"One thing you can't hide - is when you're crippled inside." "Don't you dare to even lay a finger on her. She's very precious to me," a voice boomed out powerfully through the phone. "Yes boss," a submissive voice greeted him and that was the end of the call. **** On the other hand, Dhiraj and his whole family were panicked and horrified that how could someone kidnap their daughter so suddenly, surpassing such high security. "Dad, I was with Payal all the time but don't know when all this happened," Ayushi spoke in a feared voice. She was terrified that who would have dared to kidnap Payal. "Is this why I'm paying you all? Is this your security?" Dadi was shouting out loud at the bodyguards who had kept their heads low because of guilt and shame. "Do you remember the vehicle registration number on their number plate?" Dhiraj was trying to be as calm as possible because he knew shouting will not do any benefit. "Sir, weirdly they didn't have any number on their number plate," the revelation left them all in shock. "What?" Dhiraj exclaimed loudly. "How will we find our daughter!" Pratibha was crying out loudly, fearing what those brutal kidnappers would do with their daughter. "Let's go from here first. Rashid, call your best security team here and find any evidence of those kidnappers. We'll find them anyhow," Dhiraj ordered the personal bodyguard of Payal and left from there, taking his crying wife along with his mother & daughter-in-law with him. Once they reached inside their mansion, Dhruv had already returned from his office, cancelling all his meetings and was making many calls to all of his security teams, shouting at them to find his sister anyhow. "If she's not found, get ready to be killed by me," he had warned them not to come empty-handed, he wanted his baby sister anyhow. "Dhruv, we'll find her. We have got the best of the security team," his father had tried to calm down his raging son but Dhruv had just laughed mockingly at his Dad. "Dad? If that would have been the case, then she wouldn't have been kidnapped in the first place," his hateful voice made his Dad too shocked to react. "So you mean to say my recruited team of security is not efficient?" his Dad was hurt by the tone of his son. "Yes, Dad. You still have those oldies as our bodyguards who should've retired long back, but no, you've to do the charity too? Right?" Dhruv was speaking anything that was coming in his mind. "Please stop it. Here my daughter has been kidnapped and you both have started your fight like kids," Pratibha cried out in agony and annoyance while giving the tablets to her mother-in-law whose blood pressure had increased three folds. "What to do Ma? It's his fault that our Payal has been missing," his anger was taking a toll on him and his every word was attacking Dhiraj like some knife. Dhruv left them in their state and moved upstairs to his room, he didn't want to fight with his stubborn father anymore. "Ayushi beta, go and calm him down, we all are here, he needs you," Dhiraj spoke dejectedly and sat on the sofa with his face in his hands. Ayushi was reluctant to go, she didn't want to face his wrath. But somehow she collected herself and went towards her room and when she entered inside, what she saw just shook her to the core. The whole room was thrashed, with once exquisite glass vases broken so mercilessly, clothes thrown out like some rag by none other than her husband who was raging towards the mirror to break it with his bare hands but was stopped by his wife. "Dhruv," she shouted his name to stop him and that got his attention. "Oh! I didn't see you downstairs. You were there?" he asked Ayushi in a mocking tone, which made her stop where she was. She was feared of his this tone because every time he had used that tone on her, she had always been hurt brutally at last. "You were with my sister when she was kidnapped? Right?" when he came towards her side, even she didn't get to know. He was too fast to notice. She just nodded her head and tears were flowing out her eyes uncontrollably, fearing what would happen now. "You kidnapped her, right? With the help of your greedy father? Isn't it? So that we cannot doubt on you and you can even get a hefty amount of money in return? Isn't it?" Dhruv held Ayushi's hair in a tight grip which made her yelp in pain. "No, I didn't do that Dhruv, please believe me," she tried to make him lose his hold on her hair but it just tightened only. "Just shut up," he slapped Ayushi across her cheek and she fell on the floor, gripping her burning cheek in her