chapter 36
Author POV
After hours of handling blood, guns, and Italians who bowed to his command, Rudra finally closed the door of his suite. The whole world knew him as the devil but only one woman could pull the softness out of his soul.
He sat on the edge of the bed, loosened his shirt’s top button, and dialed her. The moment her face popped on screen, his voice dropped low almost boyish.
“Jaan…” he whispered, as though the word itself carried all his exhaustion.
Ishni POV
I was lying in bed with Phoenix curled beside me, scrolling through my case files, when suddenly the screen lit up. His face appeared sharp jaw, messy hair, eyes tired but burning only for me.
“Rudra…?” I whispered, my lips curving. “Aap thik ho na?”
He leaned closer to the camera, eyes softening the way they only did for me.
“Main tabhi thik hoon, jab aapko dekh lu.”
I blinked, trying not to melt, but Phoenix chose that exact moment to bark, glaring at the phone like “This man again.”
Rudra’s eyes flicked to the screen, noticing Phoenix snuggling against me. His jaw tightened dramatically.
“Jaan… iss janwar ko side karo. Main aapko dekhne aya hoon, usse nahi.”
I laughed softly, brushing Phoenix’s head. “Rudra, he’s missing you too…”
“Accha? Phir usse bolo bed se neeche jaaye. Mujhe sirf meri wife dikhni chahiye, samjhi aap?” he said, his voice half possessive, half childishly jealous.
I smiled, heart swelling at the way even distance couldn’t dim his drama. “Aap bilkul pagal ho Rudra ji…”
“Pagal toh hoon…” he whispered, leaning close to the screen, eyes dark. “…aapke pyaar mein.”
I was about to tease Rudra back when suddenly Phoenix shoved his giant jaguar face right into the camera, his whiskers brushing the lens. His big eyes looked directly at Rudra, almost pleading.
It was as if he was saying: “Boss, please come back fast! Your wife is making me wear bows, socks, and dance like a circus animal. I am NOT trained for this humiliation.”
I burst out laughing, clutching my stomach. “See Rudra? Even Phoenix wants you back! He’s begging you!”
On the screen, Rudra’s jaw dropped and then he pinched the bridge of his nose dramatically.
“Unbelievable…” he muttered. “Jaan, I left a deadly jaguar to protect you. And now look at him… reporting to me like a victim.”
Phoenix snorted loudly as if agreeing, then shoved his head closer to the camera again.
I was laughing so hard by now that I couldn’t even reply, tears pricking my eyes. Phoenix just wagged his tail, pretending innocent, while Rudra kept looking between us like an over-jealous husband and a betrayed mafia don.
Author POV
Rudra’s glare slowly faded the moment his eyes shifted from Phoenix to Ishni. She was still laughing, cheeks red, eyes shining like stars. For a second, the deadly mafia king sitting in Italy wasn’t there anymore just a husband hopelessly in love.
“Bas, jaan…” his voice softened, deep and low, “…stop laughing like that, or I’ll leave everything here and come back right now.”
Ishni blinked, smile frozen on her lips. “Rudra…”
He leaned closer to the screen, his dark eyes burning. “Do you even know what you’re doing to me? I came here with blood on my hands, chaos all around me and one look at you, one laugh of yours… and I forget everything.”
Her throat tightened, tears welled up again. “Rudra… I miss you so much.”
“I miss you more, baccha.” His tone was so tender it felt like a caress. “Every breath without you feels heavy. But don’t worry, I’ll finish this fast… and then I’ll be back in your arms, exactly where I belong.”
Phoenix, sensing the moment, rested his head gently on Ishni’s lap, his earlier dramatic expression completely gone.
Ishni sniffled, whispering, “Promise?”
Rudra smiled, lifting his hand to the camera as if touching her face. “I promise, jaan. Soon. Just hold on for me.”
And with that, before she could reply, he kissed the screen softly and ended the call leaving her blushing, smiling, and hugging Phoenix tight.
