#WritcoStoryChallenge
I blinked as I regained consciousness. I had hit my head hard, or had someone hit me? Then I realised I was holding a bloody knife in my hand. Petrified, my gaze wanders around the dark space, faintly illuminated with the swath of light beaming through the crack of the wooden door. Where am I? I wonder to myself, dropping the knife on the wooden floor hastily and wince to myself, pushing my fingers through my hair. Abruptly, there's a pang in my head and I feel my fingers wet. No, no. No. This can't be happening. I bang the door restlessly, in a series; panting and cursing myself mentally. Turning the knob, the wooden door clicks open and I jump to my feet, sprinting out reflexively as I breathe a sigh of relief. The space seems like a warehouse with metal junk and debris across the room. As my gaze darts around to gauge further details, my heard starts to spin, my stomach coiling to a tight knot as my palms dampen. Pressing my feet further to the asphalt ground, I stumble back and gasp as I find my husband on the ground; lying still with his milky eyes, blood dripping from his mouth and his chest busted with a stab wound. Oh my God. "Arhansh!" I rush to him quickly, not believing anything I see. "Baby, wake up!" A loud sob escapes me and I cup his face tenderly, "Please," I whisper through my tears, checking his pulses. Is this some kind of sick joke? What happened here? How did he end up dead? Why can't I remember a thing about an hour ago? Not knowing what else to do, I weep, bracing his corpse close to my heart and my sobs echo in the room.
After wailing for what seemed like forever, I advance to the wooden closet and crouch to fetch the bloody knife, mentally debating over deriving an escape plan. Okay, so my husband is dead and there's the probable murder weapon right in my hands. Have I.....Oh dear God, did I kill my husband? Deciding against the numerous whispers in my head that urge me to call the cops instead to the crime scene, I take the matters to my own hands instead. I sprint around the room aimlessly, hoping and praying to find anything that could possiblly help me out of this disaster. My gaze lands on the sink and I turn the faucet on, the water gushes in and I begin to clean the bloody knife, along with my hands and realize that my dress is soaking in blood too. Seriously, world what in the hell happened here? Panting, I clean the knife with the hem of my dress and wrap it with a plastic bag that I manage to find under the sink. Averting my gaze past the window, I fail to register the neighborhood and my stomach starts to flip, outrageously feeling ill. I stare again at my dead husband on the ground and groan lowly. Advancing to the main exit with the plastic bag in my hand, it abruptly dawns on me that I need to remove my traces from the crime scene. I'm not sure who owned this place or if anyone would care enough to visit the warehouse at all, but I need a freaking ticket out of this mess. I head outside and spot my car not very far away; opening the trunk of my car, I gather a bottle of petrol and my lighter from the glove compartment of the vehicle. I look around frantically, hoping nobody is watching me and sigh as I fail to find a soul in sight.
With shaky hands, I head inside and set my husband on the fire after pouring the petrol on him, along with the closet...I watch it burn to ashes with silent sobs and a trembling body. I also decide to undress and torch my garments with it. Just to be on the safe side.
I scurry to my car breathlessly, shuddering to the cold breeze as it breezes past me and I hug my waist after unlocking the door to the passanger's side. I quickly find Arhansh's sweatshirt in the backseat and slip into it....igniting the engine in the next beat and pedaling away.
Next morning I wake up with a wicked pound in my head and I groan roughly. I gaze outside, past the window and inhale deeply, finding it impossible to believe that my husband is dead. I stare at his side of the bed and hug his pillow; feeling an unbearable pain in my chest as it tightens. Who could have wanted to kill him? more importantly, why?
