya ... " he said, "unke saath milkar hi tumne mujhe aur mere parivaar ko barbaad kiya .... Unke help se hi tum meri Alia aur meri Tanu ko pareshaan karti rahi ... Aur mein yeh sab bas dekhte baithoon? Kuch nahi karoon? Tum aise soch bhi kaise sakti ho?.
"Aapki ... Aapki Tanu!!!" she said with a cringe.
'God I was right. He tried to kill me!' she thought.
"Haan meri Tanu. Woh hi meri biwi hai, meri family hai... aur tum ... tum usey barbaad karne dekh rahi ho" he said, "Mein aisa kabhi nahi hone doonga."
"Dekhiye isme... isme Sushmaji ne kuch nahi kiya" she said, her voice trembling "Jo bhi kiya hai na... woh sab maine kiya hai... aap please mujhe bata dijiye aap kahan hai ... mein aa jaati hoon".
"Di... Kya hua?" Purab asked.
"Purab... inhone... inhone Sushma aunty ko ... " Pragya said.
"Di... Kya?" Purab said.
"Suniye... please bata dijiye aap kahan hai" Pragya said, "Please" and started crying.
"Tumhare ghar ke bahar" Abhi said.
"Okay... Okay... please" she said, as she wiped her tears, "Dekhiye... mein aati hoon... aap... aap Sushmaji ko kuch mat kijiye".
She rushed outside the room and Purab followed her.
She ran down the stairs and was shocked to see Abhi holding a knife at Sushma's neck who was sitting on the chair.
Pragya stopped and her phone slipped out of her hand and fell onto the carpet.
"Please" she shouted as she knelt down on the floor and folded her hands, "Please aap inhe kuch mat kijiye." and started to cry.
She looked at Abhi and he smiled at her viciously, nodding a no.
"Please... please" she said as she continued to cry and bowed her head on the floor.
"You are too late Pragya" she heard Abhi say...
'Please' she cried again.
... but something about what she heard felt really odd. Abhi was in front of her but the voice came from behind.
"You are too late" she heard again and looked behind in fright. It was someone else, which confused her. She stood up, her palms closing her mouth.
"I am sorry" said the man in Abhi's voice. "I'm Sanjay, Abhi's friend" he said.
Switching back to his own voice Sanjay said, "Purab called me here and asked me to do this... I am sorry to make you go through this."
She looked at Abhi who had come near her along with Sushma. Purab too joined in.
Pragya started crying again as she realised what had happened. Her knees gave away and she knelt down crying. Abhi sat down in front of her, comforting her.
He cupped her face and said "I'm sorry... I am sorry us din jo jo hua, uske liye I am sorry".
She held his hand and continued to cry for a few moments. She hugged him, "I am sorry" she said and continued to cry.
"Jaise tumhare saath hua hai na..." Abhi said, "Waise mere saath bhi hua hai... so no apaologies. Bus... ho gaya... and we can move on from it now."
Pragya nodded in agreement.