Chapter 48 #5
But if Akansha married Shaurya, she wouldn't need to work for survival anymore, and Jaya feared losing access to her daughter's earnings.
Vasant had hated his wife that day. Hated the cruel, stepmother-like treatment she gave their own daughter.
And that hatred was exactly why he agreed to Shaurya's proposal without thinking beyond Akansha finally escaping that house.
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Jaya cried as she stared at her daughter and granddaughter on the television screen. She had realized Akansha's value only after she left.
Dilip had lost his job, and with his gambling addiction, they had lost whatever generational wealth remained. He was frequently caught in such acts and had even been arrested many times. Unable to live with him anymore, Suman had returned home and had been staying with them ever since.
Akash had taken over the responsibility of the family. He was emotionally connected only to his father, but he fulfilled his duties towards his mother and Suman as well, more out of obligation than affection.
Jaya regretted everything she had done to her elder daughter. Maybe all their sufferings were the result of those sins.
Suman, too, had realized her mistakes and her sister's love for her, but it was too late now.
Shaurya had once wanted to destroy Dilip for manipulating Aakriti, for filling her mind with hatred against Akansha, and then for ruining Akansha's sister's life. But before he could do anything, Dilip's own habits, arrogance, and cunning nature had destroyed him.
Jaya sobbed, unable to take her eyes off Akansha and Siya.
"We have a granddaughter? She is so pretty... what's her name?", Jaya asked Vasant.
Vasant didn't respond.
He only stared at the television screen until his daughter disappeared from it. The reporter's voice continued in the background, speaking about the Chief Minister, his family, their meeting with the Prime Minister and other political updates, but none of it reached his ears.
Seeing his daughter after five years had filled his eyes.
He already knew about Akansha and Siya. Akash kept updating him about their lives, but Vasant had never dared to ask him to show him a picture of either his daughter or granddaughter.
He was too consumed by the guilt of pushing his daughter from one hell into another.
He didn't know everything Shaurya had done. Akash had only told him that Shaurya had married Akansha for revenge, but Vasant still couldn't fully believe it.
He had seen the love in Shaurya's eyes. Then why?
"Not our granddaughter", Vasant finally said, his voice hard. "She is my granddaughter. That too only if my daughter accepts me back. You and Suman will stay out of Akansha's life now."
Before Jaya could respond, he got up with the help of his walker and slowly made his way towards his room.
"Please don't lock the door. I won't come in if you don't want to see me", Jaya pleaded helplessly.
He was a heart patient. He had already suffered a major heart attack once, and fear constantly lived inside her now.
"Fine. But don't show me your face", Vasant said coldly.
Jaya broke down again, crying over how distant her husband and children had become from her. And no one but she was responsible for it.
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Shaurya, Akansha, and Siya visited the Ayodhya Ram temple before returning home.
Akansha had suggested they return directly from Prayagraj, worried about Shaurya's security, but he assured her that everything was under control.
Meanwhile, Akash, Suraj and their team, with the support of the Prime Minister's top security advisor's team, had begun investigating the attacks on Shaurya. After learning that Shaurya and his family had returned, Akash came to his residence.
The three of them were in the hall when he walked in. Shaurya was feeding Siya while Akansha had dozed off on the sofa. She had been waiting for Mrs. Sudha to bring food so she could feed her daughter, but exhaustion had finally overpowered her.
"I didn't know you were so poor that you couldn't even provide a room for my sister", Akash said as he entered.
"Shh... she's tired", Shaurya warned softly.
But before he could stop his daughter, Siya spotted her uncle.
"Mamu!"
She screamed and jumped towards Akash, making Akansha wake up with a jerk.
"It's nothing. Go back to sleep", Shaurya said gently, ruffling her hair when he saw how startled she looked.
Akansha pushed his hand away, fixed her hair and glared at both Akash and Siya for disturbing her sleep.
"Sorry, Di...", Akash whispered.
He was guilty, but far more afraid of her reaction.
"What sorry? I am so tired, and now you've triggered my migraine, idiot", Akansha scolded him.
"Go upstairs and sleep, I'll feed Siya," Shaurya said softly.
He worried deeply about her suffering, especially the migraines she had developed after giving birth to their daughter. He had been consulting several doctors to find a permanent cure for her condition.
