The entire space in the elevator car was covered with smoke. Rishab slowly lifted himself off his delicate wife and coughed as he cleared the smoke by waving his hand. He sat back on his heels still kneeling down on the floor beside his wife. He felt a burning sensation at his back and at the side of his forearm. His T-shirt had caught some fire and he put it off with his other hand. He couldn't reach his hand to his back so he just rubbed his back to the elevator wall.

Madhu was still on the floor shrunk herself to a ball. He scanned her body quickly to find any sign of injury but he found none. He exhaled in relief. He will be damned if he let anything happen to his wife again as she had had enough already.

"Madhu?" Rishab gently rubbed his hand on her back and gripped her shoulders. He could say she was still alive with the way her whole body was shaking.

"Madhu..." he pulled her up and hugged her. She didn't hug him back. She just hung her head on his shoulder, shivering.

"Madhu, we should get out of this shit! Now" he said pushing her off him and looking at her face. She was looking at him but her eyes were distant as if she was in some other world.

"You hear me?" Rishab patted her cheeks gently. She kept grinding her teeth. He worried she would bite her tongue. "Madhu, just talk to me... Madhu, please"

He looked up the ceiling. There was a huge hole caused due to the explosion. It was sheer luck the bomb was not a powerful one and they were not blasted to pieces. Thank the lord! they were still alive. He wondered was it a failed attempt to kill them? Or was it deliberately made in a lighter way just to threaten them and to show the fear of death?

"Madhu, I will lift you up and you just get out of this elevator and I will follow you." Rk said looking at the way to escape from the hell hole!

"Madhu, dammit! Snap out of it!" he shouted at her. He knew she was shocked to death but he needed her at the moment to support him so that they can get out safe. They have survived an explosion and no way in hell he will let them die. He was sure the elevator cab was stopped through the emergency breaks and it might break any minute.

"Madhu!" He shook her harshly. She didn't respond. She just stared at the blank space. He pinched the bridge of his nose.

"I'm sorry, Madhu" he whispered and did something which he had never done before in his life. He slapped a woman! He slapped his beloved woman!

The very next moment he drew her head to his chest and let her cry soaking his shirt. Good thing she was crying and out of her shock. He sighed.

"Rishab, we are dead." She cried burying her face in his chest. If it was any other moment he would have laughed at her for making such a funny statement. Dead? How silly? They are very much alive and hugging. He shook his head at his wife for being melodramatic.

"We are not yet but we will die if we don't get out from here." He said ruffling her hair. She cried gripping his right hand for support making him flinch in pain. She rose her head up from his chest and looked at his face and then looked at his right hand which had fresh burns.

"Omg! Rishab, you... your hand..." she panicked and her hands started shaking vigorously out of her control. "Shush! Shush! I'm okay. I'm okay." He said grasping both her hands with his one hand and with other hand he caressed cheek wiping off her tears.

Then swiftly he stood up and yanked her up as well by holding her hand. He took her shawl from her neck and wrapped it around his palm and he put down the fire at the sides of the hole of the emergency trap door at the ceiling.

"Madhu, I will give you a push and you just climb up." He told her. Her eyes widen as she looked up the burning elevator cables.

"I can't do this." She said and held her head as it started spinning.

"Madhu, this is not the time to panic. I know you can do this Madhu. You just climb up and I will follow you. There is nothing to worry, okay. We can climb the metal ladder at the side and go up. It's easy" "No" she shook her head as she started crying again.

"Stop crying" he said gritting his teeth. His patience was running thin.

"You are strong, baby. You can do this." He cajoled.

"No, please. You leave me and go. Please you go."

"Madhu, I don't have time to deal with your crying crap. You are coming with me, now" he dragged her hand but she snatched it away and went far away from him in fear.

"No, I can't do this." She said stubbornly like an unruly kid.

He glared at her angrily for a moment but then his eyes soften seeing how scared she was and hearing her say "I am scared of heights, Rishab." She pleaded as she ran her hand through her tangled hair and held her head tight. "Please don't faint! Just hold yourself for five more minutes, okay?" he said to her softly.

"I'm going up and I will give you my hand. Just grab it and I will lift you up. Got it?" he asked. He figured she will not pluck the courage to climb up first so he had to do that and show it was easy.

She just stared at him with fear stricken face unsure of what they were going to do now.

In one hop he grabbed the shaft of the elevator and like a Ninja he pushed himself up by placing his footings rightly on the wall. Once he was up and out of the elevator cab he looked to see an exit route. Rk quickly untied the shawl from his hand and tied the one end of the shawl to the metal ladder attached to the side of the wall and rolled the other end to his hand. He leaned down and gave his hand to his wife to grab.

