CHAPTER 10: Part 1 (TREADING ON THIN ICE)
~ ISHIKA (POV) ~
Sunday afternoons at the Jaiswal mansion were usually a riot of noise, Piya arguing with Rudransh over the remote, Mom instructing the cooks, and Chachi laughing loudly on the phone.
But today, the silence was heavy, almost suffocating.
The entire family had left for a distant relative's engagement ceremony. I had stayed back.
"Dadu isn't feeling well," I had told Mom, my face a mask of concern that was only half-feigned. "I'll stay and look after him."
It was the perfect excuse. In reality, in exactly one hour, a black car was going to wait for me at the end of the lane for Date Number Two.
I stood in front of my mirror, smoothing down the fabric of my dress.
It was a floor-length white dress featuring a corset-style fit and statement balloon sleeves for a bold yet feminine look.
The tiered ruffle detailing and flowing skirt give the outfit a graceful movement and it has a daring slit up to the mid thigh.
Perfect for a date. I checked my phone.
*Mehak: Stuck in traffic! Be there in 20 mins. Don't leave Dadu alone until I get there!*
I sighed, tossing the phone onto the bed.
For the past few days, since that morning news report, I had been a ghost in my own house. I left before Dadu woke up and came back after he slept.
I couldn't face him. I couldn't ask the question that had been burning a hole in my chest since the news anchor said my name.
*Ishika Jaiswal. The Future Queen?*
It was absurd. Mrityunjay, my Hukum Sa Who had stood in a gazebo and sung *Wada Karo* to me. He had looked into my eyes and told me he hated the Jaiswals.
So why was my family silent? Why hadn't Dadu denied the news?
A soft knock on my door made me jump.
I turned around. Dadu stood there, leaning heavily on his walking stick.
He looked older today. His skin was papery, his eyes surrounded by deep, dark circles. He wore his usual white kurta-pyjama, but it seemed to hang loosely on his frail frame.
"Dadu?" I whispered, guilt pricking at me. "Do you need anything? Water?"
He stepped inside, closing the door softly behind him. His eyes scanned my outfit-the dress, the light makeup, the hair curled perfectly. A flash of pain crossed his eyes, but he didn't comment on it.
"Nahi beta," (No, child,) he rasped, his voice trembling. "Humein aapse baat karni hai. Jo hum us din subah nahi kar paye." (I need to talk to you. What I couldn't finish that morning.)
My heart began to hammer against my ribs. I instinctively took a step back, gripping the edge of my dressing table. "It's okay, Dadu. We can talk later. You should rest..."
"Nahi," he interrupted, shuffling closer to the bed and sitting down heavily. He looked defeated. "Ab aur nahi chhupa sakte." (No. I can't hide it anymore.)
He looked up at me, his eyes watery. "Wo news... wo khabar sach thi, Sona." (That news... that report was true, Sona.)
The air left the room. Sona. He hadn't used my nickname in days.
I stared at him, my hands turning cold. "Sach?" (True?) I whispered. "But... Dadu, that news said... marriage. To the King... The Rathores."
Dadu looked down at his trembling hands resting on his knees. "Humein majboor kiya gaya hai, Sona. Rathores... unhone humare paas koi rasta nahi chhoda." (We were forced, Sona. The Rathores... they left us with no choice.)
"Majboor?" (Forced?) My voice was barely audible.
"Badle ki aag," (The fire of revenge,) Dadu whispered, a tear slipping down his wrinkled cheek.
"Bade Rana Sa... he wants to settle the old score. He demanded a bride from our house. If we refused... he threatened to destroy everything. The business, the house... Anant, Karan... everyone."
He looked up at me, his expression pleading. "Humne haan kar di, Sona. Humein maaf kar do. Humne apni poti ka sauda kar diya taaki parivaar bach sake." (I said yes, Sona. Forgive me. I traded my granddaughter so the family could survive.)
I stood frozen.
It wasn't a rumor. It wasn't a mistake.
Mrityunjay's grandfather had blackmailed my family. And Mrityunjay... did he know?