"Hm... feed her and make her nap for some time. She needs rest too", Akansha said.
Shaurya nodded.
Akansha turned to leave, her head already throbbing, but suddenly stopped and looked back at her brother.
"What are you doing here, by the way?"
Akash, who was now ruffling Siya's hair, looked slightly caught.
"I came to talk to J... Sir regarding—"
"Regarding the KSI**W Lift Irrigation Project", Shaurya quickly covered.
He knew Akansha wouldn't go to rest if she found out Akash was here to discuss what had happened in Prayagraj.
He also couldn't let her know about the highly confidential matter they were handling.
Not because he didn't trust her, but because it was neither ethical nor safe to involve her in that mess.
Akansha narrowed her eyes.
"Akash, are you here to discuss what happened in Prayagraj?", she asked, carefully avoiding the word attack because Siya was still there.
"Yes, Di", Akash admitted.
He knew better than to lie to his elder sister. She wouldn't hesitate to slap him if she caught him hiding something, so he decided to stay away from trouble and let his boss handle the consequences. At least Shaurya wouldn't be physically harmed, he hoped.
If only he knew Shaurya had received more slaps from Akansha than he ever had.
Akansha, who had been about to rest, settled back on the sofa.
Shaurya and Akash looked at each other, each silently asking the other to take the risk. Both of them knew whoever told her she couldn't hear the conversation because it was confidential would face the full force of her anger.
"He wants to say something. Don't be afraid, Akash", Shaurya said smoothly.
Akash glared at him for making him the scapegoat.
"Di... actually... it's confidential, so...", Akash trailed off.
By then, Shaurya had finished feeding Siya, so he sent her with Mrs. Sudha to the playroom.
Akansha sat straighter.
"A wife has the right to know about her husband when his life is in danger. I'm his legal wife, so you cannot keep me out of this conversation. Unless and until you tell me who is behind the attack, I'm not moving from here", she said sternly.
Akash's expression hardened.
"Di... what wife? Don't you remember the past? Once all this chaos is sorted, I don't want you anywhere near him."
He respected Shaurya a lot, but he would never accept him as a husband for his sister.
Akansha glared at him.
"I can decide what is right for me. And if you remember my words properly, I said legal wife." Her voice sharpened. "Don't forget, you were also one of the reasons for my marriage to him."
Akash fell silent for a moment. If he hadn't told their father that she and Shaurya loved each other and that Shaurya was a good man, Vasant wouldn't have agreed to the marriage without asking Akansha first.
"Di... I didn't know the truth. You never told me the reason behind your breakup, and I was fooled by the love in his eyes", Akash said as if Shaurya wasn't sitting right there.
Shaurya shut his eyes, feeling the raw pain of those words all over again.
Akansha noticed it, and something inside her tightened uncomfortably. She didn't know why, but somewhere along the way, he had started feeling like more than just her legal husband again. It was foolish. She knew that.
But who would make her heart understand?
"Talk about why you are here", Akansha said finally.
Shaurya stood up.
"Akash, give her the clarity she needs and meet me in my study", he said sternly, slipping back into the Chief Minister's tone and drawing a clear line between the blurred personal boundaries around them.
"Yes, sir", Akash replied respectfully.
He was confused about why Shaurya was allowing him to tell Akansha, but he also knew what could be revealed and what needed to remain confidential.
Shaurya looked at Akansha again, his voice softening.
"Take rest after this. If the pain persists, eat something and take your medicine."
Then he walked away. Akash watched him leave before turning back to his sister.
"I still don't understand why you agreed to come here with Siya", he said.
"You've heard only one side of the story till now. I came to know something he had hidden for years. That's what made me come here... to him", Akansha said.
Akash frowned.
Akansha then told him what Dev had revealed to her — how Shaurya had protected her in the past and how close he had come to death because of it.
"My God", Akash whispered, holding his head.
Things started falling into place for him now.
So this was why there was so much bad blood between father and son. Shaurya hated his father because he had tried to harm Akansha. Of course, there were many other reasons too, but this explained the depth of it.
Akash began looking at everything from a different angle now.
He had seen Shaurya's suffering for years. His love never felt fake. Akash couldn't bring himself to believe that Shaurya had truly married Akansha only for revenge.
