Aarushi didn't know where to go. She stopped the car on a deserted road and thought for a while. Who could she call? Her head was throbbing due to the excessive amount of alcohol that she had consumed.

Suddenly, her mind clicked. She quickly dialled someone's number.
After a few rings, a female picked up her call.

"Bandana! Thank god tumne mera phone utha liya!" Aarushi exclaimed in delight.

"Aarushi! Bolo kaise yaad kiya mujhe?" She asked.

"Bandana...?"

"Haan...bolo?"

"Twinkle, Twinkle little star,
  Mere life itni jhand kyun hai yaar?"

"Kya?" Bandana chuckled.

"Yaar! Look, mere aur Sid ke beech mein jhagda ho gaya hai and to calm myself mein ghar se nikal aayi. Abhi agar wapas jaungi toh meri ego ko thes pahunchegi...toh kya mein tumhare saath thode time ke liye reh sakti hun?" Aarushi requested.

Bandana gasped. "Kya???Tumne aur Sid ne jhagda kar liya??? And ofcourse, you can stay with me...mein waise bhi akele hi rehti hun..."

"Okay then come pick me!" Aarushi said leaning back on her seat.

"Pick me matlab? Tumhare paas gaadi hai na? Toh aa jao..." Bandana frowned.

"Arrey...mujhe tumhara address..." she trailed off as she yawned.

"Aarushi....are you drunk?"

"Bahut jaldi tumhe samjh aa gaya?" Aarushi asked sarcastically.

"Kahan ho tum?"

"Pata nahi.."

"Kaisi ho yaar tum...aas paas dekho kya hai..."

"Ek ped."

"Genius." Bandana said sarcastically this time.

"Bas ab meine bata diya ab aa jao." Aarushi mumbled.

"Arrey yaar thoda aur batao na...duniya bhar mein har jagah kitne ped hai!"

"Ek kutta bhi hai..."

"Wow."

"Ek aadmi bhi hai..."

"Aadmi??? Poocho usse...kahan ho tum."

"Eh bewde!" Aarushi  called out to the man. Bandana smacked her forehead with her hand. He gave her a scared look and ran away.

"Bhaag gaya."

"Toh bhaagega hi na idiot!"

"Arrey tum aa jao bas."

"Kahan se aa jaun?? Mujhe pata hi nahi tum kahan ho."

"Mein kisi school ke paas hun. Saamne ek school dikh raha hai..."

"Kaunsa??"

"St. Marys High School for boys."

"Oh. Tum Mazgaon mein ho...ruko mein paidal chalkar aati hun..."

"Paidal?????" Aarushi asked horrified.  She was not in her senses.

"Agar mein apni car se aayi toh tumhari gaadi chalakar tumhe wapas kaun layega?"

"Arrey yaar tum saalo baad pahuchogi!" Aarushi  groaned.

"Ji nahi. Mein 15 min mein pahuch jaungi." Bandana replied.

"Acha thik hai mein gaadi mein so rahi hun jaga dena."

"Woh bhi mein karun?"

"Please. Mera din bahut bura gaya hai aaj. Koi mujhse baat nahi kar raha hai."

"Chal koi nahi...so ja. Par agar mein phone karun toh uth jana please."

"Cool."

Aarushi slept. Bandana took her keys and put on a jacket as it was a chilly night. She locked her house and started walking towards Mazgaon.

15 minutes later, she reached St. Marys school.

"Ab iski gaadi kahan hai?" She said to herself. She started looking around. At  about 5 metres, a black colour Audi Q5 was parked.

"Shaayad yeh hi ho..." Bandana started walking towards the car. Suddenly, she saw a shadow on the car. Bandana gasped loudly. The shadow disappeared. Bandana's heart had started to pump with a lot of force. She kept her hand on her chest to calm her breathing.

"Yeh kya tha?" She asked herself. Then she looked at the driver's seat of the Audi. Aarushi  was sleeping with her head leaning towards the window. Bandana quickly made her way to the car and tapped on the window. Aarushi woke up with a start. She saw Bandana outside her car. She removed her seat belt and got out of the driver's seat.

"Thanks Bandz.." Aarushi said sliding into the passenger seat. Bandana was zoned out. Aarushi's eyes were drooping but she realised that Bandana was lost somewhere.

"Oye! Kya hua?"Aarushi asked.

Bandana shook her head.

"Arrey kuch nahi." Bandana started the car. The engine roared to life. Bandana took a U-turn and started driving towards her house.

                    **************

"Sid, you crossed your limits today..." Vedanti scolded Siddharth.

"Wow. Mein usko uski galti ka ehsaas dilau toh I cross my limits? Aur woh jhoot bolkar opposition party leader ki party mein jaye woh kuch nahi?" Siddharth fumed.

"Siddharth, pehli baat muh sambhalkar baat karo. Aur dusri baat tum over react mat karo. Tumne jo bola woh Aarushi ko bahut bura laga hoga...How did that even come out of your mouth? Tum Aarushi ke saath khush nahi ho kya?" Sumedh asked seriously.

