The scares were too deep to fade.

"Yes, I killed my father." Scathingly, he confessed.

The lights brighten, shadowing the grown Krishant, only sparing the outline of his form. She could only see the darkness of his appearance.

The pain evanesces through her reality with the luminosity of her benignant air about Krishant. Even the berserk of her plan drained after acquiring the bitter knowledge of the capabilities of the imprudent man in front of her.

He had killed his own father...

"Most people believe it was Ruby. But she wouldn't do it without me telling her." He smirks, moving into her consciousness, "She got the credit, but she did it for me, so acceptable." Was that supposed to be an achievement? He judged her face, "You think it is not an accomplishment, but people would love to disagree with you. Raman Sanghvi was not a man but a devil. I was not his only victim. He had tormented every soul he ever met. He killed my mother and blamed it on me, an infant, just like you did with me."

Priyanka could only mutter a glare. She had done nothing wrong to him as he was accusing her fulsomely. It was stupefying that Priyanka broke his heart when the case was the opposite. He was literally torturing her for something improbable from her. The urge of belligerence upon him tempted her, and if not for the restraints, she would've ambushed him at the very instance. It was suffocating to sit still and watch him walk all over her.

The guy was delusional and a narcissist who could only think about his sufferings.

"What does it have to do to me?" She couldn't keep her tone un-irritable. "He's already dead," she yells, enough to turn him downright hostile. He sprung to her before swiping her head to the side with a hard slap.

The chair wavers from the impact, and Krishant narrowly saves it as he hovers over Priyanka, deadly looking into her eyes. "You don't hate your father even after he never cared for you. I hate you for that. You mocked me for hating my father."

It stuns her. She reflects on his words. She indeed hated her father for never coming back to them. She hated her father for thinking that his wife and his own children wouldn't even forgive him. She hated her father for choosing alcohol over his own life and family when he could've led a sober and happy life. She hated her father for leaving without a goodbye and so much more. But beyond all the hatred was the love they shared at par.

She said none of that.

Instead, she got another blow on her abdomen, scrunching her in agony. It was uncalled for, but Krishant misunderstood her silence as judgment. He grabs ahold of her shoulder blade before painfully massaging them, leaving a bruise for later, "You know what else I am capable of doing other than killing?" He softly whispers, letting his hand drift down to her breast and cupping them, "Making love," squeezing her boob, "That's what I did with Rosy and Rani before I killed them too." He nibbles her ear and again drifts his hand between her inner thighs. "They were screaming my name. Both the times." His chuckles sent shivers of chills down her spine.

It was almost impossible for her to retrieve sensibility from the words he spoke to her. It was petrifying. Again, the Krishant, who respected her distance, she knew, was replaced with a selfish, self-absorbed killer with no concrete grudges against his victims. He was almost on a killing spree; Priyanka couldn't regard him.

He wants to rape me before killing me, now.

With a venturous idea admixed with her impulse and agony, Priyanka spread her thighs more apart, inviting him enough, she equally stared dead-ass into his dark eyes. "I don't care anymore. You can have your way." His smirk flattens.

Her fear vanished at Krishant's withering composure, but her heart gagged at the thought of him anywhere near her. She would probably strangle herself to death if that happened.

Krishant looked at her with perplexing eyes, observing her daring features. She has a death wish! Molesting her was never part of his plan, but he was trying to frisson her of fear. Her reaction did not exulted him. He quickly jumped to the next part: humiliation.

If that would not break her. He thought.

"Fancy words coming from you." He remarked. "Unfortunately, I will never stoop to your level, queer queen." he mocks before fervently laughing.

Priyanka's face turns discoloured.

"You thought I didn't know about your dirty little secret?" he smirks. "I know everything about you."

"What-What do you mean?" Her distraught voice asks.

"You know what I mean. You bat for the other team." He amuses. He starts pacing after she +can only watch him humiliating her further, "At first, I didn't believe that, but your resistance to me was unbelievable. I knew I was charming enough, but you never gave way to me even a bit. It was almost astonishing. But I have a question." He nudges his lower lip with his index finger, giving musing expressions. "Why did you agree to my lie when I said I am your boyfriend? Why did you play along? You almost distort me."

If Priyanka decides to speak now while knowing his capabilities, fusion with his hatred and desultory in killing his victims, then she would probably risk many lives, especially Faruqui. She is doing just great with her distracting plan.

It was too late to retreat with solemn expressions as Krishant noticed her debating face. She was not quick enough to cover them.

"You're thinking." Krishant states, "You don't possess the advantage of thinking in your condition. Speak." He orders.

