A/N

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A long update for my cuties 🥹❤️

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Author

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"Aag..."

["Fire"]

A loud noise erupted, and chaos spread among the people. The priests of the temple panicked and rushed to see where the commotion had come from.

Narmada Raizada's heart trembled, but she refused to let the terror within overpower her. Her grandson and granddaughter, Kashish and Kartik, hurried to her side and held her hand as if to protect her, but the truth was that the deafening noise had frightened them.

Some of the guards stationed outside stepped forward to escort Narmada and her family to safety, while the others ran toward the source of the disturbance.

"Ma'am, please, come this way." One of the guards said, trying to take them to safety.

"Nirbhay...where is Nirbhay?" She fumbled with words, wandering her gaze around.

"I can't leave without him..." She said sternly.

"Ma'am, we have to leave now..."

"No..."

"Please ensure Bhaiya's safety..." Kashish said, sniffing as they had now begun to feel the heat of the fire too.

"Ma'am, some of our men are already out there; I will inform them that Sarkar is there...but we have to leave; it's not safe..." The guard persuaded again, but Narmada was too adamant as she replied, "I am not leaving without my grandson."

The panic and yellings of the people kept escalating. Soon those shouts of panic got mixed with cries of people, and that was when fear entered Narmada's soul.

She saw a priest running inside, sweat dripping down his forehead, and panic unfurled over his features.

"Pandit Ji..." She called, stopping him mid-track.

"Aap...aap gaye the na bahar? Nirbhay ko dekha aapne?"

["You... you went out, didn't you? Did you see Nirbhay?"]

"Narmada Ji...aag bohot bhayankar lagi hai...dhuyein ki vajah se kuch dikhayi nahi de raha..." Meri maniye aap kisi surakshit jagah pe jaiye jald se jald...is aag ko mandir tak pohochne mein bas ek hawa ke jhoke ki deri lagegi...."

["Narmada Ji... the fire is raging fiercely... the smoke is making it impossible to see anything... Please, move to a safe place as soon as possible... it would take just a single gust of wind for the fire to reach the temple..."]

The priest took some of his belongings and then rushed out towards a safe place.

Narmada went weak in the knees hearing him, losing her footing. One of the guards held her arm to keep her steady.

"Ma'am, please listen to us. I have had a conversation with Sunil and informed him about Sarkar already. Don't worry, he will be fine." The guard assured her again.

Kashish and Kartik were now in tears. They were both scared for themselves as well as for Nirbhay.

"Please, Ma'am, for them..."

Narmada watched the state of her grandkids and nodded and let the guards escort them out of the temple. Some of the guards stayed behind to help others.

The flames had slowly begun to cling to the pillars of the temple. People were screaming and begging for help, running here and there to find refuge or to be rescued. 

Guards had escorted a lot of people to a safe place, away from those dangerous flames, but the flames had hugged some people so terribly as if two magnets were hugging each other.

On the other hand, when Narmada and her grandkids were escorted to the safe place, to where the convoy of her cars was parked, Narmada started to panic more as Nirbhay couldn't be seen anywhere. Some guards ran inside again to help the needy and to find Nirbhay.

But the surprising fact was that the very man everyone was worried about stood amidst the chaos like a blazing torch, rescuing people and leading them to a safe place.

And how could fire ever burn the one who was an inferno himself?

NirbhayRaj, just like the name suggested, was one fearless man. 

He didn't care when he noticed the food tent in flames and walked in like a warrior to save the trapped people, even when there was a gas cylinder which could have blasted any moment.

The first thing he did was put aside the gas cylinder so that it wouldn't catch fire and cause more damage than it had already done, and after that he started rescuing people and getting them on boats. The boatmen were taking the people to the safe end of the shore.

"Sarkar..." One of the guards named Sunil approached him.

"Where is everyone?" He asked.

"They are fine...already at a safe place."

"Good."

He was about to go inside the temple when his eye caught a man who was limping. He was injured, and there was a deep cut in his right leg. That man was heading towards the rescue boat too. He kept looking here and there suspiciously, making his pace fast, and then he turned around.

His face drained of all the colors when he caught Nirbhay staring at him. Nirbhay's gaze was enough to have him stop in his tracks for a moment.

He could see his death in Nirbhay's eyes.

The boatman called for him, but he didn't go there; instead, he started taking steps back.

He limped to the other side where there were no people, just ashes and some bamboo burning. Nirbhay let him run because those efforts he was making were fruitless, and Nirbhay thrived on snatching the hopes of his victims.

The man kept turning back, shuddering in fear; his leg hurt, but he still was trying to drag himself away from Nirbhay, who was now walking towards him, but not at a hurried pace.

