Chapter 31: Chapter 31

"You leave home to seek your fortune and, when you get it, you go home and share it with your family."

Keshav's mother was quite serious but now as she was fine, Keshav and Ananya decided to go back to the place where Ayushi had died as they needed to bring Dhruv too to their house. He needed emotional support now.

"Keshav, where is Dhruv?" Ananya asked Keshav in a worried tone when they returned to the place where they had left him because of Keshav's mother's sudden slip incident. Two hours had already passed and now they had returned to this place to find where Dhruv was actually.

"I think he had gone somewhere, probably because of the loss he had to suffer," Keshav whispered in a small voice.

"He won't do something stupid, right?" Ananya spoke out in an afraid tone.

"I cannot say anything, Ananya. He had lost everything, his mind won't be in a stable state," he replied uncertainly.

"Let's go to his house, maybe we can find him there," Ananya was getting a vibe that maybe Dhruv could be found there, but alas, he was not.

When they finally reached, they couldn't find him there, but they could hear the ringtone of a mobile phone. Probably, it was Dhruv's phone which was ringing. When Ananya looked at the caller, she was shocked to see the name of the person who was calling Dhruv.

Dhruv's father was calling.

"Hello, Uncle," Ananya's voice was shivering because she was readying herself for the truth that she was going to unfold, the truth that will break apart the beautiful family of "The Rajputs".

"Who is this?" Dhiraj spoke out in a no-nonsense tone. He was expecting that either his son or his daughter would pick up the call, not a stranger girl.

"Uncle, I'm Ananya, Ayushi's friend. Last night, Ayushi and her babies..." Ananya stopped breathing, she couldn't form any more sentences.

"What happened to them? And, where are they? Where is my son?" Dhiraj asked in a disturbed tone.

"They are no more," Ananya fumbled out and Dhiraj felt that the ground under him had slipped. He couldn't believe what he just heard.

"What kind of ridiculous joke is this?" he blared out in an angry tone.

"Uncle, I'm stating the truth, they are no more and we can not even find Dhruv. He had gone somewhere. They are no more," Ananya started crying over the phone call and Dhiraj felt some wetness on his cheeks.

"How did this happen?" with a lot of courage, Dhiraj managed to ask and Ananya told him about all the things which had happened last night.

"Is it proved that they are Ayushi and her children?" Dhiraj was still praying to God that whatever happened, it was just a lie, a ridiculous lie.

"Her Mangalsutra and her wedding ring were found near the spot and even Dhruv confirmed that," Ananya cried.

"Are they in shape?" Dhiraj's weak voice asked.

"No, they were all brutally crushed but still the police are trying to collect their body parts," she whispered out.

"I still cannot believe this. Somewhere deep inside I know that this is not true, my mind is not accepting this. Please don't burn the bodies, my family will burn it once we arrive there," Dhiraj tried to be sober, but his voice trembled at the end. After cutting the call, he couldn't stop the pool of tears that he had been controlling for so long.

"My daughter, she is no more, my grandchildren," his old eyes started pouring out all the raw emotions of immense pain and agony. With his hand on his head, he started shrieking out loudly. He couldn't believe that something like this would ever happen with him. Hearing him, even his mother, wife, and daughter too came out, and once they heard what had happened, they too started mourning over the death of Ayushi and her babies.

There, on the other hand, Ananya took Dhruv's phone as she knew that they'd get calls from Dhruv's father and went towards her house along with Keshav.

The next day, Dhiraj along with his family took the private flight to Chamba and in a secretive manner burned the fragmented pieces of the body of his daughter and buried the other two babies' bodies. He did it secretly because somewhere in his heart he knew that it wasn't his daughter and they weren't his grandchildren, call it a father's gut feeling.

"Dhruv sir cannot be located, Sir. We asked all the people near Chamba but we still couldn't get a clue about him," Dhiraj's detective spoke out in a solemn tone.

"Keep searching for him," Dhiraj ordered on the phone call and went towards the house where his son was staying. He found some of the important things which he wanted, and after finally collecting them, he with his family flew away to their hometown, Bhopal in their private jet.

****

"Dhiraj, the DNA reports are out. The lady's blood sample doesn't match with Mr Anil who was said to be her father. Also, the small babies' blood samples don't match with yours, not even 0.0001%, which means that they are not even related to you as well. Altogether, they are not your family members. They are from a different family, and not yours. It is confirmed," Dr Mathur, the close friend of Dhiraj spoke out in a solemn tone.