It's an eternity in the shower, feeling hopeless and empty. My mind is clogged with the pace of events. I turn on the TV while fixing a quick breakfast and that's when chills set on my spine; hair on my nape stand out and I rush to the living room to turn up the volume. "The elite industrialist Mr. Arhansh Mehera has been reported missing post his conference yesterday." Shit. Oh shit, this is bad. I listen to the report avidly as to register if they've come across any further clues but thank God, there isn't any. Nobody knows where he is, that he is dead. There's a team of professionals working on this case. I rub my nape to ease the quivering nerves but nothing seems to do the trick. A sudden series of knocks on the door, snaps me out of the moment and I jump to my feet, horrified. My throat dries and my hands start to shiver. Drawing some sharp breaths, I unlock the door cooly, donning a poker face. "Mrs. Mehera," A well built man in his early thirties casts a smile and my brows furrow, "Yes?" I ask bewildered, "I'm Vaid Aryan, from CBI." he says firmly, knocking the air out of my lungs and my mind starts to falter. "Um..hello, please come in." I sound much collected than I feel inside. "I'm here for a few questions in regards to your husband. I promise I'll be quick." he steps in colloqually and I shake my head quickly, "Sure. What would you like you to know?" I urge him to take a seat on the leather sofa as I pad to the fridge for a bottle of water. Mentally assessing my answers and guessing his questions. He passes a cursory nod as I take my seat across him. "When was the last time you saw your husband?" he asks, "Yesterday, before he left for business." I have no idea how to get away with this. I can't lead him on to believing that I'm affected just yet. I have to know what he knows. Goddamn it. "All right." he strokes his temples perplexedly and my stomach starts to churn. "He hasn't returned home yet like you already know..." "I was actually about to head to the nearest police station for that. I've been worried sick and I saw the news this morning...I was under the impression that he had other plans after his conference last afternoon." I tuck a strand of hair behind my ear and he gauges me, searching my face and I still a look at him. "So you don't know where he is?" "He wouldn't be reportedly missing if I did." Why does he think I'd know anything? I'm in as dark as the rest of the crowd, even more so I'm afraid. "Right, okay. Where were you last night?" he presses and I sag back to my seat, looking away. Where was I? "Here. in my apartment, painting." I say midly and he contemplates my statements. "He was seen at a pool party post his conference yesterday and then he has been missing ever since. We have a guy who can attest that. I'll let you know if something else turns up." he rises to his feet, "Thank you. I'd appreciate that." I push to my feet but the overwhelming emotions give me away and my eyes start to dart with fresh tears. "Mrs. Mehera, are you alright?" he asks and I shake my head instantly, "I'm sorry, it's just...all of this is too much." I sniffle softly and he frowns, "Haven't you tried calling him?" "I didn't have to. I thought he was busy and he hates when somebody bugs him. I didn't know I had to." I can't feel any more sick than this. I'll throw up. "Okay. Anyway, let us know if you come across something unusual." he says and heads out. "I will." I hear the door shut and I rush to the sink, throwing up convulsively as my stomach flips again.
A week passes by but the media is crazy, raising rumors about my late husband and there's no update from the CBI. I continue doing my business, living low indoors. I mourn, eat crappy takeout and paint but nothing seems to take my mind off of things. I spend my some time with my friend too, Kirti. She always had a secret crush on my husband and I think I always found that funny. She has been losing her mind over this. I wonder if she knows anything about it . I also know that she was at the pool party where Arhansh was last seen but she doesn't give away anything I already don't know. Of course Arhansh stayed for a while, he doesn't like pool parties anyway. I'll have to dig deeper and gather more information.
After a month, I'm called in to the CBI office later at noon. I park my car in the lot and head inside, "Good to see you Mrs. Mehera." Vaid says, gesturing me to take a seat across him in his office, "How have you been?" "I'll be there." I smile weakly and he nods, "Okay." he places a plastic bag of garments and a small pouch on his desk, in front of me and I glance at it, my head spinning. "We found his jacket, vest and watch from a dumpster near the suburb." he says briskly and my eyes well with tears, my throat tightening with a lump and lips dried. "We also found a lighter." My lighter! Oh hell. "Do you recognize this?" "Yes." I quickly attest, "Do you think.." I trail off, not believing the pace of events right now. "Your husband hasn't showed up over a month now and all we have is this." he sighs exasperatedly. "I don't want to worry you and this may probably not be the appropriate thing to say but Mrs. Mehera, I think something has gone terribly wrong with your husband." His words make me gasp frantically and a sob escapes me, "We've been combing through the streets. I assure you that my best team is on this." he continues to say but I don't feel any of it. Nothing! "I don't know about anything. I need my husband." I snap at him and he shakes his head. "I can only assure you that I won't stop until I know what this is." he promises and I shake my head silently, blankly. "Okay, well. Thank you." I whisper and decide to leave.
