"What must they think of me?" Ayesha murmured under her breath, as she stepped out of the taxi and walked toward the gate, her thoughts swirling in confusion. "They call when it suits them. Let go when it's convenient. And I— I just accepted it. I let myself fall, without a single question, without looking ahead or behind. I simply let it happen. It's funny, isn't it? That falling in love without caution could be a mistake. But does that mean falling in love is wrong?"
Her words, heavy with the weight of regret, hung in the air as she pushed open the gate and made her way to the house.
"What must they think of me?" Ayesha muttered under her breath as she stepped out of the taxi, her mind swirling with confusion. "They call when it's convenient. Let go when it's easier. And I— I just let it happen. I never questioned it. Never looked ahead, never looked back. I just fell. It's strange, isn't it? I always thought falling in love without caution was a mistake. But does that mean everyone who falls is wrong?"
Her words hung in the air, weighted with regret, as she pushed open the gate and made her way to the house.
The door was slightly ajar. A cold shiver ran down her spine, her heart skipping a beat. Something wasn't right. She paused, the instinct to retreat battling with the need to move forward. But fear urged her on, and she took a cautious step toward the door. With each movement, the dread tightened, clenching her stomach. She crossed the threshold, and the silence wrapped around her like a heavy, suffocating cloak.
The sight that greeted her was like a punch to the gut. The hall lay in disarray—papers scattered, furniture overturned, the faint, eerie glow from the open door casting long, twisted shadows across the room.
"Aah..." Her scream tore from her throat, raw and primal, as the fear that had been building inside her erupted in full force.
Hearing the noise, Aman's instincts immediately sharpened, and a deep sigh escaped his lips, already understanding the cause of her distress. He stopped what he was doing and made his way toward Ayesha, his presence steadying the chaos that seemed to pulse around them.
"Aman… someone broke into my house while I was gone," Ayesha's voice trembled, thick with disbelief and the raw sting of violation. Tears welled in her eyes, but she clenched her jaw, desperate to hold them back, as though surrendering to the emotion would make the horror of the situation more real than she could bear.
Aman's gaze swept over the room with practiced efficiency, noting the scattered papers, the overturned furniture, the traces of a violent intrusion. His expression remained impassive, untouched by the disorder. "I see that," he said, his voice measured, like a man who had long prepared for this kind of moment. His eyes didn't linger on the mess; they moved quickly, scanning for something beyond the obvious, a deeper understanding of what this breach could mean.
Ayesha's hands gripped her forehead, her fingers pressing into her scalp as if trying to steady herself amidst the storm of emotions crashing inside her. "Who could have done this?" Her voice cracked with the weight of confusion, and the words barely left her lips. "What do they want?" The panic in her voice was unmistakable, a quiet terror that made her body tremble, her breath shallow. It was as if the foundation of everything she had known had just been torn apart, and the aftershocks were only beginning.
"Perhaps it's people connected to Rahul," Aman said suddenly, his voice slicing through the tension in the air.
"Why would anyone connected to Rahul break into my house?" Ayesha's voice was thick with suspicion, her brow furrowing as she tried to make sense of it all.
"Maybe they were after a way to kidnap you," Aman suggested with unnerving casualness, as if the thought had just occurred to him.
"If they wanted to kidnap me, why wait until now? Why not do it when I was here?" Ayesha's voice sharpened, the disbelief evident in her words.
"They wouldn't know you were gone," Aman replied, his tone impassive, like a fact he was simply stating.
"Then why destroy everything? Why ransack the place? If all they wanted was me..." Frustration leaked into Ayesha's words, the weight of helplessness beginning to press on her chest.
"What seems like the most logical explanation?" Aman asked, his voice thoughtful, his eyes scanning the room, taking in every detail, calculating.
"That's exactly what I'm trying to understand, Aman!" Ayesha snapped, her arms crossing tightly over her chest. She paced the floor, kicking aside a stray object in frustration. Then, her movement stilled. Her eyes narrowed as something caught her attention, and in that moment, her expression shifted. A realization washed over her.
"Maybe... maybe Rahul left something here. Something they were desperate to find," she said, her voice now tinged with the gravity of her thought.
"That makes sense," Aman muttered, his eyes darkening as the pieces of the puzzle started to fall into place. His mind was already working through the possibilities.
"But I've searched this entire house. Every corner, every drawer. There's nothing here," Ayesha said, her voice betraying the frustration that had begun to rise. Her gaze swept over the wreckage, but there was no sense of resolution.
"What was meant to be found… probably already has," Aman murmured, almost to himself, a small, knowing smile tugging at the corner of his lips as he considered the possibility.
"What did you just say?" Ayesha's voice cut through his thoughts, sharp and demanding.
"Nothing," Aman replied quickly, shaking his head as if he'd said nothing of consequence. "Did you lose anything? Do you think we should check again?" His tone had shifted.
"Nothing seems to be missing," Ayesha said, her voice laced with a faint sense of relief after thoroughly searching the house.
"Then let's start cleaning up," Aman proposed, his tone calm yet pragmatic.
"First, we need to call the police," Ayesha replied, her hand reaching for her phone from her bag. Aman nodded, a gesture of agreement, and shrugged his shoulders as he considered the next steps.
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"Boss, it looks like someone beat us to it," Ronnie muttered, frustration evident in his tone after the lengthy phone call. "The goods are probably already with them."
Praveen, processing the information, voiced his concern. "Could it be the police?"
Malik Bhai's reply was swift, the certainty in his voice unmistakable. "No doubt about it."
He paused for a moment, his hand slowly grazing his bald head, as if deep in thought. "Only two groups could be involved—the police or us."
Praveen's unease deepened. "But if they trace it back to our men... we can't risk exposure."
Malik Bhai's eyes darkened, his expression hardening. "Those men are disposable. They won't waste time chasing them. But the real prize..." His voice dropped, his words cold and precise. "We need to secure it before the police do. If we fail, all this effort, all this bloodshed, will be for nothing."
Ronnie, ever the opportunist, suggested, "What about the girl? We could just finish her off now."
A cold, calculating smile crept onto Malik Bhai's face, but his eyes remained unreadable. "Not yet. She's just a tool for now. We'll use her when the time is right. For now, we wait. When the moment comes, she'll serve her purpose."