Heylo my darlings. Don't pinch yourself it's me! Back with an update. 😁
Locked down days made me insane and finally Thought of waking up the creative corner of my little brain. 😝
Hope you like this chapter!
                                                                                               ***

"Argghhh..." An 8yr old Arjun groaned. He was pushed against the wall and it hit his back making him bounce back n fall down. He was hurt on his knees that blood started oozing out from the injured part.

"Stop hitting me." He said in a firm tone to the three boys surrounded him.

"So you won't talk to us or play with us right. Why would we listen to you then?" One of them questioned. And Arjun dint answer which irritated them further. Two of them held him both hands and the third one started hitting on the injured knees.

Arjun didn't budge and tried his best to be free from him.

"Leave him, you morons." They heard a voice from behind and saw a little girl barging towards them with a stick. She started hitting them. But they were strong enough to overpower her and pushed her down. She screamed at the top of her voice and the father in charge came out hearing the commotion.

"What's happening here?" Father Fernandez came to them that made the boys back off fearing punishment. "Arjun. Vaidhu..." He called out.

Vaidhu stopped screaming and stood up. "These three were hitting him father and I asked them to stop. But they pushed me." She told. Arjun was standing near them with a blank face.

"Is it true?" He asked him and got no response. So he turned to the boys with a questioning look.

"Yes, father. See his knees. They pushed him too." Vaidhu pointed to his knees.

The boys were terrified. They know father Fernandez doesn't tolerate lies. "Father, we asked him to play with us. But this boy doesn't listen. He doesn't want us as friends. Besides, He is always silent and grumpy. So we tried to make him talk."

"Oh but how exactly? By hitting him? Don't you know that hurting someone is bad?" He scolded them and the boys bowed down their head in guilt.

"You will get your punishment for this. But before that, say Sorry to him." He ordered.

"But he doesn't talk to us father..." The boys complained.

"I'll see that matter. But Say Sorry. Now"

The boys went near Arjun and said sorry. Vaidhu smiled in happiness.

"Go to my room. I'll see you all there." He told them and went near Arjun who was looking at his blood-stained knee. Tears brimmed in his eyes but he clenched his teeth not letting it come out of his eyes.

Father held him from his shoulders. "Hey young man, why don't you talk to them? They want to make you their friend. And they hit you for not letting them close. That's bad and they will be punished for that. But you have to talk to them too." He tried to break the ice.

Arjun looked at him for a second and then ran to his room without saying anything leaving him surprised.

Vaidhu came to him and winked saying she will set it right. Father smiled at her knowing her tactics.

Arjun was staring at the wall. Vaidhu found him sitting motionless. She slowly took a seat near him. Arjun remained unaffected and avoided any sort of contact with her. Vaidhu looked at his knees and started blowing air as if to soothe the pain. He could only stare at her for this gesture. But he didn't dare to initiate a conversation.

"Is it paining now?" She asked and he didn't respond. She sighed and blew again.

"Why did you run away? Why don't you talk to all of us?" She asked in a complaining voice.

"Aju..."

"I am Arjun," he said in clear irritation.

"Oh, so you do talk?" She giggled earning a glare from him. "Arjun is nice. So Aju, You didn't answer me."

"Arjun it is!" He said again not minding her words.

"No Aju. I'll call you that only." She was adamant.

He sighed letting her call whatever she wants.

"Tell me why you are grumpy always? Why don't you smile at least? I came to rescue you from them. And you dint even say thanks." She wined. Arjun royally ignored that and continued staring outside the window.

"Bad boy. You don't like us right. What did we do??"

"I don't like anyone." He replied.

"Why?" The little girl was confused.

"Because... Everyone is bad. They killed my Amma, Nanna. They are all monsters. Bad people. I hate everyone."

Vaidhu was shocked. "Wha. What?"

"Yes. They killed everyone. And they wanted to kill me too. But that uncle saved me and I am here. I don't want to be here. I want to see my Amma Nanna. And go to them. Can you take me there?" He asked in a pained voice and the little Vaidhu could only see his pain.

She just hugged him. Arjun was taken aback for a moment. She looked into his eyes and saw the unexpressed emotions.

"Aju. I can't do that. I am small. I know dead people become stars. Father told me that. When I grow up, I will get superpower and take you to them." She said not knowing the reality.