I managed to destroy his SIM card that night which gives me the advantage of never calling him again. I've been dialling his number every day for my call records but nobody knows his and what little the service providers could track also includes my hopeless calls to his number.
After another week in haze, I receive another visit from Vaid at my apartment late in the evening. "Did you find him?" I inquire, "No, not yet but we may have found someone who is vital to this case." "Really?" We advance to the sofa and I drink coffee, "Yes. We suspect your husband had an affair." "He did?" I halt in my tracks and stare at him quizzically. "That's ridiculous." I snort, "We have people to testify that." Fuck. Seriously? "And who is this mistress again?" I find it a hard time believing that someone like my husband could do that to me. He loved me too much. "It's an illicit affair with one of his employees." he says as matter of fact and I gape at him, astounded. "And you say people have known that all along?" I ask gingerly, suspiciously and he nods, "I don't know what to say to that." I mutter, placing the mug of coffee on the table with a clatter. "I'm really sorry, I thought you should know." he says, "Thank you, I appreciate it." I say lowly, "Okay." "Is she your suspect? Do you think she has anything to do with his disappearance?" I have to find her and talk to her. I have to know what she knows. "As of now, yes. We'll interrogate her soon. See what we come up with." "Okay then, can you please tell me about her?" I'm told that her name is Riya Sahani and she is Arhansh's publicist. I also manage to gather further Intel on her later after the inspector leaves and decide to meet her at a bar.
Later that night, upon meeting her, I find out that Arhansh claimed to love her, so much that he promised her to leave our marriage soon and be with her. It breaks me violently, like a physical blow on my face. I couldn't be more devastated than this. She has every right to be mad at him which she claims that she was since Arhansh was stalling her weeks after weeks and it drives her crazy; apparently, she threatened to kill him before. I decide to reveal the information to the cops later.
Next week is when Arhansh's brother, Aditya comes over for a visit. It's been a while since I last saw him, he is equally handsome and sophisticated. We sit over a lunch to share our misery. "I can't believe something happened to him." he sounds depressed and haunted. "Neither can I." I poke the meat on the plate with a fork and he eyes me, "How are you holding up?" he asks nonchalantly and I sigh, "I'm not as put together as I seem. The cops are doing the best they can and I'm here all alone, waiting for this to be over and finally have Arhansh come back to me." "I heard he had an affair with his publicist." he raises his brows questioningly to gauge my reaction and I release quick breaths, "Yeah, I never thought he'd do that to me, you know? I mean, he is my Arhansh, my husband who vowed to love me more than anything in this world. I don't know when he fell out of love with me. I just..." I don't know what to say. I look away, feeling a flood of emotions knocking me down and he catches my hand gently, "I'm sorry you had to find it out that way." he says softly and I wipe my tears, "Thanks, it's good to talk to someone who actually gets it. I've been sick of tabloids and rumors everywhere. People can be so inhumane at times." "Tell me about it," he huffs, "I practically threw my cell phone across the room the other day. These reporters are pain in the ass." We both share a short laugh. "Thanks for visiting me." I say. The rest of the lunch passes by, reminiscing my dear husband and the good old days. Aditya is hurting too and nothing is getting easier with time.
Next morning is when I wake up to my phone ringing off the hook and I'm immediately called in by the cops. It's nothing less than an unbearable slow motion movie when I finally uncover what Vaid has to say. Oh God, they know.
"So you're telling me that my husband is dead and somebody actually burned his body?" My eyes feel like they'd fall out of the sockets. "Yes and we found the weapon that must have killed your husband." "Am I supposed to believe your hunch? He can't die." I sound like a ghost. It's the first time I'm saying it out loud and not just me, the whole city is talking about it. My husband is officially dead. "I wish it weren't true but this is all we have and I'm pretty sure someone had a strong motive behind this." he says as a matter of fact and my stomach quivers. "I don't believe you." I mutter, "We know who owns the warehouse." What? "You do?" My stomach drops and he shakes his head. "We'll officially take him in. We have been building a case since quite a while now." God! I should've known this is coming. "You should go back and wait for the news." he says and I stand there like a dumb person with a total mouth to brain detachment, unable to utter another word. What am I supposed to say? That I was there? "All right." I mumble and take my leave.
