Trisha.
I am really confused at shweta's statement.
"What do you mean by that?"
"The most scariest one in my brothers is Arjun, Yes, you are right, He never takes part in anything dangerous, He don't like to get his hands dirty, But he knows how to play with the law, He knows how to take care of people and he is the brain of surya group, Even my father acknowledge it" Shweta explained.
"But varun-"
"Varun is his junior!" shweta said "varun is more like a shield he has, Every cases represented by varun is actually Arjun's, He is ruthless and cruel, He believes that as long as he does not take part in the real killings and bloodshed, He's safe"
"That's..crazy" shahid said and I nodded.
"I don't trust him, If you are to be wary of someone, It's him" I said "From the moment father brought him home, I knew that he is different" she said.
"Father brought him home? What do you mean by that?"
"Arjun is not my Amma's son" Shweta said "He's my half brother" she said and I nodded.
I am already aware of it, I was watching them all these time.
"You knew it!?" Shweta looked shocked "Only a very few people know about it" shweta said "We were forbidden to mention it, Even Abiram and Mahesh avoid it" she said "I have always felt that Arjun hated our family, He and his mother was abandoned and after his mother died, he was taken by the orphanage, I didn't know why father wanted to bring him home first"
"Why?" shahid asked.
"He was brilliant" she said simply "I am sure that father saw the potential and took him home when he was only 13 years old"
"Arjun hates your family?"
"When he first came home, Abiram and Mahesh did everything in their power to make sure that Arjun have a tough time, They bullied him, locked him up and tortured him" She said "And father ignored all of it until the day arjun was nearly killed in the prank and he sent him to boarding school"
"I knew that mahesh and Abiram is fighting for the company, I had no idea there was this much trouble inside"
"Yes, Arjun grew up outside our house and he was sent to the boarding school, Then he took law and graduated and when he finally came back, He was totally a different person" shweta said "He didn't want to work for surya group and set up his own law firm outside, But mahesh got entangled in a suicide case and Arjun took up his case with father's request"
"Nandana case" I whispered "The case that was overturned overnight after surya law firm got involved"
Shweta nodded "Arjun was brought back and appointed as the MD of surya group and then he started his career, He never wanted to raise his rank, So no one bothered about him, But during these time, Even though he is in the same position he was 5 years ago, He has the greatest influence in the company, Even my father regard him highly and Mahesh and Abiram had no choice but accept it, Because if it was not for Arjun, They would have been jailed long before"
"Wow! he sure is something" shahid said "There was something like this going on inside surya group!?"
"I never bothered about him before as I had enough in my hands with mahesh and Abiram, I just thought he is only skilled in Merging and acquisition, But I have been wrong"
"I always knew that Arjun is different, He was intelligent and cunning, He don't have a gang of private goons like Mahesh or Abiram, But he always managed to get his way"
"Your father didn't know about this?"
"I am sure that he know" shweta said "That's why he never raised Arjun's position, He's always gave Arjun enough power so that he can use him according to his wish, But not too much so that he may raise above" Shweta said "And another thing is, Father thinks that Arjun have a grudge against him for abandoning his Amm, which could be true"
"Did he really abandon his Amma?"
"Arjun's mother was engaged to my Father first, Then father married my mother but he never loved her, He was doing it for the power and status, it was purely a business marriage" Shweta said "So it was no wonder that he kept relationship with his ex-fiancee, Until she refused to see him anymore" Shweta said "I think that she stopped her ties with him after she had Arjun, She knew that my father won't allow her to keep the child, So she did everything to protect him, She raised him up alone until She died"
"So Arjun must be having a big grudge against surya group"
Shweta nodded.
"Father was not ready to take him in, I heard that he decided to take him in after knowing how brilliant he is" Shweta said "Arjun was an extraordinary boy even in his childhood"
"What a family! Father using son"
"We are not family, We are more like a group of people who are bonded by the business" shweta said.
"Now that mahesh is arrested, Who's likely to inherit surya group?"
