It was raining heavily in the morning hours, while a police jeep stopped at the underpopulated secluded area away from the dilapidated highway.

The DCP, Mr. Aman Bedi got out of the jeep with his rain jacket on, as he rushed to the spot. He saw a man dead on the ground with face facing the ground.

"Damn!!!" He clutched his temples, as he looked towards his side at Aditya, who was looking at the body through his wet hair strands over his eyes, clutching the pistol in his hands.

"Aditya!!"

He didn't give any response, while the DCP looked at the other police officers there.

"How did this happen??" He looked at Ravi Saxena, the Inspector of Police, "Ravi, how did you all let this happen? It was a controlled location right?? And didn't you check the area clearance before the operation?"

He turned at the other officers, "What did you all come here for?? Stand and sight-see the location?? ACP Hooda is new to Mumbai, and he came here especially for this operation. I wanted you officers to assist him and how did you let this happen??"

"Sir, we were damn sure, there would be no one at this location. We usually conduct all our encounters here only. I have no idea why did this man come to this place first of all. This place even has a barrier. And to our bad luck, he was wearing exactly the same colored shirt as Christopher. Before we could act, it was late...and..."

The DCP shouted, "You are giving explanations like school kids!! You had to be alert, not blame your luck for this! Idiots!! Well, now what's the status of Christopher??"

"Sir, he couldn't run far. Our officers caught him."

"Good." He looked at the body on the ground, "Is his death confirmed?"

"I killed him!" Aditya said, while the DCP looked at him with a pensive look.

"In one shot itself?" The DCP asked in a low tone, while Ravi answered, "It was a head shot, Sir."

The DCP closed his eyes with an irritated look, while he turned at his other officers, "Enquire about this guy's details. Why did he come here and such...I need it immediately!"

He turned at Aditya and patted his shoulder, "Aditya, you need not panic. It's not your fault. We will handle this. You first relax and get back to your quarters. Leave the place now."

Aditya failed to leave, as he looked at the DCP, "I killed him. Killed a commoner!"

"Aditya..." The DCP took him away from that spot, "Fine Aditya. But, we have to now see what we can do. Just give us some time. You please leave now. We will handle this."

The DCP called one of the constables from there, "Take ACP Hooda to his quarters. Go!"

Aditya was taken reluctantly from that location in the jeep, while his eyes were still at the dead guy.

The DCP turned back and walked forward looking at the body.

He looked around and spotted a car far away outside the barbed wire barrier.

"Ravi!!" He called out to the Inspector and he came to him.

"Check that car. What is it doing there??"

"Yes Sir." Ravi left the place, and came back to the DCP after some minutes.

"Sir, that is this guy's car. There is his ID card and some bags in it."

"Okayy..." The DCP looked at the body and that car, while he surveyed the area around them.

He looked at Ravi as he said, "Destroy the body!"

"Sir!!" Ravi asked with a shocked look, while the DCP explained, "Simple, take his body. Put it in his car, blast it off and close it as an accident case. Job done!"

"But Sir, that's wrong..." Ravi explained, "Sir, we ourselves...being police..."

"So??" The DCP raised his eyebrows, "Then what do you want us to do? Go and inform everyone we did a wrong encounter?? Shot an innocent commoner instead of a criminal? It's a bloody black mark for our department. Even if Aditya shot him, I got the permission for this encounter. The location and credibility of the encounter falls on me too. I have managed to maintain a clean record these many years. I can't bear a black mark because of this. ACP Hooda will leave happily back to Delhi, what about me? I have to face the department every day. So, do what I say!"

Ravi gave a confused look, while the latter added, "You need not talk about to this to ACP Hooda. Finish off everything, and let me know. I will handle."

Inspector Ravi walked away with a displeased face, while the DCP turned at the body and stared at it.

***

Back at Mussorie, there was a small cottage located by the hills, while a lady entered the cottage. She entered a room and looked inside with a smile.

"How long will you keep looking at yourself in the mirror, Zoya?"

Zoya turned at her, with a wide smile as her curls bounced against her red anarkali suit, as she stood in front of the dressing table.

"If you don't get ready in some time, Yash will have to sleep in the mandap waiting for you."

Zoya laughed, as she walked to her and hugged her with a smile, "I am so excited Aunty!! Finally, the day for what I had waited since ages have come...I am getting married...I am going to be Mrs. Yash Arora!!"