The hurried pace of a predator is predictable, but what scares the prey is their slow, calculated stride. And Nirbhay's walk was that of a monstrous predator. He didn't have to do anything; just his mere presence was enough to make others shit in their pants.

"Kisne bheja the tujhe?" 

["Who sent you?"]

Nirbhay asked, his voice calm but perilous enough.

That was it; the placid, menacing voice of his did the deed, and as the man tried to run, he stumbled on a rock and fell. Fear overpowered him, and he couldn't even move from his spot; his lips quivered as he started crying in fear, pleaded with terror-filled eyes, and his hands conjoined.

But Nirbhay knew no mercy, so he put a foot on his chest and roared, "Bol...." 

["Speak"]

He pressed on his throat, choking him. That man gagged, couldn't breathe, his eyes rolled as he saw Nirbhay as Yamraaj ready to take out his soul.

Nirbhay removed his foot, and then the man coughed; he coughed hard, and not just anything but he coughed blood.

"Batatu hu...batatu hu..." 

["I will tell you... I will tell you..."]

He mumbled, rubbing his palm in front of Nirbhay to show him some mercy.

"Sangram Singh..." 

Nirbhay, when he heard the name, kicked his injured leg and pressed his foot on the man's open wound, causing him to scream in agony.

"Mujhe maaf kar dijiye...maaf kar dijiye..."

["Please forgive me... forgive me..."]

That man cried, but there was only contempt Nirbhay had for him and no forgiveness.

"Sarkar..."

Then all of a sudden, Nirbhay's right hand, Naveen Pandey, ran to him with a constable.

"Ise le jakar hawalat mein band kar do...aur ha us kamre mein hawa bhi mere puche bina na jane paaye..."

["Take him away and lock him up in the cell... and mind you, not even a breath of air should enter that room without my permission..."]

Nirbhay ordered the constable.

"Ji Sarkar..." 

["Okay, Sarkar"]

The constable replied in obedience, and then he grabbed the shoulder of the man, pulling him up and dragging him along.

"Sarkar ...mujhe maaf kar dijiye..."

["Sarkar... please forgive me..."]

"Sarkar..."

"Sarkar...mujhe jane dijiye..."

["Sarkar... please let me go..."]

"Main majboor tha...."

["I was compelled..."]

The man kept crying, pleading, wailing, but Nirbhay stood there like a statue, like a man built of stones and not flesh, watching him getting dragged without feeling anything.

"Agar vo sach mein majboor hua toh?"

["What if he really had no choice?"]

Naveen asked with uncertainty.

"Koi bhi majboori itni badi nahi hoti ki insaan ko uska zameer bechne par majboor kar de...."

["No compulsion is great enough to force a person to sell their conscience...."]

Nirbhay replied coldly. He then noticed Naveen's expression turned grim.

"Kya hua?"

["What happened?"]

"Vo...Sarkaar..."

["Well... Sarkar..."]

He hesitated to speak and extended his phone to him. Nirbhay saw the headlines of the news in Naveen's phone and tightened his grip on it.

Hoshiyar Singh died under mysterious circumstances in his farmhouse.

A revolver was discovered in the woods near his farmhouse which belonged to his brother Dilshan Singh.

He gave the phone back to Naveen, and then  Naveen informed him the SHO of the police station near the ghat wanted to talk to him. Nirbhay called the SHO of the district from his phone.

"Kya khabar hai?"

["What's the news?"]

"Sangam Ghat ka ek hissa book kiya hai Sangram Singh ne ek hafte bad ke liye....suna hai kuch bohot bada hone vale hai...par aap chinta mat kijiye, Sarkar...usko andar bhi karunga aur chamdi bhi udherunga uski...."

["Sangram Singh has booked a section of Sangam Ghat for a week from now... word is that something huge is about to happen... but don't you worry, Sir... I will put him behind bars and skin him alive, too..."]

"Apni aukaat bhul rahe ho tum...." 

["You are forgetting your place...."]

Nirbhay seethed.

"Sher apna shikar khud karta hai...use langre geedaron ke sahare ki zaroorat nahi padti..."

["A lion hunts its own prey... it has no need for the support of lame jackals..."]

"Ji...ji Sarkar..."

["Yes... yes, Sir..."]

SHO mumbled, realizing he almost stepped a boundary he shouldn't have.

"Ab dhyan se meri baat suno...." 

["Now, listen to me carefully...."]

Nirbhay instructed the next actions to be taken while the inspector listened carefully.

******

Sargam touched the strings of rabab gently as if touching the feet of her mother, taking her blessings.

"Aaj jo karne ki himmat aayi hai vo bas aapse hi aa paayi hai, Maa."

["The courage to do what I am doing today has come solely from you, Maa."]