hand, writhing in sudden pain. "You'll stoop this low? I didn't know this! Never had anyone dared to kidnap my sister, Dhruv Singh Rajput's sister but after your entry in my life, everything is falling apart. Just tell me where have you hidden her? Tell me or I'll not stop today to just kill you with my bare hands," he had taken out his belt and was hitting Ayushi mercilessly who was just begging him to stop, shouting at him that it's paining, that she didn't do anything but he had taken a vow to end her life today. "Aah maa, aah Dhruv please, I didn't do anything, I've not kidnapped her, aah Dhruv leave me it's paining," she was crying out loudly, begging before him to stop but he continued his torture on her, ignoring her every agonized and painful shriek. Their walls were, unfortunately, soundproof, no voice was going outside, the cries of Ayushi were unheard, her pain was unheard, her shrieks were unheard. But then a knock on the door had got Dhruv's attention and he immediately left his belt on the ground and moved towards the door which was open already. Unfortunately, the room was too grand, with a drawing kind of room in front and then there was their exquisite bedroom with a smart, automatic door where he was beating Ayushi so mercilessly. "Sir, Payal Di has come safe and sound," that statement was enough for him to rush downstairs towards the living room, where Payal might be being hugged by her mother, father, and grandma. "Bhaiya," when Payal saw her brother approaching her, she immediately launched herself in his arms and hugged him as her life depended on it. "Where were you princess and how are you? Are you hurt somewhere, please tell me," Dhruv was checking for any injury on Payal like a protecting brother and Payal just smiled at his overprotectiveness. "I'm all fine Bhai, they were not even able to touch me as my Super duper black belt karate was at my rescue," Payal's reply made Dhruv sigh in relief but what he heard further, just made him shocked to the core. "But you know Bhai, I saw Bhabhi's father there. Don't know what he was doing there, but somehow he was connected to them," Payal's revelation had just made Dhruv's anger reach its optimum. So, Chandani was very right that behind Payal's kidnapping, it was Ayushi and her beloved father. "We've to find out about that," Dhiraj spoke solemnly. "But she came all fine without a scratch on her body, that's what important, right? I'll feed the poor every day, God has saved our daughter today. Come beta, you must be hungry, let me serve some food to you," Pratibha intentionally pulled Payal towards the dining room as she knew that a serious discussion was soon going to start over here, between the father and the son duo. "I didn't know that Anil would stoop this low for some money," Dhiraj spoke out in disgust, abhorrence, and hatred clouding his features. "Oh! So you knew how greedy and obnoxious Ayushi's father was?" Dhruv spoke out in a distasteful manner. "What has gotten into you Dhruv? Why are you behaving like that? You've never spoken to me like that," Dhiraj exclaimed loudly, hating the tone which his son was using against him. "Nothing dad, nothing. Just repenting over your mistakes. By the way, I've got an important announcement to make. My wife will leave tomorrow for Bangalore as there are some huge glitches in our business over there," Dhruv spoke out in a dismissive tone and went towards his room, climbing up the stairs swiftly. "Stop right there, Mr Dhruv. I need to know what those glitches are. Come in my study room, right now," Dhiraj commanded in a no-nonsense tone, which he had never used for Dhruv but now after seeing his son behaving so differently he had to use that tone against him. Whereas Ayushi was writhing in pain, the belt had brutally pierced through her skin, scratching her upper skin layer from where blood had sputtered out from her once beautiful skin. "I was wrong Dhruv. You're just an animal, a beast, a monster," she whispered through her pain and fell into an unconscious state. **** "You all are of no use. I asked you all to bring Ayushi but you kidnapped that good for nothing, nuisance-creating Payal. Bastards, can't you even do my one work properly?" Arjun shouted out in rage. "Sorry sir, we thought that she was our Ayushi ma'am by the description you have given to us," his paid men declaimed in a sunken voice. Arjun held his and lamented morosely, "I paid you a great amount of money but it all vent in vain". **~•~** Please don't forget to leave your comment and voting is your birthright!