The lady hugged her back and caressed her head, while Zoya looked at her with an elated look, "Hereafter I won't be called as a girl with no one to call her as her own...I will have Yash with me...I will have someone to take care of me, love me, do silly fights with me..."

The lady kissed on Zoya's forehead and smiled, "You have cried a lot and lived alone all these days, and you are destined to have this life now. I am really happy for you and Yash, Zoya!! You both lost your parents at a very young age, and now you are uniting to give each other a reason to live, be a companion throughout this life. May Lord Krishna bless you both, dear!"

Zoya looked down with a smile, while the lady said, "Well, after this day, you will be a Mumbai resident, and this Aunty is going to miss her chirpy Zoya a lot."

"Well..." Zoya went behind her and hugged her, "If that's the case, I will tell Yash that we will take Radha Aunty along with us...if he doesn't agree, I will leave him alone in Mumbai and come back to you."

They laughed, while they heard the car arrive at the entrance. Zoya's eyes gleamed as she exclaimed, "Guess Ajay has come!! Okay Aunty, I will leave...I will call you once I meet Yash at the station. Bye!! Khuda Hafiz Aunty!!"

Zoya grabbed her bags and tripped at the coffee table, while Radha exclaimed, "Careful Zoya, my God!!"

Giggling, Zoya ran down the stairs and came to the door, where Yash's friend Ajay was standing with a devastated look.

"We will leave??" Zoya asked with a smile, while Ajay looked at her and hung his head down unable to look her.

"What happened Ajay??" Zoya asked, while Radha came near Zoya and they looked at each other with a puzzled look.

"Any problem?" Zoya asked with a tensed face.

Ajay avoided answering her, while Zoya turned to Radha, "Aunty, why isn't he telling anything?? I am feeling tensed..." She walked to Ajay and asked, "Please Ajay, what's wrong??"

"Zoya..." Ajay muttered as he looked up at her, "Yash...Zoya, Yash..."

Zoya's lips quivered while she asked, "Yash?? What happened to him?? Is he okay??"

Ajay wiped his tears as he looked at her, "Zoya, I don't know...how to tell this...Yash...Yash is dead!!"

Zoya's eyes were still as tears trickled down her cheeks. She plunged on the floor motionless, while Radha covered her mouth in horror, and looked at a devastated Zoya.

***

Aditya opened the door of his residence, and walked to the center of his living room. He knelt down at the living room, holding the coffee table next to him.

The visual of shooting the guy and then finding him dead on spot kept flashing in his brain.

Aditya banged the table as the glass crashed and fell on the floor.

He screamed loud in frustration and threw his pistol, "How could I do this? How??"

He clutched his hair and vented out, "I have never done a single mistake in my career till date. Why now?? I killed...killed an innocent person...Aditya Hooda never does anything against the protocol...why did this even happen with me...why??"

Aditya looked at the mirror opposite him and glared at his drenched police uniform through the reflection, as tears glistened his angry face.

"No...I can't misuse this uniform to escape from the law...if I have done a mistake, I deserve punishment. Yes, I will do it!"

***

The train to Mumbai travelled while the drizzling rain droplets dripped along the window rails, splashing on Zoya's face.

Zoya wiped her face with her right hand, while she stopped and looked into her hand. She looked at the smudged mehendi design at the bottom of her palm, with tears in her eyes as she recalled an incident a couple of days back.

"She is not even listening to anyone Yash. She is crying since 2 hours." Radha said on phone, opening the door to Zoya's room, while she lied down in the bed with her face down.

"Zoya!! See, Yash wants to talk to you. Are you talking to him or shall I cut the call??"

Zoya wiped her tears and got the phone, still lying down, while Radha stroked Zoya's hair and walked out with a smile.

"Why are you crying, Zoya? What happened so great that you are crying your heart out, not talking to anyone??" Yash asked on phone.

"Then what do you want me to do..." Zoya said sniffing her nose as she sat up in her bed, "You know I wanted everything perfect for our wedding right? But you know what happened in my mehendi??" Zoya asked looking at her hand with a sad look.

"What happened?" Yash giggled, "Mehendi designer came late?"

"Stop making fun Yash!" Zoya sulked, wiping her tears off her cheeks, "I slept off while she was making the design. When I wake up and see, my mehendi was smudged at the bottom...and the colour has gone deep too!"

Yash laughed, "That's it?? Who cries for this, Zoya? Well...people will think it as a new design...who is going to notice it??"