"Madhu, just give me your hand." He offered his right hand.

"No, you can't lift me up. Your hand is already burnt." She said chattering her teeth. Tears blurred her vision seeing his hand getting redder with the burn.

"It's nothing. You don't worry about my hand. You are important to me than my hand. You please just hold my hand and I will pull you up" he growled at her. He was beyond mad at her for being un-f**king-believably stubborn at this moment and not just doing what she was told.

Suddenly, the elevator started descending down making Rk to stumble back in loss of balance and he quickly rolled off the shawl from his hand and let it go. The elevator stopped with a jerk as once again the emergency break locked the elevator car from moving.

"Rishab, Rishab... are you okay?" she cried as she couldn't see his face from the gap at the ceiling.

"For the love of God stop crying and give me your f**king hand" he reappeared in view making her breathe again.

"Here" she finally lifted her right hand up.

"It will pain you if I pull your weight up holding your right hand as it's not completely healed so give me your left hand."

She nodded her head and gave her left hand but she couldn't reach the height.

"Jump! I will grab your hand" he guided her. She jumped but she couldn't reach him.

"I can't do this." She put her head down defeated. Her hands on her knees, her legs panting.

Her fate was sealed to get stuck in the elevator and die when it crashed down to the floor when it free falls. She knew it! She closed her eyes as tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Madhu..." he called her in a gentle tone which made her look at him.

"For me, try once. Please." he begged looking straight at her eyes. She stared back at him helplessly. "I love you, Madhu. I want to live with you. Trust me and give me your hand, please" he pleaded. She closed her eyes for a moment taking a calming breathe, determined to try and succeed for her husband, after all they love each other so much to just die like that in a freaking second without enjoying anything in their lives. She jumped and luckily he got hold of her hand and struggled to lift her up. It wasn't easy to lift someone up from a pit that too when your hand was roasted. Madhu wrapped her free hand around his neck and he finally managed to pull her out of the elevator car.

"That was taxing!" He whooshed. "You need to work out and reduce some weight." That wasn't a request but an order from him to her. "You are getting heavy." He kept her closer to him holding her waist.

"Shut up!" She can't believe her husband could tease her at this moment. Was he teasing? Or was he stating the truth?

Rk quickly put his feet on the step of the metal ladder and held the railing firmly with one hand and with other he clutched Madhu securely and pulled closer to his body. It was like Rishab's body stuck to the ladder and Madhu's body stuck to him. "Hold the railing" he suggested but she had her hands tightly wrapped around his neck almost suffocating him and she was standing on his feet as there was no place to keep her feet on the ladder step.

As if the elevator was hanging on just for them to get off its shoulder and once they shifted their feet to the ladder, the elevator cables broke as well as the emergency break and the elevator car zoomed down from the 11th floor and hit the ground with a massive sound almost shaking the whole building.

Madhu turned her head from his neck and looked down at the depth.

"I'm scared of heights..." her murmured as her head started spinning, her eyes drooped tiredly and her grip around his neck loosened. Though Rishab was holding her firmly still it would be difficult for him to hold her with one hand if she goes completely limp.

"Madhu..." he held her body closer making her breast press against his chest.

"We made it. We are alive" he whispered and when she didn't respond and rolled her head back ready to welcome the darkness, he quickly clamped her mouth with his for a kiss. He tenderly nibbled her lower lips. 