"Arrey aisa nahi hai..." Siddharth started saying. Everyone became shocked.

"Toh tumne aisa kyun bola???" Mugdha asked with an astonished expression.

"Gusse mein tha mein..." Siddharth replied. Everyone became angry.

"Tum pagal ho kya?" Nivi shouted. Rohan kept a hand on her shoulder to calm her down.

"Usse kitna bura laga pata hai? Uski aankhon mein aasu the! Kabhi usse iss baat par rote hue dekha hai kya ki koi usse kuch bura bhala keh de aur usse bura lag jaye?" Rohan asked with a very serious face. He knew Aarushi since a very long time. Infact, they had date each other for two years before Aarushi met Sid.

Siddharth realised this. Even he had seen how Aarushi's heart broke through her eyes. She could hear the roughest thing from anyone and she wouldn't care. But hearing something about how your husband regrets marrying you was something that hit her very hard.

"Aur rahi baat uski party mein jaane ki...toh mujhe lagta hai ki uske kuch reasons rahe honge...Mana ki Aarushi aadha time bina soche samjhe kaam karti hai but believe me- In politics, she's a pro. Aise hi opposition leader ki party mein nahi jayegi woh. You can trust me with that." Amit spoke.

Suddenly, Vedanti's phone rang. Sameeksha was calling.

"Oh my god! Yeh hosh mein aa gayi???" Vedanti said picking up the call. Sumedh signalled her to keep the phone on speaker. She did that.

"Hello?" Vedanti asked.

"Haan...mein just hosh mein aayi..." Sameeksha said.

"Oh thankgod! And By the way, congratulations! You are a mother finally!" Vedanti said. Everyone congratulated her.

"Thankyou guys...Aarushi kahan hai par?" Sameeksha asked. Everyone just stared at each other.

"Yeh sab log Aarushi ke piche kyun pade hai?" Mugdha asked.

"Pehle batao kahan hai woh...mujhe usse thanks kehna hai..." Sameeksha said.

"Thanks???" Siddharth asked with a shocked expression.

"Haan...she really saved my child today...aaj agar woh nahi hoti toh Devaki mere bache ko maar deti..."

"Kya??" They heard Yudhveer in the background.

"Kya keh rahi ho tum Sameeksha? " Nivi asked her.

"Arrey? Aarushi ne tum logon ko nahi bataaya?" Sam asked surprised.

"Woh actually..." Nivi narrated the entire incident to her.

"WHAT?!" Sam yelled. "Yeh Siddharth ke dimag ka screw dheela ho gaya hai kya??? Tumhe pata hai woh kyun gayi thi wahan?? Siddharth ko phone do Vedanti." Sameeksha said. Devaki handed the phone over to Siddharth.

"Bolo...kyun gayi thi wahan?" Sid asked.

"Devaki is possessed. Kisi budi aurat ki spirit uske andar hai...Wahi aatma uss din Aarushi ki gaadi mein thi...infact Devaki thi Aarushi ki gaadi mein...ussi ne woh accident karwaya jiski wajah se You and Aarushi lost your child!" Sameeksha revealed the truth.

"Jab Aarushi ne Devaki ka chehra dekha, usse pata chal gaya ki yeh wohi aurat thi jo uss din tumhari gaadi mein thi. Therefore, she decided  to go to the party taaki woh Devaki se baat kar sake usse answers paa sake...but Devaki attacked her...Aarushi was flung against the wall...woh spirit das guna zyaada taakatvar hai Abhilasha ki spirit se..."
Everyone's mouth hung open.

Sameeksha narrated the entire incident to them. Everyone looked at Sid with anger. Sid looked down on the ground feeling very guilty.

"Dekho guys, usne jo mere upar shakti    ka istemaal kiya woh Aarushi se comparitively bahut kam tha...par phir bhi mujhe bahut dard hua I thought I was going to die...but Aarushi beech mein aayi aur usne baaki sab energy absorb kar li. Usse bahut zyaada dard hua...She became very weak...uska jo mark tha woh glow kar raha thi...literally...it was glowing brightly....Agar woh mark nahi hota toh aaj Aarushi zinda nahi hoti..." Sam continued talking gravely.

"Shit." Sid muttered.

"Aarushi ko dhoondo...she will explain this in detail...mujhe detail nahi pata hai but I know one thing for a fact...tum sabki life mein spirits wapas aa rahe hai...you all have to fight the spirits again...Aur Mugdha aur Vedanti ko special care rakhni hogi...Sumedh, Amit intensify your security around these two..." Sameeksha said.

Everyone looked very serious and tensed.

"Challo mein baadmein baat karti hun..." Sameeksha said. "Meri baby bhooki hai..." she cut the phone.

"Humein kal yeh Devaki se milne jaana padega...aur Aarushi ko bhi dhundna hoga..." Sumedh suddenly said.

                       ***********

The nurse got the small infant into the room in which Sameeksha was admitted. Sameeksha's face lit up with happiness when she saw the small poodle of joy in her arms. Yudhveer came and stood behind Sam.

