Dhruv

******

When my eyes opened, my gaze fell on the beautiful and cute form of my beloved wife sleeping all over me with her lips slightly parted. She was clutching me tightly.

As I ran my hands over her back she stirred but then removed my hand from her back even in her sleep. It's always fun to irritate her when she is sleepy. The cute expressions of hers make my heart crazy and always make me smile.

When I ran my index finger on her spine she reacted instantly. I wanted to tickle her but then stopped myself as more movement of her would have made her feel pain. I didn't want to wake her up but she had to so that I could do something to lessen the pain I had provided her.

"Muffin, get up, love," I whispered caressing her hair but she didn't budge and was sleeping peacefully. When I removed my hands from her hair she held it and put it back in her hair making me realize she was awake.

"Sweetheart, you are awake, aren't you?"

"I am sleeping," she mumbled.

"Yeah, then who answered me just now?"

"My soul," she replied smiling with her closed eyes and then pressed her face on my chest.

Strengthening my hold around her I said, "Get up, love."

"No, Dhruv. I want to sleep more."

Settling her beside me, I made her look at me and said, "You can sleep all day but have to wake up now for a while."

she frowned and opened her beautiful eyes before asking in annoyance, "Why?"

"To have medicine and to take a relaxing bath. It will reduce your pain."

"I am fine, Dhruv." My wife was learning to be stubborn just like me or should I say was leaving me behind in the same.

"I know you are not." Saying this I got up from the bed. When muffin moved a bit she winced making me alarmed.

"Shit! Don't move." I said stopping her from getting up from the bed.

"You never listen. Now, do as I say" I had to be stern otherwise she wouldn't have paid heed to what I was trying to say to her. She pouted at me making me kiss her cute pout.

I made all the arrangements in the washroom and when I came back found her asleep. I sighed and decided to take a bath myself first so I did. After twenty minutes I woke my muffin up. She was being so stubborn, even in pain, she wasn't ready to leave the bed. I had to pick her up in my arms and had to settle her in the bathtub.

"I am outside if you need anything call me," I said before I was about to move out of the washroom.

"What if I sleep here?" she asked raising her eyebrows smiling evilly at me.

I have no idea what had gotten into her.

'Must be the effect of your lovemaking session', There came a stupid reply from my inner self. Ignoring him I replied to muffin, "I will call your name in the next ten minutes and if will not listen to your voice then will give you a bath myself."

"I won't mind." I heard her mumbling. I chuckled looking at her blushing face but then replied, "Some other time sweetheart."

The suggestion was tempting but with a heavy heart, I had to refuse as I didn't want to tire her out.

After coming out of the washroom I decided to prepare breakfast for us as I had given leave to Martha. In a few minutes, I was done with the preparation of cheese sandwiches. Now the only task left was to grill them and had to make cappuccino as it was muffin's favourite.

After preparing breakfast I put the food on the tray and took it to our bedroom. Muffin was still in the washroom and I got suspicious of whether she slept inside so I asked her, "Muffin, how much time you need more?"

"Two minutes," she yelled from inside. The plating was ready and I was waiting for her. She had said two minutes but was three minutes late.

"Muffin, come fast," I said as I was hungry. The scrumptious sandwiches were luring me to have a bite. I got relieved when heard the sound of the door opening as now I could eat peacefully with my wife.

"You were being so impatient. I was not lost Dhruv. You should have...."Muffin started to blabber and I could understand her situation as she was hungry just like me, so what I did was put the sandwich in her mouth when she was still saying something which I had no idea about.

"Now, are you fine?" I asked. She nodded like an adorable kid with the sandwich still in her mouth.

"Come, let's eat." Both of us took our seats on the bed and then had our breakfast in silence. She didn't like it when I handed her over the painkiller to lessen her pain.

"Dhruv, there is no need for the medicine, the warm bath was enough." Muffin was reluctant and was trying to convince me. Her hate for medicines was not hidden from me but her health was important than that.

"Muffin, I am not listening to anything. Eat it."

"But Dhruv...." I cut her off in mind and had to be stern again.

"Muffin, now." Scrunching her nose she gulped down the pain killer. I kissed her forehead for keeping up my wish and eating that medicine.

"What are you doing?" she asked when she saw me taking out a spare mattress from the cupboard.

"Preparing bed to sleep," I replied putting it down near the window.

"Sleep?" She was confounded as she must have thought that I won't let her sleep now.

"Yeah, didn't you want to?"

"You will let me sleep?" Her eyes held admiration for me as if I have done a great job.

"Who am I to stop my wife from doing anything." I held her hand and pulled her to me on the bed made by me near the windows. I did that so that she could sleep peacefully looking at the beautiful view in front.

After I covered ourselves from the warm comforter, she snuggled into me. My eyes were getting heavy too and when I had presumed she had slept I heard her calling me, "Dhruv."

"Yes, love."

Muffin moved back, looked at me, and then put her query in front of me. "What are the others doing in London?"

"Enjoying."

"Enjoying?" My wife was filled with curiosity, curiosity to know everything.

