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Who's ready for some secrets to be revealed?

Chapter 30.

Justa night, tiger. I'll let you roar.

~~~

Lima could barely remember how she managed to reach the castle without having an accident. Throughout the journey her eyes were wet and glazed, thanks to the never ending flow of tears. Her shoulders shook occasionally and her breath hitched as she tried to swallow through the dry throat. Her nose was watery and her lips wet and soft.

The makeup had long since disappeared and her heart was pretty much shattered.

How had things taken such a drastic turn? Her eyes burned fiercely, her throat tightened, she felt like she was suffocating, slowly and painfully.

She parked the car in front of the castle and threw her head back against the seat, groaning loudly. Taking out a few tissues from her purse, she wiped the tears and her face. Taking a deep breath, she shook her head. 'Come on Lima, you are better than this. Just get some sleep for now.'

But she couldn't get out, she kept looking in the rearview mirror for any sign of Rishit. It was late and unfortunately she was now worried. How would he get back now?

"Oh Gosh!" She sniffled, wiping her nose. "I shouldn't have left, what if he never comes back now?" A million dreadful scenarios ran through her mind, each one worse than the one before and each one increasingly agonizing.

She had readily given him a part of her soul, what if she never got it back now? What if she was to forever be incomplete now?

"Stupid Lima." She dropped her head on the steering wheel, appreciating the sting as her forehead made hard contact.

Had she been too rude? Should she have forgiven him? But she couldn't. The image of Rishit and Jenny wrapped in sheets, naked and glistening with sweat made her want to vomit her guts out and stab her own mind so the thoughts wouldn't occur. He was right, they weren't together then but that still didn't justify him coming for her, to protect her and then fucking another woman. Shouldn't that be considered cheating? What is even cheating?

At this point, he own mind was a mess.

Her mind drifted towards Benny, the times he had hit on her, flirted incessantly, told her he'd make her feel happy and safe. He had made her favorite dishes and soothed her when she cried. He had lent her his shoulder and his heart. He had been next door and she didn't act on it, because she couldn't. Her heart and mind had been too full with Rishit to think of anyone else. But clearly that hadn't been the case for Rishit.

What was she expecting from the man who had agreed to kill her?

"Well, isn't my life just lovely?" Grunting in defeat, she got out of the car. Her legs shaky and her body trembling. The jacket fell as she stepped out and straightened. The denim jacket, the one Rishit somehow always had for her. Taking her eyes off the now bittersweet memory she grabbed her purse and shut the car door. She locked the door and started her walk towards the castle – she stamped on the jacket thrice before walking and leaving it behind on the ground – cold, used and discarded, just like how she felt.

The second she opened the door, there was a round of gleeful whistles and hoots.

"How was the date?"

"You are back early!"

"Did you do anything kinky? I bet you did, you naughty naughty!"

Lima ignored the three dancing figures, walking straight and trying her best to hold her head high. Olivia glanced at Viaan and Alesha worriedly, noticing the red eyes and her sole presence.

Viaan broke the silence. "Where's Rishit?"

Lima shrugged, taking her first step up the stairs. "Are you okay, Lima?" Olivia asked, her voice full of empathy and Lima was afraid if she turned she would give in and cry on her shoulders. So she just nodded.

"Are you sure? You can talk to us." Alesha said.

"You are nothing but people who work for me. Get the job done and then get out." Lima snapped and without a backward glance she walked away to her room where she could drown in her own misery. She could feel the hurt etched on their faces, the worry and pain. But she didn't care, if she was hurting so would the others.

How dare they not feel the pain she was feeling!

She threw the purse on the ground and without changing, fell flat on her face on the bed. She took a deep breath to calm herself down but she regretted it instantly. It smelled of Rishit, it smelled of sex, it smelled of wonderful memories that she desperately wanted to forget.

With a yell of anger and pain she grabbed the bedsheets and hauled them off the bed, tossing them on the ground, kicking them - like that would remove the sweet memories from her head.

