TALES OF TAJ

CHAPTER XV

PLOT STORY:

Ava, a wealthy and influential woman, has been obsessed with Ruby since childhood. Ava's parents were betrayed by Ruby's family, leading to a deep-seated grudge. However, as Ava grew older, her hatred turned into obsession, and she began to see Ruby as the perfect woman.

Ruby, unaware of Ava's obsession, is engaged to marry Anurag, a kind and handsome man. However, on the day of their wedding, Ava kidnaps Ruby and takes her to a deserted mansion.

Ava's plan is to keep Ruby captive and make her fall in love with her. Ava uses manipulation, coercion, and even violence to break Ruby's spirit and make her submit to her desires.

However, Ruby is determined to escape and reunite with Anurag. She uses her intelligence and resourcefulness to gather information about her surroundings and plan her escape.

Meanwhile, Anurag is searching for Ruby everywhere and is determined to rescue her from Ava's clutches. He teams up with a few trusted friends and family members to track down Ava and rescue Ruby.

As the story unfolds, Ruby's attempts to escape are thwarted by Ava's cunning and resources. Ava becomes increasingly unhinged and violent, causing Ruby to fear for her life.

In a thrilling climax, Anurag and his team finally track down Ava and rescue Ruby. Ava is arrested and charged with kidnapping and assault.

Ruby and Anurag reunite and get married in a beautiful ceremony surrounded by their loved ones. Ava, on the other hand, is sentenced to prison, where she is forced to confront the consequences of her actions.

*Themes:*

- Obsession and its consequences

- Love and loyalty

- Power dynamics and control

- Trauma and recovery

*Genre:* Psychological Thriller/Romance

MAIN STORY:

As Ruby regained consciousness, she saw Ava sitting in front of her, staring at her nonstop. Ruby felt a headache and touched her head, noticing a bandage wrapped around it.

Ava gave Ruby a devilish smile and said, "Ruby, you know when I was 10 years old, I considered you my friend. My parents trusted your parents, but your family betrayed mine. That's why I decided to take revenge, but fate had other plans - I fell in love with you."

Ava continued, "Now I'm scared that if anything happens to you, you'll end up marrying Anurag. I love you, Ru."

Ruby looked at Ava, terrified by her expression. Ruby begged Ava to let her go, but Ava approached her and gently touched her head, saying, "Ruby, don't be afraid of me, please. I love you."

Ava's tone turned manic as she said, "We'll escape from here before your grandfather is killed, as per Sir's orders. But don't worry, I'll convince Sir to spare you."

Ruby was terrified of Ava but knew she had to escape. She remained calm, not making any sudden movements. Ava, seeing Ruby's calm demeanor, said, "Good, Ruby, just sit here quietly. I'll get you something to eat."

Ava's words sent chills down Ruby's spine, but she remained still, waiting for an opportunity to escape.

As soon as Ava left, Ruby thought of escaping, but as she tried to get up and run, she fell. Ruby's legs were tied with chains. The fall caused Ruby's previous injury to reopen, and blood started oozing out from the wound. Ruby lost consciousness again.

Ava had gone to a nearby shop to buy some food for Ruby when she received a call from Dipti. Dipti was tense and asked Ava when she and Ruby would return, as it was already 2 pm. Ava told Dipti that Ruby wouldn't be returning home, as she had discovered Ava's secrets.

Dipti was shocked and asked how that happened. Ava said she didn't have time to explain and instructed Dipti to spread the word in the palace that Ruby had run away from her wedding. Dipti became even more anxious and told Ava that she could try to create such a situation, but she didn't think anyone would believe it.

Ava told Dipti to try and ended the call, saying she had to go back to Ruby.

Ava returned to Ruby, but was horrified to see that Ruby was bleeding profusely from her head. Ava immediately called one of the servants to fetch a doctor.

Then, she carefully lifted Ruby and took her inside the mansion, which was another grand but abandoned house. Earlier, Ava had tied Ruby to the terrace, but now she brought her to a bedroom inside the house.

The bedroom was in a state of disarray, with dust covering everything. However, the bed stood out as a stark contrast, being immaculately clean. It seemed like a lotus blooming in the mud.

Ava gently laid Ruby on the bed. Seeing Ruby's condition, Ava was extremely worried and fearful of losing her.

The doctor arrived and treated Ruby's injuries, bandaging her wounds. He also gave Ava a list of medications to administer.

The doctor revealed to Ava that Ruby was his old client, and she would visit him for check-ups whenever she returned to India from England. However, this time Ruby didn't need to visit him, and he was happy about it. But after examining her, he found that Ruby had not only suffered physical injuries but also emotional trauma.

Ava grew tense and asked the doctor what he meant. The doctor replied that Ruby seemed to be suffering from the same condition that Ava had experienced after her parents' death - panic attacks.

Ava was surprised, saying she didn't know about Ruby's condition. The doctor explained that he had met Nikolas and knew how evil he was. He praised Ava for taking care of Ruby.

Ava asked the doctor how he knew her. The doctor smiled and said he had known her since childhood, being a friend of her father's. Ava asked him not to mention her father's name.

The doctor told Ava that Ruby had called him and said she was happy with Ava. Ava asked when Ruby had called, and the doctor replied that it was on the day they arrived in India.

Ava thanked the doctor and offered to escort him out. The doctor declined, saying he would leave on his own, and reminded Ava to take care of Ruby.

Ava sat down beside Ruby, her eyes welling up with tears that revealed the depth of her love. Ava gently placed her hand on Ruby's head.

Ava made a promise to Ruby, saying, "I won't let anything happen to you." She continued, "You don't know, Ruby, when we were kids, I considered you my friend, and when we grew older, I would often sneak up to see you, hiding from everyone. I knew from the start that I loved you."

After saying this, Ava placed her head on Ruby's hand and fell asleep.

Ruby's eyes opened, and she saw Ava sitting beside her. Ava told Ruby, "Two days."

Ruby asked, "What?"

Ava replied, "You've been sleeping for two days. The doctor told me to inform him when you regain consciousness, and I'll let him know you need rest."

Ruby said, "No one told me."

Ava said, "They think you ran away from your wedding with me."

Ruby made a confused face and asked, "Why does everyone think that?"

Ava smiled and said, "I spread that rumor myself. Don't worry, they won't find us now."

Ruby told Ava, "What you're doing with me isn't love."

Ava laughed and said, "It's called obsession. Yes, I'm obsessed with you."

Ruby said, "I'll escape from here."

Ava told Ruby, "Do you know where you are now?"

Ruby anxiously asked, "Where have you brought me?"

Ava said, "We're still in Mansoori, but far from your home. This is a deserted place where no one comes."

Ruby was about to say something, but Ava interrupted her, saying, "Ru, please take some rest. If you do, we'll tell you the entire truth."

Ruby nodded, and Ava handed her a glass of water. Ruby drank it slowly, her eyes fixed on Ava.

Ava smiled and said, "I'll be back soon. Don't try to escape."

Ruby nodded again, and Ava left the room.

As soon as Ava left, Ruby tried to move her legs, but they were still tied with chains. She looked around the room, searching for a way to escape.

Suddenly, she heard footsteps outside the room. Ruby's heart sank, thinking it was Ava returning.

But to her surprise, it was the Anurag who entered the room.

"Ruby, I'm here to help you," he whispered.

Ruby's eyes widened with hope as the Anurag began to untie her chains.

"Let's get you out of here," he said, smiling.

Ruby nodded, and together they made their way out of the mansion, leaving Ava behind.

To be continue.....