"I just knew it. I knew they were somewhere safe. Just please bless and safeguard them, God, wherever they are," Dhiraj joined his hands and sent a prayer to his almighty.

"Don't worry Dhiraj, they will be alright. What Dhruv did is condemning but now we need to be many alerts about those Thakurs. Dhruv's blood sample which you had given to me had the number of drugs in it which can control a person, I think that evidence is enough for the Thakurs to be behind the bars, but first, we need to find Dhruv and Ayushi along with the babies," Dr Mathur knew everything about both Dhruv and Ayushi's history and he even had proofs against Chandani and her family.

"I think I know what to do," Dhiraj called for a press conference at his house.

****

"Yeah, they are currently out of India as my beloved son, Dhruv Singh Rajput is handling the business over there. To keep it confidential, I am not disclosing the name of the country where he is residing but I can say that my son along with my daughter-in-law is leading a very good life. And recently, they have become the parents of a lovely twin. See, aren't they cute?" to keep the matter of Ayushi and Dhruv, being lost a secret, Dhiraj had decided to give the world a piece of false news about them so that the media wouldn't create a drama later on.

He even uploaded the picture which Dhruv had shared with him yesterday, on social media. The world should know that his son and daughter-in-law are one happy couple and living together in some faraway land.

When he had shared the DNA Reports with his family, they were relieved that their Ayushi was safe along with the babies. Now they just wanted one thing. For them to be together, to be a complete family again, which they were once.

The search party had already mushroomed in all the regions of Himachal Pradesh to search the Emperor and Empress of Rajput clan.

****

Madhav finally ran out of that mental hospital where he was tortured so brutally. He had breathed out the fresh air when he had finally left Dehradun.

"I'll sleep on this bench tonight, in the morning I'll find some other place," he whispered to himself while pulling his torn jacket together. It was the only thing that could keep him warm on this chilly night. Unknowingly, he had travelled from Dehradun to Mussoorie which was approximately fifty kilometres apart.

Madhav resembled that of a beggar with a big and long beard growing on his jaw, mud all over his face, and a foul smell coming from him.

He started reminiscing about all the things which had happened with him in the last one month.

His parents died who had been there since the time he had opened his eyes after his second birth. How much support they had given to him, how much love they had showered on him. He could never forget that. And the time when he was forcefully admitted to a mental hospital after he was found fighting with a goon of Badrinath, because of whom the peaceful village where once lived his family was a burning pyre.

He shivered remembering those days which he had spent in that mental hospital. How cruel they all were, giving him and other patients electric shocks and then later injections after which some gross experiments used to be performed on their unconscious and innocent bodies. He trembled and cries of pain started erupting from his mouth.

One day when he had acted like he was having loose motions; he had seen how brutally all the patients were injected with some drugs and then few of them were sent to some dungeons where their body parts were taken out. In the name of the mental hospitals, they all were exporting bloody human parts! And that's what hit Madhav. He decided that he'll run out of there and then will save those other patients. And today only, he executed his plan of running away from that hell.

"How much more you will punish me, God! How much! You snatched away my Ayushi, my babies from me. My reason to survive was snatched by you. Then in the fear of Dadi, Dad and Maa, I couldn't even go to Bhopal. How could I show my face to them! Intentionally, I had always hidden under this long beard, this beggar kind of state, just so no detective or Dad could find me out, no person could recognize me."

"Then you gave me another father in the form of Baba and another mother in the form of Yashodhara Maa. In front of them, I even acted as I am a patient of Amnesia just because I wanted them to behave with me as if I am their son only, not as that Dhruv who had died long ago. But then you snatched them away too. Then those terrifying hallucinations."

"I cannot even get rid of them. How weak I feel whenever I see those, I cannot even do anything to save my babies. How much more brutality God, how much more! I am tired of this life. It's better to have died than this lifeless life. I cannot go to my parents, I cannot face them, but I am your child, right? Every living creature is your child, right? At least you will accept me, then please take me with you, I am tired of this life. Make this night my last night on this earth, I beg you, God, I am broken beyond repair, I am shattered, please accept me, God in your house, please," Dhruv poured out his heart in front of his God and started crying in the chilled winter night. His heart was bleeding, he was shattered from within.

