“Tum office aayi chaar din pehle?”

Sanskriti looked at him surprised and nodded.

“Ji…wo…mai…mai…Abhimanyu ka lunch lekar-”

“Maine bulaya tha. Mere saath thi mere cabin mai.”

Abhimanyu intervened and she looked down when her father-in-law glared at her.

“Lekin tum pure time cabin mai nhi the na. You had a meeting and you were away for about two hours.”

“And she was in the cabin the whole time.”

Abhimanyu countered and his father raised his eyebrow.

“And how do you know that?”

“Because when I returned she was still there.”

His father on the other hand smirked seeing color being drained from Sanskriti’s face.

“I'm sure she has something else to say. Don't you?”

He said eyeing Sanskriti.

“Mai…mai..thodi der ke liye…thodi der ke liye cabin se bahar gyi thi-”

“There there! You have it!”

“Lekin maine koi papers nhi churaye! Aapne kaha tha ki mai office ghum skti hu because maine pehle kabhi aapka office nhi dekha tha. Mai bas ghum rhi thi. I swear Abhimanyu! Mujhe toh pata bhi nhi tha kisi project ke baare mai.”

She turned to him but Abhimanyu looked at the floor with a hard look.

“Abhi sach pata chal jaayega. Kaha hi rakhe honge papers isne? Abhi iski almirah check krti hu.”

His mother said and rushed to her room while Sanskriti looked at Abhimanyu waiting for him to look at her so that she could see a flicker of trust in his eyes. But he didn't look at her.

“Aa gaya na sach aakhir sabke saamne! Koi papers nhi churaye? Kisi project ke baare mai nhi pata? Toh phir kya hai ye sab?”

Her mother-in-law threw the papers at Sanskriti's face who looked at her shocked.

“Mai…mai nhi jaanti…mai sach mai nhi jaanti Abhimanyu. Please! Trust me! Mujhe kuch nhi pata. Maine sach mai koi papers nhi churaye. Mujhe nhi pata ye kaha se-”

Abhimanyu still didn't look at her. Her mother-in-law held her arm and started dragging her outside.

“Tujhe toh teri aukat mai dikhati hu. Ek raat ghar se bahar rahegi toh apne aap akal aa jaayegi.”

With that she started pulling Sanskriti out of the house.

“Nhi! Mummy ji please! Maine sach mai kuch nhi kia. Abhimanyu kuchh boliye na! Abhimanyu! Maine sach mai kuch nhi kia.”

She tried getting herself out of her mother-in-law’s house as tears streamed down her face. But her mother-in-law was determined. She kept pleading to her husband who didn't even look at her once.

Her mother-in-law threw her out of the main entrance of the house and locked the doors. Sanskriti held the bars of the gate and begged her mother-in-law.

“Mummy ji please! Mat kriye aisa! Mai kaha jaaungi itni raat ko? Maine sach mai kuch nhi kia.”

“Ye baat chori krne se pehle sochni chahiye thi.”

With that her mother-in-law left. Sanskriti kept standing at the gate, banging it with her hand until they pained, she even pleaded with the guards to open the gate and let her in. That she had nowhere to go.

But nobody paid heed. She wiped her tears and started walking aimlessly. The beautiful saree gifted by her husband, now dirtied with the soil. Her face which earlier had a glow, now stained with tear marks.

The accusation didn't hurt her as much as Abhimanyu’s indifference did.

Sanskriti was so lost that she didn't even notice a group of boys teasing her. She just continued walking aimlessly. By the time she noticed that someone was following her, a handkerchief was kept on her nose.

Her eyes widened and she struggled to free herself but within a few minutes everything started getting blurry and the last thing she remembered before blacking out was someone picking her up and putting her inside a car.

When Sanskriti woke up next, she found herself in unfamiliar surroundings and started panicking. She then remembered what happened and how she reached here and started looking for her phone.

Abhimanyu might not trust her but he wouldn't let her die when she called him, right? With that thought, she picked up her phone and immediately dialled his number.

The number you are trying to reach is currently switched off. Please try again later.

Tears started falling down her eyes. No! No! No! He has to pick up. She tried his number again and again and again but it was the same response each time.

“Kaha hai aap Abhimanyu? Please! I need you!’

She cried and crouched back in fear when the door opened suddenly.

She heaved a huge sigh of relief seeing her husband there. She made a run towards him and immediately launched herself in his arms.

“Thank God you're here! I was so scared. Someone….someone tried to kidnap me…mai-”

“Shh! No one kidnapped you. I was the one who brought you here.”

Sanskriti frowned and looked at him surprised.

“You brought me here? Why? I mean why like that?”

“Because I have some questions I want you to answer.”

He said seriously and she nodded knowing what he wanted to ask. And she'll answer it truthfully. Because she wasn't wrong.

“Where were you wandering off in the office that day?”

“I was just looking around at people working. Mai kahi specific nhi gyi thi Abhi. I don't even know the directions to your office yet. So I stayed nearby. I didn't want to get lost.”

He nodded and hummed.

“Did you know about the project? Or talk to your father about it?”

She shook her head.

“I didn't. I don't know anything about any project and papa se meri baat huye bhut time ho gaya Abhi. You know he doesn't like me much.”

“Then how did the papers reach your almirah Sanskriti?”

He asked agitated and she bit her lip to prevent herself from crying.

“Mai nhi jaanti. Please trust me Abhi. Mai sach mai kuch nhi jaanti.”

He pulled back a little and fished out his phone. He typed out something and then took a step back while looking at his phone.

“I'll be back by night. If you're saying the truth then I have to find who's the actual culprit and why is he or she trying to frame you. Stay here! Yaha se kahi nhi jaaogi tum. You'll be safe here.”

He whispered the last line such that she didn't hear it.