She mumbled as she stared at the card in her palm with determination, the one that Preeti had given her which had her phone number.

Sargam didn't have a phone, but she had enough money to call her from a paid landline service.

It took her years of suffering and one glimmer of hope that filled her with enormous strength; now she stood in her room, covered with a black shawl, ready to flee the life of monstrosity and torment.

She didn't know where she would go, and how, but she was relying only on some money she had and the hope that she would get needed help from Preeti.

Surprisingly, the family and even the servants had retired to sleep early as if the Gods were on her side. And the backside of the haveli didn't have guards either.

 It was strange because the guards were always stationed there, but she didn't ponder why they weren't there and decided to put that time to her use instead.

She was already in one of Geeta's salwar kameezes, which she had borrowed from her, lying that all her clothes got dirty because she spilled oil on them mistakenly. Now, she couldn't be recognized from the clothes at least. 

She was leaving the piece of her heart behind, the rabab and the wooden box hiding in the room. But she could either choose the stuff she was connected to or take a path towards her freedom, and even if it sounded selfish, she chose the latter.

While the haveli and its people grew quiet, she headed towards the back door of the kitchen, which led straight to the back gate of the haveli.

Sargam was scared, but she didn't let it slow her down and paced towards the exit of hell. There was a checklist in her head, which needed to be marked for her to be free. The first one was to walk past the gates of the haveli.

The black sky blanketed her, the stars and the moon curious and moving along with her, perhaps were guiding her; the constant chirping of the crickets was assuring her she wasn't alone and there was no need to be scared.

Now the second pointer of the checklist was to walk past the guards always stationed a few meters ahead of the gates for an additional level of security. They would stay there the entire night, would sit on cots they had placed on either side of the roads, playing cards, drinking hookah, and would always be alert.

None of them had seen Sargam walking out of the haveli, but that didn't mean they couldn't get suspicious.

Sargam didn't increase her pace to avoid putting herself under the radar of suspicion and just kept walking like a normal person would.

"Arey...tu kaisi baatein kar raha hai...main chaar kya tujhe paanch hazaar dunga tu bas...tu bas seedhe chalkar dikha..."

["Hey... what kind of talk is this? I will give you five thousand...not just four...you just... you just try walking in a straight line..."]

There were only two guards. Both of them were visibly drunk, but one of them was heavily drunk and challenged by the other one to walk straight. He did take a few steps but eventually ended up on his ass.

Sargam's fear had increased, but her resoluteness was helping her.

"Ae idhar aa...."

["Hey, come here..."]

She heard one of the guards who curled his single finger and ordered her to come closer to him. She didn't stop, because if she had, she would have lost whatever courage was pushing her forward.

"Maine kaha idhar aa..."

["Maine kaha idhar aa..."]

When she still didn't stop and didn't even increase her pace, he got up from the cot and then ran to where she was, lunged behind her, almost having her heart leap out of her mouth.

She was about to scream, but then she noticed that a man had grabbed another guard who was right behind her, and she hadn't even noticed him.

"Ladki ka peecha karta hai?" 

["You are following the girl?"]

He grabbed him by the nape of his neck and took him to the cot. He was another guard whose duty was to be alert and keep the haveli safe.

"Bye...didi...aap jao...."

["Bye... Didi... you go...."]

The drunk man who was having difficulty walking earlier said to Sargam, waving at her.

"Hain....Saale....yaad nahi Maalik ne kya bola tha?" 

["Huh... you bastard... don't you remember what the boss said?"]

The less drunk one asked the one he had just grabbed.

"Kya....kya bola us buddhe ne?" 

["What... what did that old man say?"]

The other guard slurred.

"Yahi ki chaar din bhukha rahega toh panchve din vo khud tujhe maas ka tukda la denge...."

["It's just that if you stay hungry for four days, he will bring you a piece of meat himself on the fifth day...."]

"Ohhhh...." And then he laughed and so did the other two.

Sargam had multiple times heard the people of the haveli comparing a woman with flesh, so this wasn't new. Earlier she used to feel disgusted and even sad for every woman out there, but she was stunned when she heard the women of the family doing the same.

It wasn't a gender problem; it was a mentality problem.

Sargam crossed the street of the haveli and finally noticed a bus stand. When she was out of the sight of the guards, she increased her speed and headed to the bus stand where a bus was already waiting.

She didn't think much, boarded it instantly, and then grabbed a window seat in the middle, empty seats somewhere. The bus was packed with people: women, crying kids, and men, and only a few seats were empty, one being the side of her.

The bus's engine soon roared, and the conductor started asking for money for the ticket to their destination from the people who had boarded at the last stop.

"Ticket...ticket...ticket..."

Finally, when he reached Sargam's seat, he asked, "Ha...kaha jana hai?"

