Chapter 40: Queen of Novel: The Abduction

The heavy sliding door of the minivan violently ripped open.

A group of broad-shouldered, menacing figures stepped out onto the street, their shadows falling directly over the two children.

They wore cheap, dark clothes, their faces hardened by years of street grit. They didn’t look like local thugs; they moved with a synchronized, calculated aggression that made the quiet afternoon air suddenly feel freezing cold.

Ananya instinctively took a step back, her analytical mind struggling to process the sudden danger. But she forced herself to stand tall.

"Who are you?" Ananya demanded, her voice trembling slightly but laced with a fierce, protective defiance. "And what are you doing blocking our way?"

She quickly glanced at Rohan, expecting him to join her in shouting them away. But when she saw his face, her blood ran cold.

Rohan was completely pale. His eyes were wide, fixated on the burly man standing at the front of the group. His usual bright, chaotic energy was entirely gone, replaced by a raw, suffocating terror.

"It’s you..." Rohan whispered, taking a protective half-step in front of Ananya. He pointed a shaking finger at the men. "You... you guys are the ones who came to the ground. You’re the ones who beat me up!"

The leader of the group, a heavy-set man with a thick scar across his jaw, didn’t even acknowledge Rohan’s accusation. Instead, he pulled a battered black cell phone from his pocket and held it to his ear.

"Boss," the scarred man spoke, his voice rough like sandpaper. "We have a problem. The target isn’t alone. There’s a little girl with him."

A raspy, distorted voice crackled loudly through the phone’s earpiece, loud enough for Ananya to hear the chilling words.

"It doesn’t matter. Bring them both."

"Okay, Boss," the man replied, slipping the phone back into his pocket. He cracked his knuckles, looking at his crew. "Boss says to take them both. Don’t leave any witnesses."

He then turned his cold, dead gaze toward the nine-year-old boy. "Hey, Rohan. Be a good kid and get in the van quietly. We don’t have all day."

Rohan stood his ground, his fists clenched tightly at his sides. "How do you know my name? Where are you trying to take us?!"

"You don’t need to know anything," the scarred man snarled, taking a heavy, threatening step forward. "Just get in the damn van."

Rohan’s survival instincts finally kicked in. He knew exactly what these men were capable of. He turned his head slightly, his eyes locking onto Ananya with desperate urgency.

"Run, Ananya!" Rohan screamed at the top of his lungs. "RUN! "

They didn’t wait for a second command. Both children spun around and sprinted down the narrow, shaded lane as fast as their legs could carry them. The heavy, thudding footsteps of the grown men immediately followed, echoing terrifyingly close behind them.

"Catch them!" a voice barked from behind.

Ananya ran with everything she had, her heavy school bag bouncing painfully against her back. Her lungs burned, her heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird. But she was small, and the gravel on the roadside was loose and unforgiving.

Suddenly, her polished school shoe caught on a jagged rock.

Ananya cried out as her footing completely gave way. She tumbled hard onto the unforgiving concrete, scraping her knees and palms raw. The impact knocked the wind entirely out of her lungs.

She tried to scramble up, but a sharp, blinding pain shot through her twisted ankle. She couldn’t stand.

She looked up and saw the massive shadows of the men rapidly closing the distance.

"Rohan, run!" Ananya screamed, tears of sheer panic welling in her eyes. She waved her hand frantically at him. "Run away! I can’t run anymore! Just go!"

But Rohan didn’t keep running. He didn’t escape.

The moment he saw her fall, he stopped dead in his tracks, spun around, and sprinted straight back toward the danger.

The first goon reached Ananya, raising a heavy, calloused hand to strike the fallen girl.

Before the blow could land, a small blur of white and blue school uniform threw itself violently into the man’s path. Rohan jumped directly in front of Ananya, shielding her with his own body just as the man’s heavy fist came down.

CRACK.

The punch caught Rohan squarely in the jaw. He was sent flying backward, crashing into the dust right beside Ananya.

But the men didn’t stop. Furious at the boy’s resistance, two of the goons descended on him. They began to kick and punch the boy mercilessly, raining heavy blows down on his ribs, his back, and his already injured head.

"Stop!" Ananya shrieked, her voice tearing with pure agony as she watched her best friend being brutally beaten right in front of her.

She dragged herself forward, sobbing uncontrollably, trying to reach out to them.

"Please, stop it! Don’t hit him anymore!" Ananya cried, her tears mixing with the dust on her face. "Please! He’s already hurt! You’re hurting him!"

Rohan didn’t cry out. He just curled into a tight ball, his arms wrapped over his head, taking the brutal punishment so that Ananya wouldn’t have to.

"Okay, okay, boys. That’s enough," the scarred leader finally barked, raising his hand. The goons stepped back, panting slightly. "Don’t kill him here. Grab them both and throw them in the back."

Rough, massive hands grabbed Ananya by her arms, violently yanking her off the ground. She kicked and thrashed, but her small frame was entirely powerless against the grown men.

Another man hauled the severely injured, semi-conscious Rohan up by the collar of his torn shirt.

They were dragged back to the idling vehicle. With a ruthless shove, the unhurt Ananya and the battered, bleeding Rohan were thrown onto the hard metal floor of the minivan.

The heavy sliding door slammed shut with a sickening, metallic clatter, plunging them both into pitch-black darkness.

The engine roared to life, the tires squealing against the asphalt, leaving nothing behind on the empty street but Ananya’s dropped school bag and a terrifying, absolute silence.