Chapter 5

'Hello? Amanda can you hear me? Hello? Say something dammit!' Shreya yelled into the mouthpiece.

Amanda was still sitting on the ground. She was hell shocked.
'H - Hello?' Amanda whispered softly.

'Oh thank god! Where the hell were you? I was trying to call you since an hour!' exclaimed Shreya.

'W- What?' asked Amanda.

'Anyway forget it! Where is Edward? I want you to go to his house and see whether he is alright. I - I had a very bad dream. I am really worried for him Amy... Please!' said Shreya.

Tears slid down Amanda's cheeks as she heard those words.
'We lost him. He - he is dead' said Amanda in a dry voice.

'No! Please say it's a lie! Please!' Shreya shrieked.

'I - I am not lying' said Amanda in a voice which was devoid of emotion.

'But - but what happened? And why didn't you tell me?' Shreya screamed.

'He was stabbed. Brutally stabbed. Someone left his body in my car. And - and there is a note. We are going to die Shreya. I am scared. Please help me. I want to leave this place. Please help me' Amanda said fearfully.

Shreya dropped her phone with a thud. That was not a dream. She was saved today luckily. She too was going to die soon. In fact they all were.

O-o-o-o

Baby's good to me,
you know she's happy as can
you know she said so.

I'm in love with her and I feel fine

Baby says she's mine,
you know she tells me all the time
you know she said so

I'm in love with her and I feel fine.

Daya sighed, and turned over on his bed. He couldn't get his mind off Shreya. They had gone on bike rides, to the movies, and he hadn't been able to get his mind off her.

Till now Shreya was a great friend. They would chat often late into the night. She had been absent from bureau for almost an entire week. And he was missing her badly. She was special to him. And her ignorance was making him go crazy.

He grabbed his phone, searching for her number. He paused, his finger hovering over the dial button. He didn't want to bother her. He was never nervous but today he was hesitant about calling Shreya. He didn't want to seem too eager. During her entire leave, Shreya hadn't bothered to call him. She was acting all strange these days. She had been staying a bit aloof since long time. And she would talk to someone constantly on her cell phone. Daya had a feeling she was avoiding him in particular. He was very upset and desperately wanted to know the reason behind it.
He closed his eyes and pressed the dial button, waiting for the dial tone to start ringing.

"Heeeeeeey, its Shreya, leave me a message and I'll call you back," voiced her answering machine.

Daya sighed again and tossed his phone across the bed. It collided with his foot, and he gritted his teeth and massaged his foot, which was throbbing dully now.

'Whatever,' He said to himself, sitting up. He sat for a few more minutes on his bed. Then he got dressed and left for Shreya's house.

Daya was surprised to find the door of her house ajar. His hand automatically went towards his gun.
He searched the entire house but Shreya was nowhere to be seen.

Suddenly Daya heard a voice. A small sob. He rushed outside and found Shreya at the door. She was apparently waiting for someone.

'Shreya! Tum mera phone kyu nahi utha rahi ho?' Daya demanded angrily.

'Sir aap yaha kya kar rahe hai?' Shreya asked shocked.

'Tumse milne aaya tha. Tum toh mujhse baat tak nahin karti aaj kal' said Daya.

'Sir aisa kuch nahi hai. Main thik hoon' said Shreya coldly.

'Aur ye kya haalat bana rakhi hai khud ki?' asked Daya eyeing her dishevelled look. The dark circles around her eyes were clearly visible.

'Sir main thik hun. Aap please jaiye yaha se.' said Shreya in a rather rude voice.

'Par kyu? Mujhse aakhir problem kya hai tumhe? Tumhare isi bartav ka karan janna hai mujhe' said Daya.

'Sir please hum baad me baat karenge. Please mujhe akela chod dijiye. I am sorry par main aap se abhi baat nahi kar sakti' said Shreya.

Now Daya was really angry.
He caught her arm and pulled her closer. 'Aaj main tumhare jawab sune bina yaha se kahi nahin jane wala. Chahe kuch bhi ho jaye' said Daya.

'Sir chodiye mujhe.' said Shreya trying to get free.

Before Daya could say something, he heard a new voice.
'Shreya!'

Both turned to look at the door to see who the new person was.
'Jasper!' Shreya whispered. She ran to the stranger and hugged him tightly. He too wrapped his arms around her. Daya clenched his fist in anger.

'Thank god you are safe!' said Jasper.
'And you too! Thank god you came. I need you Jasper. I can't handle this now all alone' said Shreya.
Daya was unable to believe his eyes. The scene unfolding before him was unfathomable.

He couldn't believe Shreya had someone in her life that was closer to her than him. And he didn't understand a word they were saying. He felt jealous and angry. How could she do that?

'Who is he?' Jasper asked spotting Daya for the first time.
'He is my senior. Officer Daya' said Shreya introducing him.
'And he is-' she began

'I think I should leave now. Anyway I hate to intrude others' privacy' said Daya and left her house without another word.

O-o-o-o

Daya was hurt by her behaviour. He started avoiding her. Still he felt concerned. Shreya was really disturbed. She didn't know how to handle the pressure. There was a constant terror of getting attacked by the stalker. She could share her fears only with Jasper and Amanda. She was happy to see Jasper after the shocking death of their friend. Jasper was in India for some work. She hadn't had that terrifying dream again since Edward's death. They had arrived at a conclusion that someone had deliberately left that note to scare them. The cops so far had no luck in finding the killer. Shreya was scared to sleep or stay alone. What if she got attacked again?

At the same time, work load was increasing day by day. Daya was angry with her and she really needed him at that moment. She decided to apologize to him for her behaviour.

One day she found Daya alone in the bureau. He was sitting with his head rested on the couch. His eyes were closed. Though he appeared relaxed, his mind was in turmoil.

He was exhausted. Noiselessly she sat beside him on the couch and kept her hand on his. He felt her soft feminine touch and a smile crept on his lips automatically.

Then he realised someone's presence next to him and he opened his eyes. Seeing Shreya, his eyes flashed angrily.

'Tum yaha kyu aayi ho?' he demanded trying to free his hand.
But she didn't let go.

'Sorry' Shreya said softly.

'I will accept it. But only on one condition. I want to know your secret' said Daya.
She blinked and left his hand looking away.

'Don't you trust me? Main secrets rakh sakta hoon. Main tumhe aise nahi dekh sakta Shreya. Main sach jaana chahta hoon' said Daya.

His eyes locked with hers and she tried her best to avoid tears.
'Main na batau to hi accha hoga. Hamare liye. Main khona nahi chahti aapko' said Shreya in a voice which was no longer happy.

Daya interlocked his fingers with hers. Bringing their joined hands to his chest, he softly kissed her knuckles.
'Aisa kabhi nahi hoga Shreya. Trust me. No matter how terrible the secret is, I won't leave you' said Daya.
She gave him a teary smile.

'He loves me', she realised.

His hand drifted up to her cheek, entirely of its own volition, and he stroked the hair away from her face, behind her ear. She turned her head into his touch, staying there for a moment, just breathing against his skin. Daya slid his arm around her neck, her upper back, tugging her against his chest for an embrace. His cheek settled on top of her head and she closed her eyes feeling calm for the first time since many days.