“Aditya’s sleepy murmur diverts my attention and I again come to the room. I near the bed stealthily. He is still sleeping but something is bothering him even in his slumber as he is sweating and swaying his head from left to right. I sit beside him and lean forward bringing my ear to his mouth so that I can understand his almost indistinct words. He again whirs, ‘Nandana…don’t…leave me…they will…kill…me...Angel, no..I…I…promise…I won’t touch…you..’ His faint lines are difficult to grok but the fear and desperation in the tone are very clear. I grab my dupatta and gently dab it on his forehead. My touch makes him a bit calm. He takes a deep sigh and places his palm on my hand. In between, he was continuously mumbling my name. I remove his hand from mine and wipe his face tenderly. His restlessness gets pacified a bit. I adjust the AC temperature and pull up the comforter to his chest. The clock is about to strike 12 am. I need some sleep too. Since the morning, my body and brain hardly got any rest. I grab another duvet and pillow and walk to the couch. I forget that the sliding door of the balcony is still ajar. With a relaxing sigh, I lie down. Sometimes our body feels tired but our brain still remains active. Exactly this is happening to me. My eyes are drooping with sweet sleep but as I shut them my brain starts running like a formula 1 racing car. All the flashes which have been happening since the morning are coming in front of my eyes. The courtroom, that gun battle, Aditya’s injury, nursing home, my home, Maa’s anger, and Papa’s painful eyes all are so vivid. For a couple of minutes, I keep on tossing and turning on the couch and then sit up with a jerk. Disgusting! How can I get a grip on my mind? Only then, the sight brings my heart to my mouth. I scream, ADITYA….”

Nandana sees a person standing beside Aditya’s bed. She can’t see his face properly as it is half covered and the room is partially lit. But the most dangerous thing which sends a chill to her spine is a crooked dagger is there in his hand and he is holding it in the air as he is about to stab Aditya in his chest. Nandana’s scream startles the man. Perhaps due to the lack of light, he didn’t notice that another person is present in the room. But his baffled state was temporary. He again lifts his hand in the air. The dagger shines in the dim light. However, this time he forwards to Nandana. His eyes are flickering with a diabolic emotion. Nandana rushes toward the opposite side corner and picks up a vas. Now, the man is only 8 to 10 ft away from her. Nandana hurls the vas at him but he efficiently dodges the hit and storms at Nandana. She lifts every showpiece and other things kept on the showcase platform and keeps on throwing them at the unknown intruder. Some hit him and some smash on the floor breaking the silence of the night. Nandana yells,

“ADITYA….ADITYA….”

It is truly said, in danger, we always utter the name whom we trust the most. Unwillingly and unmindfully, Nandana proves it. Aditya is still in his half-conscious state. He is stirring and tossing on the bed restlessly. On the other hand, the killer almost reaches Nandana. He hisses out,

“Shut up, you Bitch…Or else, I will start by killing you.”

Nandana’s back hits the wall as there is no space left to retrieve. For the last time, she screams,

“ADITYA….AAAAA…”

The goon comes closer. Now, he is only half ft away from her. The dagger in his hand shines again in the dim light. Nandana covers her eyes in fear. Only then, the man screams in pain and something smashes on the ground follows by a howl,

“Stay away from her…BASTARD…”

Nandana unfurls her eyes and the sight hitches her heartbeat. Aditya is standing on the floor, staggering. A brass statue is held in his hand. The goon is writhing on the floor by holding his head. Blood is spurting from his wound. A continuous gurgling sound is coming out from his open mouth. Aditya walks towards him with unstable steps and again lifts the statue in the air to hit his head. Meanwhile, Nandana musters her sense. She storms at Aditya and grabs his hand.

“Aditya…no…I have to call the police…”

Aditya looks at her with blurred eyes. A satisfactory smile creeps on his lips. With a feeble voice, he murmurs,

“Angel…I won’t let anyone….harm you….”

The statue falls from his hand. His eyes become closed. His body loosens on Nandana’s arms. For the last time, Nandana yells,

“ADITYA….HELP….POLICE…”

.....................

“I don’t want to listen to anything, Officer. Despite your security, someone again attacked Aditya. We somehow saved ourselves but we won’t be lucky all the time. This problem needs a permanent solution.”

