"Don't shoot me—I mean no harm—I was only sent to convey a message—"

With brows knitted together in deep thought, Fajer kept pacing around her room. Exhaling an exasperated sigh, she let her gaze trail upwards; her hands absentmindedly clawing at the sides of her nails.

It hadn't even been two full days since he went away on that trip, but every time Fajer had a thought to make her move, she would reluctantly drop all efforts. The dilemma was the thought of Umar finding out and despising her. And that she didn't want anymore than she knew he already did.

Releasing an exhausted breath, she covered her face with her hands and slumped on the edge of the bed. It hadn't even been a few moments since she sat down, when the sound of honking caught her attention. In an instant, she was up on her feet and advancing towards the balcony affixed to her room, overlooking the porch.

Involuntarily, Fajer sucked in a sharp breath when she caught sight of Umar stepping out from the back seat of the car. In a split second his gaze had trailed up towards and then didn't move from there.

It must've been only a fleeting moment; yet it felt to Fajer as if a whole eternity had become wrapped up in that one priceless moment. For even if it was a trick of lightning, Fajer felt a hint of something warm flashing across his cold and unfeeling dark orbs.

A stab of pain thumped through her chest when the coldness drifted back in his orbs and he averted his gaze as if he never saw her; his attention back on the driver.

Slowly gulping down her thoughts, Fajer traced her steps back into the room. She hadn't expected him to return so early—but in some deep dark corner of her heart she had unconsciously expected him to have forgiven her by now.

A scoff escaped her lips at her own naivety.

'Why do you keep forgetting that he married you out of obligation—Nothing more.'

Her subconscious gave her a reality check and with a newfound resolve she erased the traces of all her baseless emotions.

Shaking off her bizarre thoughts, she wore a mask of indifference and stepped out to greet him. It was nearly midnight and everyone was already in bed except for her. She was on the last step of staircase when she caught sight of his broad back, while he attended a call. His jacket draped on the back of the couch while he stood there with the sleeves of his dress shirt folded up to his elbows.

It hadn't even been two full days since she last saw him. Yet, she felt as if she had been separated from him for years. Just the sound of his familiar voice, his intimate cologne, his secure back and the discerning look in his eyes made Fajer tear up. She felt her heart welling up with warmth and tenderness, for until this moment she hadn't realised how terribly she'd missed him.

'We haven't even been married for a whole week—And already I have completely lost myself in you. Even if it's only for the sake of appearances, I would rather stay by your side, Umar; than return to that meaningless life where I may never get to see you—'

She thought with a prick; her gaze fixated on his back, as she slowly blinked away her fears and turned her eyes downcast. Her breath hitched in her throat when she looked up and found his inscrutable gaze fixated on her, while he closed the distance to her in a few steps.

He was saying something to her, but Fajer could think of nothing except how much she wished she could put her arms around him in that moment and never let go of that warm and safe embrace again.

"—don't need anything. You should go back to sleep—" The words finally managed to register in her mind and Fajer had to fight hard against the lump clogging her breaths and the ragged breaths threatening to escape through her quivering lips.

Pursing her lips into a thin line, she clenched her hands into tight fists on her either sides with nails digging into the palm of her hands. She turned her eyes down with a gulp and nodded her head ever so slightly in response.

However, instead of turning away she kept standing in her place. Her lips parting as if she wished to say something and that's when Umar caught her gaze trailing up to meet his. Her hand moving from her side, almost reaching out towards him before she let it drop, as if deciding to act against her emotions.

Releasing a soft breath, she averted her gaze and turned on her heel away from him. And without exchanging a single word, she had conveyed to Umar what she wished to.

————————

The fumes continued to rise from the ashes burning on the end of the long forgotten cigarette pressed between his fingers. The ashes dropping onto the marbled tiles of the balcony, while his fierce gaze remained absorbed in the document held in his other hand.

As if suddenly remembering about the neglected cigarette, he tapped the ashes into the ashtray and without once taking his eyes off of the letters printed on the paper; he brought the butt to his lips and took in a drag, before releasing the puff following a short pause.

"They dismissed the bodyguard, Asif because of his injury. He went missing after that from the hospital. We thought he might've contacted his family and was returning to his village, but they haven't heard anything from him either—"

Rashid's words from before rang in his mind and Umar's thoughts once again trailed back towards the dead man, Wasim they'd found earlier. He left in a hurry after Rashid got a tip off about Wasim's partner located in Rawalpindi but when they found him, he coughed up nothing more than what they already figured out from the evidence.

Running his tongue across his lower lip, Umar distractedly flipped the page. His fingers holding the cigarette butt rubbing at his temple absentmindedly. It had been an hour or so since he returned, but he still hadn't gotten a chance to get out of his work clothes. When he came up to the room, Fajer had already went to bed. Sleep had escaped him after seeing her safe and sound in front of him. The thought plaguing his peace that the culprit might come after her as soon as he blinked.

Releasing an exhausted sigh, Umar kept away the document after putting out the cigarette in the ashtray.

His gaze trailing up towards the starry night sky, as if the answer to his woes might be hidden in the stars. With a dejected sigh, he closed his eyes and rested his head against the seat's headrest.

Only a few minutes later, his eyes opened with a snap. It only took him a moment to realise the cause behind it.

In an instant, he was up on his feet and striding into his room. The moonlight streaming in from the balcony illuminating her distressed figure.

For a moment, Umar could do nothing but gawk at her in a state of loss. His eyes darting across her face who kept crying out for Umar in her sleep. Her face drenched in sweat, with tears stinging the corner of her eyes, as she kept calling him out in a distressed voice; as if under an excruciating amount of pain.

