Chapter 93: chapter 93

MADHAVI follow the black car at a safe distance. My knees bounce impatiently as I look for any threats. It has been two days since Sruthi started going to school. This is the third day, and I am discreetly following the car she is in. It’s not that I don’t trust the bodyguard I assigned her; I can only rest easy if I ensure she is safe myself. She thinks she is safe from any threats since no incidents happened for the past month or so, but knowing how these people act, I can't rest easy. I could drop her off and pick her up myself, but I am trying my best to maintain a distance—a distance that is very much needed for my peace of mind.I still remember how soft she felt in my arms when I tried to prove to her that she still needed to learn self-defence. That was a big mistake. The whole time I held her, I was doing my best not to turn her around and claim that tempting mouth of hers. I didn’t expect her to lick my palm. That shocked the hell out of me and took my mind to places I shouldn’t be thinking about. It took every ounce of my self-control to stand there and act normal when all I wanted was to lose control and make her mine.My brain knows that she is using me for her gain and that she hates me. But my heart still flutters for her. I must move on from her for real this time. If living with me for these two months doesn’t make her love me, then I don’t know what will.I frown as I turn over her words from that day in Ragini’s room. Something doesn’t feel right. My heart is still finding it hard to believe her words, even though I heard them loud and clear. That is how deeply and blindly I am in love with her. But I have to stop and distance myself from her before my heart is broken any further. She was the only hope in my hopeless life, a ray of light in the darkness. To think that this ray of light was all in my imagination and will never be more than that is depressing.I run a hand through my hair as we reach the parking lot. Sruthi’s car goes inside the lot while I pass the school and take a U-turn to head to work. There are still two weeks until the jewellery expo. Once the expo is over, I am going to visit Noghot jail to confirm some things and then arrange for our divorce.I should hate Sruthi for calling me a criminal and trying to use me for her gain, but I can’t. I don’t understand how people can hate someone they love so much. Besides, Sruthi is not at fault here. She has every reason to hate me because I am a criminal in reality. I took lives; though they were of criminals, those are lives nonetheless.What the hell?Why am I thinking like Sruthi? I have never felt an ounce of remorse for what I did. But now I feel like a criminal. Sruthi’s ideology is rubbing me the wrong way.It’s not as if I can stop being an assassin if I want to. Carrying out those missions for Vikram was the only thing that gave me the will to live my otherwise empty life until I met Sruthi and realised I was living life for all the wrong reasons. She was like a breath of fresh air in my polluted and corrupted life. Meeting her changed my life. I started to live only to see her at least once every couple of months.Even if she hated me until her last breath, I could never stop loving her. Yes, that is how messed up I am. At this point, I am not sure if what I have for her is love or obsession. The reason I am pushing her away is that I don’t want to become like my father. I don’t want to hurt her because she hates me. I am afraid that I might harm her. After all, my father's blood runs in my veins, and I am scared that Sruthi might become a victim like my mother.So, this distance between us is the best thing. The sooner I get away from her, the better—both for her and my mental peace.❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥“The first day, we will host a party at the IYU hotel for the guests,” the event manager says. The jewellery expo lasts for three days and is celebrated enthusiastically by people. Jewel lovers flock to the expo to admire the various designs and craftsmanship by goldsmiths across the country. It is a huge event and is always hosted by the biggest jewellery franchise, ‘Gajendren Jewellers,’ aka my store.The three-day event is as follows:1. The first day starts off with an esteemed chief guest who opens the expo with a party. Only celebrities are invited to this party.2. The second day is open to the public. People are allowed to view the jewels and cast their vote for the best jewel design of the year.3. The third day concludes with a hearty meal for the poor and prize announcements.