["Say... where do you have to go?"]

Sargam didn't know where she had to go, only that she needed to deboard the bus at a PCO.

"Kaha jana hai? Jaldi bolo....time kharab mat karo...." 

["Where do we have to go? Speak up quickly... don't waste time..."]

The conductor asked again, being irritated.

"PCO...." She mumbled.

The conductor stared at her as if she had grown horns and then asked with an irritable voice, "Agar PCO jana hai toh is bus mein kyu aayi?"

["If you wanted to go to the PCO, why did you take this bus?"]

"Kaha...kaha milega PCO?"

["Where... where can I find a PCO?"]

She asked like a scared child. Sargam was a child only, who never wandered anywhere alone, but this time she did, that too in a bus. It was no less than an achievement.

"Ghat....cinema hall...station..."

The conductor replied.

"Ye bus jaayegi inme se kisi jagah?"

["Will this bus go to any of these places?"]

She asked softly with a hope-filled voice.

"Station jaayegi...."

["Will go to the station"]

"Toh vahi ki ticket kat lo...."

["Then just book a ticket for that one...."]

He nodded and asked for a ten rupee note. She took it out securely from her palm, the rest of the money was hiding beneath the strap of her bra.

The conductor gave her the ticket, walked past her muttering, "Ajeeb ajeeb log hain duniya mein....pata nahi kaha kaha se aa jate hain"

["There are such strange people in the world... wonder where they all come from."]

Sargam's attempt to pretend she was used to this outer world was failing terribly. 

And how could she have tried to pretend for long that she was adapted to the outer world, when she hardly knew how to navigate from one stop to another. She barely had an idea about where the PCOs were, or that they were hardly used by anyone these days.

In this digital world, who even used PCO when even kids had their own smartphones? 

Sargam never got one of his own, nor even a keypad one.

She knew about smartphones, but never used one; she knew about a lot of stuff but hardly ever got a closer look. She had a curious mind but a pitiful fate.

And we all know what happens to curiosity and creativity if it doesn't get the fuel it needs at the right time.

It Dies. Not a single death but multiple, and that too, a slow, painful one.

When, after a drive of twenty minutes, the bus stopped at the station, she got off the bus and headed straight to the PCO. But the phone inside was broken, the entire PCO destroyed and rusted. She didn't know PCOs didn't exist and that the conductor lied to her.

Her eyes brimmed with tears, and she didn't know what to do. She looked here and there for any other PCO, but lack of experience of the outer world can be cruel. She sat on the bench nearby, sniffling.

As she was blaming her fate, she noticed a man talking on a landline installed on a wooden shelf outside of a small shop nearby. She observed him, and then he hung up, and then another woman came and dialled someone's number and talked to someone. She noticed the pattern: everyone kept some rupees on the counter of the shop, and a child was handling the shop.

Sargam wiped her tears from the back of her palm and got up. As she walked closer to the shop, she noticed a wooden board hung outside the shop.

Paanch rupya ka shulk chukao aur apne ashiq/mashooqa se batiyao

[Pay a fee of five rupees and chat with your lover.]

"Bhaiya..."

She called the little kid softly and asked, "...main phone kar loon?"

["...Can I make a call?"]

The kid nodded, rearranging some stuff in the shop.

"5 rupya lagega?"

["Will it cost 5 rupees?"]

She tried confirming. The kid got irritated, and in an annoyed tone he asked, "Arey didi...tanik anpadh ho ka? Ye board dikhayi nahi deta?"

["Hey Didi... are you a bit uneducated? Can't you see this board?"]

Then he tapped the board aggressively for her to notice.

She kept the five coins of one rupee on the counter and then dialled Preeti's number, looking at the card. The shopkeeper put on his earphones, humming Mohammad Rafi's song.

The call connected and Sargam could hear the ring. Her heartbeat raced, and her hope bubbled more. The ring kept on going until there was a beep sound. Preeti didn't pick up, and Sargam panicked. Her anxiety grew.

Her mind got flooded with queries of doubts and uncertainties.

What if she does not pick up?

What if she handed me the card out of pity and not out of will to help?

What if she picks up and decides not to help me?

It was Preeti's offer of help which eventually gave Sargam the last push to take that step, but now, standing alone in front of a shop near the station she was seeing for the first time, and surrounded by strangers, she got cold feet.

'Please, Mahadev, help me.'

She mumbled and dialled her number again. 

The call went on for two rings, and then she heard a tiny burst of crackle as if a wrapper was crushed, the sound one generally hears when someone picks up the call and then..."Hello...who is this?"

Preeti asked in her sleepy voice.

Sargam smiled with tearful eyes.

