I was in a serious mood to write something and don't know when I ended up writing the update.
The initial chapters, as usual, would only introduce and give a glimpse of the story.
Also, I'm very disappointed with the nil.comments thingy. Demotivated me so much.
This is a very long chapter. Longest in all till now. So, I wx9ect comments please.
I HOPE ALL OF YOU ARE SAFE WITH MASKS ON AND VACCINATION DONE.
STAY SAFE!
Enjoy reading!
P.s. Character sketch would be up soon.
Manik went back to his car and settled down in passenger seat, as Anupam passed him a water bottle. As the water travelled down his throat, it calmed both his body and mind. The Basus were easy, not the Murthys. The pain on their faces constricted his heart. But he knew, it was needed. He immediately dialled a number from his phone. After two rings, the call was received.
"What the hell was Nandini Murthy doing in the meeting when I specifically mentioned that she shouldn't be in 5 kms radius of the office?", he shouted into the device.
"Manik, it was a last minute decision by Adarsh Sir. He called her up an hour before the meeting, asking her to join them as she is also a director. She took her Dadi's position a month ago and we didn't have any info regarding it", was the calm reply he got.
He tried to compose himself and cut the call immediately, messaging the person a sorry. Nandini Murthy's presence today would definitely deter his plan. He had to work out a new sketch. He held his head.
In all this, Anupam sat quietly. He didn't want Nandini to know about Manik either. But who can go against entwined fate? A small smile adorned his face as he thought about her. The lively, bubbly kid he once knew. The happiness of his sister's family. He missed that 'chulbuli' today. Nonetheless, he would meet her soon.
His thoughts were broken by Manik. "Mamu, now that you know the matter, we need a change of plan. We can confuse anyone here but not Nandini Murthy. Woh shatir hain, Mamu and we are not in any position to take the risk", Manik said in a single breathe.
"I did give you an idea, Manik, when you mentioned about 'chulbuli'. You denied it", Anupam said casually, shrugging.
"No, Mamu.. she's shouldn't get even a whiff about us. Unfortunately, my 'informer' is very lazy and inefficient. That idiot damaged enough. Let me call him. Incompetent fool", Manik abused his informer.
"Who are you showing your fake anger to, bhanje? I know you and your best friend too well. Zyada se zyada tum use do char baathe suna doge. That's it and it gets back to 'yeh Dosti.... hum nahi todenge....'. Am I right?", Anupam teased.
Manik glared at him for knowing him so well to which he laughed. "Isi baath ka advantage leraha hai wo. I'll not leave him today, Mamu. Wait and watch", he said angrily and Anupam laughed.
"Hello, informer. The meeting went great today. Your info was so up to date. Come home, I'll treat you to lunch", he spoke to informer on his phone, gritting his teeth.
"You calling me to feed me food is enough for me to know that I'm going to get thrashed. I'm not coming, baby", the person the opposite side spoke.
"Aaj ghar pe butter chicken bana hai. Ab bhi nahi aoge?", Manik asked fake innocence dripping from his voice.
"You know my weakness so well and you use it to your advantage. Saale. Butter chicken ke liye tho maar bhi khaalun mein. I'll reach in 10" and he cut the call, not waiting for Manik to respond. Anupam, who was listening to their banter, guffawed at this crazy pair.
Nandini seemed to be happier than she was in these entire 13 years and she couldn't be more happy that her equilibrium is disrupted. The glow on her face is noticed by the entire family. But, they were worried about her.
This person claimed to be some Malhotra, not their best friend nor their little one. Moreover, they themselves saw the entire family burning to death in their once pious abode. A scene which gives them chills even today. It was also confirmed in the post mortem. It cannot be any of them.
They didn't want their daughter to hope for something that could possibly never be hers. Ever. They had failed her once and they wanted to make sure there is no second time. Vishesh had already put detectives behind the look alike. They hoped for the best. Meanwhile, they needed to watch over their daughter.
Manik and Anupam walked into their house and saw their 'informer', all ready to pounce on the food. As soon as he saw Manik, he picked his plate and started running with Manik following him with a vase.
"Manik, ruk jaa. Tera pyara dost marjayega. You don't want that do you?", he said still sprinting.
"Mein tumhara sir aaj zaroor phod dunga. Ruk jaa, Cabir", Manik roared at his best friend.