*Of course he knows,* a voice in my head screamed. *He is the King. Nothing happens without his order.*
But then, why the dates? Why the confession? Why the hatred for the name 'Jaiswal' if he was the one forcing the marriage? Everything is such a mess.
"Sona?" Dadu's voice broke my trance. He tried to stand up, reaching a hand out towards me. "Beta, kuch toh bolo... gussa karo, chilla lo..." (Child, say something... get angry, scream...)
"I'm not angry, Dadu," I said, my voice hollow, numb. "I'm just..."
I didn't finish.
Dadu suddenly gasped. His hand flew to his chest, clutching the fabric of his kurta tightly.
"Dadu?" I took a step forward.
"Ahhh..." A strangled sound of agony escaped his lips. His face, already pale, turned a terrifying shade of grey. His knees buckled.
"Dadu!" I screamed, lunging forward just as he collapsed.
I caught him, but his weight pulled us both down to the carpet. My dress pooled around us as I cradled his head in my lap.
His breathing was ragged, terrifying gasps for air. His eyes were rolling back.
"Dadu! Dadu, please!" Tears exploded from my eyes, blurring my vision. Panic, cold and sharp, seized my entire body. "Open your eyes! Dadu! Sona is here! Look at me!"
I looked around frantically. The house was empty. The servants were in the outhouse.
*Phone. I need my phone.*
I scrambled across the floor, grabbing my phone from the bed. My hands were shaking so violently I almost dropped it.
*Hospital. Ambulance. Baba.*
I swiped the screen, my vision swimming with tears. I went to the recent calls log, intending to call Papa.
But in my blind panic, my thumb slipped. I pressed the top name. The name I had been staring at all morning, wondering if he was my lover or my destroyer.
*Hukum Sa.*
I didn't even realize. I put the phone to my ear, my other hand clutching Dadu's cold, clammy hand.
"Pick up, pick up, please..." I sobbed, rocking back and forth.
The call connected instantly.
"Ishika?" His voice was deep, smooth, expecting a shy greeting or a confirmation for the date.
"H-help..." I choked out, a guttural sob ripping through my throat. "Please... help me..."
On the other end, there was a sudden, sharp silence. The background noise of a car engine vanished as if he had stopped breathing.
"Ishika?" His voice changed instantly-sharp, alert, terrifyingly intense. "Ishika, what happened? Why are you crying?"
"Dadu..." I wailed, looking down at my grandfather's motionless face. "He's not breathing properly... he collapsed... no one is here... please..."
"Ishika, listen to me," Mrityunjay barked, his voice commanding and steady, cutting through my hysteria. "Where are you? I am coming."
*I am coming.*
The words hit me harder than the panic.
*He is coming.*
My eyes widened in horror. I looked around my room. The Jaiswal Mansion. The photos of my family on the wall. Dadu lying in my lap.
If he came here... if he saw this house... if he saw Dadu...
He hates us. He wants to destroy us.
The realization was a bucket of ice water. He wasn't my savior right now. He was the danger.
"N-no..." I whispered, my breath hitching.
"What do you mean no?" Mrityunjay growled, I could hear him revving his engine. "Ishika, tell me your location! Is it the house near Mehak's? I am tracing you! Don't move!"
*Tracing me.*
Panic flared, hotter and brighter than before.
"No!" I shrieked into the phone. "Don't come! Don't come here!"
I tapped the red button frantically, ending the call.
My heart was beating so fast it hurt. I threw the phone aside as if it burned me.
*Mehak.* I needed Mehak.
I grabbed the phone again, my fingers trembling as I dialled Mehak's number.
"Ishika, I'm just turning into the lane-"
"Mehak!" I screamed. "Come inside! Now! Dadu collapsed! Bring the car to the porch! NOW!"
I dropped the phone and turned back to Dadu, rubbing his cold hands. "Dadu, please... Mehak is here... Sona is here..."
Within seconds, I heard tires screeching on the gravel outside, followed by frantic footsteps thundering up the stairs.
Mehak burst into the room, her face pale. She didn't waste time asking questions. "Grab his legs!"
