A few months later
Location: Oakwood Villas, Clifton, Cape Town
Time: 9:57 am
Standing on the balcony that looked over a vast expanse of ocean with the color of sparkling sapphire had become a morning ritual. The Atlantic ocean spanned from end to end, as far as the eyes could see. The pristine whites of their house looked immaculate against nature's backdrop. Budapest gave them a taste of the finest European architecture, but it couldn't beat panoramic oceanic views Cape Town had to offer.
Cape Town, a city with a layered personality. Known for both its affluent charm and notorious crimes. A perfect abode for Naushad and Faiza Gilani. Europe had quickly worn off their minds.
"Coffee."
He struck his golden, dimpled smile.
"You know, one good thing about moving here is that I'm being able to have a taste of your coffee after years."
His amusing confession made her laugh.
"Don't start flying too high. I'm only making the coffees because even after giving the maids step by step tutorials on how to make coffee the way we like it, theirs taste terrible. There is something about the way Africans make coffee that doesn't quite sit well with our taste buds."
"Whatever the reason might be," he lifted his mug but stopped it a few inches away from his lips, "I'm satisfied." Then grinned and sipped.
Faiza leaned on the glass balustrade facing her husband, with her mug in her hand. Wind crashed against her skin and blew threw her hair, but instead of tying it back, she let it fly and enjoyed it. The sun was mellow that morning and the breeze, cheerful. After spending 10 years in a city without any ocean surrounding it, she realized how much she had missed the beaches after coming to Cape Town. It reminded her of Mumbai, ever so slightly. In a fond way though.
As the two stood there in calm, tranquil silence, sipping their morning coffee, a phone call broke their reverie. Naushad brought his phone out of his pocked and picked it up.
"Yes?"
He remained silent and waited for the person on the other side to finish talking while Faiza looked at him, her posture disclosing her slight impatience.
"Okay. Do it. I don't want to be dealing with it anymore."
He hung up the call and before she could ask, he dialed someone again and lifted a finger gesturing her to wait for a bit.
"Ali, Varga is closing the deal. Yes, it the German company. I want the money transferred in halves. One, goes to my Swiss and South African accounts. And the other should be wired to the list of orphanages in India. I already sent the names to you. Make sure not a soul gets a hint about it. It should remain anonymous. Varga will take care of the rest as long as he's getting his share. Let me know when it's done. And come by today in the evening, I need to discuss a few things."
"Sure sir." Ali replied on the other end. "The transfers will be made by tonight, don't worry."
When he put the phone down and turned to his wife, he saw the despaired look on her face.
"It's sold? The whole company?"
He nodded, the expression on his face was not very ebullient either. Both knew It was imminent, but they could not mentally prepare themselves even still.
"It's the same situation, all over again." She sighed.
"No, it's not the same. We're in a much better position now Faiza. When we left Mumbai, we didn't have much. Now we do. Both the money for investment and experience."
He breathed deeply and put the mug down. Then turned towards her and held her by the forearms, looking into her eyes confidently.
"As long as we both are here, together and safe, we can do anything."
"I know," she loosened her bearing and tried to smile. "It's just, we had built that company from scratch. Put in so much time, efforts and hard work into it. And now someone else will run it."
She hadn't cried in years, she wasn't going to now either. But inside, her heart wept silently.
"But that's alright," she quickly regained her composure and straightened up. "We will start afresh, again. And to do that with a view like this? That's an insanely profitable deal."
They shared a light laugh.
She lifted up her chin and looked at him "Naushad?"
"Hmm?" He was looking towards the sea but her voice caught his attention and he looked at her.
"Let's start a family."
It took him a few seconds to process her words, but when he did, the widest smile broke out on his face.
"Really? Are you sure –I mean are you ready?"
She nodded. "I am. We both are. It's been long. We have spent a good amount of time waiting, and now I don't there's reason to wait anymore. I really want to raise a family. With you. Because whatever part of the world we are in," She brought her arm forward and took his hand into hers, holding onto it tightly. "This is my home."
He kept gazing at her with love. She always brought out his softest side.
"I have a good feeling about this. This city is going to bring a good change into our lives, and I want to embrace it. So, what do you reckon about having a baby Mr. Gilani?"
But she didn't need an answer. The happiness in his eyes gave it all away.
In the years to come, Faiza's words were going to be proven right. Cape Town brought a change on their lives for the better. It took a while but they had managed to remove all their traces from Budapest. Now the Gilanis only remained as a memory in people's minds. A wealthy couple who once lived a lavish life in the extravagant city, and moved away after an incident disrupted their lives. No one could come up with any other explanation, and they didn't feel the need to either.
Hafeez Pasha's murder case was dismissed with prejudice, which meant it couldn't be re-opened again, due to lack of any substantial evidence and pressure from higher officials. Kathaleen was convicted for felony. Not for murder, but attempted theft and was let go after 2 years of imprisonment.
Abigail Hughes serves as an investigating officer for organized crimes, at Interpol's French office. Although mostly confined deskwork, she's content with the job. But the chase after international mafia leaders in Europe is still going strong. She still hopes to catch the people behind the notoriously orchestrated crime, someday.
Like Naushad had reassured, Ali did not have to spend more than a day in police custody. He was let go on the same day with the police chief personally apologizing for the behavior of his subordinates. But of course we know how that happened. He left Budapest shortly afterwards and went to India for a few months, before quietly moving to Cape Town with a new identity.
Naushad and Faiza, or Jamal and Tara, live in anaffluent suburb of Cape Town. They have a fairly well established real estatebusiness, which they both own with equal partnership. But that's not the onlyresponsibility that they have in common. Little Alaya Mihir Gilani, who is justfew days away from her 6th birthday, has become the center of theirworld now. Her mind is as sharp as her father's and opinions as strong as hermother's, and by the looks of it, they already know she is going to befollowing their twisted footsteps, climbing the stairs of success one villainous step at a time.
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Thank you for the wonderful response everyone! It was truly a pleasure putting this story out here. Love you all.
Until next time ♥️