Ch37Drenched in His Hue๏ผHoli Special๏ผ #2
Believing the family gathering was concluding, Rudraksh turned on his heel, preparing to head back upstairs to his office. But before he could take a step, Pratap's commanding, authoritative voice echoed through the hall, freezing him in his tracks.
"Rudraksh, listen to me."
Rudraksh turned back slowly, his features settling into a cold, completely expressionless mask.
Pratap fixed him with a stern, unyielding gaze. "Do not dare to forget your royal responsibilities. Remember, you are destined to ascend the throne as the next king of Vardhanpur.
Act accordingly and make arrangements to return to the kingdom as soon as possible; your duties are waiting for you there. And remember... you have another sacred duty right here. Do not ever dare to make Rivanya cry. If you bring tears to her eyes, you will find out exactly how ruthless I can be."
The thin thread of Rudraksh's remaining patience finally snapped.
The long-buried resentment flared in his eyes, and he countered in a sharp, fiercely cutting tone:
"There is absolutely no one more ruthless or terrible than you, Mr. Vardhan. You don't need to remind me about returning to Vardhanpur; my mother raised me well enough to never back out of a given word. And as for my wife...
I certainly do not need to learn from *you* how to fulfill my responsibilities toward her."
The venom in Rudraksh's sharp words pierced straight through Pratap's heart, shattering the fragile hope he had been quietly harboring. A profound, hollow silence descended upon the hall.
Looking at his son's cold eyes, Pratap felt a painful realization settle deep into his soul perhaps he would never get his son back. Perhaps he would never hear Rudraksh call him 'Papa' ever again. He was simply breathing, surviving through the days, carrying the heavy cross of his past mistakes.
Without offering another glance, Rudraksh turned sharply and walked up the grand stairs, his boots echoing heavily against the marble.
Down in the hall, the celebratory warmth evaporated instantly, and Rivanya stood frozen, her heart aching intensely with a profound sense of sorrow for the broken relationship between the father and son.
Shortly after Rudraksh stormed upstairs, Pratap quietly met with everyone, offered his final blessings, and departed for Vardhanpur. Once the heavy silence settled over the mansion and the rest of the family members retreated to their respective rooms, Rivanya turned to Dadimaa.
"Dadimaa, I needed to speak with you about something," she said softly.
Dadimaa smiled gently, patting her hand. "Yes, child, tell me."
Rivanya guided Dadimaa toward the plush royal sofa, ensuring she was comfortable before sitting down right beside her.
Looking into her eyes, she voiced the confusion that had been lingering in her mind.
"Dadimaa, I have always heard that a prince only ascends the throne after the reigning King passes away. Then, how is it that while Papa is still alive, Rudraksh is being asked to become the King...?"
Dadimaa let out a soft, melancholic sigh.
"Normally, that is exactly how it works, beta. But in certain Rajputana traditions, if the current King willingly abdicates the throne gives up his crown his son can be crowned the next ruler during his lifetime. This custom is deeply rooted in Vardhanpur. The truth is,
Pratap wishes to see Rudraksh crowned as the King with his own eyes while he is still alive. Moreover, we all know that if Rudraksh doesn't accept the crown, he will never return to Vardhanpur or stay connected to his roots. This is also our way of trying to keep him close to us."
Rivanya nodded slowly as the royal dynamics became clearer, but her heart remained heavy with the bigger, darker question. "I understand, Dadimaa... but what exactly happened in the past that created such an unbridgeable distance between Rudra and his own father?
Why does Rudraksh speak to his father with so much bitterness and disrespect?"
The warmth in Dadimaa's eyes instantly dimmed, replaced by a deep, ancient sorrow. She looked around the empty, grand hall before leaning closer to Rivanya, her voice dropping to a fragile whisper.
"Rivanya beta, I can only tell you this much Agnishikha lost her life while trying to save Pratap. And tragically, Rudraksh witnessed the entire horrific event with his own two eyes. He was barely five or six years old back then. Ever since that fateful day,
his innocent mind became hardwired to believe that his mother died solely because of Pratap. Beyond this, I cannot tell you anything more. Discussing or raising this topic is strictly forbidden in this house. If Rudraksh even catches a whisper of this conversation, everything will fall apart.
Just know this much for now."
A storm of unanswered questions began to swirl inside Rivanya's mind, but she could see the visible pain on Dadimaa's face and decided not to push her any further.
