Guest House.

10 PM

The moment Sharmila felt Victor's lips on hers, her mind and body went haywire. His lips were soft and warm, just like she wanted them to be. It was a brief kiss though, her fuzzy mind noted, as she inhaled their mixed breaths with half closed eyes. His lips hovered around, trailing across her cheeks and eyes before coming back to savour her lips, as his rough fingers rubbed against her jawline,  playing havoc with her already inflamed senses. This was way more intoxicating than how she had been imagining in her mind, for god knows how long. But as he gently sucked on her lower lip, every thought vanished from her mind and a soft gasp escaped from her involuntarily.

His lips sought and caressed hers, as one of his hands slowly slid down to her waist, torching her neck and everything below along the way, while his other hand wound around her heavy tresses, pulling her head up slightly.

There was a pause as his heavy breath fanned her cheeks.

Drowned in her sensations, she didn't even realise he stopped kissing her. Reluctantly, she opened her eyes to gaze straight into his eyes which had turned darker with desire, but they were telling her something more... before she could fathom the whole meaning, he moved next to her and gently pulled her onto his lap.

"Oh!" She exclaimed, as she understood why he paused before and her heart began to thud louder. He blew softly over her forehead, perhaps intending to give cold relief to the warm beads of perspiration. But it had the opposite effect. Revelling in the feel of his hard muscles that now surrounded her, she let go of the last vestige of control as she leaned on to him and cupped his face with one hand. As if waiting for this, he pulled her hard against him as he took her mouth with abandon, his stubble rough against her skin.

She kissed him back ravenously and as her tongue tentatively tasted him, a guttural groan escaped from him.  She felt a tiny pride and sucked on his lower lip. He surprised her by slowing down and gently caressed her lips but built up the pressure again, sucking her roughly till she gasped and dug her fingers hard on his back. Fighting for breath, they pulled apart slightly and gazed at each other, and as she absorbed the heat in his hooded eyes, a new wave of tremors erupted inside her. She collapsed against him and buried her face in the crook of the neck, filling her lungs with his smell.

After what felt like ages, Victor cleared his throat and murmured against her cheeks, "Don't hold your breath."

Sharmila whimpered and tried to hide her face away from him, but Victor drew her face towards him, forcing her to look at him.

"Apart from my smell what other things about me turn you on?"

Sharmila tried to punch him but he trapped her hand in his.

"You really know how to ruin a moment!"

"Hey, aren't you the one who said we need to be open with each other, just now?"

Sharmila bit back the angry retort she was about to give. So convenient of him to be selective about things to discuss. She cast her eyes down as his words still kept ringing in her ears making her blush more.

" If it makes you feel better, there are so many things about you that make me..."  Her eyes snapped up and the rest of the words never left his mouth, as she watched his smouldering eyes and forgot to breathe.

He bent his head slowly as his hands slid off the open sleeve of her shirt and planted his mouth firmly on the smooth skin of her shoulder. As he sucked hard on it, a soft moan escaped from Sharmila and she gulped some much needed air.

He levelled up against her face once again as his fingers gently tucked the t shirt back on.

"What was that for?" She blurted out.

"Don't they say it is always better to show than tell?" He smirked.

"Including this hickey?!" She pulled her T shirt nervously, secretly revelling how she could still feel the touch of his lips on her shoulder.

"It won't show... I chose that spot very carefully." His eyes roamed leisurely from her lips down to her throat towards the shoulder.

As Sharmila's mind oscillated whether to pull his cheeks to get the smirk off his face or kiss him again, Baby Avni's soft cries from next door reached them.  Sharmila's eyes darted quickly between the open door and Victor as he nodded at her.

Victor adjusted the pillows on the bed and gently laid Sharmila's head rest against them.

As he got out of the bed, he gave the other pillow to her and kissed her forehead.

"Good night" he whispered against her cheeks.

And the next moment, he was gone.

=====. 

DJ's Mansion

Dhuala Kuan

10 PM

  One of DJ's men Jeetu stood reverently, as he waited for DJ to finish his conversation on the phone.