Rudra’s smile faded the instant the call ended. His jaw tightened, the softness in his eyes turning to steel once again.
A knock on the door.
“Come in,” his voice was cold.
Vipul entered, his face pale, tension heavy in his tone. “Boss… Marco was just a distraction. The ones truly messing with us… it’s the Romano family.”
The glass in Rudra’s hand cracked under his grip, veins flexing on his arm. “Romano…” he repeated, his voice a deadly whisper.
He stood up slowly, his aura shifting like a storm ready to explode. “So those bastards think they can touch me?” His eyes burned, his tone ruthless. “They forgot one rule when you cross RudraSingh Rajput, you don’t live to regret it."
“Boss, they called you for a dinner talk. Would you like to go?” Vipul asked cautiously, his tone careful as if testing the waters.
Rudra leaned back in his chair, the sharpness in his eyes enough to silence the entire room. A dangerous smirk curved his lips.
“Dinner talk?” he repeated, his voice low, almost mocking. “If they think they can sit across the table with me after daring to mess with what’s mine, then fine.”
He stood, fixing the cuffs of his black shirt, the aura around him growing darker with every passing second.
“Right then Prepare. I’ll meet them tonight… and show them what happens when they cross me.”
Vipul bowed his head. “Yes, boss.”
After Vipul left, Rudra walked towards the balcony. The city stretched out before him, glittering with countless lights, but none of it compared to the light he carried in his heart the one waiting for him back home.
His phone buzzed. A video call.
A smile tugged at his lips the moment he saw her name.
“Yes, jaan?” he answered, his voice instantly softening.
Ishni appeared on screen, her eyes round with worry. “Rudra… mai puchna bhul gayi… aapne khana khaya?” she asked gently, her voice almost like a whisper.
Rudra’s heart melted at her innocence. He chuckled softly, shaking his head. “Meri jaan, I’m surrounded by guns and enemies, and all you care about is my food?”
She pouted, “haan toh? Agar aap khana nahi khayenge toh strong kaise raoge?
Rudra’s eyes softened, his hand brushing through his hair as he sighed.
“Baccha… aap meri jaan ho. Aapke liye hi toh sab kuch kar raha hoon. Don’t worry, I’ll eat…
warna aapki daant sunni padegi, hmm?”
She smiled faintly, her lashes wet, “pakka?”
He kissed the camera lens softly. “Pakka.”
Time skip
The Romano mansion was glowing in golden chandeliers, long dining table stretched with expensive wines and delicacies but beneath the shine, the air was thick with danger. Every Romano man sat upright, their eyes sharp, their smiles hiding venom.
And then footsteps.
Rudra Singh Rajput walked in, dressed in black, his aura alone enough to silence the room. Every chair scraped as men stood in respect, though none dared look him straight in the eye.
“Mr. Rajput,” the Romano boss, Alessandro Romano, rose with a polite smile. “Finally, the ghost of India blesses us in Italy.”
Rudra didn’t smile back. He slid into his chair at the head of the table, his men flanking the walls. His voice was deep, calm, and lethal.
“Let’s skip the pleasantries, Romano. You called me for a dinner. Talk.”
Alessandro chuckled, lifting his wine. “Ahh, straight to the point. We like that. You see… Italy has been ours for decades. Marco was a mere pawn. But when you touch one Romano pawn… you touch the whole family.”
The table went tense. Rudra leaned forward slightly, his dark eyes glinting under the light.
“You should’ve taught your pawn not to touch what’s mine.”
A pin-drop silence. The Romani exchanged glances, Alessandro’s smirk faltered.
Rudra’s fingers tapped the glass lightly.
The Romano boss swallowed, masking his unease with a laugh. “You are bold, Mr. Rajput. But Italy doesn’t bend so easily.”
Rudra tilted his head, smirk never leaving. “Italy doesn’t have to bend… it just has to kneel when I’m done.”
The atmosphere cracked with tension, Romano men gripping their guns under the table, Rudra’s men mirroring the gesture from the walls. For a moment, war sat at the table with them.