"Like I said, Father had always been wary of Arjun, So chances are very less for him to make Arjun the successor"
"That leaves Abiram"
"Abiram is hot headed, Father won't give up his efforts to him easily too" shweta said. "If there's one thing I am sure of, It's Arjun's mind" I said "If you really wants to get the inside details on surya group, I am sure that Arjun will have it" shweta said "Arjun might have all the files and details on surya group, He could even have the dealings of my father, Mahesh and Abiram, If anyone could destroy surya group easily, It's him" shweta said "But he will never reveal anything, I am sure that he's waiting for the correct timing to let Abiram mess up, So that surya group will be falling to his hands easily"
"What happens if Arjun gets surya group?"
"Then you can forget about your plan to bring it down, Even though he is merely a MD now, He takes care of all the business related decisions and have a strong hold on the internal politics" shweta said "Once he gets the true power, I don't think even my father could stop him"
"So if I want to destroy surya group, I need to bring down Arjun surya narayan" I said slowly "once he's out of picture, Surya law firm will be gone and surya group won't have anyone to depend on to clean up after" I said slowly.
"It's easier said than done" shweta said "Arjun dont trust anyone, it's been so many years and he still don't have a lot of people around him"
"Every person has a weakness, Shweta, Your father's weakness is power, He is power hungry, Mahesh was a womaniser and Abiram is hot headed, what's Arjun's weakness?"
"He is very cautious and cunning, I don't know his weakness, I can't even guess what he's thinking sometimes"
"There's nothing he's interested in?What about girls? Does he have a girlfriend? "
"Girls?" shweta scoffed "There is a talk in the company that he is a gay because he doesn't take a second look at girls and even if he have time, He spend it drinking away in his night club, He even bought a nightclub for him to drink away his weekends" shweta said.
"He's only 28 years old and he had been suppressing all the anger inside him" I nodded my head slightly "All we need to do is help him out of this, We need to find a caring person on his side" I said "A person who can help him and support him, A person whom he can trust, A person for him to protect" I looked up at shahid "A person for him to fall in love" I stopped.
"Arjun is not easy, He's very difficult, No one can even approach him" shweta warned.
"Shahid" I looked at him "What do you think if a person who had been alone all his life falls in love with a girl?"
"If he really falls in love, Then he might even risk his life for her" Shahid said "But if he suspected anything, I think you don't want to imagine the consequences"
"You can't trust Arjun, He's not normal" shweta said again "He doesn't think like normal people"
"Dont worry" I assured her "we won't do anything reckless without planning" I told her "Take care of yourself" I said.
She nodded.
But I still think that we need to take down this arjun first, He's young and alone- That's his only weakness.
Love...That's the only thing which I can use to bring him down.
"What have you decided about tomorrow?" Shweta asked.
"Don't worry shweta, You will be safe-"
"I am not worried about my safety" She said "I am worried about you all" She said "For the first time in my life, I understand what love and care is, I am jealous of the bond that all of you share, I have seen how you all protect each other" She stopped "I just hope that all of you will be safe" she said.
"I am sorry, Shweta" Shahid apologised "For taking out my anger and frustration on you, I know that you have no role in this" He said.
"You don't have to apologise to me, All of you have lost a lot because of my family, It's only right that I take responsibility-"
"We hope that you will have a free life like earlier, we don't want you to get trapped in this, Shweta, Live peacefully"
She just smiled.
"Don't hesitate to call me if you need help from me" She said "I am planning to stay back this time, It's not because of you, Trisha, It's for me and my mamma" She said and I nodded.
"If you have already decided it, I know I can't change your mind" I said "you can contact me on my office number if you want" I said "Shweta, We don't have any grudge against you, All of us are grateful, Take care of yourself"
Arjun.
I admire her, I really do.
Trishana..
Trishana didn't want to exchange the prisoners directly, She decided to do it through a mediator.
The mediator she selected was the person who was very fit for the job, Even though the gang underneath him was not very big, He had his own ethics and she knew we couldn't bribe him.
The other thing which amazed me was her way of thinking, She didn't want us to follow her after the exchange or she didn't want anyone to find their secret hideout, So this plan was brilliant.
Since we were exchanging her friends to the dealer, The dealer would take them to the place they need and this way she wanted to avoid getting followed.
If I had met her before...if She was not a reporter and I was not entangled in this war, I think everything would have been different.
She has beauty and brains.
Ironically she's the only female I am attracted to and She's the one person I can't be together with.
"Boss" karan opened the door to my room "Shweta is nearly here" he said
I nodded "Is our officers ready?" I asked.
