Have a nice reading ♥️ Probably a boring chapter ahead😪 Read at your own risk😜
"Aru..." Ragini stood before Arvind, an uncertainty, a nervousness looming over her voice.
Arvind looked up to find the Maheswaris assembling in the hall as asked by him. He shifted his gaze to his friend and smiled at her. "Nervous?"
Ragini couldn't reply. She heaved a sigh of distress. She couldn't ascertain where life is taking them, what they should expect the next moment. Her husband is innocent! She knows that. But the uneasy feeling bubbling inside her is not helping her at the moment.
"Ragu, don't worry." Arvind blinked at her. "Truth will come out. Only truth will! I have talked to ACP. He's my friend."
"Aru..." Ragini's voice trailed off in surprise.
"I can't help in that Ragu. When truth comes out, the culprit should be arrested and punished. Don't worry. He will be here only after I call him."
A call from Ananya interrupted them and Ragini walked back to sit between Sanskar and Swara.
***
Sangita splashed water over face again. Her eyes swollen and red yet it held something akin to rage. She couldn't identify the reflection. Was it herself?
She was somehow relieved that Maheswaris came to know her identity. Every time she was called her titli's name, she felt her heart piercing. After freshening up, she heaved a sigh preparing herself to face the family again.
And her phone buzzed, 'Please! I miss you!'.
Sangita shut her eyes. No pleadings are going to affect her. At least not now, when she's so close to her goal.
***
Seeing Sangita approaching them, Ragini shot up from her seat. She wanted to reach Sangita and talk with her, but what? Realising herself being in a maze of thoughts, she sat down and looked at Sanskar who had been fiddling his fingers.
"Arvind..." Laksh called softly seeing everyone ought to be present being together at the moment.
"Ms. Roy!" Arvind intended to make a formal approach but was treated with a stern gaze in return, making him sigh.
"How much more drama should I witness, Mr. Investigator?" Her voice tried to be a mocking one but ended up being tired.
"We shall get to the matter, Ms. Roy. The case requires detailing so please bear with it. Before that we have some guests. They will be here--" Arvind's voice trailed off as he observed Sangita's attention somewhere else. On following her gaze, he saw Sharmishta and Swara bringing Shekhar in his wheelchair.
"Victim of one of your revenge strikes!" Arvind saw colour draining off Sangita's face as his words hit her. "You're here to avenge for your loss and because of you someone lost her dear ones. Two deaths! One was fighting for life! How will you justify those, Ms. Roy?"
Sangita shifted her gaze to meet the stern eyes of Arvind. She felt her throat drying up.
"Your loss can't be wiped off but to avenge it you adopted a vicious route. Multiple attacks... If it was on Maheswari family, mainly Sanskar I would have understood. But on Gadodhia family. Why?"
Sangita kept mum. Did she had answers? Maybe Yes! But--
"Shanaya!?" Swara was surprised seeing Laksh's PA at Maheswari Mansion and it drew attention of others.
"Hi Sir. Hi Arvind." She greeted followed by a lady in her mid twenties.
"Purvi..." Sangita mumbled.
Laksh and Sanskar frowned seeing a familiar face nearing them. Have seen her somewhere! Sanskar thought.
"Ms. Mehta is here!" Shanaya introduced the lady accompanied her.
Laksh and Sanskar looked at each other in shock and later at Arvind to which he nodded his head lightly.
***
"Purvi Mehta." She joined her hands to greet the the Senior Maheswaris and smiled warmly.
Sanskar and Laksh remained puzzled on witnessing a warm and approachable version of Ms. Pooja Mehta a.k.a Lady Hitler before them. A different face with almost same features but the stark contrast in behaviour intrigued them.
But Mr. Mehta had only one daughter! Even though the private affairs of Mehta family were held secretively, the Maheswari family had met the Mehta family years ago.
"Sorry, Pooja will be a little late. She had some urgent meeting." Purvi said sweetly. "And congratulations." She handed over a small bouquet she carried to Parineeta. "I was informed very late about the get-together. Else I would have reached earlier. And dad and mom conveyed their wishes to you all for the new journey."
"We are very happy that you came, beta... But get-together?" Annapurna caressed her hair and trailed off in confusion.
"Aunty..." Arvind called out and nodded her assuring.
"There's no get-together happening here?" Purvi asked looking around. The hall is decorated lightly in a pleasant manner. But the air is tensed around her.
And her gaze stopped at a familiar face. "Git.. Sangita.." Purvi took long strides towards Sangita engulfed her in a warm hug while Sangita remained perplexed.
"What are you doing here?" Sangita's voice came out as a whisper.
"Leave me... What are you doing here? You knew them before?... You never told me, Sangita." Purvi chirped while the Maheswaris chose to be silent spectators to see the scene unfolding without interruptions.
"When did you come back to India?" An anxiety laced her voice even after masking her emotions.
"Day before yesterday. I wanted to visit here from long and got the chance now." Purvi chirped again excitedly like a small girl. "You were here and Pooja didn't even bother to tell me!"
"Pooja....?" Sanskar consciously interrupted the small conversation, his voice confused.