"Hel...Hello...Ma'am, it's...Sargam. Remember we met today at the hospital and you gave me your card and you told me to...to call you...so I...ran...am in the...station...no no...it's PCO and ... .no not that but ...."

"Sargam?"

Sargam went quiet. Her panic broke because she thought, what if she couldn't convey her words to Preeti and the call got disconnected? After all, her fate was never the one of gold.

"Calm down....I am here, I am listening, okay?"

Sargam couldn't say anything. Someone was actually hearing her for the first time after years, and she didn't know how to react.

"Can you reply to my question?"

She sniffled and nodded. She was too scared, happy, and hopeful that she didn't know what to do.

"Sargam...you need to talk to me for me to help you ...Now tell me, can you reply to me? Just say yes or no, okay?"

"Did you run away from home?"

"Yes..."

Hearing the haveli be called her home made her feel emotional. It wasn't her home, but she had no place to call it except that haveli.

"They were going to....to get me married to an old man...." She cried over the call, her voice hushed but her pain louder than thunder.

"Hey ... hey...listen, I am here to help, okay ...I am here....Abhi ye batao kaha ho tum?"

["Now tell me where are you?"]

"Main station pe hu..."

["I am at the station"]

"Theek hai....meri baat dhyan se sunna...tumhare paas paise hain?"

["Alright... listen to me carefully... do you have any money?"]

"Thode hain...."

["Yes, a little"]

"Kitne? Dus hazar, bees hazar, 1 lakh? kitne hain?"

["How much? Ten thousand, twenty thousand, a lakh? How much exactly?"]

Sargam felt mortified. She was too ashamed to reply to that question because she didn't have even half of it.

"Paanch sau," 

["Five hundred"]

She replied in a low tone as if that would eliminate her shame.

"Shit!" Pretty muttered under her breath before she told her, "Theek hai, koi baat nahi...jitne hain kaafi hain. Ab jo main bolungi vo dhyan se sunna."

["Alright, never mind... whatever amount you have, that's enough. Now, listen carefully to what I am about to say."]

"Ji..."

["Okay..."]

"Station ke bahar se ek richshaw lelo aur vaha se sau meter ki duri pe ek farm house hai ... .safari farm house, vaha chali jao. Vaha par aaj mata ka jagrata hai aur mere kuch jaan pechaan vale log hain vaha...agar koi tumse puche toh bolna Preeti Awasthi ne tumhe help karne ke liye bheja hai."

["Take a rickshaw from outside the station and go to the farmhouse located about a hundred meters away: Safari Farmhouse. A Mata ka Jagrata is being held there today, and I know some people there... if anyone asks, just say that Preeti Awasthi sent you to help."]

Sargam listened intently to the steps to her freedom.

"Vaha jakar tumhe seedha kitchen mein jana hai aur vahi intezaar karna mera. Vaha se kahi mat jana, Sargam. Main aati hu vaha, theek hai?"

["Once you get there, go straight to the kitchen and wait for me there. Don't go anywhere else, Sargam. I will come there, okay?"]

"Theek hai..."

["Okay"]

"Aur tum darna mat...main hu tumhare saath..." 

["And don't be afraid... I am with you..."]

Preeti then consoled and assured her, which eased out some of Sargam's anxiety.

After the call disconnected, Sargam boarded a nearby rickshaw and, following Preeti's instructions, she asked the driver to take her straight to the Safari farmhouse. 

When she reached there, she got down the rickshaw, paid the driver, and when she turned to look at the farmhouse, she felt her anxiety amplifying again.

She watched the farmhouse bustling with women in colourful clothes, some of them dancing, a few playing the dholak. And the good thing was there were staff wearing basic clothes like Sargam, which would help her mingle amidst the crowd and hide until Preeti arrived.

She was about to take a step in but then couldn't. She felt something unusual; a feeling settled inside the pit of her stomach, the hair on the nape of her neck rose, as if someone just whispered something on her skin, as if a sin.

Her breath hitched, and she wandered her eyes; she could see nothing except the vibrant farmhouse in front of her and the dark farmhouse right beside it. 

Something about that dark farmhouse screamed danger, yet for some reason she felt pulled towards it.

She kept staring at the farmhouse, her face covered with the shawl and only her eyes visible. Even though she could see nothing, she still felt she could see something, as if someone was calling for her, or maybe for her soul.

She, for some reason, went into a trance, watching that dark farmhouse as if it wanted her inside. 

She inadvertently started taking steps towards the farmhouse, completely unaware of what she was doing until a honk of a car pulled her out of the trance. 

She blinked rapidly and then took steps back. She gave one long look at that farmhouse; her heart ached for some reason, but she ignored it, thinking it was just anxiety messing up with her, and then stepped inside the open gates of the Safari farmhouse.