On the way to my apartment, I talk to Aditya and fill him in about the details. I hear him cry at the end of the line and I cry with him, knowing exactly what he must be going through. After reaching my room, I tune into the news all day long until I drift to sleep.
A little later in the evening, I wake up to the news of culprit, taken into the custody and tossed behind the bars. I push to my feet suddenly, almost flailing, unable to decipher this through as I learn about the culprit. Garbbing my keys to my car and my purse, I head straight to the jail.
"Aditya, how....what's going on?" Tears leak my eyes as I watch him behind the bars, his knuckles paling against it and I stroke his knuckles, "They think I did it." I can tell from his voice that he's been crying; his face is ashen and he looks terrible. "Well, there's clearly a misunderstanding." I look around to spot someone to talk to. "No, apparently Arhansh was cremated in my warehouse. There are blood stains to prove it and the lighter." His lighter. "I'll get you the best lawyer in town. This is bullshit." I snap and his eyes glisten. "You have to know that I have nothing to do with this. I swear Natasha, he is my little brother. I loved him." he sobs and I glance around furtively, to check if anyone is listening to this conversation. "Maybe you loved him a little much, Aditya." I say and he gapes at me; his eyes transforming from pain to terror and I smirk, "Yeah, you think I don't know your little incest fukery?" I shoot, "I knew you guys fucked around all the time." "You little bitch!" he snaps ghastily and I laugh, "You killed him, didn't you?" he asks, "A lady never tells." I shrug, "Guess who owns the bank account now. Oh by the way, it was so easy to plant his phone in your backyard. I didn't know how stupid you'd be but looking at you know," I sigh, "My guess is plenty." I laugh again and feel his rage pouring off him as his jaw clenches. "You think you'll get away with this?" "Haven't I already? You killed my husband because he didn't aprove your investment plans and he had an affair with Riya Sahani, your girlfriend. What? You think I don't know that?" That fucker had it all coming. "How did you?" he whispers questioningly and I lean closer to him. "Because I met Riya at the bar, we talked. She told me all about you. The poor thing was so scared she spilled all her beans. Turns out both of you bastards fucked her and made her believe that one if you will end up marrying her. You can go fuck yourself now." He looks like he has seen a ghost and I'm having a gala here. "You had no right to kill him." he barks, "Don't be ridiculous. Arhansh knew that I knew all about his precious shit. I just killed him before he'd kill me." I shrug mildly and his jaw drops, "I won't let you get away with this." he vows, "Oh but I have. I'm the sad rich widow. I'm the one who needs attention and sympathy." I say as a matter of fact and his lips curl ruefully, "He tortured me. I have scars on my body to prove that. There's no wedding bliss. It was a fucking hell and I hated him. I'm glad he is dead." I confess and his sharp growl cuts through the air, "This isn't over." "Go ahead, play with yourself. I'll make sure my husband gets the justice he so richly deserves." I toss my hair back and head outside without listening to him any further.
I've been planning his murder since a month now. I had to make sure, it was all pointed in his direction. I figured if I'm gonna end up a widow then I should probably take what I deserve; the bank account but with Aditya in the picture, that'd be impossible. I planted his phone and made sure Riya confessed all about Aidtya to the cops. It was a week before his death, I texted Aditya from Arhansh's phone that later turned into a nasty fight with an audience, the text records will do the trick to attest that. I spiked Arhansh's drink at the pool party and took him down at the warehouse later, with no trace behind. Method acting always goes a long way and I've always been an artist. There isn't a single evidence that doesn't wipe my slate clean and that doesn't weave a better web for Aditya, my husband's brother slash lover slash fuck buddy. All I wanted was an end to this marriage but he was more concerned about his public image and I couldn't live in the hell every day; beaten up like rabid...Arhansh was a sadist and I killed him; yes, I got away with it.

Hey Reader! I really hope you like this story, I know a lot of things are missing but since it's a short story, I mentioned things to be convenient. Thank you for reading. Don't forget to hit like and follow me. (:
#WritcoPrompt #writcochallange #writco #story #murder #mystery #betrayal #Dark #mature