"Yeah Pooja, your business associate, my sister." The pride in Purvi's voice brought a smile as well as tears to Sangita.
"But we knew only about one daughter, beta." Durgaprasad was doubting his memory finally. Did he really forgot about another daughter of Harshvardhan Mehta?
"She is my adoptive sister, uncle." Neither Purvi's smile faltered nor her pride. "And I didn't wanted to be in limelight as a Mehta. So she always chose to step ahead for me. But Dad spoke to you on this long ago."
***
"Are you guys serious? She is my sister, for God sake! Why would she even want to hurt your family, the family which is close to Papa's heart?" Purvi spoke exasperated and slumped to the nearby couch.
"Purvi, come." Sangita held her hand and pulled her upwards. "You need to leave from here."
"No! I'm not going anywhere. Let Pooja come. I want to clear the things! What's with people picking up some random accusations on my sister? She just came to India one year before, that too after 12 years. And you all are speculating that she's....."
"We are not speculating, Ms. Mehta. We have proofs." Arvind threw a file to the table before them. "We do investigate things. I'm an IPS officer, even though on leave. So don't give us lecture on speculating about a culprit."
"Pooja helped Sangita in settling here, in Kolkata. She had been continuously in connection with Sangita whose sole object of visit to India was revenge on Sanskar Maheswari which had fuelled against the whole Maheswari clan. Later, the attacks taken place.... All the attacks were planned and attackers were appointed indirectly by Pooja. We got hold of her spies in Maheswari Mansion and in office and they have confirmed the same. What other would you need to know?" Arvind sounded unusually irritated as he said all in a go. "Whatever it is, save for your sister to answer!"
"Why would she? There's no prope--" Purvi whispered and trailed off as I'd realising something. "Gitu.. You came here for revenge? Why?" Purvi's eyes welled up in surprise. "Why Sanskar?--- Sans--- Titli? Kavita's--- Sangita, tell me damn it! It's not what I'm thinking, right?"
Sangita's gaze shifted from the floor to Purvi as the tears gushed down her eyes.
Purvi held her head in her hands out of frustration. "And Pooja, being an idiot, was helping you right?"
Sangita nodded her head closing her eyes while Arvind narrowed his eyes.
"She knew everything, even that Kavita's boy was Sanskar Maheswari, though accidentally. When we came to know about the truth, I wanted to avenge and she was ----"
"There providing the whole support like an idiot not thinking the aftermath of it!" Purvi growled slightly gritting her teeth. "I can't believe it!"
"Ms. Mehta, can you check on your sister? We would need to wind up the matter." Arvind said in a grim tone. "Please!" He added seeing the stern gaze from Purvi.
***
Purvi clutched her phone tightly while her lips quivered. Tears continued to flow down her cheeks and she didn't bother to wipe them off. Ragini sat beside her, pressing her shoulder, unsure of how to soothe her.
'Purvi I'm busy right now.'
'I said na I may not be able to make to it'
Com'on Purvi!! They're your family not mine. And who asked you to visit The Maheswaris. I've better things to do unlike you, so please.....' Pooja said through the call Purvi made on Arvind's insistence.
'That fool is thinking that I'm really being her soul sister' Pooja smirked thinking the call got disconnected. 'They just are fools, be it the father, mother or daughter. We got almost everything we wanted. Just few days more; we will be winning the whole game, bhaiyya.'
Sangita continued to sit beside Purvi, her face blank, not able to take on happenings. She pressed her webbing between her right thumb and index finger with the other hand, trying to relieve her budding anxiety.
Sanskar watched Ragini sitting beside Purvi, trying to soothe, a stranger to her. He could never tire of admiring her. If he could just..... He was carefree now. It was sure that almost everything would end up at Lady Hitler. Even then a but remained. A smile too...
Swara brought water for the two - Purvi and Sangita. She felt bad for Purvi. The person whom she considered her sister, loved unconditionally and took pride in, cheated her. If she would have been in Purvi's place.... She couldn't even think to imagine it! But for Sangita, she felt her heart softening a bit, but not much. Sangita had troubled her sister a lot. For what? Her hollow revenge? Maybe she could empathize with Sangita after knowing the whole truth.
Only a few minutes had passed after the call, but it felt as if hours had passed for the Maheswaris. Parineeta squirmed on the couch while Sujatha reached to her aid.
"Bhabhi, you go and rest in your room." Sanskar and Swara took turns to say for the nth time which was gifted with a glare.
'I won't go anywhere. After all I want to know, what made them torture us like this, especially Ragini. I have seen her struggling in between everything. And I'm not sick, please' Parineeta ended rolling her eyes.
Ananya walked in drawing everyone's attention, following by few of their teammates who had Pooja Mehta in between them.
I don't know what all I had typed down. This is purely a filler chapter. I know the story if being stretced. I had been trying to pen down the revelation from the day I published last chapter, but continuously stuck at one or other points.
So I just wanted to move a little further. This is not edited. So when the book gets under editing, maybe many parts of this chapter will be edited out, even the book's.
Thanks for all the support till now♥️ The reads, votes and comments always overwhelms me. Thank you for being with this journey.
Much Love to all
Sameera ♥️