Now, she finally had a piece of the puzzle.
She understood that a monumental, unbreakable wall stood between the father and the son and Rudraksh was the one fiercely guarding it.
She desperately wanted to confront Rudraksh, to help him heal, but the text of Dadimaa's warning echoed in her ears.
The mere thought of making him relive that childhood trauma terrified her.
She couldn't bear the thought of hurting him or triggering another violent nightmare.
Against her own heart's wishes, she realized she had no choice but to stay completely silent for now.
The next afternoon, Vyom walked into the private office room of Vardhan Mansion, his brow heavily furrowed and a deep, uncharacteristic line of tension tightening his features.
The moment Rudraksh's razor-sharp eyes locked onto his best friend, he immediately sensed that something had gone completely off-script.
Halting his paperwork, he leaned forward, his voice dropping to a serious tone.
"What happened, Vyom? Why are you so incredibly stressed? Did something go wrong at the Pune site? Did Uncle try to stir up trouble again?"
Vyom let out a frustrated, exhausted sigh, tossing his car keys onto the desk. "He never misses a chance to complicate things, but for once, my headache has absolutely nothing to do with my father. It's because of a crazy, completely psycho girl!"
Rudraksh blinked, his face twisting into a mixture of sheer astonishment and absolute confusion. "Huh? A girl? What on earth are you talking about, Vyom? Spill it out clearly. What actually happened?"
Vyom pulled up a chair, running an agitated hand through his hair before diving into the explanation.
"Man, last night around 9:00 PM, I was driving back from the Pune construction site. Out of nowhere, on a deserted stretch of the highway, I spotted a group of shady, dangerous-looking goons trying to forcefully drag a girl into their van. Out of basic human decency and concern,
I slammed the brakes, jumped out of the car to rescue her, and threw hands. I beat those goons black and blue until they scattered into the night."
He paused, his jaw clenching as his voice pitched higher in pure annoyance.
"But that psycho woman? Instead of offering a simple 'thank you,' she literally lunged forward and planted a fierce kick straight into my stomach!
And then, she had the absolute audacity to glare at me and yell, 'What was the absolute need for you to display your unwanted heroism like a cheap Superman?'
And do you know what that mad woman said next? She claimed that since it was the very first time she was getting kidnapped in her life, she genuinely wanted to experience the entire thrill of it, and I utterly ruined her golden opportunity! Like, seriously, dude?!"
The sheer absurdity of the story hit Rudraksh like a tidal wave.
For a second, he just stared at Vyom's deeply offended face, and then, completely breaking his cold, unyielding billionaire persona, he burst into a loud, roaring fit of laughter.
He leaned back in his leather chair, clutching his stomach, unable to control his amusement.
"Brother, be honest with me..." Rudraksh managed to wheeze out between laughs, a brilliant smirk lighting up his face. "Did that kick hit you really hard? Is that why you're hurting so much?"
Vyom's face turned bright red, and he glared at him, absolutely furious. "Shut your mouth, you absolute rascal, or I swear to god I will stride over there and strangle you right now!"
Rudraksh, still chuckling softly as he stood up from his desk, raised his hands in mock surrender. "Go ahead, strangle me. But tell me, do you really want to make your own sister a widow so early into our marriage, you rogue?"
Vyom let out an annoyed groan, rolling his eyes as he muttered under his breath. "Unbelievable. This is the absolute limit!"
Throwing his hands in the air, Vyom spun around and marched out of the office room in a huff.
Still grinning widely, Rudraksh immediately followed him out into the corridor. It had been years nearly decades since Rudraksh had laughed so openly, letting his guard down without a single worry. This unmasked, completely human side of him was a privilege only Vyom possessed.
Vyom was an indispensable, irreplaceable pillar of Rudraksh's existence.
They had taken their very first steps into the cutthroat business world together, shielding each other through failure and celebrating as equals when they climbed to the absolute peak of success.
Above all, Vyom understood the silent, broken boy trapped inside the powerful billionaire, and no amount of professional rank could ever alter the fierce, unshakeable brotherhood they shared.
In the blink of an eye, that days flew by, and the morning of Holi finally arrived.
Since dawn, the Vardhan Mansion had been buzzing with a level of festive preparation it had never seen before.
After all, this was the first time a festival of colors was being celebrated within these grand walls a milestone made possible solely because of Rivanya's presence.