Chapter 2 I Am Going Back To Hell

• (REYA'S POV)
• “Who will be the saviour of the Emeralds after CEO Jaden Emeralds sudden passing away?”
• The world started spinning around me, holding the chair to steady myself, I browsed through the article which further stated, “This comes as an utter shock and dismay of many as the CEO and owner of the EMERALDS GROUP, Mr Jaden Emeralds, departed from this world a few days ago in a brutal car accident. A massive collision with a truck resulted in a ghastly scene. The paramedics rushed to the spot of the accident. He was taken away to the hospital where he was declared dead. This has caused a huge uproar amongst several industries as EMERALDS has a vast affiliation in various lines of businesses. The local police investigation has not been made public, being a high profile case. There are speculations regarding the incident not being a mere accident but a planned murder.”
• Panicked and eyes filled with tears, I dialled Jeff’s phone number, which was engaged. Trying again and again like crazy, I kept on calling him, until finally his voice came through, “Hello, Reya”.
• Without knowing what to say, what to ask, like my voice was lost somewhere, I could not utter a single sound. Sensing my silence he asked, “Reya, are you there? I have been trying to reach you for the past two days to tell you something very important. Reya Dear, Please as your uncle, please listen to me once and don't hang up the call.”
• “Just cut to the chase, is Jaden Emeralds really no more?” There was a heavy silence at the other end now, which conveyed the message.
• I was speechless. My father, Jaden Emeralds, I may not like him but nonetheless, he is my father. Something shattered inside me as my breathing became heavy.
• Calming my nerves, I asked him what exactly happened and he replied as it was written in the article. He further added, “Reya, now you have to return home, for the funeral, as well as taking over the Emeralds”. My mind was quite chaotic but the last line of his words caught my attention.
• “Why would I be taking over the Emeralds? My sister is still there. She is well and truly the heiress of your so-called Emeralds Group.”
• The quietness on the other side of the phone made me felt uneasy. After a few seconds of silence he spoke again, “Marsha is in the ICU and in a quite critical condition, the doctors are not very positive about it”, his voice trailing off in the end. There was all black and nothing else in front of my eyes. This last piece of information was enough for me to lose my mind. It was like being stuck by lightening. The feeling was as if the land beneath me has sunken.
• “Reya, you are part of the Emeralds as well, you are the young miss. You have to come back now. The family needs you”.
• “Family, what family, this damn family is just a hoax. Fucking family. A family where my mother was never accepted and appreciated. A family which took the life of my mother and my childhood away in a blink of an eye. You call it a family”. I refuted as rage and resentment of the past events crept on me, I let go off my emotions, going ballistic.
• “My name is Reya Arya and not Emeralds”, saying that I disconnected the call. After the anger and fury subsided, the realisation of losing a parent and my sister’s condition hit me hard. I wanted to be comforted, calling Avimay I broke down when the words escape from mouth. “Father, Avimay, my father”. Before I could say anything further, Avimay consoled me, “I know Reya, I know. I am coming to get you, ok. You stay put and don’t do anything rash, hmmm.”
• I cried and cried and cried and after that the exhaustion overtook me and I fainted.
• *About 3 hours later*
• I jolted with a start, a mind splitting headache welcomed me. I woke up in my bed, thinking all that happened must have been a nightmare, yes surely a nightmare, but VMAy’s voice interrupted my chain of thoughts.
• “Reya, Don’t move so abruptly, you are not in a good condition.”
• The drip attached to my hand, the stinging pain suddenly strucked me. Avimay and Aarush were looking at me with distress and worry in their eyes. There was an awkward silence. Cutting off the tense atmosphere, I questioned Aarush, “What’s with this, what happened to me?”
• “You fainted due to shock and your body is quite weak. Try not to move much”, he attempted not to bring up my misfortune in the conversation.
• Aarush is Avimay’s brother and a renowned cardiologist.
• Avimay explained to me further, “Your phone disconnected midway during our conversation so I brought him with me, just in case.”
• “Ummhmm”, I nodded understanding her concern.
• “So, what now? You will have to go back to Kingsterdom.”
• Kingsterdom, a region famous for its authentic jewelleries and the EMERALDS leading the pack in that domain. A heaven for all jewellery lovers, a scenic and picturesque location. A heaven for most but a hell for me. The most gruesome time in my whole damn life was at that place. Flashbacks of my past trauma started swirling inside my head.
• It was not like I always hated that family and place, Emeralds and Kingsterdom.
• Kingsterdom was my home, my abode and I was the precious young miss of Emeralds, or I thought so. Although, not much people knew about my existence as there are plenty of enemies of the Emeralds. Regardless, my father used to dote on me and my sister. We both were given heiress lessons. But the actual problem was the so-called extended family. They were constantly drawing comparisons between me and Marsha Di.
• You see, Marsha got her looks from our father where as I was the carbon copy of our mother. She is a typical blonde beauty, with fair skin and rosy cheeks, thin lips, small nose and I have a contrasting appearance to her. Just like my Indian mum, I have distinctive honey tan skin tone and plump lips with light ash brown hair locks and big eyes like that of a deer.
• My mother was never acknowledged by the Emeralds because of her family background and origin. They thought themselves as too high and mighty and treated my mother as some lowlife. My mother, Krishna Arya, the most beautiful and confident woman in the world withered away just like that because of their constant bullying and humiliation. Amongst the Emeralds, Jeff’s wife, Bella Emerald was her biggest oppressor.
• At each and every event and gathering, she persistently disgraced my mother. Jeff, although not openly, did not like my mother either. He, low-key hated my mother. According to him, my mother didn’t deserve my father and our family and she was an obstacle in my father’s path to greatness. All this happened behind my father’s back. My mother tried to convey this trashy behaviour of his family numerous times to him but he always brushed her off. In front of my father, at every occasion, they portrayed themselves as loving and accepting in- laws.
• Calling me back from the whirlwind of past unforgettable thoughts, Avimay patted my back. “Reya, Reya. If it is difficult for you, don’t go back. That place has always been a bane for you.”
• *Sighing* "That house surely has tormented me but I have to go this time. It is inevitable”, I declared. “Because not just my father but Marsha Di was also involved in that ghastly accident and now is in intensive care. I have to be there for her.”
• “WHAT?” Avimay gasped in shock.
• “Yes, I called Jeff this morning and he told me about the current scenario. Vmay, please do me a favour. Book a flight to Kingsterdom. The earliest, the best. I HAVE TO GO BACK TO THAT HELL.”
• To be continued. . . . . . . . .