She didn't know when she had collapsed on the floor, exhausted and worn out. She didn't stir when Alesha and Olivia had come to check up on her and made her bed with fresh lavender scented bedsheets, or when they struggled to lift her and put her on the bed.

She didn't hear as they whispered in low tones, wondering what had happened to the heart eyed couple that existed just a few hours ago. She didn't hear them jump to conclusions and make rash assumptions. She didn't hear them as they expressed their concern over Rishit still not being back. She didn't hear them come to an agreement that maybe Rishit had disappeared once again, ran away like he had previously.

Fortunately Rishit hadn't bailed, not yet.

He was sitting in a bar, near to the open movie area where his date with Lima had ended in a catastrophe. He had a good mind to call and scream at Viaan for the stupid idea but he knew it wasn't Viaan's fault, if anyone was to blame it should have been him.

All his mistakes of the past were coming to haunt him now and he didn't know how to escape. That one night fling with Jenny had been a mistake and he knew it almost as soon as it started but he didn't stop. He thought that maybe sleeping with someone else could wash away the memory of Lima but she was unfortunately engraved in his heart.

Rishit threw the remaining scotch down his throat, loving the burn as the liquor went down. He motioned the bartender to get him another glass.

"Hey there."

He turned and saw a woman, possibly in her early twenties, she was wearing a silver dress that barely reached her bottom and a smoky eyed look that signaled all men around her to gawk at her gorgeous figure. Her blond curls rested on her shoulders, just above the breasts that were pressed together in a bar that was surely a size too small. Her stunning frame did absolutely nothing to him.

"Hi." Rishit grunted, grabbing the whisky even before the bartender could place it in front of him. He drowned the entire thing in one gulp, wincing as it burned and pricked his throat and lungs.

"Ouch, rough day?" Her voice was melodic, seductive, enough to make a man crawl towards her.

"You could say that."

Her nail, long and painted red, trailed over Rishit's bicep. Her face nearing his ear, her voice thick with promise. "I could help you forget it all."

Rishit tapped on the bar, his mind was still on Lima. How he felt when it was her hand on his arm, moving seductively till those nails grazed his collarbones. Her soft lips kissing her ears and those sharp teeth biting his earlobe and then her intoxicating eyes masked with lust and desire. The way she was so confident but a little hesitant, how she let him take control, gave him her all as she moaned and withered under him, begging him for release, breathing little gasps of pleasure and screaming his name as she exploded around him, milking him dry.

And just like that he was hard.

But this woman in bar thought it was because of her. She stared at the bulge in his pants and knew he'd be thick and long. She licked her lips and leaned closer, brushing her breasts against his arm. "I can see you want me, let me help you. You can drown in my body."

Rishit's mind snapped to reality and she could smell the heavy perfume this woman wore. Normally he'd find her attractive but now she was nothing but a desperate woman who could be a cause of another fight with his Lima. His excitement instantly dampened and he shook her off. "Not interested."

"Of course you are." Her hand now rested on his thigh, inching closer to his crotch. "I can see you are aroused."

Rishit snorted at that, signaling for another drink. "I wasn't thinking of you."

He didn't miss the slight flinch but this woman was used to it, men thinking of someone else as they fucked her, calling someone else's name as they came inside her. She didn't recede. "That's okay. I can make you forget her."

"I don't want to forget her."

Her hand was so close to him now and being a man he couldn't help but react to the touch. His fisted his hands and decided to move away rather than pushing her off and creating a scene here. But her one hand held onto his arm and the other his inner thigh. She pulled back as he tried to escape. "Just a night, tiger. I'll let you roar."

"I said not interested. Don't make me repeat it again." He was trying to be polite and this woman was making it difficult for him.

"Come on, now. I'll even suck-"

"He's with me! Get off him."