"Yes" karan said "Even though thomas mathew is in suspension, He brought our most trusted officers to take statement from shweta, If we file a kidnapping case against them, We can put them in police wanted list and they can't move around freely"
"I doubt it" I said "They managed to kidnap her, Trishana even negotiated with father, I don't think we can get a statement easily, She would have thought of this situation beforehand" I said
"That's true" Karan nodded "But shweta was at their hideout all these days, I Am sure that she will have something on them"
"Let's see" I said
"I investigated what you told me" Karan said "You were right, Varsha is staying at Dr.prakash's house now, No one is aware of it, How did you know that?"
"It was a guess And if I am right, The others will soon reach there too, They will go there to visit varsha anyway, Varsha is injured and she's under treatment"
"Then we could just go there and get them all now"
I chuckled.
"Varsha is put under witness protection and she's heavily guarded now" I said "Mahesh is already remanded and his request for bail is rejected, do you want to go after them now?" I asked.
"I am sure that you could find a way around" karan said.
I nodded.
"If I really put my mind to it, Yes, I could do that" I looked up at him "But I need to identify them, I want to know from where they are coming, I want to know their motive" I said "if we trap them ,They will never open their mouth and one of them is possibly a police officer and I want to be careful with this case, It's not like the previous one"
"What if you figure out everything?Are you going to kill them?"Karan asked me slowly.
I leaned to my chair.
"I would like to use them in my game" I said "Each of them are highly talented and I would like to know who's going to win"
"Boss?"
"Don't worry, Karan,They think they are out of our hands now, But we already have a lead on them" I said "we can trace them or trap them any time we want, I am waiting for the right time"
"What about that police officer in their gang?" karan asked "SI thomas already run the details on the officers and he didn't find anything, Their photo was sent to all of our officers " Karan said.
"I have already sent the gun for verification, But I am very sure that it's belongs to a police officer" I said "probably karthik, His fighting skills was unique and unbeatable"
"No wonder Nakulan and sanjay was no match for him" Karan said "But how come Thomas mathew cannot identify him then?"
"If SI Thomas can't find his identity, It means only one thing, That we have another undercover officer like Ajith roy, Whose identity cannot be found easily, Even by the normal police officers" I said.
"That'sbig trouble sir!"Karan exclaimed.
"Let's Wait for the results" I said.
Trisha.
We decided to meet at prakash uncle's house since varsha was recuperating there and waited patiently.
I had sent nitin to hand them uncle prakash's car to the spot they were supposed to reach.
"Are they here yet?"Varsha asked slowly, She was still in the wheelchair, It was still painful for her to move around after the surgery.
"I will call nitin and-" I stopped as I saw uncle prakash's car coming inside.
"They are here!" I said and moved down the steps to greet them.
Karthik stopped the engine and stepped out from the driving seat, Aditya was helping Aditi and he had his hands around her frame as he walked her inside.
There were bruises and signs of scars on them, But they looked fine, Better than the time I visited them at surya headquarters and Aditi looked fine except for the fact that she was pale and paperwhite.
"Aditi" I ran to her and hugged her tightly "I'm so glad you are okay" I said as I felt someone wrapping their hands around me.
"We are happy to see you too!" karthik said and before I know it, We all were having a group hug, Only then did it hit me how tensed and stressed we were.
We never thought everyone will make it out this time, We all were worried about each other's safety.
"Varsha" karthik walked to her wheel chair and knelt down in front of her and took her hand in his "You are okay.." he said and wiped her tears "Never..never scare us like that" he said as she started to cry again.
"I am sorry..because of me..you were-"
"Shh.." karthik said "Nothing is important to us than your life, Varsha" he told her sternly "not even our revenge" he said "we are doing this so that we can survive, But never ever walk to a trap" he said and varsha nodded.
"Varsha.." Aditi stopped near her "I am happy to see you" she said "we thought that we..we lost you.." Aditi said
"You..don't hate me? Do ..you not blame me for..for what happened-"
"I can understand what you have done, I can understand it more than anyone, I have watched my entire family getting killed, It's not your fault" she said and varsha wiped her eyes.
"Let's move inside, I'm tired" Aditya announced and just walked inside without even sparing a look at varsha.
Everyone was uneasy at his rudeness but everyone tried to hide it and I helped push her wheelchair inside.
Aditya.