"Bhai, Satish from Mumbai is here and he says he wont leave till he meets you."

" Okay let him in Jeetu." DJ said. As he pocketed his mobile in his Kurta, DJ  turned towards Loki who seemed to be lost in thoughts, lounging in the chintz covered chaise. 

"I think it is better to explain the whole situation and bring Satish in on our plan."

If only you had this sense back when I warned you about this, Loki fumed inwardly but made sure his faced remained calm, as he nodded to his brother.

"Let me handle this Loki, because Satish still thinks you are responsible for Sharath's arrest."

"Bhai, you don't have to explain such obvious things to me you know..." Loki replied in a flat tone.

An agitated Satish walked into the opulent lounge and faced the two brothers.

"Satish, before you shoot your mouth off, I have to tell you certain things." DJ stalled him with warning and began to explain everything that happened since the disastrous attempt to kill Victor in the Goa Guest House.

".... I know Victor too well by now. I can only assume that he managed to convince Sharath that you have turned against him and thus made him leave his mansion alone without anyone knowing, and trapped him with the help of NCB. Loki never met Sharath. He was in Goa all that time and the moment I got news that Sharath got arrested, I made sure that Loki was back here with me under my protection."

" Why the hell did you not tell us about Victor before? None of this would have happened if you weren't so.." Satish gulped nervously as DJ cast a murderous look at him.

"If Sharath had half a brain and talked to me or  a trusted aide like you, we wouldn't have been here.

We are under attack both from NCB and CBI now. As long as Sharath keeps his mouth shut and buys us some time, I can arrange for something. It would be difficult but I have my connections in Mumbai who can help Sharath get out. Are you with me on this?"

"Of course DJ Bhai, I will do anything to get Sharath Sir out." Satish replied promptly.

"Good, stay here with us till we sort everything out. My men will take you to one of our bungalows in the neighbourhood. Don't worry, this whole area is under my control so no one can touch us here. But my immediate worry is Gulshan. I know he is a loyal guy but is he tough or would he squeal under pressure if he is tortured by CBI?"

"I never knew Gulshan much Bhai!! He was an old crony of Sharath Sir and he was a small time operator. Everyone has a weak point and can crack under pressure." Satish's vague reply increased uneasiness that DJ felt all along.

"Hmm.. Who is Sharath's lawyer?" As Satish began to talk, Loki slowly left the room, confident that he wont be missed by his beloved brother.

As he walked back towards the stairs, Suman came out of the Prayer room. A fresh wave of fury and hatred consumed him.

"Praying for the happiness of your daughter are you?" He asked scathingly.

"No Loki. I was praying that I don't live to see my kids fighting against each other." She signed resignedly and added, "I hope one day, when you become a parent yourself, you will understand that all kids are equal for a mother or a father."

"I am not sure who are you trying to fool Ma, us or yourself. Anyway I don't have time to hear any more of your moral lessons." Loki  took two stairs at a time and reached his bedroom where Zoya was waiting for him.

"Are you okay baby?" She hugged him lightly as he sat next to her on the bed.

"What do you expect Zo... I just feel so suffocated to stay in this place, watching that woman who conspired against us all this time."  He hugged her back.

"Hmm. I know.... Look, you always knew what my views were about your mom. But even I find it hard to believe that she did all that she claimed to have done."

"What do you mean?" He drew away from her and asked in an exasperated tone.

"nothing... just me and my crazy talk! Why don't we have some drinks?" Zoya got up with a smile and walked towards the Cabinet.

=====. 

Safe House

9 AM.

Sharmila dressed in a hurry. Earlier in the morning they received a call from their Director Ajit Doval who asked all of them to join a virtual meeting at 9 am sharp. She couldn't sleep for a long time,  as every moment of that kiss kept replaying in her mind. It was as if she saw a totally different side of Victor. Is this how it is going to be? She couldn't wait to find out. When she finally fell asleep, it was like a bliss and she woke up quite late. But now, her mind was back on the important mission that needed not just hers but the entire team's attention, dismantling of DJ and his empire.

