Chapter- 4(2)

"You love me?" Aadhiyan asked hugging her tightly. His hand caressed the back of her neck and his hoarse voice gave chills.

"Yes, I love you," she nodded her head embracing him.

Rathi watched them standing away. She didn't stop that girl who's none other than Rathi instead she felt happy for herself finding someone who could love her truly. In his arms, she seemed to be happy... But Aadhi's face doesn't have that happiness. His face carried that wicked smile and the thing that even more terrified is he got an old knife in his hand.

"Kill me, Ayya, please," she begged and Rathi doesn't understand what's happening. How can she ask him to kill?

Before she could stop anything he stabbed her brutally. Blood oozed out from the deep wound. She gripped his arms while dying.

He slashed her spine multiple times until his face covered in her hot blood. Rathi is dead. No one will get a chance to see their own murder but Rathi got it.

Her lifeless body fell on his foot and he looked at Rathi who's now standing and watching everything in horror. There's no mercy in his face.

"I love you, Rathi," he smiled mockingly vile and looked like pure evil. A monster in the form of a human...

Rathi opened her eyes from this gruesome dream. Her neck hurts like it's sprained. The sun is brightly shining on her face that coming through the glass shield.

She sat blankly in the bed dancing along with the boat which is going through the tides.

The way he killed her mercilessly is kept repeating in her head. Last night she slept with a thought that he might be a good man but this dream is the complete opposite of her assumption.

Perhaps is this the real him? Is he going to kill me at the end? She wondered and nodded her head to clear those weird thoughts.

He might abuse me like Shankari, why he's going to kill me? Don't think like a stupid, Rathi, she thought and got down from the bed.

Carrying the toothpaste and brush she headed inside the bathroom. She thought about whether she has taken the wrong decision to go with him while doing the chores. But even if she didn't say yes she will be compelled or maybe be kidnapped to join him. After all, he's determined to take her.

Don't look back, Rathi. It's just a dream, just a dream, chanting that mentally so that she could feel better. She came out of the bath and took her sandal colored half shoulder dress which is placed at the top.

When she is half-naked and about to put on her bra, the door is knocked.

She knew it must be Aadhiyan so she didn't reply and waited to hear him call her name. He knocked several times and buttoning the bra she huffed in annoyance. Why can't he just leave me alone?

Then suddenly the door unlocked on its own like magic, hearing it Rathi beheld in shock. Her eyes widened when Aadhi walked in with a severe face but once his eyes fell on Rathi's nakedness he stopped and turned his gaze down.

"Why you didn't answer me?" he asked and looked at her face, nowhere else.

Coming out of the shock Rathi gripped the dress against her chest. "How did you open the door like that?" she asked him knotting her eyebrows.

"It's already open," he replied without meeting her eyes.

"No, I saw it okay, you opened it from outside," she argued.

"Maybe you didn't see properly. I know it's open, okay," His tone is not definite. It's like he's warning her to not make any fuss and at the same time convincing her.

"But..." she started.

"What? You want to interrogate with me?" he intimidated her and came dangerously close. Rathi took a step back and realized this is not the right time to argue with him.

"No," she said looking down.

"Put your clothes and go have your breakfast," he said looking at her embarrassed self. Rathi left out a sigh, she gritted for being so vulnerable.

Aadhi left shutting the door in a thud. But he stopped in the middle and ran his hand through his hair in irritation for doing an utterly stupid thing. He thought she might be sleeping but he never expected this.

Is she playing with me? He asked angling his head curiously.

Maybe I should make her understand that I am not the right person to play with, he smirked and his eyes glowed having that idea about the ways to harm her.

She is going to find everything one day, leave this quietly! He heard the voice inside him and Aadhi nodded his head looking back at her room.

Rathi, on the other hand, pondering at the lock which looked new and not even broken as he said.

Am I looking stupid to him?

Indeed, he opened it with some kind of spell? Doesn't he? She thought.

After wearing her dress, she came out putting her shoes. She joined Shankari and Das for the breakfast in a private dining hall. But Aadhi was not there. He didn't come until she finishes her breakfast.

Oddly Shankari was silent and didn't talk anything while eating and Das is a completely strange person. He looks at Rathi like she's an old art craft in a museum. He just greeted good morning when she sat beside him other than that, nothing.

After finishing the breakfast Rathi went to the deck since she felt so bored and thinking about there's still a day to reach his home is exhausting now itself. There she saw Aadhi standing and talking with the captain.

She stood and watched them, and Aadhi looked at her in the corner of his eyes.

Once the captain returned to his cabin, Rathi moved to him.

"I warn you, don't ask me questions," he stated before she could proceed.

"I won't," she nodded. "I came here to see the ocean."

Moving close to the railing, Rathi thought about how to start a conversation.

"It's going to rain, stay in your room, go," he again ordered. Ah, doesn't he have any other job than protecting me?

"Sun is glowing hotly, I don't think it will rain," Rathi smiled hearing his stupid assumptions.

"Okay, then it's your wish," he left her alone.

After a few moments she felt the climate is changing, the dark clouds were gathering up, and that almost erased the sunlight. The tides raised big and she somewhat felt afraid to stand there. Like he said the rain started pouring in drizzles. She watched standing in a shelter near the stairs to go to her room.

