Bride of Sheesh Mahal - Season 3 - Part 31

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Chapter 31


Khushi’s POV


“Arnav, what are you doing?” I struggle to get off his hold from my wrist.


It’s painful. He has been dragging me so badly that I am afraid I will fall down and hurt myself.

“Arnav, what’s the matter with you. Where are you taking me?” I growl this time to get his attention but he hasn’t been looking at me ever since he woke me up at midnight and dragged me out of the bed.


As usual, he doesn't respond. And then I see it. He is taking me to some well. Why? What has he planned?

“Arnav, you are scaring me, just talk to me. Please.”

He doesn't say a word and the moment we reach the well, he grabs both my arms and pushes me inside. I fall. It’s a free fall from the ground inside the deep well and I don’t miss to see him watching me from above with those blue eyes..


I wake up with a jolt, trying hard to breathe. My throat is parched and I can’t see anything around me except the soft sunlight beam entering from the gap of the window curtains. It was a dream… a nightmare. That wasn’t real. Suddenly, Arnav grabs my wrist waking up and sitting next to me.


“Khushi, you alright?”

The moment he grabs my wrist, I push him away and struggle to get down the bed.

“Khushi what’s wrong? It’s me.. Your Arnav..”


My Arnav? Is he really my Arnav? I stare in his eyes. They are not blue. He is my Arnav indeed and not the one who tried to kill me in my nightmare. I struggle to find the right words when Arnav keeps asking me why I am putting a distance between us. He finally gets down the bed and reaches my side.


“Khushi you are scaring me now. Was it a nightmare that woke you up? What happened? Please talk to me.”


The moment he reaches me and drags my arms, almost the same way he did in the nightmare, I flinch.

“You’ll kill me..” I murmur.

“What?” he scowls back. “Who will kill you?”

“You…” I find my voice again.

He looks muddled at my face and is hurt by my allegation.

“I had a premonition…. I saw you with those blue eyes and you pushed me in that well…”


Arnav is stunned at my declaration and then he clenches his jaw.


“I’ll kill myself before thinking of hurting you Khushi.”


He cups my face, stroking away my tears. I didn’t realize I was crying.

“I will never hurt you. You are my wife.. the woman whom I … I love… I’ll never let any harm touch you. Believe me..”


His calm tone and the depth of feelings in his voice soothes my fear. The next instant, I embrace him tight, wanting to believe he really wouldn’t hurt me. But what about that premonition? Arnav scoops me to his body and keeps stroking my back.


“You had told me your mother lost the ability to see the future… I mean she stopped getting the premonitions when she and your father consummated their marriage, right?”


I nod gently in agreement, clutching his shirt tight.

“Then whatever you saw tonight wasn’t your premonition but your dream.. It was a nightmare, Khushi. Please don’t take it seriously. We have consummated our marriage in every way we could. So, I believe you too have lost that ability to see the future and after this thing you saw, I hope I am right. Because I don’t want to lose you.”



He hugs me tighter and so do I. Arnav is right. Maybe what I saw wasn’t a premonition but a nightmare. But it was a scary one and I cannot wait to find what that meant.


*******************

Arnav’s POV


Khushi has been silent and bit disoriented since morning after that nightmare. I don’t like to see her like that. She’s going out and when I asked her, she just ignored telling me all the details.


“You are carrying this card along..” I say, showing the credit card to her. I specially got this one for my wife so that she can spend some of my money. But I know she will use it wisely and not lavishly like I expect her to do.

“I have money, Arnav. I had got my salary credited last week.”


Salary!! Hmm.. She works for my Charity Trust still and hasn’t given any resignation yet. That’s her call if she wants to continue.

“I still want you to carry it along in case you need.”


She gives me a stern look from the mirror but when I stare back at her showing her I am ready for an argument if she is up for one, she sighs.

“Okay, I will carry it with me. Please keep it in my wallet.”


That’s like my girl. I see her wallet on the bed and quickly open it to keep the card inside. That’s when I see this little paper mentioning the guest house address of the town.


“Who is staying in the guest house?” I ask Khushi who is busy dressing up after shower. The moment she sees me from the dressing mirror, Khushi tenses.

I turn the paper I just found and read the name written behind it.

“Sheetal?”

Khushi reaches me and snatches the paper.

“Who is Sheetal?” I ask her again.

Khushi’s expressions tells me she is hiding something. I sigh in frustration and then holding her arms, I draw her closer to me.

“Khushi what are you doing?” I query.

“I am just keeping a few secrets of this palace from you and that’s because Daadi wanted me to do so.”

Her reply confuses me even more.

“Secrets of this palace?”

“Arnav please.. I can’t tell you anything now because I am yet to find the answers to those.”

“Fine…” I give up. “But be safe. I don’t want you to end up in any trouble.”

“I’ll be fine.”


Her little assurance brings back my smile and I pull my wife for a bone crushing hug. What secrets of the palace is Daadi hiding from us? And how does it connect to this Sheetal? Wish I didn’t have this important meeting at Delhi today or else I would have stalked my wife to ensure she is safe.


*******************

Khushi’s POV


I could have hired a cab but I preferred to drive in the Palace car just to be sure that I wasn’t doing any mistake trusting Sheetal. I didn’t want to meet her so soon but after the nightmare this morning I couldn’t delay seeing her. I ask the driver to wait out and then press the doorbell. After two rings, she opens the door. She is again in an orange salwar suit. I wonder if that’s the only color she wears.


“I thought you would never come here.” Sheetal mocks before giving me space to get inside. “Please come..”


