[Author's note: I think I'm a bit early! Isn't it? :P
Anyway, a special mention to shreyashi2697 .... She is new on Wattpad and is up with her own piece of work... It's a Royal Indian love story. Please give it a try cause it seems to be really beautiful and interesting....
Let's start ;) ]
"Nikhil? Look up child. Where is Nandini?" Her father asked.
My mother ran up to me observing all my wounds with teary eyes. They were so puffy that I doubt if she could even see clearly.
"Could I get to sit somewhere comfortably first? Please?" I asked.
"Yeah! You need to...." They all spoke together in perfect unison.
My father helped me make my way to the car that they came in.
We all gathered into it and they all were waiting eagerly to know what was wrong, but they kept patience. Maybe because they knew the condition that I was suffering from.
I could not stop myself from thinking about all that happened an hour ago.
The way that beast forced himself on Nandini and touched her body. I felt like plucking my eyes out.
All I was afraid about what he might do to her now.... Now that I am gone!
"No!" I shrieked loudly.
"What happened Nikhil?" It was my father. He placed his hand on my shoulder noticing the wound on my arm that Mahanandan made with his shoes.
"Could you now please tell us that what happened? Where is Nandini Nikhil?"
"Let's start the car and go back.... I'll tell you'll on the way.."
Nandini's mother was furious at this but she tried to be as polite as possible, "Nikhil? Child, what do you mean? How can we just move back without taking Nandini along? Could you please tell us where is she and how long will she take to come back? What has happened there.... And why are you bleeding profusely?"
Her breath chocked as she spoke.
"She will take four days to come back. That too if we make efforts to get her back with us. She is with Mahanandan. If we drive back to the hotel then we can come back hatching a plan to conquer him."
I held her mother's hand in mine, "We need to do something. Mahanandan is not as easy as we think of him to be."
I looked away from her eyes continuing to talk, "I think we should leave."
I squeezed my eyes shut.
I just hoped that they didn't delay this any further.
Just then a question popped up in my head, it kind of made me panic....
"Where is Sagar and Niki?"
"In the hotel. We have kept them under the eyes of the manager." Came the answer from my father.
I took a heave of relief.
He got down from the back and shifted to the driver's seat. He turned on the ignition and started off.
I glared at the fort as my stomach twisted into a knot. I was not willing to leave her alone. How would I spend these four days without her and what could I do to get her back..... were the only things revolving in my head.
Suddenly someone pushed me gently which broke the trail of my thoughts.
"What's wrong with you? We have been waiting for you to tell us what all took place in the fort. Now only if you speak up Nikhil, or then I'll ask your dad to drive back to the fort. Enough of it!" My mother was losing patience.
I took a deep breath and looked into her eyes, "Okay! I'll tell you..."
Looking down at my feet I started....
"When you all came up to the fort behind me, you all know that we were following Nands... I told you all before, that she was possessed.
As I entered the room I saw her standing with the support of a wall and her head was down."
All except my father were nodding their heads.
I looked up.
"I thought it was Nandini. But I was mistaken.... It was Mahanandan!"
The speed of the car slowed down.
"No dad, don't think of going back... We can't! Continue driving and I'll continue about the incident...."
"Is she okay right now?" Her mother broke into tears. She covered her face and started sobbing.
I felt helpless. So I thought that I'd rather continue.
"No, I doubt if she is okay.
As soon as she started walking towards me, her eyes made me realise that she was not in her senses. Hence, I asked all of you to move out of the fort.... If all of you would be there then he would hurt each and every one of us. It would be difficult for us to get out of the fort, alive. Maybe.... And if this would be so, then we could neither save Nandini or ourselves."
"What happened then?" Nandini's father asked.
He tried to be as calm as possible. It felt like he could break down at any moment. But he had to stand next to his wife to console her. She needed him badly.
Nandini's mother looked up to me as I continued to speak.
"I had to force him to move out of her body because she could hurt herself in any way. I succeeded. That's when I got to look at him!"
"You mean Mahanandan?" My mother's eyes widened.
I nodded.
I could not tell them the way Nandini hurt herself. I had to hide that. So I continued with his description...
"He was a six feet tall monster. Long, curly hair. Cuts and scars on his face.... And his eyes. He had only one of them. That too red... Blood red. Dressed up in royal silk he------"
The car took a massive jerk forwards and it stopped.
"What happened dad?"
"Could you please repeat his description?"
"You just heard that dad!" I sounded annoyed.....
"I saw him before!" Was all that he could manage to let out of his throat. He looked terribly scared.
"Did he have pointed shoes?" He asked.
"Yes!" I exclaimed shocked as hell.
"How do you know?"
"Didn't I tell you about the incident that took place with me when we were on our way to Bhangarh for the first time? There I was haunted by someone after that driver got killed?"