She couldn't think of a lie in a panic-stricken state, and telling the truth was a risk she was willing not to take. She rambles through the anecdotal to feed him, but it was a game of Krishant that she wouldn't win.

"Do you really want me to use the hard way?" His gaze turned cold and piercing, and Priyanka could feel the sweat dripping down her face.

It was gruesome anticipation as her pit burned with anxiety and panic. None of her pain or begging stopped Krishant from violating her. If he could kill his own father and ex-girlfriends, then Priyanka was worthy of nothing to him.

She was on the verge of unconsciousness when he decided to stop. "Speak already." Priyanka still couldn't think of a lie, distracted by his blows. His assault overwhelmed her in both physical and emotional pain. She didn't expect anything like this to ever happen to her. It was surreal for something so unconventional to occur in her life. She was fighting for life, not because of some terminal illness as usual people do, but because of some murderer. She could only think about how she would end up coming out of this.

It was not her job: to investigate missing/dead girls, hire a PI for a background check, fighting criminals. She shouldn't have gotten involved in the mess from the beginning. She didn't know how to fight him or save herself. She wanted the reality to turn around and turntables with Krishant. He was nothing of an enemy but a terrorist in her land of peace.

"You are one tough cookie." She heard him ramble as he pants, and his sardonic-sarcastic laughter echoed in her body while she could only cry for mercy.

"Please, leave me." She heard herself beseeching.

"Why don't you just tell me about your plans?"

"I got curious. I have issues of my past with my mother because of my sexuality, and when you came to me and said that you are my boyfriend, I thought I could keep you around to show my mother." The partial lie saved her.

"Believable." He remarks. He retrieves her back from her laying position as he had beaten her down to it. He looked at the horrified-unrecognizable Priyanka, and amusement filled him. I did that... She was at his mercy, and he would decide her fate. "We should move to the next treatment."

There's next. Priyanka's breath hitched at the thought, and even though she lacked the energy to do anything minimum, his words were worrisome enough. His ECT therapy did not kill her, but her instincts couldn't get wrong when she thought this next treatment would not spare her life.

She only now noticed a table at the corner of the room, brimming with things ungraspable for her swollen eyes. She could see Krishant's movements; he grabbed a bottle that she guessed to be some sort of medication.

"Why-Why are you doing this?" she was barely audible.

"Didn't I tell you already?" He leaves his experimental medicines to face the weak girl again.

His bipolar disorder must be affecting him as the raging fury he showed earlier was replaced by a sweet innocent smile. He was in euphoria for some reason. "I--" He stops to observe Priyanka uncomfortably squirming onto her chair. She was trying to loosen the pain from the numbness.

"As I was saying...I am going to treat your amnesia." He declares before uncuffing her. When given a questioning stare at his action of pitiness, "I feel safe around you, and I think you deserve that after your cooperation. Don't do anything stupid. I trust you."

I do not. Priyanka thought he would hurt her again when he untied her legs too, but he knew she was in no state to take him on without feeling pain. Even breathing was painful. He takes out her IV too.

"Better?" She tried to relax in her disconnected freedom; it felt ecstatic to move freely. "Do you feel any change after the ECT treatment?"

Priyanka could only look at him. What does he want me to say?

"I mean how's your brain activity? Do you remember anything at all?"

"Nothing." She replies, "Why are you doing this, Krish? What do you want from me?"

"I want you to remember the night I killed Monica. Do you remember? You were there, watching everything I did with her. You were the sole witness of my crime."

Priyanka was too dumbfounded to speak.

"You were there when I came to beg her. You were there when I was trying to convince her. You saw us fighting. You followed us to the rooftop and watched us fight there too. You watched me push her off the top. I thought you'd die in the car accident after I chased you for an hour, but how fortunate you were. I thought you'd die in your coma, but surprise, see who's here, the one and only Priyanka Naik, the invincible." He mocks, "I thought you were lying about your amnesia, but it turned out you really didn't remember me or the night."

"Then why didn't you leave me alone if I couldn't remember anything?"

"Where's the fun in that? If I had left you, then this all couldn't be happening. You were happy while my Monica lay in her grave."

"But you killed her."

"That should've been you. If I hadn't taken out my anger on her, then it would have been you."

"Why would you kill her then?"

"She betrayed me just like Rosy and Rani. Monica wanted me to surrender for my crimes, or she'd have gone to the authorities herself. I tried convincing her, but she didn't listen, so I did what I had to do."

"Why did you kill your father?"

"I--" The ring blasted into the room, alerting Krishant. He sighs but moves away.

After listening to the fellow caller, he abruptly left.

________