Page 2 of Wicked Trap

Feeling shaken and confused, he rested his head on his mother’s side. His mother placed her palm on his cheek reassuringly.

Soon, the lights outside the car turned even brighter. Arjun knew they were in the city because he recognized some of the buildings.

The car stopped at the airport. Arjun had been to the airport many times when they went on family vacations or when he and his brothers received their father when he returned from a business trip.

Why are we going on a vacation now?

He wasn’t in the mood to go on a vacation. He missed his father. He wanted to go back home and wait until his father returned from heaven.

“I have placed your passports and tickets in this pouch, Mrs. Vardhaman.”

“Thank you, Mr. Rao.” Arjun’s mother took the pouch and opened it. “Mr. Rao. Why is there so much cash in here?”

There was a pause. “Please keep it, Mrs. Vardhaman. It’s the money Mr. Ashok had given me. I’m just returning it. This money will help you and the boys in a strange country.”

Arjun’s mother shook her head. “I can’t take the money, Mr. Rao. Please use it for your granddaughter’s education. I’m sure A-ashok gave it for the same purpose.”

Arjun noticed the break in his mother’s voice and clung to her to offer her comfort.

Mr. Rao hesitated for a moment, but he nodded.

Soon, they got out of the car. Mr. Rao hugged Arjun’s brothers, and then he hugged Arjun.

“Take good care of your mother, boys. Be happy, and I know you three will be successful no matter where you are.”

Arjun was confused by Mr. Rao’s words. Why was Mr. Rao acting as though they would not be seeing him anytime soon?

Arjun’s mother smiled at the old man. “Thank you for everything, Mr. Rao.”

“You are like a daughter to me, Mrs. Vardhaman. Please take care.”

Arjun’s mother nodded, and then taking a deep breath, she held Arjun’s hand before the four of them walked into the airport terminal.

Arjun couldn’t keep quiet anymore. “Where are we going, Ma?” he asked.

“We are going to New York.”

Arjun had never been there before. But he knew it was a city in the United States of America. He and his brothers knew the names of many countries and cities since they played games based on the names and visited a few countries during vacations.

“When are we going back home, Ma?” he asked.

His mother looked at him. Her beautiful face looked sad. “We won’t be going back, Arjun,” she replied. “And from now on... your name will no longer be Arjun. It will be Aryan.”

CHAPTER 1

Fifteen years later...

New York

“We are going back home.”

Listening to his oldest bother’s words, Aryan Varma vaguely thought about how his eight-year-old self would have been jumping with joy at the news. But now, all he felt was rage.

Aryan no longer felt his birthplace where he spent the first eight years of his life was home anymore. New York was his home now.

Maybe it was the tense atmosphere and the current circumstances that added to his rage. He was inside a boardroom, but the meeting they were having was not related to business.

“We have only four months or at most six months to execute most of our plan.”

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