"Aap isse doodh pila dijiye...phir isse hum wapas incubation box mein le jayenge...please jaldi karna...hum itni choti se  premature bacchi ko zyaada der tak aise khule mein nahi rakh sakte hai..." The nurse said. Yudhveer and Sam nodded.

Both of them were observing the little girl.

"Yeh bilkul mere upar gayi hai..." Yudhveer said proudly.

"Oh hello, kaise? Iski naak aur aankhen dekho...bilkul meri tarah hai..." Sam said.

"But overall chehra mere jaisa hai..." Yudhveer argued.

"Shutup and get out! Mujhe isse doodh pilana hai." Sameeksha informed.

"Haan toh pilao na...mein kaha rok raha hun tumhe.." Yudhveer said folding his arms over his chest.

"Tum room se bahar jao." Sam said.

"Arrey? Mujhse kya sharmana? Meine toh sab kuch iss baby ke pehle se hi dekha hai!" Yudhveer exclaimed. Sam rolled her eyes.

"Jo bhi hai, tum bahar jaa rahe ho ya mein nurse ko bulaun?" Sameeksha said sternly.

"Acha baba jaata hun!" Yudhveer held up his arms in defeat as he left the room. Sam looked down at her daughter.

"Chalo, ab tumhe doodh pilaya jaye..."

                       ***********

The next day, Sumedh, Amit and Rohan got ready to go to the Mahajan mansion.

"Mein bhi aata hun..." Siddharth said.

"Nahi Sid, tum Nivi, Veda aur Moo ke sath ruko...God forbid idhar kuch nahi hona chahiye...but inke liye bhi we need someone..." Amit said. Sid nodded.

"Aur...erm...Aarushi...?" Sid asked.

"Hum dhundenge  usse.." Vedanti said. Moo nodded.

"Haan...sahi kahan..." Nivi said. Rohan looked at her with worry.

"Hakuna Matata!" Nivi grinned. "Don't  worry, be happy!"

Everyone smiled.

"Thik hai fir...tum log Devaki ke paas jao aur hum log Aarushi ko dhoondne jaate hai..." Sid announced.

"Thik hai...Veda, Moo- Take Care haan...." Sumedh said.

"Yes...jao ab..." Vedanti said.

Sumedh, Amit and Rohan left for Devaki and Randhir's house.

               ****************

"Arrey CM sahab...aayiye...tashreef lijiye..." Devaki greeted them with a cunning smiled. She was dressed casually in a normal cotton saree. She looked extremely beautiful. He long and silky hair were hanging loose past
past her shoulders.

Amit, Sumedh and Rohan entered inside the house.

"Aapke ghar mein naukar nahi hain?" Rohan observed. Devaki's smile twisted.

"Nahi...sab chutti par hai..." Devaki replied.

Rohan was about to ask why but then he let it be.

"Randhir Kahan hai?" Sumedh narrowed his eyes.

"Kisi kaam se bahar gaye hai..." Devaki replied.  

"Hum aapse us raat ki baat karne aaye hai..." Amit asked straight away.

"Kya baat karni hai?" Devaki asked faking a smile. She heard a car entering their drive-way.

'Randhir.' She thought. Her mind developed a master plan. She smiled devilishly.

She started chanting something. Suddenly Amit, Rohan and Sumedh were pushed by some imaginary force and they all fell over and near Devaki. Devaki started faking a scream.

"Koi bachao mujhe! Yeh log mera gang-rape kar rahe hai! Koi toh bachao mujhe! RANDHIRRRR!" She screeched. 

"KYA??!" All three of them yelled in unison. They were still on top of Devaki. Not willingly. Some force was pushing them down.

Suddenly, Randhir ran inside the house.

"DEVAKI??! KYA HUA?" He saw all three of them on top of Devaki. Anger rained down in his eyes. He came and pulled Sumedh and Rohan with both his hands and flung them out of the way. Then he caught Amit by his collar.

"Samjhte kya ho apne aap ko, Amit Pandit! Mere joote ki dhool ho tum! Pehle beyman tareeke se elections jeeta aur aaj toh hadd hi kar di! Meri wife ko rape karne jaa rahe the tum logo?! Nahi, mere hote hue aisa nahi ho sakta hai.." He punched Amit on the face and pushed him on the ground. Devaki stood uo quickly and hugged Randhir.

"Randhir, yeh log mere saath batameezi kar rahe the...mujhe bachao...." Devaki complained with fake tears. He held her tightly.

"Don't worry baby, I'm here...Shhh..." Randhir tried to calm her down.
He pulled out his phone from his pocket and called the police.

"Hello...? Police...? I'm Randhir Mahajan..."

Heyya Readers!

How's the story going so far?

Many of you all are new to me. I think you all are reading this book after Devaki advertised about it😂😂

I hope I'm living upto your expectations.

Keep showering your love by sharing, voting and commenting!

Happy Reading!

Loads of AmaZAYN love,

Basanti❤

PS- my actual name is not Basanti.