Alessandro finally raised his glass. “Then let’s toast to a fragile truce.”
Rudra’s eyes didn’t leave his. He raised his glass lazily, but his words were venom
“A truce that breaks once… will never exist twice.”
Clink.
The dinner began, but every bite tasted like poison.
The dinner dragged on with forced laughter, clinking glasses, and veiled threats disguised as politeness.
Rudra barely touched the wine, his sharp gaze scanning every Romano move.
He was calm too calm but his men on the walls could see his fingers drumming ever so lightly on the glass, a silent code that meant: Stay sharp.
Alessandro Romano leaned back with a smug smile. “See, Mr. Rajput… even rivals can share a meal. Perhaps, in time, we may even be… allies.”
Rudra’s smirk was colder than the wine. “I don’t share meals with snakes, Romano. I simply wait for them to choke on their own venom.”
A tense silence fell again. But then softly, silently one of the waiters bent down beside Rudra, setting a folded napkin by his plate as if nothing unusual. He slipped away before anyone could notice.
Rudra’s eyes flicked down. His hand, steady as stone, unfolded the napkin under the table. Inside, scribbled in hurried handwriting:
“Don’t trust Romano. Someone close is leaking your moves. Back in India"
For the first time, the glass in Rudra’s hand cracked slightly under his grip. His eyes darkened, jaw tightening. Nobody at the table saw it, but every man in the room felt the sudden shift in air. The kind of shift that meant someone wasn’t going to walk out alive tonight.
Rudra slowly lifted his gaze, locking eyes with Alessandro. His lips curled into a deadly smile.
“Enjoy your meal, Romano,” he murmured, voice low, dangerous, final. “Because it might be your last.”
The Romani laughed nervously, but none could shake the feeling that Rudra Singh Rajput had just declared silent war.
In India
Somewhere…
“Do you heard Rudra isn’t in India?” Swetha said, her lips curling into a wicked smile as she sipped her drink.
The man sitting beside her chuckled darkly, “You’re right… it’s the perfect chance for us. Without him here, Ishni is nothing. We’ll kill her… and finish what we started.”
Swetha leaned closer, her eyes gleaming with revenge. “Yes… and once Ishni is gone, Rudra will come back broken. That’s when we’ll strike him too.”
“This time,” the man smirked, “he won’t survive.”
Swetha laughed coldly, “Exactly… this time, it’s our turn to end the Rajput."
The vase shattered against the floor like a gunshot. Both heads snapped toward the door.
“It seems someone heard us,” Swetha hissed, eyes narrowing.
Rudra’s grandmother stood framed in the doorway, face pale and furious. “How can you both be so cruel? How could you do this to him—he is your—”
The man cut her off with a hard shove of words. “Don’t! He is nothing to me.”
Grandmother’s hands trembled. “I will tell him everything. I will not let you destroy him,” she said, voice cracking, and turned to leave.
Swetha rose, smoothing her saree, lips thin. “If she speaks, our plan is ruined,” she snapped, and moved after the old woman, quick and cold.
The old lady hurried down the steps, breath quick. A firm hand closed on her wrist Swetha’s.
“You won’t do anything,” Swetha hissed.
“I will,” the grandmother snapped, wrenching her hand free. “And you can’t stop me.”
The old lady, still defiant, tried to walk past them toward the stairs. Swetha’s eyes burned with rage, and in a fit of fury she shoved her hard.
“Enough of this!” Swetha hissed.
The old lady gasped, her frail body losing balance. Her cane clattered against the floor as she stumbled backward. Time seemed to freeze for a moment her terrified eyes locked on Swetha’s, then on the man standing there.
And then thud… thud… thud…
Her body tumbled down the staircase, each fall echoing through the silent mansion, until she hit the floor with a final, sickening crash.
The maids nearby screamed in horror, rushing forward. “Dadi ji!” one of them cried, kneeling beside her trembling frame. Blood seeped from her forehead, her breaths shallow.