As she opened the door of her bedroom, she found Victor waiting outside.

His eyes sparkled on seeing her but it was the warm smile on his face that affected her more.

"Good morning!" she smiled back.

"Did you sleep well?" He walked closer to her.

"Hmm why do you think I didn't sleep well?" She could read what his mischievous eyes were trying to say but didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing her plight.

"I didn't say that. I was merely asking. You know... it is a new place and you might have missed your favourite pillow and all that."  He rubbed his neck lazily as he leaned over her.

"I slept like a log, what about you?"She asked him sweetly.

"Good to know." He drew back from her with a bowed head and a suppressed smile.

When he spoke again, his tone was firm but casual.

"After our meeting, I want to discuss something with you and Monty. "

"Of course. Is today's meeting about our unauthorised arrests in the factory yesterday or something else? "

"Most likely not. But I don't know either. We don't have much time, Do you want me to carry you downstairs?"

"No... no. I am good. My leg feels much better now." She replied with a smile and walked towards the stairs.

He followed right behind her and even though Sharmila felt his eyes all along her back, she tried her best to look unaffected, as she slowly made her way downstairs.

Monty was already there in front of the PC which was connected to the virtual meeting.

Jishu and Anosha greeted her from the dining room where they were having breakfast. Mini was in the backyard with Baby Avni.

Within a few moments, they were chatting with Doval Sir and Rajiv in CBI Headquarters and Mohsin and Sunil from another unknown location.

"We interrogated Gulshan all night, and he finally confessed that it was DJ who hired him. I think we have got enough to arrest him. I am coordinating with the local police to move in and arrest him. Are you guys ready?" Ajit Doval spoke slowly,  weighing each word as he watched  the faces of every team member.

Victor cleared his throat but before he could speak, Ajit Doval stalled him.

"I know you might have reservations that we are not prepared well enough, but with this guy, I am sure we will never be prepared enough. I would say we strike him when he is at his weakest point. He has no support from his biggest pal Sharath and he is holed up in his mansion now that we have half of his gang in our custody."

Sharmila and Monty exchanged glances with Victor.

"Sir, my objection is not that we are not ready. But taking DJ from Dhuala Kuan has its own complications. Can we do it? Yeah... but it is going to be tough. We need to be prepared and we need time." Victor's tone remained calm.

"But Victor, time is a luxury we cant afford right now." Rajiv countered.

"Victor didn't you go to DJ's mansion once?" Monty asked eagerly.

Monty controlled his wince  as Sharmila kicked his foot under the table while  four pairs of eyes looked at Victor questioningly.

"I did, long time ago. I could go there without any issues because they all thought I was Loki." Victor admitted grudgingly.

Ajit Doval fought hard to keep his face neutral.

"Sir, Sunil and I know the local ACP Tiwari very well. We can go in with a team of police, and Monty and Rajiv can be our back ups. We cant risk Victor going out with us, but he can guide us remotely from surveillance van since he knows the terrain very well." Mohsin suggested as he watched Victor's face keenly.

" Sir, I agree with Mohsin and I will do everything I can to help." Victor nodded.

Doval looked thoughtfully at Victor and continued, "Thank you Mohsin! I know we are taking a risk but I want to stress one thing. If you feel the situation is too dangerous or life threatening, we back off. Understand?"

"Yes Sir!" 

"How are you feeling now Sharmila?" Ajit Doval's face was filled with concern for the first time.

"I am absolutely fine Sir. The wound has almost healed. Why cant I be part of the mission... Sir?" Sharmila asked with gritted teeth.

"You are our secret weapon Sharmila. Please trust me when I say this, that is the only reason I want to keep you hidden. Please get better first and I will make sure you will have an active role, okay." Ajit Doval assured her with a smile.

"Thank you Sir." Sharmila knew his reasons were genuine, but it was frustrating nonetheless.

"I will text you all with the details once we co-ordinate with the local police and get the team in place." Rajiv said, as he ended the call.

"What do you think Victor?" Monty swivelled his chair towards Victor.

Sharmila knew what Victor's answer might be but waited patiently as Victor walked towards the dining table and fetched coffees for all of them.