“This year, there are going to be many people wanting to see you,” the event manager warns. At my frown, he explains, “Well, you and your wife are the talk of the internet. The honeymoon pics that your wife posted online are driving fans crazy. They all want to know how she tamed the famous playboy.”I cringe at the name the media gave me. There was one time I was found with a woman in a compromising position, and the media mistook me for a playboy. I wanted to maintain a low profile, so I didn't bother refuting their claims. I knew the attention on me would only increase if I did.Curious about what Sruthi had posted on social media, I open my phone and log into the app. My phone pings with a lot of messages. When was the last time I logged into this app? I think it was three months ago. I have a lot of follow requests and many have tagged me. I search for my wife's name in the app but then realise that I have no idea what her social media handle is. We aren't following each other, and it's been three months since my last login. A lot has happened in the past three months.I think of asking the manager about my wife's ID but decide against it. I don’t want to start rumours before things between us become definite. I go to my followers, which is only fifteen or so. I click Vikram's private account and scroll through his followers to find my wife's ID.I find it easily because her ID is something like ‘Sruthi_Ariyan_07’. I click her ID. She had sent me a follow request three weeks ago. I contemplate acceptingbthe request. She would receive notification if I accept the request. I don't want to give her mixed signals. She is thinking that I am in love with another woman and I want it to stay that way. I scroll through her page. She hasn't posted much on her account. There are a few deleted posts and a few posts about the events happening in her school. But the recent posts are receiving a lot of likes and comments. Posts about our honeymoon.She has posted five pictures of our honeymoon, and each one surprises me.The oldest one was taken at the Capital's airport. It is a picture of me dragging two trolleys—one mine and one hers. I don’t know when she took the picture, but the caption reads, ‘Find a man who is willing to carry your things.’The next picture is a mirror selfie of her in our hotel room. I am in the background arranging the bed covers. The caption for this one reads, ‘Getting ready for bed and more😉.’The winking emoji is suggestive of many things, and as I scroll down the comments, people are asking her to have a hot night with me.Don't think about it!Damn it!Now, I can’t stop picturing Sruthi and me doing hot things in bed. How soft would her body feel under mine? Hearing her call my name out in pleasure and ecstasy would be my undoing.Get a grip! She hates you.That thought sobers me from my delusional imagination. Yes, she hates me. She would scream in disgust, not pleasure, if I got near her.I scroll to the next picture. I remember posing for this picture as it was taken after the walk on the beach. When we returned to the hotel after encountering the trafficking gang, I suggested getting a photo taken to distract Sruthi from what happened at the beach. She asked the hotel security to take a picture of us before the white fountain. Despite all the warnings in my head, I can’t help but grin at the picture because we look so happy and goofy in it.I scroll up to the next photo.Holy Heavens!The picture makes my heart mushy with emotions. I wasn’t prepared for this photo since I had no idea it was taken.It is again a selfie of Sruthi with me asleep beside her on the resort bed. My arms are wrapped around her torso and my face is snuggled into her neck. Her hair is in disarray but she looks beautiful in the photo. Her eyes are sleepy but glowing at the same time. Her cheeks are flushed a little with the cold air, but she looks happy—genuinely happy and content. There is no way she faked that look for the photo.The caption only makes my heart flutter and gives me hope again. It says, 'He chases my nightmares away. Waking up in his arms is the best feeling♥️🥰’I take a moment to wrap my mind around the photo. This is, hands down, the best picture. I save the picture to my gallery and stare at Sruthi's blissful face. Is this the same woman who hates me? The look on her face says otherwise. I know for a fact that she is not a great actress. She can’t fake emotions in the blink of an eye like Vikram. If she could, she would have become a great politician—another reason why she quit politics.The last picture is again of me. When did she sneak photos of me? Nope, the question is how many photos did she take of me without me knowing?The picture is from the snake park. I am looking at a glass box containing a snake with utter terror and disgust on my face. Sruthi has captioned this as follows, ‘Marry a person who is willing to face their fears to fulfil your wish. I am lucky to get you as my husband @Mad_Gaja_Jewelers.’She has tagged my Id. That was her last post and as I scroll the comments, I find people asking her updates. A couple of days ago, the day when she informed me about her descision to go back to work, she has put up anpost informing people that we had cut short our honeymoon trip and return back to the capital due to some issues. I scroll back to the pictures again. We both look so happy together. I enjoyed every moment with her in the Boiren Mountains. Even when I was itching all over with the allergy, I was happy to see her concerned for me. I loved how she bossily took me to the doctor though I refused to see one. I feel like I have ruined something beautiful. A feeling of emptiness settles in me as I think about Sruthi. I remember the concern and worry on her eyes in the parking lot when she relaized I was having an allergy reaction. Her anger at me for being careless with my food allergy. Is it possible that I misunderstood things?❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