"Hmmm, enjoying the tasks I have given them."

"What tasks?"

"Sleep, love, we will talk after you take your needed sleep." It would have taken me more than a day to narrate to muffin what was going on back in London as more than my story I would have to answer her questions to calm her curious self.

"Promise."

"I do." I smiled thinking how the aces were riling up my enemies. But the last nail in the coffin was to be put by me and my muffin.

******

Arjun

******

"All ready?" Arjun asked his junior after coming out of the car.

"Yes AM." Arjun's junior, Kevin, who was an intern replied.

"Great. Let's proceed then." Arjun and Kevin went inside the black iron gate of the prison. They were supposed to meet the person early but Arjun deliberately arrived late.

Kevin and Arjun were made to go inside the small room which was a meeting area for the prisoners.

As soon as Surbhi Ahuja's eyes fell on the two figures entering she smiled thinking the key to her freedom had come.

Arjun smirked inwardly but fake smiled at the perpetrator who was the reason for his friend's miseries and took a seat in front of her.

"How are you feeling Aunty?" Arjun asked being polite making Kevin amazed at his senior's act.

"How will I feel in this hell hole?" Surbhi was disgusted with the place, it was suffocating her.

"I am sorry. The procedures here take time. I hope you understand." Arjun apologized although he didn't mean it. He loathed the woman sitting right in front of him but didn't let his emotions overpower him just like always.

"Of course dear, I know how much you are doing for me. I can't thank you enough." Surbhi, like the actor she was acted to be thankful but was only using the famous criminal lawyer unaware that it was her who was being played.

"It's fine. It's my duty after all. We will start from the starting. Are you ready?" Arjun asked before starting with the procedure.

"Yes," replied Surbhi. Arjun gestured to Kevin who switched on the tape recorder and put it on the table to record her statement,

"Where were you on the eleventh of the month at one in the night?" Arjun started with his first question to which Surbhi gave an honest reply, "I was driving back to Kapoor Mansion after meeting with someone."

"Who?"

"My old friend who resides in the southern part of the state. Her name is Emily Sanders."

"Were you alone?"

"No, I wasn't. I had a driver with me."

"Then what made your driver abandon you and the car in the middle of the busy street?"

"The driver got a call. He stopped the car saying it was urgent as it was from his family. After the call ended he looked troubled and stated his son had been admitted to the hospital. He started crying there only and left me with the car as the hospital his son was admitted in was from walking distance from that place."

"Did he come back?" Arjun was looking at his phone while asking the questions which was annoying Surbhi. She wanted his attention on her only as she wanted the procedures to end so that she could be a free bird again. She didn't understand how could such an unprofessional lawyer was considered the best criminal lawyer in the town.

Nevertheless, Surbhi put up with him as she needed his help.

"No, he didn't. He called me to apologize saying he can't come and asked me to hire any driver." Surbhi replied.

"So what did you do?" Arjun yawned after asking the next question as if was getting bore but only he and Kevin knew how much he was enjoying the show.

"I didn't want to wait so I decided to drive myself," Surbhi replied gritting his teeth.

"Do you have a license to drive in London?"

"No. But what should I have done when no one was ready to help. It was already late and I was stranded in a car alone. I didn't find it safe."

"And that's when you hit the man?" Arjun directly came to tot the main question. He had already riled her up enough to make her furious.

"I didn't hit anybody," she yelled.

Arjun didn't lose his calm but Kevin did get angry when he found Surbhi yelling at his senior who was nothing but gentle with her all the while.

"But the witnesses say otherwise."

"They all are lying. I started the car and had driven only five hundred meters when heard a crashing sound. I stopped the vehicle being scared and when got out I found a man lying in front covered in blood. It wasn't me who had caused the accident, I swear."

The interrogation had not ended when Kevin interrupted them and switched off the tape recorder before saying, "Sir, the time is over."

Arjun looked at his watch and then said, "Oh yeah, I have another meeting with a client."

"I will see you tomorrow in the next interrogation." He added further and got up. When they were outside of the meeting room they heard her yelling, "I haven't done anything."

'You have done a bigger crime Surbhi, you have tainted the purest relationship, that is of a mother and a child, and you will have to pay for that sin.' Arjun said to himself before leaving prison.

******

"Sir, he is awake," Mark said to Namit who was busy playing chess with his wife in the five ace's new training base.

"Did he eat anything?" Namit asked and played his next move trapping his queen with his players on the board.

"Not yet. He said he won't eat." While Dhriti's concentration disrupted, Namit's eyes were fixed on the matrix chessboard and ears on what Mark was saying.

Dhriti had played the next move and since it was played half-heartedly the move was about to cost her big. Namit smirked when found the way out from his wife's made web and replied to Mark, "He will willingly eat. Don't worry."

"Check Mate." Mark and Dhriti heard.

"Not again," Dhriti whined as it was the third time in the day her husband had defeated her.

"Never lose your concentration. You should always keep your eyes and ears open. Got it?" Namit was teaching Dhriti how to concentrate and what was an effective method better than chess.