After a chase of 10 minutes and intervention of Anupam and Abhimanyu who just arrived, they finally put an end to their baseless fight. After having a merry lunch, they all settled in the study for some serious talk.
"How did the meeting go, Manik? All as we planned?", Cabir queried. Manik nodded as he said "Nobody seemed to believe that I'm Manik Malhotra, but I definitely planted a seed of doubt that maybe I'm truly Manik. Their confusion would lead them to check my background which Cabir has managed to settle, hopefully without blunders this time. They would return empty handed. Abhi would see to it that only classified information reaches the Murthys. It's sorted as of now"
"What about aafath?", Cabir asked seriously. "You deal with her, stupid. She would have definitely recognized me. I should make a move real quick, to dissuade her from her 'Mission sach ka samna'. Saale... isliya kaha tha maine tumse, get me proper details", he said stressed.
Cabir wrapped his arm around Manik's shoulder and spoke "Manik, tension na le. I'll try to make amends. I already have your history setup. I think she'd believe it, if you play along. Just a bit more than normal. Sorry, yaar"
"I know it was unintentional, Cabir. But she is a tough nut. When I say it, I mean it. She wouldn't believe her eyes, she'd trust her heart. If I have to make her believe in Manik Malhotra, I have to hurt her...."
"....which you don't want", the trio finished for him. He turned away from them and kept gazing at the wall.
"Manik, aaj ya kal, she'd however know and even if she didn't, those inhuman people might use her as a bait to get to you. If she has a fair idea about Manik, she'd atleast be on guard. You know your cherry enough to understand that she can deal with trouble in the best possible way. You should give her that. Trust me, she is anything but naive", Abhimanyu explained.
"You don't know what exactly I'm worried about" Saying so, Manik left the room with a worried face.
"Don't you think he is worrying too much. I agree she might know his identity which could lead to bigger problems, but as far as I observed her, she'd support the truth" Abhi said unsure about his statement, to which Cabir nodded while Anupam got lost in his thoughts.
Manik sat on the swing in the balcony, admiring the moon. His mother loved the moon and believed that it would convey your messages to your favourite people. Manik now found the moon as her caretaker. He would sit looking at the moon for hours, as if watching them and talking to them, sharing his day with them, also complaining to them. He missed them so much. Why did they have to be so far from him?
He was brought out of his trance by Anupam, who placed his hand on Manik's shoulder. Manik looked at him with those blank eyes, breaking his heart once again.
Though Manik had people who loved him as their own, he missed them terribly. After all, none could take their place. But, he always hid his emotions, not to disappoint his mother. Anupam was the only person who could see through his façade, just like he saw through his father. If not, Manik is a great actor.
"You don't trust her, isn't it?" Anupam asked softly.
"I want to. Believe me Mamu, I really do, but I'm not able to have that blind trust in anyone now. It seems like they would hold my hand today and leave it tomorrow, when I learn to walk with their support. And here I have seen her after 13 years of no contact at all. I don't want history to repeat, Mamu. I want to be careful. I am just not able to make anyone else a part of this destructive mission. I will not be able to bear the loss of any body else in my life. I had enough and you know she's precious" Manik spoke palming his face, resisting his urge to cry.
"But here, we are not talking about any random person, Manik. It's your cherry" Anupam tried to explain. Manik kept quite letting Anupam know his inner turmoil. He decided to let the matter be as Manik is as stubborn as his father.
As Anupam sat back on the swing, he reminisced the day he first held Manik. It was an ethreal feeling. He didn't have a child of his own, but he didn't consider Manik any less. The infant Manik was first taken into Anupam's arms. He looked so innocent and beautiful.
He is the same even today, but his innocence and beautiful heart is scarred permanently by the brutality of his life. He looked at the sky for help as he had done since 13 years.
He slowly felt a head on his shoulder, trying to grasp some comfort. Anupam smiled at his gesture and ruffled his hair where Manik slowly fell asleep on his Mamu's shoulder. It was his habit to sleep on his Mamu's shoulder when he missed his parents. He felt safe and... content!
Anupam kept watching the night sky seeking answers to the unknown questions until he too finally slept on the same swing as Manik, his hand still holding his sleeping nephew.