"We have nothing to lose, you know. I think it is a good plan and we know for sure that DJ or Loki will never leave the neighbourhood under the present circumstances. We will try to corner them and see what happens."

"I don't think Doval Sir underestimates what is at stake here. But unless we try, we never know what we are up against, right?" Monty said as he sipped his coffee.

Sharmila took a sip too and felt content. The coffee was amazing! Will I get to drink such great coffee everyday??

She remembered Victor's words earlier and asked, "You said,  you wanted to discuss something else with us."

"Yes, but this is just between us, okay?" Victor began to speak as Monty drew his chair nearer to him.

=====. 

Dhuala Kuan

6 AM

A few hours earlier

Zoya never woke up before ten in the morning if she could help it, but after living with Loki's family she was forced to change her habits. Last night she couldn't sleep for some reason and in the early hours heard heavy footsteps in the hallway. It took her some time to leave the comfort of her bed and snug warmth of Loki sleeping beside her. When she finally woke up, she did a double take  as she watched  Suman walking through the backyard garden towards Suraj Chacha's outhouse and followed her discreetly.

The soft dew covered grass and flowered hedges reminded her of her home back in Jersey and she felt home sick again. 

Suman knocked softly on the door and Suraj Chacha promptly let her in, and closed the door behind her which made Zoya's suspicions grow stronger. This was definitely a pre-arranged meeting.

The waft of flowers from the garden was making Zoya sleepy once again and she fought hard to suppress her yawns as she pressed her ear against the front door of the outhouse. They were speaking in such low tones behind the closed door that she could barely hear anything. Frustrated, she slowly pushed the door by a fraction. Luckily the door opened without a sound and the first words that she heard made her blood boil.

" You know how much I hate Zoya and her wicked influence on my son. I really don't know how this is going to end. She is not going to rest till Loki takes revenge on all of us. Before something happens to me, I really want to meet my daughter once. I feel like a prisoner in my own home now. Everyone is watching me, now that they know I was the traitor. Please Suraj Bhai!  Arrange this meeting between us and I will be indebted to you forever."

Zoya peeked through the opening and found the spartan room inside quite boring. She couldn't see anyone but heard shuffling of feet and then the somber voice of Suraj Chacha..

" You see this pic of Kiran here Bhabhi!  I look at it everyday and I not only see her but the reflection of the whole room in it. Makes me me feel she is always part of this home you know."

"Yes... Yes I understand what you mean." Suman replied and added after a pause, "Our loved ones are always with us, in our hearts and minds."

"Exactly. I understand a mother's love for her daughter but helping you on this would be equal to treason with DJ and Loki whom I love equally. "

" Please don't say that. This has got nothing to do with them or Victor. I just want to see my daughter once. I cant do it on my own. What if she refuses to see me? I don't think I am courageous enough to face her on my own. And I don't trust anyone else in the house now. That's why I came to you.  Will you help me, please?"

There was a pause as if Suraj was considering Suman's request. Finally Zoya heard a sigh and Suraj's voice in a resigned tone. "Okay Bhabhi, I can't make any promises but I will do my best. Now, do you have their contact details?"

"Thank you so much Suraj Bhai! Yes I have written everything down on this paper."

"Leave it with me Bhabhi. I will let you know once I have some good news. Please go back through this back door. That way, you wont be seen by DJ's men."

Zoya heard a door being unbolted and quickly retreated to a hiding spot behind a large rhododendron bush in the backyard. So much for loyalty and other bullshit that Suraj Chacha keeps preaching about. She knew... she always knew that Suraj Chacha was equally involved in this whole saga. She wondered whether to confront him on her own and tell everything to Loki first. But she doesn't have any proof except what she heard. Before she could decide what to do, she heard footsteps again and peeked out. Suraj Chacha was coming out of the outhouse. There was no time to lose.

She walked out of her hiding spot and faced him with a knowing smile.

Suraj Chacha's face fell but he quickly recovered himself.

"I am glad you are here. I was just about to meet you and Loki but I wasn't sure how to manage it without being noticed by DJ or his men."