"I said you right? You should hear what I am telling you?" he nagged pointing to her ears.

She looked at him in defeat. "Not only in this, in everything you should believe what I say because that's the truth and it will happen in the end," he told standing close to her.

"Got it?" he asked.

She nodded looking at his eyes. "What?" he questioned when she kept staring at him.

"Nothing," she calmly averted her gaze. But she only knew how much she's afraid to stand beside this man.

"Just spit it out that you're wondering whether I am a human? Don't you?" his eyes turned in a different shade reflecting his anguish.

"Yes."

"What you think?" he folded his hand across his chest and looked at Rathi.

"A ghost or a Demon?" he himself offered the answer.

"I don't know," she replied but she's too scared to look at his expression.

He chuckled. "You know it, Rathi, your deepest thoughts will discern me to you And I Know Who You Are," he whispered that near her ears. Though his statement doesn't affect her confusion nevertheless, Aadhi meant those words. He knows a secret that no one knows about Rathi.

There's no good and bad to categorize a person. Every good man will have an ugly side that he hides and every bad person will have a moral side that he never shows.

Aadhi left her alone, confusing her totally and Rathi turned her gaze to the rain.

He could be a good man if I obey his rules and he will be really bad when I didn't do that. Easy. Simple to follow. But Rathi can't go by that flow. There's a desire to break them even knowing she might be punished. She doesn't know the exact meaning of the nightmares she's having these days but one thing she understood that there's something bad going to happen in her life and that might be because of Aadhiyan.

After Shankari, he's the one going to be with me, if I like it or not that's what meant to happen. Maybe I will be married to him and break his curse by having his child. After that, he will let me free as he promised? She doesn't if he keeps his word.

For all that to happen peacefully she needs to obey him. It sounds so pathetic but sometimes being passive is better than dying. In this world, everyone is a slave to someone or something. So she decided to follow to be a slave for getting what she wants.

If I follow this one simple rule maybe one day I could get my freedom.

Then the entire day Rathi stayed in her room, sitting on her bed and writing notes for her new song. This time she titled the song as hollow, reflecting the situation in her life. She's doing this to escape from the fear of her future and her sorrow for being trapped in this tiger cage. Anything can happen at any time.

This is the only solution she got to escape reality. She didn't play it in the violin since the sound of pattering rain and rushing waves echoing loudly in her room. Without having her lunch, she just slept eventually with her overwhelming thoughts.

When she woke up, the room is dark. And her stomach crawled in hunger. She came out gripping the wall for support. That time she saw Shankari walking to the deck. She didn't see Rathi and moved like a robot. Rathi followed her to know what she's going to do on this rainy evening.

She saw Shankari going close to the barrier and Rathi immediately ran near to her.

"Shankari, what you are doing?" she screamed when Shankari almost put her legs on the other side of the fence. Shankari looked at her like seeing a ghost.

"Please Shankari, come back here," she pleaded, reaching out her hand.

"Rathi, my dear, why did you come here? Go back to your room," she asked in a tear-jerking way.

"Shankari please what happened to you? Don't do this," Rathi came closer.

"No, don't come near me," she threatened.

"Please Shankari, I beg you come to this side," Rathi cried seeing her stubbornness.

"Rathi, I don't have anything to live for. I've done the responsibility given to me. I shouldn't live here anymore," she told and smiled.

"Please, Shankari I don't have anyone. You need to stay here for me."

"No, you will get a family and Ayya will look after you."

"Please, don't do this," Rathi cried and got near.

Shankari took a deep breath and smiled looking at Rathi. "Your father's name is Ravi Nethran and Revathi is your mother's name."

The name Ravi Nethren greatly stunned Rathi. Why Shankari and her dad were having the same surnames? That means...

"I am your Aunt, Rathi," Shankari revealed at the final moment. For all these years Rathi doesn't know that she's living with her own Aunt and now she's going to die not giving a moment to feel the happiness that she's having a relative.

"I am sorry Rathi, and stay strong," she told before jumping into the ocean with a smile. Rathi left out a loud scream and went to the guard rail. She never addressed her as Amma but for the first time, she did.

"Amma! Amma! Please come back, please," she shouted and there's no trace of Shankari and the ship is moving too fast. She doesn't know how to swim yet she decided to jump in the water to rescue her aunt.

When she's about to proceed, strong arms pulled her back on the floor. "Leave me, I have to save her," she wiggled her hands hard to get away from his grip, closing her eyes.

"Stop your fucking screams," Aadhiyan roared and his voice is louder than anything in his world. Rathi started crying.

"Shankari Amma fell on the ocean. Please save her, please," she cried.

"Shu shu... We can't save her, Rathi. We came too far and she is dead by now," he told and Rathi started crying hard.

He left her hands free and sat beside her. The rain drenched both of them. He allowed her to cry her heart out so that she will get over the grief soon.

Shankari died carrying the rest of the secrets that matter to Rathi along with the reason for her own death.

Now Rathi can't help but wonder what's the reason for Shankari's death which is none other than the man who's sitting near her and the world he rules.