She navigated through the lawn, and then she stepped inside the house. She looked here and there for the kitchen. No one noticed her or even found her suspicious, but then someone from the staff tapped her shoulder.

"Tum kon ho?" 

["Who are you?"]

The staff asked.

For a second, Sargam froze, as if words were stuck in her throat. But then she composed herself and replied, "Vo main madad ke liye aayi hu...."

["I have come here to help"]

She said what Preeti had told her. But before she could tell her it was Preeti who sent or even asked her where the kitchen was, the other woman handed her a tray of cold drinks and pointed towards a section of ladies in the out lawn and said, "Unhe de aao...."

["Go serve them"]

Sargam still wouldn't have gone to serve the drinks, but the other lady stayed there until Sargam walked out to the group of ladies. She served them juices one by one.

She felt relieved when the tray got empty as she could now go to the kitchen and stay there until Preeti arrived. She turned around to walk in when she heard one of the ladies say, "Arey... Mahisha ji aa gayi..."

["Oh, Mahisha Ji, has arrived..."]

Sargam's heart stopped for a beat.

It could have been any woman; after all, multiple women could carry the same name, but Sargam knew her fate, and when her voice reached Sargam, her blood curdled. She had difficulty breathing; her heart that had stopped beating for a second began beating rapidly.

Mahisha's voice grew louder, and her steps became clearer.

Sargam put the tray nearby and headed inside without looking back.

She knew if Mahisha could strip her to satisfy her ego, she could also parade her naked in front of the whole Prayagraj.

She started frantically looking for a way out, colliding with women on her way, panicking, losing herself, and then she saw an open balcony that led her to the back lawn. She staggered herself to that lawn, and the moment she got a whiff of fresh air, she realized how terribly her heart ached; and then, she ran.

She ran for her life, without looking back, without caring about anything. She didn't even notice she had crossed the boundary of the farmhouse, and now she was in the lawn of that dark farmhouse, stripped of any brightness except for the one which came from the brightened farmhouse.

She tried unlatching the door of that house, and to her surprise it opened when she twisted the knob. She rushed in and closed the door softly, panting with fear. Her hands trembled and her eyes filled with tears.

Everything was dark inside, as the lights were out, but the glow from the outdoor lights seeped through the glass window, which was partially covered with a curtain. The main gates of the farmhouse were visible, and who entered or left was clearly visible from that portion of the window, so Sargam decided to hide herself there and keep an eye on the gate for Preeti.

As she took a few steps towards the window, she heard hurried footsteps coming from inside the house. She rushed towards the window in panic, but stumbled on something and fell. A whisper of yelp left her mouth because of the fall. But she didn't get hurt as she fell on something cushioned.

The footsteps grew frantic, and she heard a woman's cry. She struggled to get up so that she could hide herself, only to scream in horror.

Why?

Well, because...she hadn't fallen on a cushion, but a human. A lifeless body stared back at her with his eyes wide open, mouth parted. To Sargam, it felt as though he could stare into her eyes.

Sargam cried, pushing herself off his body and scurrying herself farther from it, hiding behind another sofa, shaking now. Bile rose to her throat because of disgust, horror, anxiety. So much had happened yet nothing prepared her for what was coming next.

When she had screamed, her voice had been overpowered by the sudden loud voice of the speaker from the adjacent farmhouse. The volume of the speaker then suddenly began to lower and lower, and then she noticed a woman fall with a thud, closer to where she was.

It was the same woman whose cries she had heard a moment ago.

Sargam covered her mouth with her palms to abstain herself from screaming as there was another pair of footsteps, quiet, yet commanding.

And who would want to mess with someone whose footsteps sounded like that of death?

"Mujh jane dijiye....mujhe jane dijiye..."

["Let me go... let me go..."]

The woman cried as she turned her face to the door. 

Sargam received another wave of shock when she finally saw the woman's face. She was the same woman who was with Kabir the day she saved him. She was his mother. Her face was tear-stricken, her kajal smeared because of them, and there was a cut on her forehead; blood dripped out of that cut.

Sargam was before scared for herself but now terrorized for the woman and her son. She wondered where Kabir was and if he was safe.

Sargam completely forgot she was in danger herself and started praying for Kabir's safety.

Then, she saw a shadowy figure appearing huge on the wall, bending to the woman's level. That figure grabbed her hair harshly, yanked her head back so that she could see his face and asked coldly, "Kaha hai vo?"

["Where is he?"]

'If danger ever spoke, it would sound like that man.'

That was the first thought that crossed Sargam's mind after hearing his voice.

"Mujhe nahi pata...main sach bol rahi hu...mujhe nahi pata...." 

["I don't know... I am telling the truth... I don't know...."]