The once king of the whole of India was now in this state. No one could believe that. In this reckless state, in this torn state where he didn't even have a shelter on his head, clothes to cover his body or grain to eat.

"You call it Karma, right? I'm getting the fruits of my Karma only," he smiled bitterly and closed his eyes with a wish of never opening it again.

****

The next morning, a new day, it was with new challenges and new hopes. It was raining cats and dogs. But Dhruv still hadn't realized that. He was in deep sleep. Maybe the cut on his forehead was causing it because last night, a dog had scratched on his head when he had just closed his eyes. Although he didn't fight with the dog, the mute creature left him, after looking at the human's weak form. Maybe he also knew that this human meant no harm to him. He was too weak to harm him. And the dog had gone away.

Ayushi had just opened her door for going to the market as they were running out of milk which her kids loved a lot when she saw a beggar who was resembling much like her husband, sleeping just outside her house, on the bench with torn clothes, shabby beard, dirty face, and a stinking smell was coming from him.

Ayushi looked at him strangely and then having a close look at him, she realized she knew that person.

Ayushi was devastated, traumatized seeing her husband, Dhruv in that state where he was not even aware of his surroundings, where he was sleeping under the open sky when it was raining so heavily as he had no senses to feel anything.

"Dhruv," she whispered in a wrecked tone when she noticed the same wedding ring on his finger which she had made him wear on their engagement ceremony.

Kisi Shaayar Ki Ghazal

Jo De Rooh Ko Sukoon Ke Pal

Hearing the delicate voice, Dhruv opened his eyes, and what he saw just jolted his every cell.

"Ayushi?" for the first time, in his hallucinations, Ayushi was alone without that demon and even their kids? Wait, kids? Where are they? And, where is he? Is he dead? Dhruv's mind quizzed puzzledly.

"Are you here? Where are that demon and kids? Or, am I dead?" Dhruv stood up and was rejoicing that finally, God had called him at his place. The surroundings around him were also exquisite just like some heaven, maybe he was finally in heaven. The weather too was pleasant with raindrops pouring down so graciously.

Ayushi was just looking at him in shock, despair, and guilt. Her eyes were too guilty to even match with his.

Jaise Koi Kinara, Deta Ho Sahara

Mujhe Woh Mila Kisi Mod Par

"You know last night only, I prayed for my death so that I can meet you all, you, my babies, and now see I am here. You don't know how much I missed you all on earth, life was har.." before Dhruv could blabber more, Ayushi hugged him tightly.

The raw emotions suddenly erupted inside her, the emotions of loneliness, the emotion of guilt, the emotion of love.

"Sssh. Don't cry. Now we can live here together. No more suffering, because it's said 'earthly things lead to more suffering', and we are here in heaven, right? So, no suffering. You do not know how happy I am to finally die to meet you, I didn't know that my voice will reach the almighty so fast, otherwise, I would have asked for my death long ago," Dhruv's words were making Ayushi more and more guilty.

The person who had everything in his power was asking for his death? Why? Because of her! Because of her stupid plan to snatch away the babies from a father! A father who had repented a lot, who had suffered a lot.

"Dhruv. Please listen to me," she moved out of the hug and touched his cheeks lovingly.

"Yeah, I know what you are going to say. I am sorry for what I did with you on earth, but now as I am de.." before he could complete his sentence, Ayushi kissed him to make him stop to say that "dead" word again. The sudden warmth on his lips felt strange but even he kissed her back with all the love that he had stored within him from the last two years. He held her tightly and grabbed her waist with one hand and with another, he had held her right cheek softly to kiss her smoothly.

"I love you so much, and I am sorry for what I did with you," she started crying loudly, after again pulling him in her arms. She was feeling so guilty after seeing his condition, whatever happened with him was because of her impulsive decision. She could have punished him while living with him as well, but now she had to run away. He was so different now, with a long beard, dirty and torn clothes, scratches here and there and a very weak body. How much changed he was in these two years.

"Ayushi, please do not cry. We have already cried a lot on earth, now it's time to rejoice," Dhruv was in another world altogether. He couldn't believe that the real Ayushi was now in front of him, he was too shocked yet content. His hallucinations problems had made him a person who he was today.

"Giant, giant! Agastya Bhaiya (Big brother)! Come fast, a giant is hugging Mumma," Aranya's loud cry was enough for Dhruv to part away from Ayushi.

He looked in their direction in adoration. His kids had grown up so much!

~**•**~

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