"Yep," Dhriti replied understanding her mistake.

"Why don't you practice kickboxing until I handle that man? I will join you soon." Namit said before pecking his wife's cheek.

"Ok," Dhriti replied and left not before returning the gesture of kiss to her husband.

Mark and Namit entered the room in the basement where they had kept the man who Saavi had stabbed on reception night while saving her husband.

"How are you, Stephen?" Namit asked smiling widely and then sat on the wooden chair. Stephen whose legs and hands were tied glared at him. When Namit didn't receive any reply, he turned towards Mark to confirm"His name was Stephen, right?"

"Yes Sir, Stephen Jones."

"Stephen Jones who was following my wife for the past one week. So you are a stalker?" He questioned. At first, he was following Saavi when she had gone shopping with Dhriti and Smita but later on was assigned the task to keep track of Dhruv's little sister.

"Your wife is one hot me..." Stephen decided to fuel Namit and was about to use expletive words for Dhriti but couldn't complete as Namit's fist landed onto his face making him yelp in pain with the force. If not Namit then Mark would have hit him as he respected Dhriti a lot and could never hear any foul word for her.

"Dare you to say one more word for her, I will destroy your little castle."

Stephen's eyes widened hearing Namit while Namit smirked as he knew Stephen would give in the moment he would hear the name of his house where he had kept his old parents who were unaware that their one and only son was involved with the mafia.

"What....what...do you mean?" Stephen stuttered fearing Namit might have hurt them.

"By what?" Namit questioned acting all innocent.

"By little....little....castle?"

"What castle? Mark, did you hear me saying anything about any castle?" Namit was doing the same Stephen had tried. He was adding fuel to the fire.

"No, Sir," Mark replied.

"You bastard, what did you do?" Stephen yelled as he was scared. Namit had targetted other men but they didn't have any such weakness so they decided to trap Stephen only and to his relief, Saavi's bold act had made his work easy by hurting him.

"I haven't done anything yet. But that doesn't mean I will not." Namit crossed his legs and sat comfortably when the ball fell into his court.

"No..no...please. You can't." Stephen pleaded. He couldn't let anything happen to his parents.

"Well, for that, you will have to provide us with some answers."

Stephen was frightened but he didn't have any choice so he agreed but only on one condition."Only if you assure me that nothing will happen to my parents."

"Don't worry. They are safe and on my radar."

"And how will I trust you?"

"See for yourself." Namit showed him the photographs making him relieved that his family was fine.

Namit passed a glass of water to Stephen before opening the rope that had tied his hands. After gulping it in one go Stephen placed the glass on the table and started telling Namit what he wanted to know.

******

"Enzo did you get the job done?" Kiaan asked the head of his security team as soon as he entered his cabin after a meeting.

"Yes, sir. Here are the routes you were looking for." Enzo replied showing him the detailed map of Switzerland. Kiaan took a seat on his chair and after analyzing the map and the ten elected routes for a while he picked four options of which he had to choose one.

"This route will not be preferrable by Dhruv and this one will scare marshmallow," Kiaan said before eliminating two more options and in the end was left with two.

"Yeah, this one. I will make an escape route from here." Kiaan said to Enzo who nodded as he knew what his job was. Before Enzo leave Kiaan asked, "How is Shrikant Verma?"

"He looked stressed since last night," Enzo replied as his men were keeping an eye on him.

"Dhruv must have talked to him about the plan," Kiaan said as that could only be the reason.

"Okay, keep an eye on him and inform me if you find him suspicious. Till then I will prepare the route." Enzo left while Kiaan busied himself to make the full and final route to trap David Russo once and for all.

******

Hredhaan was standing at the front of the five-storey five-star hotel in New Delhi, India. It was the time for the truth to come out in front of one of the most important people. Hrehdaan was only a mediator as the real deed was to be done by Dhruv himself.

Hredhaan adjusted his glasses before entering the building. As expected the person he had gone to meet was punctual and had been waiting for him for the last fifteen minutes. How couldn't he, after all, he was the retired army officer Naveen Ahuja whom Hredhaan had contacted regarding his wife.

If not for the photographs Hredhaan had sent, Naveen would never have agreed to meet him, but there he was, waiting for him anxiously, looking at his golden wristwatch every second.

'Time for some truth revelation Mr. Ahuja' Hredhaan mumbled before moving forward towards his target.

******

Saavi

******

Reluctantly I had to open my eyes when bright sunlight fell all over my face breaking my sleep. It was troubling Dhruv as well so I got up and drew the white curtains.

I laid down again but my sleep was gone already. I was caressing Dhruv's cheeks and was placing soft kisses on his forehead when heard his phone continuously beeping making Dhruv frown with the sound. I picked up the phone, turned on the silent button so that Dhruv could sleep a little more.

Since it was Xavier's text I opened it. He had sent around five links and when I tapped on the same it redirected me to the shocking news article I didn't expect.

I was immersed in going through the full article when I heard "Hi, love. Did you sleep well?"

I put the phone back, glared at my husband, and said grimly, "We need to talk."