Nandana restlessly complains to SP Bhosle who is now sitting in the living room with Nandana. Aditya is sleeping upstairs. Thankfully the shock hasn’t affected him too much. Still, Nandana consulted the doctor and gave him a sleeping pill as per the doctor’s instruction. The rest of the night, she kept sitting beside Aditya. Sleep was far away from her eyes. It is early morning. After last night’s incident, the attacker has been taken to the police station. Nandana immediately called Bhosle to come but he couldn’t make it at that time due to some family emergency. However, he immediately increased security in the Oberoi bungalow and reached there as soon as possible. The helplessness and worry in her tone and eyes don’t get unnoticed by the SP. He clears his voice and replies,

“Come down, Mrs Oberoi. My constables were very much alert throughout the night. They said nobody entered the bungalow from outside during the surveillance. Nor any CCTV footage showed that any intruder trespassed last night. In that case, I have to conclude that the intruder hid somewhere inside the bungalow premises.”

Fear is prominent in Nandana’s eyes. She attempts to say something but Bhosle shows his hand to halt her.

“Don’t get paranoid, Nandana. I will make sure it won’t happen further. And for that, I posted 4 more armed officers inside the bungalow premises. They will surveil the area 24x7. Despite that, we will arrange 10 more CCTVs and a proper monitoring room where 2 people will be surveilling each and every corner of the bungalow. But despite all these precautions, I would suggest something different.”

Bhosle sounds mysterious. Nandana furrows her forehead and asks quizzically,

“Something different! What?”

Bhosle keeps his determined eyes on her and utters profoundly,

“I would suggest you get Aditya somewhere else for at least some days till we find out who is or are doing all these and arrest them. Keep him away from the city. Don’t worry I will arrange all security over there too but for some days you both have to shift in such a place that nobody knows your whereabouts except me and my loyal officers. Do you know any place where you both can stay for a certain time? Any house or place of Aditya that is far away from this city?”

He asks concernedly. Nandana keeps mum for a moment and then replies,

“I don’t know, Officer. He has a farmhouse outskirts of the city but I don’t think it will be any safe place for him. Apart from this, I don’t know if he has any other property.”

She bends her head. She remembers Aditya had transferred his all immovable and movable properties to her but she never checked what are they. She doesn’t have any interest. Suddenly a name strikes her mind.

“Ayan! Officer, Ayan knows everything. We can ask him. He will definitely arrange something.”

Nandana suggests enthusiastically. SP Bhosle nods positively and mouths,

“Okay, call him and ask him to come. We need a proper discussion over this matter. I want you both to leave this place as soon. By the way, I have to take your leave now. Meantime, you can call me if you need any help. Let me know when Ayan can come.”

Nandana tilts her head in assurance. Bhosle leaves after giving some instructions to the security officers. Nandana heads to the kitchen. Aditya needs some food. After that, she has to give him a bath. The thought makes her heart unrest. With a deep sigh, she mumbles,

“He is a patient, Nandu. You have to.”

......................

Nandana checks the temperature of the water and beckons Aditya to step into the bathtub. She wanted to give Aditya a sponge bath as he has plaster and bandage on his upper torso. But Aditya didn’t agree. He hasn’t taken bath since he was arrested. So, he is quite desperate to clean himself thoroughly. Nandana instructs him to sit in the warm water till his waistline. For the upper portion of his body, she has to use a towel.

“Sit properly. Don’t splash any water on the plaster and don’t move your shoulder. Your stitch is not dried yet.”

Nandana commands and Aditya tilts his head to the side like an obedient kid. It looks cute and Nandana chuckles turning her head to another side. Aditya is wearing only a towel. He hesitates for a moment and opens it. Now, he is only in his boxer. He steps into the bathtub and carefully sits. The warm water feels like heaven. A satisfactory moan escapes his mouth. Nandana turns her face to him and nears the tub. The brim of the bathtub is quite broad. A person can easily sit on it. Nandana sits in the corner and dips the towel in a bucket filled with warm water. Slowly she dabs it on his chest and wipes off the dirt and sweat. Carefully she rubs the towel all over his bare chest. Her eyes were fixed on his upper torso during this time as she doesn’t want to hurt him by any mistake.

“Is it paining anywhere?”

She asks unmindfully. She doesn’t notice Aditya’s eyes are fixed on her all the time.

“Hmmmmm….”

He hums. Nandana stares up. His intense eyes meet hers. A tremor runs through her every pore. With a shaky voice, she asks,

“Where?”

Aditya places his palm on his heart and whispers,

“Here…”