"But I also don't have anyone except father Fernandez. None here does. Aju... Please don't be sad. I promise I will never let anyone hit you. Or take your things. I will share all my toys with you. Will you be my friend?" She forwarded her hands and asked in hope.

Arjun looked at her, thought for a while, and put his hands on top of hers. Vaidhu smiled wholeheartedly.

"From today you are my best friend. And I'll be yours. Pinky Promise?"

"Pinky Promise."

"Ok! Then cry!" She said

"What??"

"Cry. Father says we should not be angry for anything. And should not hide what you feel. If you feel said you have to cry. And I know you are sad but you never cry. Even today when they hit you, you didn't. So cry now. I will not tease you. Promise."

Arjun was surprised by the way she noticed things.

"I don't feel like crying now. You made me happy my best friend." He smiled at her finally.

****

That was the start of their beautiful journey together. And there had been many situations where they laughed and cried together. Vaidhu has always been a pillar of support in his life. Never once she was against his wishes or dreams and the same goes with her also. Yet, they lost each other in midway which ripped his heart off.

Arjun could only reminisce about the memories he had with his love.

"Just come back once Vaidhu. I am tired of fighting alone. I need your lap for the comfort and as you always said I need to shed my tears in your arms." He thought and slowly wiped his tears from the corner of his eyes.

His Vaidhu always made sure that he vent out his emotions out: through smile or tears. And today when he lost himself, she isn't there with him. His heart ached with her absence. He has questioned himself numerous times on where he went wrong and cursed his fate for losing her.

When he first saw Mohini, he thought his Vaidhu is back. But the void in her face and the behavior made him believe otherwise. Yet her face haunted him, an unknown feeling. He didn't want to harm Dhruv. But he lost it at the moment when he tried to touch her.

Right now Dhruv is under their custody. Mohini, Radha ma, and their fellow companions have reached Hyderabad with the help of his team. He couldn't be impulsive at the moment though his heart yearned for the truth behind this resemblance. He was helpless.

Zoya saw him wiping the tears and nudged Ashok. They all were equally puzzled with the uncanny resemblance of Mohini and Vaidehi. And they have thought of a plan to find out the truth.

****

At the place where Dhruv was kept under custody!

"Well done guys. We have finally caught him. This is a great start. Shinde has to finally tell us the truth. And Arjun, it is good that you have rescued the girls from there. We will hand over the responsibility to the Central team. Probably they can help them in finding the lobby behind this sex trafficking. They will look upon it." Ashutosh was proud of his team.

"Ah Thank You, Sir. But... there is one problem." Ashok intervened and looked at Arjun who was silent. He asked Arjun through eyes to which he responded in No.

"What problem Ashok?" He questioned.

"Arjun," Ashok asked him to tell to which he hesitated. He didn't know how to inform him of the same.

"Sir, we saw a girl there. She was the one Dhruv was trying to ... And she helped us in trapping him."

"Yeah... Mohini. Right? What's with her now?"

Ashok went silent not knowing how to proceed which made him confused further.

It was only Arjun who knew about Vaidhu's relation with him. Zoya saw that and continued.

"Sir, it's that Mohini exactly looks like Vaidehi. They have such a strong resemblance."

Ashutosh got a huge blow. "What? ... Vaidehi? ...How?" His voice cracked. Arjun sensed the pain of a father in that but was bound to be silent.

"We don't know Sir. We were equally shocked to see the striking similarity. We couldn't dig into the matter further as the situation wasn't viable. And further, Dhruv's political power made it more complicated. So we had to make wise moves to accomplish the mission."
Ashok explained.

"So where is she now?" Ashutosh wanted to know.

"She is at Hyderabad with Radha and the other girls. I have their contact." Zoya said.

"So the issue we foresee is her strong resemblance with Vaidhu. She might face risks because of it. Probably none knows it except us. But if we handover the case to CBI and since Vaidhu's case is still open, it might be a crossover. And we need to take steps that avoid these risks beforehand."
David added.

Zoya handed over her phone to Ashutosh which had a picture of Mohini that she took before leaving.