Zoya felt gobsmacked.  What is this guy talking about?

"Yes Beti. I finally managed to convince Suman Bhabhi that I will do everything I can to help Victors family and she trusted me enough to divulge the whereabouts of Victor's family."

Zoya searched his face but found no sign of fear or guilt. She made sure her voice sounded casual ad asked, "why do you think that we would be interested in that Chacha?"

" I always knew you were a clever girl Zoya, in fact you understand and grasp things faster than anyone around here. And since you are not directly connected with the family, it gives you a better and objective view of everything that is happening."

Zoya let out her breath slowly.  Well that part was true of course!!

"Why don't we sit Beti. Come follow me." Suraj chacha led her towards a stone bench beyond the hedges,  that Zoya didn't notice. A few pigeons were cooing and grazing in the grass nearby.

Once they sat comfortably facing each other, Suraj Chacha's continued, "I agree and follow DJ's orders in everything but I think he is not being fair to Loki here. And for me and Kiran, Loki was always like our son you know. We looked after him as much as Suman Bhabhi. He was a lovely child, and we treated him as our own, especially Kiran who obviously knew everything about him. More than DJ, Loki's life is in danger as long as Victor lives. If DJ thinks that he can win over Victor without involving Victor's family, he is being a fool.  I mean... I can understand that he doesn't want to go against his sister but why cant we kidnap Victor's mother and use it to get to Victor. Don't you agree?"

"Wow!! Coming from you that  is something. But let me just clarify, you are doing this purely to help Loki, is it?"

Suraj Chacha chuckled softly. A few pigeons landed nearby and Suraj Chacha took out seeds from his Kurta Pocket and threw at them. As the pigeons began to eat, he turned his attention back to Zoya.

"I can understand your skepticism Zoya. And If you don't trust me enough to do this, I totally understand. May be you and Loki can do this better than me. I leave this decision entirely up to you. Just remember one thing though. DJ would never allow you or Loki to step out of this mansion or this neighbourhood till he finishes Victor himself. He is too protective of his little brother. Me... I am different. No one in CBI knows me except Ashwin and if I know any better, he is already gone underground. I still go to my temple and do errands without any problem because DJ trusts me implicitly. But as I said, I leave the decision to you."

"What about Aunty meeting that girl.. whatever her name is?"

" Well we can arrange in such a way that that when the meeting takes place, we can make sure Arunya and her mother come to the meeting all by themselves without any protection. That way it would be easier for our kidnap. But where do we keep her? And how do we do it while keeping DJ in the dark? I would really appreciate it you can help me in this." Suraj Chacha asked sincerely.

"Of course you can't do it without my help. My old apartment is still there and I don't think anyone would know if we take keep her locked up there. I will put her under sedation." Zoya explained with a smile.

"Brilliant! But one thing Zoya... don't let Loki or DJ get even a whiff of what we are doing. No matter how much he denies it, Loki still can't do it anything without the  approval of his big brother. It would be better if we keep this to ourselves. We can tell once we have Victor's mother in our grasp. What do you say?"

"Sure, I wont say anything to Loki till our plan succeeds."

"I will go and do my Prayers now and then contact Mrs Verma and Arunya. Once I convince them to meet us somewhere, I will let you know."

Zoya nodded to him and got up briskly. As she began to walk back towards the Mansion, her face lit up with a triumphant smile.

^————^

If you are one of those readers who feels romantic scenes are big no-no in thriller stories, then my apologies in advance for that long but quite overdue scene between Victor and Sharmila.  The delay in writing in this chapter was primarily due to this. I got stuck on how to write that scene, agonised over it and took two days to write.
Since this is just a first draft please allow me to write it exactly as I wanted to. May be I will edit it out later. hahaha.
But do let me know how it was, will you? 😊
Also the chapter title... is that good or can you suggest alternatives?
Things will begin to move quite rapidly now and the stakes are high, on both ends. The next chapter will be quite an action packed one and I hope you will be as thrilled to read it as I was while writing it.

Love
Sesi