The woman stammered, crying, hiccuping. In front of her pain, Sargam almost found hers negligible, as if she had not been fear's favorite subject since birth.

"Ab agar apna muh nahi khola toh us bache..."

["Now, if you don't open your mouth, then that child..."]

Her face paled as she joined her hands in front of him.

"nahi....Sarkar...nahi....bache ko kuch...."

["No... Sir... no... nothing should happen to the child..."]

She couldn't complete her sentence as a painful cry tore through her mouth when he tightened his grip on her hair.

"Bohot ache se janta hu tum jaisi aurton ko main. Apni lachari ka fayda uthati ho tum aur fir dusron ke aage daya ki bheekh mangti ho, aur usse jada kisi kabil nahi tum aurtein...."

["I know women like you very well. You exploit your own helplessness and then beg for pity from others; you women aren't capable of anything more than that..."]

He released her hair roughly, and then he stood up. 

Sargam looked up at him, his face still not clear in the dark; the lights from outside only reached to the legs of the chairs and couches, but that man was tall like death itself had carved him with his own hands, his voice like he was blessed by the God of Hell, or maybe he was the God of hell himself.

"Toh agar yahi aata hai...toh yahi sahi...mango bheekh..." 

["So, if this is all you know how to do... then so be it... beg..."]

He said and took one step closer, standing on the veil of her saree. She very helplessly and shivering held his feet, crying while he scoffed. 

Sargam was stunned at the monster who was thriving on someone's pain. Her own heart seeped with hatred for a man she didn't even know. 

She noticed him fishing something out of his pocket and was horrified when she saw that he was holding an injection and a vial. He uncapped the syringe and filled it with the liquid of the vial while the woman kept crying, holding his feet.

Waves of shock rippled through Sargam.

Is he about to kill her?

Or worse....

Is he about to....drug her and ra....

All the worst possible questions arose in Sargam's mind.

'No...No...I can't let that happen to anyone,' she vowed in her mind.

There was a sudden surge of courage in Sargam to save another woman from such atrocity, and when he was about to inject her, she rose to her feet, rushed to him and held his arm midway.

"Tum mard ho ya rakshas?" 

["Are you a man or a monster?"]

She asked in a disgusted, low, accusatory voice.

The woman looked up, hearing Sargam, was shock-stricken as she saw her holding the hand of that man. Not even a minister had the power to stand against him and look him in the eye, but he was stopped by another woman.

His normal reaction should have been to twist her arm, push her to the wall and then see who it was. But he wasn't normal, and she was not an intruder; she wasn't an uninvited guest.

He had been waiting for her, and she walked into his den willingly.

He turned his face to her; his incandescent eyes caught her brown ones that had no fear now. 

It appeared someone from an art museum turned up alive, holding his wrist. He just watched her.

It would have taken him one single flick of his finger to have her pinned to the wall, but he didn't move an inch.

"Tumhare jaise danavo ki vajah se hum aurtein bas ghutti rehti hain..."

["Because of monsters like you, we women just keep suffocating..."]

No one could tell what was going on in his mind.

Was he impressed or was he mad?

He was undecipherable to the core, and the way his rage-filled expressions were replaced with those of a poker face had the woman on the floor quaking in her boots, but Sargam...she just stood there like a wall between him and his intention. Even though this wall was too soft, it was for the first time someone built it to stop his motive.

Sargam noticed she was still holding his hand, and she left it instantly. And then the chilling realization dawned upon her that there was a dead body in the room, an injured woman, and a dangerous man, who was a criminal and who could snap her head at that very instant.

The pillar of her courage began to rumble, but she didn't let it show on her face. But he noticed the shake of her momentary confidence; like he could read her soul. He noticed where her eyes fluttered when fear simmered inside of her.

Fear of Sarkar.

The kind of fear which doesn't hollow someone from inside, but rather makes them feel alive more than ever, fear which tortures them; they crave it more. Sargam couldn't understand what was about him that made her soul feel a pull. Perhaps it was fear. But was it just that?

She averted her gaze and squatted down to the level of that woman.

"Utho..." 

["Get up"]

 She said and helped her stand up.

"Yaha se chalo..."

["Come on, let's go"]

She pushed her gently towards the door. The woman didn't move an inch, shaking her head, unable to meet Nirbhay's gaze. Sargam understood it was the fear stopping her, the way it had stopped her for years, and she was trapped in the haveli because of that.

"Tum apne darr ko jeetne nahi dekh sakti. Main bhi dekhti hu kon rokta hai tumhe...." 

["You can't let your fear win over you. Let's see who stops you..."]

She insinuated towards Nirbhay as she stood between him and the woman. She picked up a knife kept on the fruit basket on the table and pointed at him.

He just watched her.