Only a moment later, Umar had come to lie down on the edge of the bed next to her. Carefully putting his arm underneath her, he pulled her into his embrace.

With her arms bundled up against his chest, Umar kept whispering soothing words into her ears. His free hand caressing the side of her head, while they laid face to face.

"Shh. I am right here with you. It's alright. You're safe—" He kept stroking the back of her head with his free hand, while his other hand gently rubbed comforting circles on her back. Moments passed like this, with her captured in his embrace and slowly but gradually her voice finally quieted down. Yet, Umar didn't let go of her. He laid there with her warm presence enveloped in his arms.

Releasing a soft sigh, Umar allowed his chin to nudge the top of her head before turning his gaze towards her fatigued but peaceful form. Umar kept gawking at her unblinking for a few moments. His free hand coming up to brush away the stray strands of hair stuck to her forehead and carefully tucking them behind her ear. And as he kept on watching her, a painful realisation hit him. The only times he had heard her voice was when she was fighting battles that no one knew of but her.

"She has been through a lot, Umar. Things you and I can't even imagine, let alone comprehend. Whatever happened in the past, Fajer isn't to be blamed for any of it."

He kept gawking at the soft even breaths escaping her unmoving lips. And then as if she was once again caught up in the clutches of her nightmares, a dreaded, broken groan escaped her lips, causing a frown to deepen between her eyes.

"Shhh. It's okay—" He hushed and pressed his lips against the frown forming between her eyebrows. His warm touch lingering for another moment after her cries subsided.

"—Fajer Amin is the only one who remains unchanged. Caring about no one but herself—"

His accusation from before came to haunt him and he pulled away slightly to watch her now peaceful form. The soft and rhythmic rise and fall of her chest hypnotising him into a sweet oblivion. Caressing her soft cheek with the back of his fingers, he closed his eyes and pressed his forehead against hers before wrapping his both arms around her and pulling her even closer to himself.

'I am sorry for not knowing how to love you—But I promise you, I will never let any hurt come to you.'

He vowed finally before the spell of sleep overcame his senses.

————————

A shrilling and piercing scream echoed through the walls of an abandoned warehouse set upon a remote, undiscovered field.

Inside the dimly lit room with barely any furniture, safe for the chair on which the masked man sat infront of the bloodied face Asif; who laid curled over himself upon the floor. His face swollen with punches he'd suffered with various blunt objects. Whereas, blood continued to drip down his nose, while the ragged and blood splattered breaths escaping his lips mixed in with the dust from the unpaved floor.

"Please—spare me—I made a mistake—it won't happen again—please—let me live—"

He pleaded in broken voice, without being able to move an inch from his position when a heavy booted foot crashed against the side of his face and trampled on him, causing his face to grovel in the ground.

Another round of tortured and ear-splitting screams filled the warehouse, but this time it was subdued by a piercing laughter reverberating through the room.

"AGAIN??! Who the hell told him he was getting a second chance—?! HUH?!"

The masked man stood up straighter with a jolt. The cutting pliers in his hands, which still had Asif's dismembered finger stuck to it after he cut it off a moment ago.

With a rattling snigger, the balaclava masked man with only his eyes and mouth visible, turned his gaze towards Asif; who was now coughing up on his own blood.

"Did you—?! YOU DID?!" The masked man pointed an excited finger, one by one towards his two lackeys; who stood to the side watching this gruesome display of their boss's justice without batting an eyelash. Not waiting for a response from them, he put down his left arm; a jagged scar going up it, which had Asif's blood splattered on it.

"Tsk. Tsk. Tsk." He clicked his tongue regretfully and let his gaze trail towards the open gunshot wound on Asif's leg which he had tore open after thrusting his favourite cutting pliers inside it and slashing an even deeper and longer scar.

"On behalf of my subordinates inadequacy, I owe you an apology. They shouldn't have led you on and given you false hope. You see, hope is the worst thing in this world. It makes you think you have a shot when you don't stand even the slightest chance—" He explained in a matter of fact tone, while Asif made an attempt to crane his neck without much success.

"I swear—I won't—" He gasped out, but couldn't finish his sentence because of the pain coursing through his entire body.

The masked man watched the sight infront of him thoughtfully for a moment, before getting up and roughly scratching the back of his head.

"Hmm—Let's see."

He fixated his gaze towards Asif's butchered fingers lying on the ground around him. All five from each hand.

"Your first crime was that you failed in carrying out the assigned task. The second, that you got caught. Third, your identity was revealed. Fourth, you almost gave me out—"

As he kept counting, he jumped up gaily and squashed on each pair of fingers. Each time he found the other pair, a gleam manifested in his eyes.

"And the fifth and final crime—" He paused thoughtfully while glancing around for the other pinky and that's when his gaze trailed towards the pinky finger stuck on his pliers. With a cheerful Hah! he unlatched the plier.

"—was that you dared to hope for mercy—!" As soon as he finished, the pinky dropped to the floor and he squashed on it like a happy child.

With the little life remaining in him, Asif pried his eyes open and watched the demented and unhinged, sadistic murderer standing in front of him. Yet, he made a vain effort to raise his fingerless hand in plea but couldn't finish because the repeated onslaught of cutting pliers slashed his brains out and broke his skull bones; thereby cutting his miserable life short.

A crackling laughter continued to ring through the room as the masked man went on to bash his brains out. The blood stains splattering on his mouth and eyes which gleamed akin to that of a wild, sadistic beast.

Assalamualaikum!! Hope you all are well InshaAllah. Hopefully the update wasn't too gory? 🙈This is my favourite update so far because I am a sucker for horror and gory stuff🥴🙈
Awaiting your thoughts🙈🤞🏻Don't forget to vote🥰♥️