Page 55 of One Hellish Love

“You... you stabbed him, didn’t you?” she accused, her voice shaking with uncontainable fury.

Kashish’s heart sank.Stabbed?That wasn’t how it happened. But how could she make Daadi understand? Could she even explain the truth right now?

“Daadi, I didn’t—” Kashish began, her voice faltering.

Before she could finish, Daadi pushed her hard that made Kashish stumble.

“Call the police, Ram Prasad! Call them now! This girl tried to murder my grandson,” Daadi shouted, her voice breaking with rage and fear.

Ram Prasad hesitated. He knew how much Kashish despised Rudra, but could she really have gone this far? He didn’t want to believe it. Yet, under Daadi’s orders, he shakily dialed the police.

Kashish stood in shock. How had things spiraled out of control so quickly?

“Daadi, please... listen to me. I didn’t stab him. Yes, the knife was in my hand, but—”

“Don’t say another word!” Daadi interrupted, her voice sharp with disgust. “I know exactly what happened. You knew Rudra was alone in the house, so you seized the opportunity to kill him. Don’t think I don’t know how much you hate him! You’ve hated him for years, and now you’ve finally done what you always wanted—murder him in cold blood.”

Tears filled Kashish’s eyes as the weight of Daadi’s words crushed her spirit. How could she convince Daadi of the truth? Would anyone believe her?

The police arrived just as the family doctor did. Dr. Sen immediately began treating Rudra, while Daadi tearfully recounted her suspicions to the officers. They confiscated the knife, now sealed as evidence, still coated in Rudra’s blood. Kashish’s heart sank further. Her world was crumbling around her, her life spiraling into chaos in the blink of an eye.

“Daadi, I didn’t mean to hurt him... please don’t do this,” Kashish pleaded, her voice choked with emotion.

“Didn’t mean to?” Daadi sneered. “Look at him, Kashish. He’s lying there, unconscious and bleeding. Isn’t that proof enough of your intentions?”

“I swear, I didn’t do this,” Kashish screamed, her voice breaking with desperation. But Daadi refused to listen. Sheturned her back on Kashish, rushing to Rudra’s bedside while the police escorted Kashish out of the room.

****************

“Shekhar!” Daadi cried out as soon as he rushed into the room, two hours after the incident.

Rudra lay still, unconscious on the bed, but the doctors had managed to stop the bleeding. Daadi immediately wrapped her arms around Shekhar, her voice trembling with panic. Anjali followed, her face pale with concern.

“Shekhar, look at what happened to our Rudra! That girl... thatsnakestabbed him while we weren’t here! I should never have left them alone,” Daadi sobbed, her voice filled with grief and anger.

Shekhar couldn’t believe it. Kashish... stab Rudra? It was impossible.

“Kashish?” he muttered, trying to make sense of it. “Daadi, no, there has to be some mistake. Kashish could never do something like this.”

Daadi’s eyes flared with fury.

“Mistake? You think Rudra lying here unconscious, bleeding, is some misunderstanding? Shekhar, I’ve seen enough. That girl deserves to be punished.”

Anjali quickly intervened, trying to calm her.

“Daadi, please sit down. You’ll make yourself sick. Come, sit,” she urged, guiding Daadi to the recliner. Shekhar, desperate for answers, turned to Dr. Sen.

“Doctor, is he alright? Has the bleeding completely stopped?”

Dr. Sen nodded; his expression serious. “Yes, thankfully we managed to stop the bleeding in time. If I’d arrived even ten minutes later, Rudra’s condition would have been much more critical.”

Shekhar exhaled in relief. “When will he wake up?”

“He’s under heavy sedatives. By tomorrow morning, he should regain consciousness,” Dr. Sen assured him.

Though relieved, Shekhar couldn’t shake the unease gnawing at him. Where was Kashish? He glanced back at Daadi.

“Daadi, where is Kashish?”

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