Ashutosh took a seat in a nearby chair. He was shocked at the similarity. Is it even possible? He wondered. Her face. It is the same! Is she alive? His darling daughter: who he didn't have the privilege to declare to the world. He has never given her a proper hug at least. Even before all this, she was taken away from him. Destiny had other plans which destroyed theirs. He looked at Arjun who kept brim face. He understood that even Arjun is puzzled.

"Sir, we thought of watching the girls closely to know if there is anyone who is Ratnamma's close aid. If then, we need to be careful. The team behind would be able to track them down through them. So we thought to split them into groups and transfer them to different places with the help of CBI. Since Mohini's face is a risk, we have thought of another plan." He paused and nudged Ashok to continue.

"Actually we thought of bringing her with us," Ashok said and it was Arjun's turn to get surprised.

"What? But How?" Ashutosh asked.

"It is ok to convince Radha Ma. I will do that while splitting them into groups. But if Shinde refuses to share any information regarding AJ, we have to think of plan B too."

"And what's that?"

"Yes! What we know from our investigation is that AJ wanted to avenge for Marco's death through Vaidhu. He appointed Shinde for it. And we lost her... But if we present Mohini in front of him, he will be terrified. It is like not doing what AJ asked him to do. A clear betrayal. Using that situation, we can tackle him: A psychological approach."

"No!" Came Arjun's instant reply. "Not at the cost of another life. I can't do that"

"But Arjun..." David tried to convince him and was cut off by Ashutosh. He gestured them to leave him alone for the time being and went outside taking them with him.

                                                                                                       ****

"Zoya, I understand your plan. But since we don't know the truth behind Mohini, we can't take the risk. We have already lost two lives. And we can't afford more." Ashutosh gave his reason to stop the plan.

"Sir. Please listen to us. This is just plan B. We are 99% sure that Shinde would spill out the truth. And I have seen how Arjun behaved when he met Mohini. Even we are all confused. And we want to know the truth. So this is mainly for that. I know this isn't possible. But we all want to hold on to that 1% belief. Hold on to our intuition that both the girls are the same. Please convince Arjun for this. Only you can do that. We swear upon our lives that we won't let any harm to that girl."

"Yes Sir. Please convince him." David and Ashok supported.

Ashutosh thought for a while and agreed. He was happy inside to see the influence his daughter has in their lives. And he silently wished it to be true. 

****

Zoya was the most thrilled one of the lot. She was happy to know that Arjun agreed upon their plan to bring Mohini to their team. He was convinced by Ashutosh with much effort. Zoya dint had anyone in the team to lean on as it was the boys' team and her being the single lady. But with Vaidhu's entry, it changed. From the very first meet itself, they gelled well. Zoya had taken this job willingly knowing all the risks. But she missed her family often. Vaidhu never let her feel low at those times.

But that day, she had lost her best friend. They were happy with the union of Arjun n Vaidhu. But that happiness didn't last long. She was long gone.

Mohini! She was sure something is wrong somewhere. Her intuitions never went wrong. And this time she was determined to set things right.

Arjun, Zoya, and David headed to where Mohini stayed. Arjun was nervous to meet her again. All the memories of Vaidhu came to him each second. And the fear of losing control when seeing that face again was haunting him. David sensed his state of mind and offered to drive. They could see the tension in his face. And finally reached the destination.

Arjun hesitated for a while. And he preferred to stay back. But couldn't do that for Radha. It would be awkward if he doesnt meet her.

"Trust me Arjun. Everything will be fine. We will not disappoint you this time." David placed his hands on his shoulders.

Arjun thanked his stars. His team was his strength. Not just colleagues but were a family who valued and understood each other's emotions. And the trio went inside to meet Radha and Mohini.

                      ****

Since it was a surprise visit, Radha was all happy to see them. She was thankful for all the deeds they have done. But dint expects to meet them again. She knew they were officers in the high post and was in a mission.

"Saab..." Radha welcomed them and reached out to Arjun who glared her for that. "Ahh, Arjun." She corrected and got his smile in return. He touched her feet and she was taken aback with the gesture. David greeted her and Zoya's side hugged her.

"Hi, Ma. How are you? Is everything good here?" Arjun asked.

"Yes, Arjun. You have made sure about it right. And as per your instruction, I have been watching the girls. But I couldn't find anyone suspicious till now. I will keep doing the same until you ask me to stop."

"Ma, there is a change in plan. We came to inform you about it." Arjun said.

