The Betrayal (Conclusion)

Arjun wanted to check Sheetal's background. He needed her photo for digging into her past. He wanted to break into Rishabh's house. He wanted to search her room and find out any clue revealing her true identity. He asked his assistant Kedar to keep an eye on Sheetal and followed her. He also requested him for regular updates on her movement. He wrote down Rishabh's residential address on a piece of paper and gave it to Kedar.

The latter said," I have an idea. I will go there as an old tramp and lie down on the pavement. I will keep track of all the visitors and also trail her."

Arjun appreciated his quick thinking and cautioned him to be careful.

Kedar disguised himself as a tramp. He left for Sheetal's house early in the morning. He had tea and biscuits on the way to his quarry's house. He spread out an old newspaper on the pavement and sat down. He glanced at his watch. It was 8.00 AM. Sheetal made her appearance in the first-floor balcony facing the road. She was sipping coffee from her mug and enjoying the cool breeze of air. Kedar got a shock of his life when he saw her face. She was the same woman who had ruined his elder brother's life. His elder brother Mayank had fallen in love with this gorgeous vamp.

She courted him for a couple of years and squeezed out his entire bank balance. She finally dumped him after he became a pauper. He was so devastated that he lost his sanity. He went to a lunatic asylum. Kedar took care of his elder brother. He spent his weekend with him. Their house was auctioned to pay off the creditors. Sheetal was solely responsible for their financial crisis.

Kedar was cursing himself for not carrying his pistol with him. He wanted to pump all the bullets into her body. He controlled his emotions. He spared a thought for all those countless people who were her victims.

Sheetal left the house by 9.30 AM in Rishabh's car. Kedar followed her on his bike.

She stopped her car outside a restaurant and went inside. Kedar followed her. She met another lady who kissed her on the cheeks. Kedar chose a table adjacent to theirs so that he could hear them. He placed an order for a vegetable sandwich and the French fries.

He strained his ears to listen to their conversation. He started recording the video of their conversation. Sheetal's friend said," Hey, Renu! I have an assignment for you.

Don't miss this golden opportunity. Zeta Fashion House is conducting an interview tomorrow for the post of receptionist and HR executive. The venue is Andheri(East), and the timings are 9.30 AM to 2.30 PM."

Kedar wondered if it was her real name, or an assumed one like Sheetal. Sheetal ( Renu) protested, "I am not looking for any job. You know very well that I have earned enough money to last for my life." Her friend replied,"Why don't you listen to me? I will pay you ten lakh rupees as your commission. I am not asking you to work there for a long time. I want you to gain entry into the company. Get yourself romantically involved with the new managing director. His name is Anup Kumar. If possible lure him into the bed. I will shoot the video and blackmail him. I believed in his empty promises to marry me and lost my virginity to him. He dumped me after satisfying his lust and got married to Nivedita. Mr.Mirchandani who owns the Zeta Fashion House is her father. Please do me a favor, and I will be grateful to you for the rest of my life."

Sheetal responded, "This is a challenging job. I would love to do it. You can pay me in full after I complete your task. If I fail in my mission, I won't charge you a single penny."

Sheetal's mobile rang. She picked it up from her handbag and attended the call. They relished their snacks and finished their tea. They shook hands with each other and got up to pay the bill. Luckily for Kedar, Sheetal forgot her mobile on the table. He waited until the two women made their way out. He picked up her mobile and dialled his number. He disconnected the call and cleared the missed call from the call history. He was tempted to return the mobile, but his instincts prevented him from doing so. He pocketed it and went to pay the bill. He did not want to lose sight of her. He saw her getting into the car. He quickly took out his bike and started following her. They drove on for nearly an hour. They had reached Worli. Sheetal stopped her car outside a hostel for boys. Kedar was surprised. He wondered whom she was going to meet and why? He parked his bike and observed her from a distance. He hid behind the compound wall and watched everything in silence.

She went in and came out with a teenage boy in a wheelchair. She took out a sweet box and popped a sweet into his mouth.

Kedar pinched himself to make sure he was not dreaming. How could this heartless woman be kind to someone? They chatted and laughed for some time. Kedar clicked their picture. She planted a kiss on his forehead and gently ruffled his hair. She asked the warden to take him to his room. She gave him some money and came out with a satisfied look on her face. Kedar quickly turned around the street corner to avoid being seen.