"Kiss me" he said against their lips. He knew it was the only way to keep her conscious. At once, she was distracted from the fear of heights and the cloud of giddiness was cleared and she started reciprocating to his kiss and she once again tightened her arms around his neck and clung tighter to him as if her life depends on him.

~~~

"Hello, Joshi, ACP Kundra here. I need you to get me my apartment CC TV footage. Now!" he ordered.

"Yes, Sir" he replied over the phone.

"I will meet you in the station in an hour. Will you get the footage ready for me to check by then?" Rk asked

"Sure, Sir."

"Good"

"Sir, any incident happened at your apartment? Are you and ma'am okay, Sir?" Joshi asked in concern.

"Joshi take our team to my apartment and there you will find what's wrong. Oh and surf the place thoroughly. Don't miss out any evidence. I will be there in an hour." He snapped and cut the call.

"How long you are going to cry your eyes out?" Rk asked irately. He was getting sick of her crying. Yeah, he was rude but he can't help snapping at her seeing her crying inconsolably.

"There was a bomb in the elevator, Rishab." She shouted. "Bomb!" she stressed again. she covered her mouth with her shaky fingers to stiffle her sob. "We both could have been got killed in there. How you expect me not to cry?" she asked him in disbelief.

"We are safe now right?" he asked keeping his eyes on the road.

"I'm not like you, Rishab. I just can't act normal like you as if nothing had happened. I... I'm frightened. I... I just can't snap out of the incident which took place not even an hour back."

"Okay, relax." He placed his hand on her shoulder. "I'm taking you to your parents place..."

"No, please no. Not there. Take me to your parents place. They are easy to handle. You just brief them what's happened and they will understand unlike my parents. My parents will surely create a scene and I am in no state to console them."

"Okay. I want you to take a nap and forget everything." Rk said giving her a side way glance.

"Easy to say" she said crossing her hands over her chest. She knew this incident will give her nightmares and she will wake up screaming night after night. "My poor husband, you have to put with this shit now." She thought sadly. She didn't bother to wipe her tears as she knew her tears won't listen to her from stop pouring down.

"Try for me."

"I'm trying everything only for you." she said leaning on his shoulder.

"I know..." He kissed her hair.

"Rishab, I am sorry for giving you a hard time there...and thanks for not giving up on me." She apologized for making him beg to her to give her hand to him in the elevator. If he hadn't pulled her up and out of the elevator she wouldn't be holding her husband's arm and leaning on him now.

"I must say you are one hell lot of stubborn and you really pissed me off in there. For a moment I thought we wont make it out of the death trap" He said gritting his teeth remembering how much he had struggled to bring her out of the elevator car.

"I was in the state of shock." she reasoned.

"I know but then you should know to act wisely and quickly in life or death situations."

"I'm not decisive like you."

"Try to be decisive and take risks to survive."

"Okay, I will" she agreed. Then they both remained in complete silence.

"So who do you suspect?" Madhu asked breaking the silence.

"Not sure at the moment."

"Sultan?" Madhu asked making a wild guess.

"No!"

"How can you be so sure?" Madhu asked with a frown.

"I know"

"How?"

"Because Sultan is dead, already!" Rk said with a smirk.

"What? When? You didn't tell me?" Madhu asked in surprise.

"Rishab... tell me?"

"We are here. We will talk later." He stopped the car in front of his parents' house and clambered out of it.

"Shocked again?" Rk clicked his fingers in front of her face bringing her back to earth. "Come out." He held her hand and helped her out of the car.

"Rishab, Madhu?" Radha opened the door and looked so surprised seeing them at her door step. Madhu faintly smiled at her mom-in-law and walked in and sat on the couch.

"Mom, I want you to take care of Madhu. I have some work to finish off first. I will come home late." He said to Radha in a soft tone.

"Rishu, wait. What's wrong? You both look like a total mess" Radha said holding Rk's hand making him grimace his face. He had worn a jacket hiding his burned skin from his mother's view.

"Nothing to worry. Just a small issue. I will clear the mess soon, mom." Rk said and kissed his mother's temple.

"If you say so" Radha nodded her head understanding and trusting her son but still worry edged her eyes

"We will be staying here for few days, mom" he informed.

"It's your house, Rishab" Radha said making him nod.

"Mom, be with her till I get back home. And don't ask her anything. I will tell you everything when the right time comes"

"Okay, Rishu." Radha agreed caressing her son's cheek.

"My life will be so easy only if my wife is just like you mom. Never questions me but only agrees to what I say." He teased looking at Madhu. She just rolled her eyes and puckered her lips to a pretty pout.

"I am your mother and she is your wife. There is a difference okay? She has all right in the world to question you, defy you and disagree with you."

"Okay! I know you are team Madhubala so I will never win as you will always support her." He said raising up his hands in defeat. Madhu giggled. Rishab smiled at her.

"Okay, I will keep going, mom" Rishab announced.

"Have something to eat and go, Rishu. You look drained."

"No, mom, I am in a hurry. You feed her something."

"I will." She smiled and walked into the kitchen to get something to drink and bite for Madhu.

Rk walked towards the couch and stood in front of Madhu.

"You have a lot to answer me." Madhu said looking up at him.

"When I get back home I will answer to all your questions."

"I will be waiting for you."

He smiled and kissed her forehead.

"Rishab" she held his hand when he turned on his heels to walk away.

"Hmm?"

"If you go to our apartment don't forget to feed my babies (fishes) okay?"

Rk gave her mock glare.

"Pretty please" she gave him a puppy look.

"Okay." He gave in making her grin widely.

"Rishab" she stopped him again.

"What now?"

"I love you too. I want to live with you too. I trust you more than my life and that's why I gave my hand to you. Thank you." She replied to his words which he uttered at the crucial moment in the elevator. The words which gave her hope to fight.

He smiled a dazzling smile. Ruffled her hair affectionately. Then he walked out of the house leaving Madhu smile happily.

... to be continued!!!

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