But with curiosity or madness or with insanity or darkness, no one knew except him.

He was a hunter a moment ago, but a calculative beast now, whose every move was unpredictable. He wasn't attacking, and that was concerning.

He was ready to unalive a woman a minute ago, and now he was just eerily quiet, like someone just shook the pillars of his very foundation.

The woman walked to the door while Sargam followed her, walking backwards, still pointing the knife at him. And...he moved too; he took a stride...one, then two and then three....slow and steady like a lion would do.

Sargam could hear her pulse vibrating; she tightened the grip on the knife's handle. The woman, when she reached the door with Sargam's help she hurried out, didn't look back, and the door closed. When Sargam tried to twist the knob, it didn't unlock like before.

She was trapped.

That was when she understood that she was doomed.

She watched him walking towards her like a predator; she gulped in fear, eyes brimming with tears now. She

"Mere pass mat aana..varna ye...ye chaku...." 

["Don't come near me... or else this... this knife..."]

She fumbled with her words, weeping, trying to twist the knob, pointing the knife at him.

Her fear fueled him, as if he craved it more. Before she knew it, he stood really close, trapping her between his frame and the door behind.

His breath fanned her face as he dipped his face to hers. Sargam's tears were like waterfalls now; there was no stopping them.

The knife still rested between them; he kept staring deep into her eyes.

All of a sudden, Sargam felt something drip on her foot, which caught her attention. When she looked down, her face blanched because red warm liquid covered her feet. Nirbhay had curled his fingers around the knife, displaying no signs of discomfort or pain. She gasped and loosened the hold on the knife.

With a panic-stricken face she watched him, wondering what kind of monster he was.

"Door se bhi itna hi guroor tha... paas aane par bhi gumaan ki moorat hi nikli."

["There was such arrogance even from afar... and up close, too, you turned out to be the very embodiment of haughtiness."]

He murmured to her face, as if taunting her. He hadn't said a word to her until now, but what he said shook the principles of her identity... like he challenged what she was, who she was.

No one had ever done that before. 

He threw the knife away and grabbed her mouth in a painful grip; blood from his palm smeared her face, and she winced in pain because of the grip.

She tried pushing him with both of her hands on her chest, but he was like a mountain, who couldn't be budged by anyone.

"Jaane dijiye mujhe..." 

["Let me go..."]

She mumbled finally, a failed attempt to free herself.

"Shikar jab khud shikari ke maand mein aa jaaye... to vo bhaagne ka hak kho deta hai..."

["When the prey wanders right into the hunter's lair... it forfeits the right to escape..."]

Her eyes widened as she gulped in fear, unable to comprehend his jumbled words. But she didn't even want to; she didn't want to stay there and become another dead body.

He grazed her earlobes with his lips as he whispered dangerously, "Aaj se tumhari azaadi meri hai."

["From today, your freedom is mine."]

Shivers ran down her spine, settling deep

It wasn't a threat that had her insides coil but the finality in his voice, like he just marked her life as his.

He then twisted the door and opened it, which she couldn't. Sargam didn't wait a moment as she ran out, as if she just escaped Lucifer's hell, praying to be saved and to never have an encounter with him.

You know what the most dangerous thing about a hunter or a predator is? It's when they willingly let their prey leave. Because that's never the true intent of any predator.

As Sargam continued to run towards the exit of the farmhouse, crying, her vision getting blurry and her heart pounding against her ribs, all she could hear was his words echoing.

When she walked out of the gates, she stopped in her tracks, all of a sudden. She noticed an unexpected guest there.

"Mausi..." Sargam mumbled as Geeta walked closer to her.

Geeta put her phone to her ear and then said, "Malkin, ...gudiya mil gayi"

["Madam, ...I have found Gudiya"]

******

Ye Sargam ki kismat itni kharab kaise hai? 🥹

[How is Sargam's luck so bad? 🥹]

Who knew Geeta would betray her like that? 😭

NirbhayRaj to NirDayiRaj nikla? 🥹 

[Did 'NirbhayRaj' turn out to be 'NirDayiRaj'? 🥹]

What do you all think would happen now? 🥹

Mere pet mein dard ho raha hai; agle chapter ki anxiety hai bohot mujhe 😭

[I have a stomach ache; I am really anxious about the next chapter 😭]

But aapko pura entertain karungi... aur dimagi halat sahi hai, guys? 🤔

[But I will fully entertain you all...and how is your mental state, guys?🤔]

Abhi sahi hai toh....bigadne ke liye tayaar rehna. 🥹

[If it is still fine... then be prepared for it to go haywire. 🥹]

Shhh....keeping it a secret what will happen. 🤐

Do share your views about the chapter. It would mean a lot to me. ❤️

Thanks,

Shrishtee