I enter the house. It’s so calm and serene here.

“I was making tea. Would you like to have one?” she offers.

“No thanks. I just.. came here to…”

“I know. I know why you are here, Khushi. So relax. We will find a way to all your problems..”


Can we? She gets inside the kitchen and brings her tea cup. We sit on the sofa where she sips her tea and then focusses back on me.

“It wasn’t a nightmare.. It was your premonition, Khushi.”


My eyes widen in shock. How does she know about the nightmare I saw? She shrugs at my unasked question.

“I am a face reader and have been researching on paranormal activities from a long time.”

“Paranormal activities?” I swallow.

Sheetal smiles weakly with a nod.

“Yes, Khushi. And that’s exactly why I have shown so much interest in Sheesh Mahal.”


I am even more shocked.

“You mean Sheesh Mahal is haunted?” I ask Sheetal to know what she wants to infer.

“No. It’s beyond what you think it is..”

I am done with her coded talks.

“Can you explain what’s happening and what you are doing here, Sheetal?”

“I am here to help you save your family.”

“What made you think we need help?” I cross question. “How did you even know about us? Was it through your grandfather Yogiji?”


Sheetal sighs and puts the cup down. “Give me a minute, I will be right back.”

She returns after a minute with a book that looks a bit old. She puts it on the table before us.

“This book belongs to my grandfather. He used to write about the problems he used to save families from.” Sheetal informs.


I stare at the book as she opens it.


“Since childhood I had this curiosity to learn about these things which my grandfather worked on. He changed lives of peoples, brought peace in their homes and it enchanted me. So secretly, I started reading this book. Initially the cases he worked on were simple but as I grew up, I realized he had also worked on issues which had destroyed families. Like the one with Sheesh Mahal.”


I don’t understand anything yet but I don’t interrupt her. Sheetal opens a specific page number where her grandfather had written in black ink ‘Sheesh Mahal’ in the title. There are also some more lines written in Sanskrit which I couldn’t read. He has also mentioned some dates in it which


“My grandfather didn’t take up any other case after Sheesh Mahals.” She adds.

I know she is not lying as the pages after the ones written about Sheesh Mahal are blank.

“Daadi had told me that Yogiji had driven away the spirit of Chandrika from Sheesh Mahal,” I tell her what I knew.

Sheetal exhales.

“For Chandrika’s spirit to be driven away, Chandrika has to be dead, first.”


My heart skips a beat.

“What?” I shout. “You… you mean…”

“Yes.. Chandrika is very much alive and whatever is happening with Sheesh Mahal is all her doing..”


I can’t believe this. Daadi had told me Chandrika had cut her nerves and she committed suicide. How is it possible that she is alive? But I suddenly recall Daadi also telling me that even though they had dug her body in the backyard of Sheesh Mahal, they didn’t find her body when Yogiji wanted to burn her body and give her soul peace.


“Chandrika is alive, Khushi and she has casted a spell on your family which cannot be reversed.”

Spell? What spell? I am about to ask her the same when the door opens and Nandakishore barges inside.


“NK?” I get up from the couch and so does Sheetal. He gives a heated glare to Sheetal and then turns to me.

“Lets go home, Bhabhi.”


That’s not a request but a demand which surprises me.

“What… what are you doing here?”

“Nannav had asked me to keep an eye on you.. When I realized you are here and that too with…” he pauses to give another glare to Sheetal and then turns to me again. “I had to intervene. You shouldn’t be here..” he adds.


Sheetal stands between me and him.


“Khushi came here by her will and she will go when we are done with our conversation.”

“Enough of brainwashing my Bhabhi, Sheetal. I am not going to let you do that. Get out of my way..”

“I am not brainwashing her. This is the truth and only because you don’t want to believe it…”

“Enough..” he shouts back. “I am not here to argue with you. I just want to take my Bhabhi home and I don’t need your permission for that.”


What is happening? Why does it feel that Sheetal knows Nandakishore? Do they have a history?


To be Continued.

NEXT PART

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The Forbidden Series - Book 2 (Enemies to Lovers Romance Novel)

Khushi Thakur
Have compassion for your family and be heartless towards your enemies. This has been my only slogan since I became the backbone of the RS Group of Companies where I am in charge of dealing with their tricky competitors. This time our focus is on the AR Group, which has rattled to its core ever since its CEO, Aarav Raichand allegedly stepped down from his position. Whatever they say, I'm still certain he's a tornado disguised as my business rival. There’s something about this man that I loathe and something that draws me insanely towards him. This unseen magnetism between us coaxes me to believe Aarav is that missing piece of my life’s puzzle, which I had given up solving.

Aarav Raichand
Two years ago, my world crashed down forever when I lost my wife, Jhanvi Raichand. But then I saw her again, this time in my rival’s arms. Everyone said she only had a similar face. I believed that too. She wasn’t my Jaan. She was not the one who transformed me from a vengeful man to a loving husband. But I was drawn to her like a moth to fire. Could she be my Jaan and didn’t want to recognize me anymore? If I could avenge my family to bring justice to my life earlier, I would burn down the world this time to get this woman in my arms again. The only difference is that this time there will be no rules. It’s about time I remind them what it meant to meddle with the love of a big bad wolf!!

The world had seen my Revenge; now they would witness my Rivalry.

Reading Order of The Forbidden Series:
Book 1 – Forbidden
Book 2 – Fallen


EBOOK LINK (ON AMAZON) HERE

Read the PROLOGUE HERE