Adrenaline gave us strength we didn't know we had. Together, we lifted Dadu, half-dragging, half-carrying him down the stairs and into the back seat of Mehak's car.
As Mehak sped out of the Jaiswal gates, sirens blaring in the distance, my phone began to vibrate in my hand.
*Incoming Call: Hukum Sa*
I stared at it through my tears, letting it ring.
It stopped.
Then it started again instantly.
*Incoming Call: Hukum Sa*
And again.
*Incoming Call: Hukum Sa*
I couldn't answer. I couldn't speak. I just held Dadu's hand and prayed.
>>>>>>>
Two Hours Later - City Hospital
The sterile smell of the hospital corridor made me nauseous. Dadu had been stabilized. It was a mild attack, induced by stress. The doctors said he would be fine, but he needed rest.
Mehak sat beside me on the plastic chairs, holding a cup of chai. My dress was crumpled, stained with a speck of dirt from the rug.
My phone vibrated in my lap again.
*52 Missed Calls from Hukum Sa.*
*15 Messages.*
*Pick up the damn phone, Ishika.*
*Where are you?*
*I sent an ambulance to the colony. They couldn't find you.*
*Ishika, if you don't pick up, I will tear this city apart to find you.*
*Are you safe?*
*Tell me you are safe.*
The desperation in the texts made my chest ache. He wasn't angry. He was terrified.
"You have to call him," Mehak whispered, looking at the screen.
"He's going to track your phone to the hospital soon if he hasn't already. Or worse, he'll show up at my house and realize no one is there."
I nodded, wiping my face. I took a deep, shaky breath, trying to steady my voice. I couldn't let him know it was my grandfather.
I dialled his number.
He picked up on the first ring.
"ISHIKA!" His roar was so loud I had to pull the phone away from my ear.
"Where the hell have you been?! I have been going out of my mind! I have my men scouring every hospital in Jodhpur! Why did you cut the call?!"
His voice was raw, laced with a fury that stemmed from pure panic.
"I... I'm sorry," I whispered, my voice weak and raspy from crying. "I panicked... I didn't know what I was doing..."
"Where are you?" he demanded, his voice dropping to a deadly calm. "Are you hurt? Is... is the grandfather okay?"
"I'm at City Hospital, We brought him here. He... he is stable now."
"I am coming," he stated instantly.
"No!" I exclaimed, too quickly. "No, please... Hukum Sa, don't come."
"Give me one good reason," he growled. "You called me crying for help, and then you vanished. You think I am going to sit back?"
"Please," I pleaded, leaning my head back against the wall.
"It's... it's not my family. It's Mehak's Dadu. I was with her. It was chaotic. Her family is here... everyone is here. If you come... it will be... awkward. They don't know about... us."
There was a pause on the line. The lie hung in the air, fragile and thin.
"Mehak's grandfather?" he repeated, suspicion coating his tone.
"Yes," I said, my voice trembling. "I was just so scared... seeing him like that. I didn't mean to worry you. I just... I dialed you by mistake because... because I was thinking about you."
The admission, though used as a shield, was the truth.
I heard him exhale a long, shuddering breath on the other end. The tension in the line snapped.
"You foolish girl," he whispered, his voice thick with relief and lingering adrenaline.
"You took ten years off my life. I thought... I thought something happened to you."
"I'm fine," I promised softly. "I'm just... tired. And I look like a mess."
"I don't care how you look," he said roughly. "I just need to see you. I am outside the hospital."
My heart stopped. "What?"
"I am in the parking lot," he said. "I tracked your phone here twenty minutes ago. I was about to storm inside and tear the reception apart until you called. Come out. Now."
I looked at Mehak with wide eyes.
"He's here," I mouthed.
Mehak's eyes popped out. "Go! Go before he comes in and sees the patient chart says 'Vardhman Jaiswal'!"
"I... I have to go," I said into the phone, standing up on shaky legs. "I'm coming out. Just... stay in the car. Please."
I grabbed my purse, smoothed down my crumpled dress, and ran towards the exit, praying that the lies I was weaving wouldn't strangle me tonight.
To Be Continued...