On the Run

Chapter 5: Mommy Dearest

10 pm, Malhotra Mansion, Mumbai.

A disaster! That's the only word I can use to describe the events of the last twenty-four hours!

Everything that was so carefully planned, was falling apart. Nyonika Malhotra, you have to act fast to salvage the situation!

It has been nearly twenty-four hours since he fled the mansion and there's still no news about his whereabouts. To top it all off, Harshad isn't picking up my calls! That's just great! I knew I shouldn't have trusted Harshad and those third-rate corrupt cops with the task of capturing Manik. After all, that idiot Harshad was suitable for nothing more than a good fuck!

I had been planning Shrikant's death for a while now. First of all, he has the gall to leave me, just a few years into our marriage and go to that stupid ashram! Then he writes me off from his will entirely and signs all of his property over to Manik! Why had I agreed to be Manik's guardian for all these years, even when I clearly didn't want a child? Just to remain in Shrikant's good books so that, when the time came, he would sign over part of his empire to me and I would finally get my hands on the money! I decided, that, enough was enough! If he wasn't going to give me what I deserved, I would take it by force! After all, even though we had separated years ago, legally, I am still his wife!

I had thought of everything-framing Manik was an integral part of my plan, but Manik managing to escape was a variable I hadn't foreseen in this equation. How was I to gain control over someone so unpredictable? I had tried to use, the one thing he cares about-his friends- against him but that had failed miserably! Now, all I could do was wait for an update about his arrest from Harshad.

I was brought out of my thoughts when I heard my phone buzzing.

"Finally!" I exclaimed as I saw the caller ID say 'Harshad'.

"Hello! Harshad, you better have good news for me!" I screamed into the phone.

"Relax, Mrs. M... You know what? Actually don't! You sound even hotter when you are angry..." he replied flirtatiously, much to my irritation.

"Harshad, this is no time for jokes!" I snapped. "Were you able to find Manik? Where did he flee to?"

"Yes, Mrs. M, the police officers and I found Manik. He is in Bangalore! We found him in some fancy restaurant!" said Harshad happily over the phone.

"Have the police officers taken him into custody? Are you bringing him back to Mumbai?" I asked, desperate to hear the response in the affirmative.

"There's been a slight problem! Manik fought us off and managed to escape again! And now the Karnataka police are after him as well!"

"What? I gave you one job! And this is how you deliver on it?" I shouted.

"Mrs. M, I have more information that may interest you..."said Harshad in an attempt to prove his worth.

"What?!Tell me, I don't have all day!" I said, impatient.

"When we found Manik, he was having dinner with some girl at the restaurant. I thought she was just some random girl that he'd picked up at the restaurant, but when I asked about her, he got strangely defensive! It seemed to me as if he actually cared for her...can you believe it? However, it gets even stranger... when I finally regained consciousness after the fight, and had a chat with the Bangalore police about what had happened while we were out, they said that Manik had escaped and taken the girl hostage! Nothing makes sense!" He said, sounding frustrated.

"Send me a photo of this girl, immediately!" I screamed.

"Okay Mrs. M, I'll ask the police for a photograph and send it! Chill out!" he said coolly.

I cut the call immediately. Manik, what are you up to, now? My phone buzzed and I found a message from Harshad with an attached media file. I opened the attachment and found a picture of a girl with a pretty smile and innocent eyes. Who is she? I wondered. There seemed to be nothing especially distinct about her.

I immediately pinged one of my staff members. It took him a minute or two to arrive. As soon as he came, I showed him the picture of the girl.

"Find out everything about this girl...who she is, what she does...everything! And fast! Is that understood?" I said firmly.

"Yes madam." He replied obediently.

"I've already sent you her photograph so I need the results as quickly as possible. Now get to work!" I snapped.

He hurried out of there and came back approximately fifteen minutes later with the information.

"Madam, you will never believe who this girl is!" He exclaimed, highly satisfied with himself.

"Who?" I asked, suddenly curious.

"She is the Singhania family's future daughter-in-law!" He said excitedly.

"What?!"I exclaimed in shock. Singhania! I absolutely hated that name and the entire family bearing it! If it weren't for the Singhanias, Malhotra Industries would have been worth more than it is today! In fact the Singhanias and Malhotras have been rival business families for a very long time. They had done everything they could to destroy our business empire including getting their hands on many important properties that we had our eye on. However Shrikant Malhotra had been every bit the match for Mukesh Singhania and had beaten him to make Malhotra Industries more successful than the Singhania business empire.

"Here's a printout of the girl's bio data." He said handing me the file. "Her name is Nandini Murthy. She comes from a very ordinary family. I have no idea why the Singhanias have chosen her to wed Madhyam. After all, he is the one and only heir to the Singhania business empire." Said the man, slightly puzzled.

"Did I ask you for your expert opinion?" I said, irritated.

"No madam!" came the immediate reply.

"Then leave!" I screeched.

I opened the file and had a good look at it. He was right. The girl was from a middle-class family. In fact, she was an orphan who had lost her parents at a young age. She was then raised by her aunt and uncle.

I paused for a while and gathered my thoughts. What was Manik doing, kidnapping the future daughter-in-law of the Singhanias? I thought about what Harshad had said. Manik seemed to care for her? I have to keep an eye on this girl as well as her family.

I smirked with renewed vigour and said to myself,"Manik, looks like I just found your first weakness..."

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