"If it was the design I wouldn't have cried this much, Yash. I had asked to put your initial below the design...but now the letter 'Y' smudged and is appearing as an 'A' now!!"

"Oh my God!!" Yash feigned a shock, "Guess, now at least for this reason, you will have to search someone whose name starts with an 'A' and get married to him!!"

"Yash, I am going to kill you!!" Zoya said in a crying tone, "I wanted your initial to look deep and big. But now I have some other initial in my hand...what will people think who look into my hand??"

"Well...do one thing...tell them my husband's name is Yash Arora...I am going to share his surname after wedding...so I printed my new family name in my hand...simple!"

Zoya stopped crying hearing that, and thought about it, but still displeased she said, "Yash, you are telling me things to cheer up, but don't they say it is inauspicious to happen in a mehendi like this? Nothing will go wrong in our wedding right??"

"Zoya, I only believe in one thing. I love you so much. And my love is stronger and powerful than these trivial incidents. No matter what happens, nothing can change what's destined in our lives!!"

Zoya wept looking at her hand and held it close to her cheek, as she muttered, "Did you see Yash, I always tell you...I am always right...my fear turned out to be true!!"

Just then her phone rang and she picked it up.

"Zoya, where did you go without telling me?? You just left a letter at your room. Where are you??" Radha asked with a panicked look, holding Zoya's letter.

"Aunty, I am going to Mumbai."

"Mumbai?? Zoya...no Zoya...you need not do this...Ajay and I had forbidden you from going to Mumbai. You are someone who can't bear a wound in Yash's body, and now you want to...Zoya, please listen to me!"

"No Aunty...Yash wanted me to come to Mumbai for him...I am doing that only..." Zoya said holding back her tears, "Yash didn't keep his promise, but I will...sorry Aunty!!"

Zoya cut the call, while Radha looked at Ajay.

"Ajay, she is not listening. She is on her way to Mumbai."

"Aunty, I explained you everything about Yash's death. Zoya won't be able to handle all this, and moreover Yash's aunt doesn't even know about Zoya or Yash's marriage plan with her."

He added, "And if Zoya knows she is indirectly a reason for Yash's death, she will kill herself, and I don't want that to happen."

"What do we do now??" Radha was confused, while Ajay took his phone and dialed a number.

He spoke, "Asha, listen. Do me a favour."

***

"You are joking Aditya??"

The DCP took a sip from his tea, as he smirked at Aditya looking straight at him with a determined look.

"There is nothing to joke about, Sir!" Aditya said firmly, "Law applies to me as well...I murdered an innocent person in the name of duty...I should be punished...file a case against me."

The DCP walked to him with a smile, "ACP Aditya Hooda, I have heard a lot about you...honest police officer, zero black marks, dedicated to his duty...but your dedication is going to affect all of us Aditya."

Aditya frowned hearing that, while the latter added, "See Aditya, we have wrapped up that case in such a way that no one will ever have a doubt on his death. We have scripted it to a clear cut car accident. The case is cleared."

Aditya looked on with an angry look, while the DCP added, "So, now why do you want to rekindle all this nonsense and create a black mark to our department? You are a reputed police officer, just brush this off and continue your duty like just another day...it's good for you and us Aditya!!"

Aditya smirked, "Great!! So even if I had shot your son or brother too, you would have brushed it off with a scripted accident case??"

"Aditya!!!" shouted the DCP, while Aditya glared back, "These high pitched threats won't work with Aditya Hooda!! I will do what I have to do!!"

Aditya turned back and walked to the door, while the DCP said, "Fine, Aditya. Try your luck. Remember, baseless evidences and statements never work."

Aditya turned at him with a stare while he added, "Think. You have your job safe with you now. Be grateful to me for that and leave. And moreover when his body itself is destroyed and his case is closed as an accident, whatever you say is going to be an imaginative story to the department. And even if you say that we forged this, who is going to believe you?"

Aditya looked at him in frustration, and looked at the other officers who accompanied him, who avoided looking at Aditya.

The DCP walked to him, "You have two options. Both are favorable to us, but you only have one favorable choice. Think and act accordingly!!"

Aditya walked towards him with a firm look, "I have always walked with heads high, Mr. Bedi. I don't live in anyone's mercy...Be it whatever is the cost of my honesty, Aditya Hooda will never lead a life with compromise!!"

Aditya stormed out of the office and got in his bike, while the DCP smirked, "Let's see Aditya Hooda...if you can apply this principle everywhere in life!!"