They turned to the cold voice and Rishit's eyebrows raised as he saw the familiar figure stalking towards them, determined and composed. Her face gave away nothing but the way she walked, she owned the room. Men turned their heads to ogle the woman dressed in a red dress and shimmering sliver hoops.

The woman still holding Rishit scowled. "I got here first."

"He's my boyfriend and if you want to live I suggest you get your filthy hands off him and scramble because if I get pissed off, you wouldn't have fingers to touch anyone."

The woman grunted and raged, her eyes narrowed and jaw clenched. But she knew when was beat. Reluctantly she got up from the seat next to Rishit's and sashayed away, trying to get another man.

As the new woman occupied the space next to Rishit, Rishit looked over to the bartender and order her favorite drink. "One Sangria here."

"You remember."

Rishit nodded and finally greeted her. "Helen." He had just finished fighting with her sister, he wondered what was going to happen with Helen now. "You are very much like your sister."

Helen's mouth twisted in distaste. "Really? How?"

"She doesn't take shit from anyone too."

Helen chuckled and thanked the bartender for the drink. "I guess it comes from our mother."

After a pause, Rishit finally asked. "Why are you here?"

Helen swirled the cocktail and took a small sip. "I was with my friends, on the above deck. I saw you here, thought you could use a friend."

Rishit didn't reply, he wasn't sure how he felt about the company, especially that company being someone Lima deeply loathed. After a long minute he finally spoke. "I am sorry I wasn't there when you came to the castle. You had a good time?" He was referring to the time Helen had come to the castle to meet him and his friends and stayed for night but he was instead away in a hotel with Lima, fighting with her.

"It's fine. I know how possessive my sister can get."

"She just wanted a Pizza."

"You don't have to do that." Helen commented, feigning nonchalance.

"Do what?"

"Jump to her rescue, protect her. I am her sister, I know her."

Rishit's mouth twisted at that. "Do you? You haven't talked to her in years."

Helen froze, her shoulders straightening. She finally breathed out. "So she told you." It wasn't a question, just an observation.

"She did."

Helen's face scrunched in distaste. "Well, I bet she made me the bad guy."

Rishit shrugged, not caring to lie about that. "She did but she's angrier at your dad for choosing you. She thinks he didn't love her enough and so she was left behind."

Helen didn't reply for a long time, she simply swirled the red wine, not even taking a sip. After the silence became too much of a discomfort for Rishit, he broke it. "So? Care to share your thoughts?"

As if shaken from a thought-provoking daydream, Helen jolted back, her eyes wide and lips parted apart. "Huh?"

"What are you thinking?"

Helen sighed heavily. "I was the one who forced dad to take me with him."

Rishit's head turned so fast, he almost had a whiplash. He blinked at Helen, keeping back the whisky he was just about to sip. "What does that mean?"

Helen was regretting saying those words already, but now that they were out there, she didn't stand a chance of escaping them. She contemplated on how to say her next words. "Oh spit it out!" Rishit gritted out.

So she did. "I had heard them fighting numerous times, I am older than Lima so I knew that the fights weren't good. I had friends who had told me how their parents fought and got separated. I figured that's what our parents would do but I didn't tell Lima anything, she was still so young, so naïve." She shrugged a shoulder. "I also knew my mother couldn't have that on her profile, a divorcee, a woman whose husband abandoned her, she would never willingly agree to separation. She simply refused to acknowledge that she caused any problems in the family, it was always dad who took the blame."

Helen sipped the cocktail and licked the wine off her lower lip before continuing. "Even dad knew that, he knew the only way was to escape our mother was to run away, disappear completely. So one fine night, when our dear mother was away with her socialite friends, doing whatever she did best, our dear dad packed his bags."

Rishit didn't dare interrupt, he didn't know this at all and wondered if Lima knew it either.

"He wasn't aware that I had heard him shuffling and moving, he wasn't aware that I was watching him trying to abandon his family." Helen looked down at her fingers, as if ashamed of her next words. "So I told him, I wanted to go with him wherever he went. I didn't want to live in that scary castle with our mother. Dad had always been my pillar, the sane one and to imagine a life without him – I couldn't do that, I refused to."