I am not going to forgive her this time.
No..not easily, She have no right to take her own life!
I saved her twice before, But she wanted to just kill Mahesh even if it was obvious that she would die in the process.
So I ignored her and took the seat as far away from her as possible.
"Where's uncle prakash?" I asked.
"He is still at the hospital, He can't come here" Trisha said, I nodded.
"Let's talk after we take some rest" karthik said "now that they know our faces, it's only a matter of time before they get something on us"
"Yea, We need to plan carefully" trisha nodded "Are you seriously injured?" She looked at us.
I looked at karthik, we are tired and injured, But not as much as to take rest.
"Not me" karthik said and looked at Aditi "Aditi is not well" he said and I was surprised that karthik finally looked at her, He had been ignoring her all the way here.
Everyone was looking at Aditi and I turned to her.
She was pale and looking fragile, but otherwise okay.
"I'm okay" she said.
"No, You are not" karthik said.
"I will give a saline IV-" I started
"I am okay Aditya" She said again and I know that she's not going to cooperate.
"You look pale and weak, You were tortured-"
"Karthik" she said firmly "can I have a word?" she asked, getting up and walking to the nearest room.
"Sure" he got up and followed her.
"Er..what's going on?" shahid asked me "What happened?"
I smiled slightly.
"Karthik's just unlucky to have made her angry, He's going to have a piece of her mind" I said
"Why? he was only concerned about her" trisha said.
"Aditi loves to act strong" varsha said slowly "She don't like anyone to take care of her" she said accurately and I was surprised.
"That's right, She acts tough all the time" trisha nodded.
And this time, She's really angry, I pity karthik.
He had actually wanted to switch her place in that electrical chair and I know that my little sister is never going to figure out what to do with this situation.
"Let them solve it themselves" I said and turned to the other three. "So tell me, What and all things have I missed these days?"
Aditi.
I had had enough of him interfering in my life!
I waited until he closed the door and turned to me.
I folded my hands and looked up at him in what hope in a menacing way, But I just realised how tall and towering he is.
"Karthik suresh kumar" I started "I have warned you many times! Stay away from me and mind your own business" I stressed each word "Do you understand? Stay away from me, Why the heck would you want to switch places with me during the punishment? Who do you think you are to save me when you were going to die? Did you think I would be grateful? No! what I hate the most in this world is to owe a debt to someone!"
If I thought I would be relieved after scolding him, I thought wrong, because it only started to build up more inside me, words just started to pour without any control.
Karthik.
I watched her as she was standing there and lecturing me.
I could literally see the smoke coming from her ears and nose.
I taped my foot impatiently on the floor.
I should be logical here..
Tap..tap..
Yea, That's right, I am trained to have self control..
Tap...tap..
And I was ranked number one in my academy in all fields..
Tap...tap..tap..
I was doing very well...Even ignoring her...why did she have to call me here?..
Tap..tap..
"-And if you think you are some superhero, Go and save some damsel in distress, I can very well take care of -"
My foot brought me forward on their own accord and I crossed that line.
I wrapped her body within my hands and pulled her to me and hugged her tightly.
"You! Let me go! Let me go!" She was struggling too much, Trying to get out of my hands.
"Stay still" I murmured as I locked her more securely and slightly lifted her from the floor "Give me a minute..just give me a minute" I said as I inhaled her scent.
"I..I was scared, I have never been as scared before" I said
Aditi froze in my hands and I closed my eyes and held her to me.
It was amazing to feel her heartbeat and how well it calmed me.
"Let me go" She whispered again.
"I was okay, I was holding myself back all thsee time" I said slowly "You asked me for this, This is all your fault" I looked at her face that was inches from.
"Oh yea?" She raised her eyebrows rather challengingly, Just the way I love it.
"Yea" I nodded "let me kindly remind you that you are still above the ground, So don't think-aaah!" I put her back down at the sharp pain and pushed her off me.
"You-Did you just bite me again, puppy!?" I asked her as I covered my left shoulder with my right hand.
She put her hands on her hips and looked up at me.
"I was okay" She said victoriously "But you asked me for this" she said "so this is all your fault" she repeated the same words I told her just before.
I smirked at that.
"Now I know why I am like this" I said "when you are around, I am never bored"
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Guys!
Hope you enjoyed the chapter😊