But then again, he didn't know everything. Neither Shaurya nor Akansha had told him the complete truth.
"Di... can I ask you something?", Akash asked carefully.
"Hm..."
"Why did he come to meet you just before Suman's wedding? Why did you send me away?"
Akansha sighed, remembering the day she had failed to believe Shaurya.
"He came to tell me he had found Dilip's texts in Aakriti's phone. He wanted me to stop the wedding because he felt Dilip wasn't right for Suman. But by then, my trust in him had ended with the revelation of his betrayal. So I thought he wanted to stop Suman's marriage only for his sister."
"You know he isn't that kind of person", Akash said quietly. "I think he was genuinely trying to help."
"Yes. Shaurya is not that kind of person", Akansha admitted. "But I thought Aakriti wanted Dilip, so she was making baseless allegations to stop the wedding."
Her voice lowered.
"Only after a few months did I get to know the truth. I had taken Suman to the hospital for her checkup when she was in her final trimester. She saw Aakriti there, and you know what happened after that."
Akash nodded grimly.
"That day, after coming home, I confronted Suman and asked why she had hurt Aakriti with her cruel words.
That's when she confessed that she had found messages on Dilip's phone and had acted out of jealousy.
Aakriti wasn't at fault. She never pursued Dilip after learning about his engagement to Suman. Dilip was the main culprit."
Akansha exhaled painfully.
"But I couldn't do anything to him then. He was Suman's husband and my nephew's father."
"Marrying Dilip was Suman's biggest mistake, Di. I think we should've listened to Sir", Akash said.
"What can we do now?" Akansha asked helplessly. "I hope Dilip is behaving better at least."
She had always thought about her family — her father, her sister, her nephew — but had never asked Akash about them. She had never gathered the courage to face those bitter memories directly.
Still, somewhere in her heart, she had hoped they were fine. She believed Akash must be taking care of everything.
"Well... let's just say he got worse. Suman filed for divorce. She's living with Ma and Papa now, along with her son", Akash said.
"What? Divorce?" Akansha sat up straighter, worry overtaking her instantly. "Akash, tell me what happened. When did this happen? Why didn't you tell me?"
"She filed for divorce a couple of years ago. Even before that, she had already come back and started living with our parents. The case is still going on, and that ba***rd isn't even divorcing her peacefully. He filed a countercase saying she harassed his parents."
Akash's jaw tightened.
"It's a mess, Di. I didn't want to overwhelm you with all this when you were already fighting your own battles. That's why I kept it from you."
He slowly explained everything that had happened to Suman. Akansha sat there in shock, absorbing how badly her sister's life had turned. She should have listened to Shaurya and stopped that marriage.
Maybe Suman and her mother would have hated her then, but at least her sister would have been saved from this misery.
Then again, hadn't Suman chosen this for herself?
Still, Akansha couldn't stop the guilt from settling inside her.
"P... Papa?", she asked after a long silence.
After years, she had finally gathered the courage to ask about her father. How had he survived all this?
"He is living...", Akash said, carefully controlling himself.
He didn't want to tell her everything about Vasant's condition. He knew how deeply Akansha loved their father.
"Akash... tell me", Akansha said, immediately understanding that he was hiding something.
Akash looked away for a moment before speaking.
"Papa suffered a major heart attack a few years ago. He had a coronary angioplasty. He's doing okay now, but he can't walk without a walker because of the weakness."
Akansha went still.
"He doesn't take care of his health properly. He barely talks to anyone except Harsh and me whenever I visit. Most of the time, he stays in his room, either looking at your picture or writing in his journal."
Akash's voice softened despite himself.
"Whenever I go there, I tell him about you and Siya. He listens with so much attention, as if he's living only to hear about you both. But not once did he ask me to show him your picture or Siya's."
Akansha's eyes filled.
"Once, I asked him if he didn't feel like seeing Siya's picture. Do you know what he said?"
Akansha couldn't speak.
"He said he was scared he would spoil Siya's life too, just like he spoiled yours."
Akansha broke down. Pain, guilt and regret hit her all at once.
So many people in her life had treated her badly from the beginning — her mother, her sister and others. She had forgiven them again and again until she had nothing left to give.
But in her father's case, she hadn't been able to tolerate even one mistake. She had punished him brutally for it.
Was she right in doing that?