Salaam readers,

I want to thank all those who sent me wonderful messages regarding this story, it has motivated me so very much.

Loads of love <3

He made his way through the crowd at a dizzying pace.

Thufail knew that he was being watched, he could feel it.

The growling of the thunder got louder but thufail was oblivious to the noise, from time to time a streak of lightning shattered the raindrops into dazzling diamond water falls. He had found all the missing pieces and it made him vibrantly cheerful, the only thing that remained was for the world to know about the monsters who played the role of innocent until now.

His life was in great threat and he did not wish to put the life of thousands of guests present in his sisters wedding in jeopardy, therefore, he had to get away quickly.

He could have gone to Izaan for help, but that would mean that he would put his brothers life at risk too.

Thufail shook his head and bit his lips hard, tasting blood. He felt the beads of perspiration on his forehead and he clumsily wiped it away.

It would be a lie if he would say that he wasn't scared, as he was terribly frightened of the outcome, but he had to deliver the truth to common people. It was his job to do so and he owed them their right to have knowledge about the evil things going around them, which would eventually cause great havoc.

As he stepped outside the venue, he noticed that the wind had begun to whip the rain into frenzied maelstrom. He embraced the leather jacket close to himself, slipping the hood on his head.

Shielding his wrist with his sleeve, he looked intently at his watch. It had turned eleven, he had to meet them and confide his findings.

He turned around for the a brief second and watched the smiling faces of his family, he hoped that he would have the chance of sharing sweet moments with them in future.

There was only person other than him, who knew about the deadly secret he had stumbled upon and he prayed fervently to Almighty to save that person's life.

If it was in his power then he wouldn't have ever passed the information to someone so innocent, as it would lead the person to great trouble. But unfortunately, he did not possess any other choice, if they were about to kill him then he didn't wish to die with the secret buried inside him. The world had to know.

As he took brisk steps towards his secret destination, the climate turned worse. The winds howled and the rain turned insane but nothing was going to stop him now.

It was going to be a long night, he thought, as he slipped inside his car and the keys juggled in the ignition.

A minute later the car came back to life and the loud purr was lost in the harshness of the wind.

~*~*~*~*~*

Sameera stirred in her sleep, and kept tossing and turning to ward off the stress she was in, but her nightmare got severe and she jerked upright to sitting position, clutching her night gown and then wiping the sweat that trickled down her face.

'Isaac.'

She hit him lightly on his arms, shaking him, trying to wake him from his deep slumber.

He mumbled something but did not stirr, after one more try she threw away the soft duvet and slipped down from the bed, making her way towards the huge window that swayed for the harsh winds. The raindrops splashed on the window with increasing intensity, allowing a few drops to enter the house, which got absorbed by the carpet that stood below. She gazed at the dark sky and wondered about the secrets that are woven in the universe while the sun doesn't shine.

Sameera closed her eyes and rested her head slightly against the adjacent wall, but she came in contact with something warm and welcoming.

It was Isaac standing beside her, who pulled her close into his arms and pressed a gentle kiss onto her hair. 'What is bothering you?'

Sameera shook her head, 'I don't know. I had a bad dream.'

He stroked her hands as she shivered like a leaf on a cold night, then slightly withdrew his hold and returned with a thick blanket to cover her, as the flimsy material of her night gown did no good to her state.

She thanked him as he once again enveloped her in his embrace, they stood stil for a few beats, watching the rain, lost in their thoughts.

'Don't worry. It was just a nightmare.'

She nodded her head. 'I know, but it has been haunting me from months.'

'What is it?'

'I feel like my world is crashing and I'm unable to stop it. I watch myself falling from a cliff.'

'Ssshh,' He turned her around, caressing her soft cheeks with his knuckles. 'InshaAllah nothing of that sort is going to take place, besides, now you have your husband to take care of you.'

Sameera smiled at him, pressing her lips to his shoulders, her heart eased gradually as she heard the rhythmic beats of his heartbeat, which echoed through her palm that was pressed against the hard wall of his chest.

Isaac smiled back at her. A flush of pink ran up beneath her skin. Meeting those brilliant dark eyes, she found it so incredibly difficult to breathe or think but oh, so easy to feel the pulse of throbbing excitement that beat in tune with her racing heart.

The next few moments filled the emptiness of their life as they gave into each other completely, without any restriction to stop them from displaying their love for each other.

A long while later, they were wrapped together in a gloriously happy haze of mutual satisfaction and the sheer wonder of enchanting moments they had shared.

A brilliant smile lit his features and his gaze gleamed possessively over her. 'I love you,' He confided in a rush of warm emotions that tugged his heart.

Sameera shifted a little tautly and faint color darkened her cheekbones. 'I love you too,' She whispered against his chest.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The huge bungalow stood firmly, as the howling winds hit the walls with intensity.

Every room glowed with soft lights, giving an perfect impression of the members being asleep, but reality was far from it.

Except one person they were all lying down in the comfort of their room, snuggled inside the warm duvets, but every eyes seemed to be devoid of sleep, as everyone missed Sameera.

In one of the enormous room, there was a man standing on his prayer mat engaged in conversation with his lord as he was too restless to sleep.

It was Izaan.

He had too many things running on his mind and prayer was the only escape for him to regain his sanity.

Ofcourse, he did miss his sister, but that wasn't the reason for his anxiety, as he knew that Sameera was in good hands and she would be taken care, right now he was worried about thufail.

He had received a call from unknown source saying that his brothers life was in danger and that had worried him extremely. He had searched for him frantically during the late night party, but he had already disappeared.

He was certain that thufail had left the venue and gone off in search of some news.

Izaan sighed heavily and ran a hand through his beard.

He knew his brother really well. Nothing satisfied thufail, he was always in search of truth, and to achieve that he wouldn't think twice in putting his life on the line.

Izaan hoped that thufail hadn't involved himself in anything dangerous.

He folded his prayer mat and strode towards his bed, picked up his phone and hastily dialled the number of his private investigator.

'Where you able to trace thufail?'

The answer made all the natural vitality leave his face, making him appear as pale as snow.

His phone slipped from his hands and fell on the wooden floorboard with a definite thud, a second later, Izaan sank down to his bed with a heavy heart.

~*~*~*~*~*~*

Thufail groaned as the rain began pouring with renewed force, he wiped his wrist to his shirt front and looked at the watch once again.

They were late.

And why had they insisted on meeting here, on midnight? He wondered.

Maybe, this was an easy option for them. He would be relieved after  sharing the information as it could lead to further investigation by the police.

He wasn't followed or threatened until now and he smiled to himself. It was wonderful to think that the monsters did not possess the knowledge that he knew their secret.

As he was wondering, he heard the door to the tower lift open.

Two men were moving towards him, fighting against the fierce wind.

As thufail recognised them, he felt a sense of relief. 'You're late.'

'It's the damm weather, thufail. Sorry.'

'Well, that's fine. So everything is set, isn't it?

One of the man nodded his head, while the other had a huge smile on his face.

'Have you alerted the police?'

'We don't think we need to inform them. However, everyone is going to know it by tomorrow.'

'How?'

As they were speaking, the second man moved behind thufail and then everything happened at a terrifying pace.

A heavy, blunt instrument slammed into his skull, and an instant later he felt himself being lifted and tossed over, his body plunging towards the unforgiving pavement thirty two storeys below.