Rishit closed his eyes, the fact that Helen willingly discarded her sister, hit him so hard in the chest that he a stumbled back a little. "What- what did your father say?"

Helen wiped a stray tear from her eye. "He said no, of course. He said I had to be there for my sister, support her, help her and be the good elder sister. But I didn't want to, I didn't want that kind of responsibility. That's a parents job to make sure their children stay happy. A 10 year old shouldn't have to carry that obligation on her shoulders. And so I refused to be left behind, I packed my bags and followed him out, despite my father's protests and opinions. I begged him to not leave me, I begged him to take me with him. Lima hadn't woken up once, I like to think that if she had, I would have persuaded her to join us too."

"But you wouldn't have." Rishit commented dryly.

Helene swallowed, her throat dry. "No, I wouldn't have. I wanted her asleep. I wanted someone to be with our mother but I didn't want to be that someone. I chose myself, my happiness over my sister's. I left her when I knew that she'd suffer. I knew how dangerous and crazy our mother could get, especially after knowing that her husband left her. I left Lima in that castle to face the result alone. I somehow blame myself for the way she turned out."

Rishit didn't bother to correct her. She was right. Lima was broken with major trust issues and her sister was the one to blame. He couldn't even imagine a young Lima taking the burn of her mother's fury and disgrace. "She thought your dad chose you, thought he loved you more than her, that's why he left her behind. She hates him for it. She hates you because she thinks you are better than her."

"I know." Helen pressed her lips together, closing her eyes and tilting her head to face the ceiling. "I am so weak that I never corrected her. Says a lot about me, huh?"

"You could have reached out, all these years. After your mother died, you should have been there for her." Rishit grumbled, a new found sympathy for Lima settling in his chest.

"I was ashamed." Helen replied.

"There's still time. Do something about it."

"I – I" Helen sighed heavily. "I don't think she wants to see me."

"Do you blame her?"

Helen smiled ruefully. "No."

Rishit took the last sip of his whisky. "The Helen I know has never backed down, remember in college we had a fight and you followed me everywhere, to the coffee shop, to the hostel, to the library until I finally gave in and heard you out."

Helen chuckled softly, nodding her head at that embarrassing memory. It hadn't been one of her proudest moments, to beg a guy for attention. "I remember."

"Do that to Lima, follow her till she gives in and hears you out. You are her blood, despite how she acts, she would like a family. She hasn't had one since you left her."

Helen nodded slowly, drinking in his words. "Yeah, I guess."

Rishit got down from the stool, having had enough to drink and talk. "I should go."

Helen raised her eyebrows, glancing at the time, it was already past midnight. "And where would you go?"

"A hotel."

"Don't be silly." Helen admonished him. "I live nearby, you can sleep on the couch."

After the recent fight with Lima, even sleeping in the same house with another woman felt like he was cheating on her. He couldn't. He knew she would lose her mind if she came to know Rishit and Helen had been in close proximity throughout the night. "I can't."

Helen scanned the man in front of her, he looked distressed but yet incredibly hot. "Are you sure?"

"Lima wouldn't like it." He answered truthfully.

Helen pressed her lips. "You really like her huh?"

"I love her." He didn't hesitate before replying.

Helen's eyes widened at that, her breath hitching. She hadn't expected that raw confession. After a few seconds, she smiled. "I am glad she found you."

Rishit shook his head. "I am glad I found her, despite the circumstances."

"Huh?"

She didn't need to know those raw details. Rishit patted her arm in a friendly manner, turning to walk away. He only paused when Helen called his name again, he turned with an inquiring face.

"You take care of my sister."

Rishit smiled, his first real smile in hours. "Till the day I die."

~~~

Tell me a little about your family? It can't be perfect right? Mine sure isn't!