"Yes... Yes... Yes!!" I nodded furiously.
"He was wearing clothes made of silk. As he dragged me along with him and I tried to escape....when I was on the ground I noticed deep holes in it. It seemed like hundreds of pins were pierced in the ground. It was until I noticed his shoes."
I could get it. My father already had an encounter with Mahanandan. I gulped down a lump of bile down my throat.
He continued...."He was asking for his wife! Do you realise one thing? "
He spoke shifting his glance towards Nandini's father....
"The 'wife' that he meant was Nandini... He was asking for Nandini!"
He rubbed his palm on his forehead.
"I remember really well. He did not have an eye. One more thing.... "
We all listened to him patiently... Some sort of secret was coming out.
"When Nikhil was behaving abnormally after we called Mahanandan... He was speaking a peculiar language. When he followed me through the forest he spoke in the same language which I could partly understand!"
"That means from day one he knew that we were going to visit the fort and he started following us then and there!" I blurted out...
"Yes" he said.
"All this while I thought that our family came to visit Rajasthan as an adventure tour.... But no, why only Rajasthan? We were pulled here!"
Nandini's mother started weeping again.
Her father spoke up this time, "Raveena, it's not the time to cry now. We need to face this. Maybe Nandini too was attracted her because her soul wanted revenge! We will have to help her."
He turned towards my father, "Please proceed."
He started the car again....
"One more thing." Nandini's father spoke....
" Your family has given us tremendous amount of help. Something which is really hard to repay. Especially your son Nikhil. If he would not be here, maybe Nandini would not have the courage to face Mahanandan... But we cannot ask for more favours."
"No no.... We have to help you all... We can't just leave you'll like that! Earlier Nikhil's mother might have said those words out of anger. But I'm sure she didn't mean it. We will stand by your side. If we don't, then humanity will never be trusted again!"
My father gave an assuring smile and my mother too nodded in agreement.
In the next few minutes we reached our hotel.
I limped my way towards the room.
Oh how I missed Nandini. The cute giggles of hers when she teased me and all the care that she had for me. The concern in her sparkling eyes.
The soft touch which made my heart's beat increase and would instantly put a smile up on my face.
Her sweet voice when she was annoyed and the way she called me with my name. I missed every bit of her.
That was the bed where she sat next to me and held my hand trying to lull me down to sleep embracing my forehead.
I wanted her badly! If I could get her then I would wrap her in my arms. So much that no one could take her away from me. But I felt extremely helpless!
It was time for dinner as my mother came and woke me up from the small siesta that I just had. I didn't realise that when did I fall off in the arms of sleep.
I hardly could gulp down any food. Nandini's mother was completely drained out. She seemed to have cried so much that her eyes were all puffy and red.
No one could speak a word. Anyone hardly ate anything.
All I was thinking that what did Nandini eat. Or did she even eat?!
I pushed my plate away and walked off in my room.
It was already 11:00.
I looked up to the ceiling. My heart felt really heavy.
Every time I forced my eyes shut the evil picture of Mahanandan flashed in my head. The way he treated Nandini could not be washed away.
For a second I thought of sneaking out of the hotel towards the Fort. But I knew that I could not do it without informing someone. Even if I would, they would not let me go.
Apart from this who knows that Nandini would be harmed even more!
I looked at the time in my phone. It was two past five.
I jumped up when I heard some one sobbing.
I looked around. All of them were sleeping peacefully except for Niki.
She was not in the room!
I got off the bed and limped my way towards the door.
I opened the door of the room as quietly as possible.
I saw Niki sitting down with her back faced towards the wall and her face buried in her hands. She was sobbing ridiculously.
I walked up to her with alot of hesitation.
I sat down bearing the all the pain as my face twitched.
I looked at her placing my hand reluctantly on her head.
"Niki? What happened?" I whispered.
She looked up to me.
My eyes were left awestruck with horror.
I stumbled behind as I saw her.
I dragged myself towards to other side of the wall. I found it so difficult with every part of my body screaming in pain.
She had no eyeballs. She looked pale and her hair were all messy. Her lips were carved out into what seemed to be a smile maybe with a knife that tore her mouth apart. The fresh scars were bleeding with dark blood.
I felt that I would fall unconscious at any moment.
She looked at me as she stood up from her place. I too stood up with all my force.
She spoke.
"Nikhil. You are my sweet brother no?"
She started crying.
I glared at her. I was numb. She looked terrible.
She started walking towards me.
"You know? Mahanandan did this to me! But don't worry I won't harm you. He has sent me to kill you but I won't do anything."
Her horrible smiling face kept on walking towards me.
"Stay away!" I barked.
"Don't come next to me!"
The wall behind me ended!