"Yes. It is good that we haven't found anyone suspicious yet. But I can't dismiss the possibility completely. So we thought of splitting the girls into different groups. The central team will be doing that. And each group will be taken care of separately."
David added.

"Sounds good to me," Radha replied.

"By the way, how's Mohini? Where is she?" Zoya enquired.

"She is fine. She must be inside telling stories to the young girls. You all please wait here. I will call her now." With that, she went inside.

Arjun became more nervous. He will meet her again anytime soon. And before his poor heart throbbed further, he heard the sound of her anklets.

"What is the hurry Ma? Where are you taking me? I dint finish the story." They heard her miffed voice.

In a second, Radha came with Mohini who was reluctant in stopping the story in midway that she was telling the girls.

"Hi, Mohini..." Zoya hugged a surprised Mohini. She was not expecting them here.

Soon her eyes searched for someone else and found him staring at her with mixed emotions that she couldn't decipher. Soon she came back to her senses.

"H... Hiii... Zoe..." She greeted her back.

"Surprised?"

"Haan ... Haan" Mohini managed to say. She was feeling jitters under his gaze that she could see through her peripheral vision.

"Ha-ha, it is Ok. We came to meet you all. And we have something important to share with you both." Zoya asked David to proceed through the eyes.

"Yes, Mam. Thank you both for helping us with our mission. You made it possible. And there is an important which we missed out before."

Mohini and Radha were confused, the team understood.

"There is nothing to worry much. But Yes. Dhruv is a powerful man with many connections. And there would be people coming behind to investigate his missing. It is a risk if they find about Mohini is the one who helped us. Our mission is to find someone else through Dhruv. So until that, he will be under our custody and Mohini needs to be protected too. We wanted to make sure of this."

Radha held Mohini from the side in tension.

"Ah easy ... you don't have to worry much. It is not like Mohini is facing a threat. But we are thinking to let her be on the safer side." Zoe added.

"So what should we do now for her safety," Radha asked not knowing a solution.

"We have a suggestion. Until the mission is accomplished, it will be better if she stays with us. Only if you agree! We will take her to our place so that we can always keep an eye on her."

Radha thought for a while. With a deep sigh, she looked at Mohini who looked puzzled meddling with her dupatta. She understood that something is bothering this girl: The change in her behavior since they shifted. She even caught her a bit off guard at times. She tried to enquire too. But Mohini wasn't ready to share what's in her mind.

She looked at Arjun to speak something. He was unusually silent when Mohini is around. She noticed that too. But she needed to know his opinion. And Arjun got her point.

"We understand your concern Ma. But trust me. She will be safe.
We will not let anyone harm her. Anyone messing with her will have to surpass all of us." He assured.

"Yes. And we will safely return her back to you once everything is settled. Does it sound fine? She doesn't have to worry. I will be there with her along with these boys." Zoe tried to ease their tension.

Radha turned to Mohini who was in split minds. On one side, they have a point: Her safety. And on another side, this Man whose eyes that penetrates deep into her soul. She looked at Radha helplessly. The lady who protected her always from the evil clutches. If something happens to her, she will be shattered. And Mohini nodded her head in yes accepting the decision to move with them.

The bag was packed and it was time to leave. Radha was half happy handing her to a safe place and half sad in sending her away. Still, she maintained her cool not breaking down. Mohini was the same. But when the moment came, they hugged each other and cried.

An invisible thread of love tied them together and it was clear to the trio who came to take her to their place.

Arjun asked Radha to keep a close watch on each of the girls and gave her another number which will be given to Mohini later So that they can contact.

"Please take care of yourself Ma. Don't hesitate to call me for anything. And don't worry about Mohini. We will ensure she is happy and protected always." Arjun eyed Mohini who stood nervously near her and hugged Radha with all the love.

"I trust you Arjun. Please take care of yourself and all. And I will let you know the updates here." She reciprocated her love for them.

Arjun - David sat on front and Zoya- Mohini seated at the back. They started their journey towards a new chapter with different thoughts occupying their minds.

 ****

There you go. No proofreading has done!!
Well, the longest chap of the story to date. I hope it turned out well. Thanks for the comments and also for waiting patiently for this idiot writer 😝
Please do vote and comment!
- Love Apz ♥️