Cabir and Abhi who had come to check on Manik, stared at the duo warmly before retiring for the night. The following days would be hectic for all of them.
As expected, the next morning brought back Manik's smirk as he came to know that his plan was right in track. Both Murthys and Basus were searching his whereabouts like maniacs. He felt satisfied with the news and got ready for the day. But, his mind was still on alert about Nandini Murthy.
Manik got down his Audi and walked into the mall. His next target would be arriving soon and he was ready for his next step.
Shreya Mukherjee, the daughter of the Basu household, was to make an appearence here. She is a struggling model, though she had the attitude of a celebrity, as he had expected.
She could do anything to be the talk of the town and cherry on the cake is her stupidity. She is too foolish for her own bad, unlike her brother. She was the weakest link among the Basus and he intended to make full use of that.
He walked to his clothesline store in the mall, the staff of which were shocked and nervous at his sudden visit. He was called as the 'raging pacific' by the westerners in the main branch of Malhotra Industries in Canada and they feared he would drown them.
The next half an hour went by in firing three employees and giving a disciplinary notice to two. He slowly walked out of the store to encounter his biggest trouble, Nandini Murthy. She hadn't noticed him yet, but the glint in her eyes made him smile. She was the same cherry he left years back. Her smile held the same mirth but it was dim. He adored it.
Involuntarily, his legs carried him to her. He saw that she was shopping handicrafts. He chuckled at it. Her love for them would not leave in this life. As if she sensed him, her posture stiffened at the moment and she turned back hurriedly slipping in the process due to the sudden jerk.
Manik held her just in time and straightened her up, while all she did was look over his shoulder widening her eyes. She murmured a thank you before striding away in a fast pace, leaving a confused Manik behind. He was sure she did not notice his face. Then why was she behaving so weird?
His constant gaze on her broke when he heard a little commotion behind him. He turned around to see his prey walking into it's trap... efficiently!
After escaping 'him', Nandini took a lift to the second floor. She literally ran into 'his' spa huffing, occasionally breaking into a small run and largely with her pacing heart. Her only acquaintance-cum-
batchmate-cum-friend Rithvik Seth, was startled to see her. She was not a person who would try to maintain relations, even though the opposite person did. How does Rithvik know?
Simple, he's one of them.
Rithvik is her classmate and owned a spa in the mall, along with many other places. He was one curious cat and this drew him towards her. She had been a subject to it, even today. Her eyes were lost whenever he took a chance glance at them. He wanted to be her friend, to know her. He felt she'd be interesting.
Slowly, he understood her problem of not letting people in and gave her the freedom she wished for by not being an annoying bug. He was the only guy who could approach her freely without a second thought. Nandini, though, didn't mind but didn't open up to him either. She always stayed in her bubble.
But, even after giving him a cold shoulder, he stuck to her, which made her a little less skeptical about him. She started to have small conversations with him and responded to all his messages and once in a while visited his spa when she was invited by him and his girlfriend, Vanya Gupta.
But never did he see a panic stricken, visibly shaken Nandini, which is why he got worried seeing her like that. He immediately dragged her inside, gave her some water and kept rubbing her back. After a few minutes, when she was finally back from her tensed state, did she realise her surroundings. She stared at Rithvik who was looking at her worried and tensed. She gave him a small smile, making him release the breathe he had been holding.
"Are you okay? Do you want more water?", he asked to which she replied negatively. "Okay... come. Let's get you a relaxing spa session. I'll call Vanya to come. You can meet her after you are done", he said, knowing very well that she wouldn't answer his questions and it would only make her uncomfortable.
"I saw him here today. He didn't change a bit. He had the same eyes and the same tattoo too", she spoke, almost like a whisper, initiating a conversation for the first time, a personal one at that.
Rithvik furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "Who?", he asked the obvious.
"The man who killed my Chachu and Chachi"
Ok, so I'm back and I'm glad.
How was ManBir scene? I always found their friendship particularly strong and unique.
Any words for Anupam and Manik? They are one awesome Mama-Bhanja isn't it?
Rithivik Seth and his not so close friendship with Nandini. What do you think is Nandini's problem with people as a whole?
Finally whom do you think Nandini saw to get so scared? Who killed her Chacha-Chachi?
LIKE, SHARE AND COMMEMT!
Adios,
Gargi!