She resumed her journey towards her home. Kedar left for Arjun's office. He reached there after the lunch hour was over. He was quite happy with his sleuthing. Kedar was panting for breath when he entered the office. Arjun offered him a glass of water and asked him to sit down. Arjun asked him to relax and then come out with his report.

Kedar told him everything about Sheetal's meeting with her friend and a young boy. He took out his mobile and played the recording of Sheetal's conversation with her friend. Arjun listened to it very carefully. These women had crossed all the limits of decency. He hated these spiteful ladies. Kedar also showed him the photo of Sheetal with a young guy. " Here is your bonus," said Kedar with a mischievous smile.

He handed over Sheetal's mobile to Arjun. The latter was dumbfounded. He asked him," Whose mobile is this? How did you get it?" Kedar replied," This is Sheetal or Renu's mobile. She left it on the table at the restaurant. You must be wondering why I didn't return it to her. The simple reason is that her mobile might contain some useful information." Arjun nodded his head in agreement. He hesitated to check her mobile. He felt as if he was violating her privacy. Kedar asked him to go ahead and see the contents. Arjun switched on her mobile. It asked for a password to open up. Arjun appeared to be crestfallen. Kedar asked him,"Why are you upset?"

Arjun told him that he needed a password to operate the mobile. Kedar took the mobile from him and entered a password. Kedar added with a smile,"We have crossed a major hurdle. Here is her mobile for your perusal."

Arjun was astonished. He questioned him," How did you know the password?" Kedar replied,"It was easy. I guessed it must have been that young man's name. She was calling him Rahul. I think they are brother and sister."

"You are getting smarter every day," Arjun added with a chuckle. When he swiped the touchscreen, several messages flooded the inbox.

He clicked on a message, and his jaw dropped in shock. The sender requested Sheetal (Renu) not to expose him before his family. He was willing to pay in crores to buy her silence. Sheetal was blackmailing people for earning her livelihood. Arjun wanted to strangle her with his bare hands. He kept scrolling down to read more messages. He realized that she blackmailed only men. He clicked on the video icon. He saw plenty of the video recordings. He selected one video and watched with bated breath. It was an obscene video featuring her and an old man. They were in a compromising position. Arjun wanted to puke. He handed the mobile to Kedar and went to the bathroom.

Kedar was shocked. He immediately selected another video. It was also a porn video. Suddenly her mobile rang. Kedar accepted the call and put it on the speaker mode. " Hello, Sweetheart," said a male voice," This is Karan speaking. I am looking forward to our date tonight at The Sheraton hotel. I can't wait to hold you in my arms and make love to you." Kedar was infuriated. He promptly disconnected the call. Arjun had heard everything. He said,"I am surprised at the audacity of this woman. I wonder how she is still alive. She has earned too many enemies."

Kedar urged him to pay a visit to Sheetal with the police. Arjun called up his friend Inspector Vikas from Vashi Police Station. He told him everything about Sheetal.

He requested the Inspector to accompany him for an investigation on the following day.

Sheetal woke up by 5.30 AM and went for a walk. She returned within an hour. She prepared coffee and sipped it leisurely in her balcony. Later, she had her breakfast followed by a quick shower. She chose to wear her blue jeans with a pink t-shirt and a blue jacket.

It was 7.30 AM. The doorbell rang. She put down the newspaper and opened the door. She had the shock of her life when she saw Inspector Vikas with Arjun. She asked them to come in and seated them on the couch. She asked them,"Would you like to have tea or coffee?" They refused her politely. " What brings you here, Inspector?" asked Sheetal. "Do you recognize this mobile?" probed the Inspector after taking out her mobile from his pocket. She denied having seen it.

The inspector said,"Your memory is very poor. Didn't you leave it behind on the table of Tasty Delight Restaurant? A young man picked it up and handed it over to Vashi Police Station." Sheetal took out an identical smartphone from her handbag and showed it to the Inspector.

The inspector smiled at her. He said, "I have something to refresh your memory. Please take a look." He asked Arjun to show her Kedar's video recording. The latter showed her the video clip from Kedar's smartphone.

Arjun also told her that they had enough evidence against her illegal activities. He also mentioned that he had seen the blackmail messages and objectionable videos. He warned her that her silence could lead to her brother's arrest. She broke into sobs and confessed to her crime. She requested the inspector not to implicate her brother as he was innocent. The inspector quizzed her,"Why did you choose the path of crime? There are decent ways to earn money."

