Chapter 6: The Disappearance

 was supposed to be over.

Avni had reported everything. The police had taken it seriously. Kabir had kept her safe.

And yet...

The next morning, she was gone.

---

6:12 AM

Kabir knocked on Avni's door with two cups of tea.

"Avni? You awake?"

Silence.

He waited. Knocked again. Louder.

Still nothing.

He opened the door slowly.

The bed was neatly made.

Pillow undisturbed.

No sign of struggle.

But the window?

Slightly open. From inside.

---

His heart dropped.

He called her phone — switched off.

Checked the apartment building CCTV.

The feed had been cut between 3:00 AM to 5:00 AM.

Panic gripped his chest.

She didn't leave.

She was taken.

---

Same time… unknown location

Avni's eyes fluttered open.

Everything was white — the walls, the floor, even the blanket covering her. The air smelled sterile, like bleach.

Her head throbbed.

She tried to sit up — but her wrists were tied to the sides of the bed.

She gasped.

"Aarav!"

"Shhh…"

A voice came from the corner.

He stepped into view, wearing a clean white shirt, sleeves rolled up, a soft smile on his lips.

"I didn't want to do this, Avni. But you forced me."

Avni struggled against the restraints, heart racing. "Where am I? What is this place?!"

Aarav pulled a chair close and sat down calmly. "Safe. Finally safe. Away from people who confuse your mind."

"You kidnapped me!"

"I rescued you," he whispered. "From them. From the lies. From yourself."

Her eyes burned with rage. "You're sick."

He nodded slowly. "I've heard that before. You know who said it? Rhea. She said the same words… just before she disappeared."

Avni froze.

Her voice barely a whisper, "What did you do to her?"

Aarav's eyes darkened.

"I gave her what she never gave me—devotion. But she laughed. She rejected it. She tried to leave. So I made sure… she couldn't."

Silence.

Chilling. Heavy. Alive.

Avni stared at him, a new kind of fear gripping her.

This wasn't a broken heart.

This was a broken mind.

---

Back at the police station

Kabir was yelling. "She's missing! I know it's him! You need to find her!"

Inspector Sharma looked tense. "We're tracking his number. But it's off. He hasn't been home. We've sent officers to every known location connected to him."

Kabir slammed his hand on the desk. "That's not enough!"

Just then, a constable entered with a file. "Sir, we found something."

Inside were old psychiatric reports.

From Aarav's high school.

The file was marked CONFIDENTIAL.

> "Patient shows signs of delusional attachment. Obsessive tendencies. Unhealthy fixation on imagined emotional bonds. Recommending long-term observation."

Kabir gritted his teeth. "He was never treated, was he?"

"No," the inspector said. "His parents pulled him out. Changed cities. Records were buried."

Kabir whispered, "And now Avni's paying the price."

---

Meanwhile…

Avni sat still, trying not to provoke him.

Aarav stood near a small shelf, organizing syringes and medicine bottles — none labeled clearly.

"Please," Avni said, voice soft. "Just let me go."

Aarav smiled without turning. "You'll thank me later. When the noise is gone. When it's just us. Pure and unfiltered."

He turned around with a small injection in hand.

Avni's body stiffened. "What is that?"

"Just something to help you sleep. Peacefully. Without the bad dreams."

"No. Don't—Aarav, please—don't do this."

Tears welled up in her eyes.

Aarav paused.

Something in her voice… her trembling lips… stopped him.

He came closer. Sat by her side.

"I hate seeing you scared," he whispered. "I never wanted that."

"Then let me go."

"I can't," he said, eyes shining. "Because I love you."

---

Avni closed her eyes. Her mind raced. Think. Think. Think.

She opened them slowly. Swallowed the bile rising in her throat.

"Then let me prove it," she whispered. "Let me love you too."

Aarav blinked. "What?"

"You want me to love you, right? Then untie me. Talk to me. Let me touch your face. Let me see you… truly."

Aarav stared, confused. Unsure.

This wasn't what he expected.

But deep inside… he wanted it.

He reached out… fingers trembling… and unbuckled the strap on her left hand.

Then the right.

Avni's heart pounded like a drum.

As soon as her hand was free — she grabbed the injection from the side table.

And stabbed it into his neck.

Aarav gasped.

"What—what did you—"

He stumbled back, crashing into the chair, his limbs turning soft.

Avni stood up — wrists burning — and ran toward the door.

But it was locked.

Behind her, Aarav lay groaning, eyes fluttering.

She searched the shelves. Found a key. Tried it.

Click.

The door swung open.

Freedom.

She ran.

Through a hallway. Downstairs. Out into the cold night.

---

Ten minutes later

She found a road.

A truck slowed down. The driver stopped.

"Miss? Are you alright?"

"I need the police," she cried. "Please. Help me."

---

Two hours later — police station

Kabir wrapped her in a blanket, holding her close.

Avni's face was pale, lips trembling. "He… he said he did the same to someone else. To Rhea."

Inspector Sharma stood nearby. "We're launching a full operation. If what you say is true… he won't escape this time."

Kabir looked at her. "You're safe now. I promise."

But Avni shook her head.

"No. Not yet. Not until he's caught. Not until it's over."

---

Far away, in the shadows…

Aarav stood at a railway station, his collar up, hat pulled low.

The injection hadn't been lethal. Just numbing.

He had woken up to an empty room.

And a broken heart.

But not a broken obsession.

"She ran," he whispered. "But she'll come back."

He turned, disappearing into the crowd.

His voice lost in the night.

> "She smiled once.

And I was never the same again.

She's mine.

She'll always be mine."

---

To Be Continued...