Sheetal replied,"My real name is Renu Giri. My parents died when I was seventeen. We lived with our maternal aunt and uncle in Akola. They were a nice couple, but they went through a financial crisis. I decided to go for a job and support my younger brother, Rahul. We shifted to Mumbai to fulfill our dreams and ambitions. I got a job with a decent salary. We lived peacefully in a single room apartment near Thane. I loved my job as my colleagues were quite friendly. My boss appreciated my hard work. One day he tried to misbehave with me. I was so enraged that I slapped him and submitted my resignation. He felt humiliated and wanted to seek revenge. He came to my house with his goons. They beat my brother mercilessly breaking his spinal chord. He cried out in pain while they jeered at his suffering. The boss raped me several times. He satisfied his lust and went away. I was bleeding, but I was more concerned for Rahul. I had a quick shower and dressed up. I rushed him to the nearest hospital with the help of my former colleague and her husband. The chief doctor said that Rahul would never be able to walk.

I was shattered but did not cry. I was determined to punish that moron for ruining our lives. I went to his office the following day and entered his cabin. He was startled to see me and asked me to leave immediately. I flaunted my cleavage and grabbed his attention. I asked him to spend a night with me. He was thrilled to receive an open invitation for sex. He accepted my offer and arrived at the hotel that I had chosen for the rendezvous. My friend Pooja accompanied me. She occupied a table next to ours. We had dinner and danced to the songs of Britney Spears. I had already booked a room for us. I handed him the keys to our room. I went out to take the bottle of whiskey from Pooja's car. I had kept sedatives in my handbag. I returned to the room and presented him the whiskey bottle. He was ecstatic. He excused himself and went to the washroom. I took this opportunity to pour the whiskey into his glass and added sedatives. He returned after five minutes and gulped down the entire content of the glass.

He was feeling drowsy. He fell asleep within ten minutes. I opened the door and called Pooja for help. I undressed him and took out his mobile. I asked Pooja to shoot the video using his mobile. She finished shooting the porn video. She uploaded it on his social media profile. She sent this video to all his contacts including his wife. We smiled at each other and left him sleeping on the bed. After a fortnight, I learned from the newspapers that he had committed suicide.

The news reports stated that his family and friends snapped all their ties with him. His wife had filed for a divorce. His children stopped speaking to him, and so did his parents. He had become a laughing stock of the town. His son refused to light his funeral pyre. The body was handed over to the medical college students. I felt really happy to have settled scores with him. I tried to forget my horrible past and look out for a new job. I joined a private company as a receptionist. I thought no one would bother me anymore. My happiness was short-lived. The managing director invited me to his house to discuss an upcoming project. He offered me a glass of juice laced with drugs. He raped me for hours together before dropping me home.

I started hating men except for my brother. I decided to use their lust to earn money and destroy their family lives. Now I have a healthy bank balance."Arjun and Vikas felt sorry for her. Vikas said, "It's unfortunate that you had to go through such an ordeal. You can't justify your crime. This is Arjun. His sister Sarita and her husband Rishabh offered you refuge. You managed to create a rift between them and had her murdered. Please show some remorse."

Renu (Sheetal) said," Please don't tell Rahul anything about my criminal life. He thinks that I am working for a multinational company. He would never forgive me."

The inspector promised to keep her case strictly confidential. She signed the statement of confession. She handed over the property documents to Arjun. She said,"I am really very sorry for what I did to Sarita. I never anticipated her murder. I committed this crime purely out of greed and hatred for men."

Arjun sympathized with her and said, "I will take care of Rahul until your release from the prison. Consider me as your elder brother." Renu wept bitterly in his arms. She said,"I don't have words to express my gratitude. I promise you that I will turn over a new leaf and quit the path of crime." The inspector arrested her and took her away to the police station. Arjun blinked away his tears as he thought about his beloved sister. He locked the house and went home with the documents. He handed the documents to Rishabh's parents. They couldn't hold back their tears of joy. Jyoti was so happy that she hugged him and danced. His parents beamed at him.

He went to meet Rishabh in jail and conveyed the good news to him. Rishabh congratulated Arjun and thanked him for his help.He said," I got back everything except my Sarita. I wish I could apologize to her."