Chapter 34
The Malhotra mansion had never felt this silent before.
Not even during business losses.
Not even during family deaths.
Because this silence carried shock.
Disbelief.
And something much heavier.
The morning sunlight filtered weakly through the giant windows while everyone sat in the living room trying to process yesterday.
Riya wasn't an orphan.
Riya wasn't poor.
Riya wasn't ordinary.
She was royalty.
Actual royalty.
Dhruv stood near the windows silently holding a glass untouched in his hand.
Black shirt.
Messy hair.
Dark circles beneath his eyes from not sleeping even one minute.
Meanwhile his mother sat on the couch looking completely overwhelmed.
Tears still filled her eyes occasionally.
Because somewhere between all this chaos,
She was mostly relieved that the girl she loved like a daughter wasn't alone in the world anymore.
Still,
Everything felt unreal.
Kiara sat farther away unusually quiet today.
No dramatic energy.
No fake sweetness.
Nothing.
Because honestly?
Even she didn't know what to feel anymore.
Part of her whispered:
Now Dhruv can finally leave Riya.
But another part,
The insecure ugly part,
Remembered the way Dhruv looked yesterday outside that ICU.
Like his soul stopped breathing.
And that scared her.
Meanwhile Dhruv's aunt looked the most shaken of all.
Because suddenly,
The girl she insulted for months had turned out to be richer and more powerful than all of them combined.
The irony nearly killed her.
Finally Dhruv's mother broke the silence softly.
"I still don't understand..."
Her voice trembled slightly.
"How can something this huge stay hidden?"
She looked toward Dhruv helplessly.
"And what happens now?"
No one answered immediately.
Because honestly?
Nobody knew.
Then quietly,
His mother asked the question lingering in everyone's minds.
"How do we even know these people are telling the truth?"
His aunt nodded instantly.
"Exactly."
Then sharply:
"What if they're scammers?"
Dhruv slowly lifted his eyes toward them finally.
And immediately,
The room went silent again.
Because the look in his eyes warned everyone not to speak nonsense today.
Still,
He answered calmly.
"They're not lying."
His aunt frowned.
"How are you so sure?"
Dhruv looked away toward the rain outside again.
Because honestly?
He wished they were lying.
That would've been easier.
Instead,
Every single detail connected too perfectly.
Then finally he spoke.
"Veer explained everything."
Silence filled the room again instantly.
Dhruv's voice remained low.
Controlled.
"The Rajput family kept Riya's identity hidden since childhood."
His mother frowned softly.
"Why?"
Dhruv's jaw tightened slightly.
"Because people wanted her dead."
The air in the room changed immediately.
Even Kiara looked stunned now.
Dhruv continued:
"Apparently threats started when she was five."
His aunt looked confused.
"But why hide her face completely?"
"Because she's the heir."
Dhruv's voice turned colder now.
"The Rajput empire legally belongs to her."
The entire room froze again.
Even Dhruv's uncle looked shocked now.
Dhruv continued quietly:
"Nobody outside their inner circle ever saw her publicly."
"No interviews."
"No events."
"No photographs."
"Nothing."
His mother slowly understood now.
"So after the kidnapping..."
Dhruv nodded once.
"They couldn't make it public."
Silence.
Because suddenly,
Everything made horrifying sense.
If powerful enemies were searching for Riya,
Announcing her kidnapping globally would've basically killed her.
Dhruv spoke again.
"They searched secretly for six years."
His aunt whispered softly.
"Six years..."
Dhruv's eyes darkened afterward.
"Then when she woke up in Mumbai..."
Something painful crossed his face briefly.
"The doctor lied."
His mother blinked.
"...what?"
Dhruv finally turned toward them fully.
"The coma story."
"It was fake."
Everyone froze instantly.
Kiara sat up slightly.
Dhruv spoke slowly now.
"Riya wasn't in coma for fifteen years."
Silence crashed heavily across the room.
His mother looked horrified.
"Then why would someone lie like that?"
Dhruv answered quietly:
"Because someone saved her from the kidnappers."
The room went dead silent.
"He told the doctors to pretend the unidentified girl was admitted fifteen years ago."
"Not recently."
His aunt looked confused.
"But why?"
Dhruv's jaw tightened harder.
"Because the people who kidnapped her six years ago were still searching for her."
Thunder echoed faintly outside.
And somehow,
The mansion suddenly felt colder.
Dhruv continued:
"If news spread that an unidentified young woman suddenly appeared after an accident..."
His eyes darkened dangerously.
"They would've found her immediately."
Realization slowly spread across everyone's faces.
So someone,
A stranger,
Had hidden Riya deliberately all these years to save her life.
Even at the hospital.
Even from herself.
His mother whispered emotionally:
"So all these years..."
Dhruv closed his eyes briefly.
"She was surviving alone without even knowing who she was."
Silence again.
Heavy painful silence.
Because suddenly everyone remembered the girl they'd known.
The girl who travelled by bus.
Who got excited over street food.
Who gave away her lunch to hungry children despite being hungry herself.
The girl who smiled softly at servants.
Who never acted entitled once.
And all along,
She'd been born into unimaginable wealth.
Meanwhile Dhruv stood motionless near the windows.
But inside?
Everything burned.
Because the cruelest part wasn't finding out Riya was royalty.
It was realizing,
She woke up yesterday.
Recognized her brother instantly.
And looked at Dhruv like he'd never existed at all.
....
Next day
Soft sunlight filtered through the hospital curtains.
For the first time in days,
The room felt calm.
Safe.
Warm.
My headache had reduced slightly now.
The medicines worked.
The bruises still hurt.
But at least,
I wasn't terrified anymore.
Because every time I opened my eyes now,
I saw familiar faces.
My family.
My real family.
It still felt unreal sometimes.
But then Veer would walk into the room calling me princess and suddenly,
Everything would feel real again.
I sat carefully against the hospital bed while Meera adjusted my blanket gently.
"Comfortable?"
I nodded softly smiling.
Meera smiled back immediately.
God.
I loved her already.
She had this calm warmth around her that instantly felt home-like.
Meanwhile my uncle sat near the couch reading something while my aunt kept feeding me fruits every ten minutes like I was still five years old.
And Advik,
Advik practically refused leaving my side.
Currently he sat beside me while I leaned lightly against him tiredly.
His arm remained carefully around my shoulders.
Like he was terrified I might disappear again if he let go.
Honestly?
Maybe everyone was.
Because six years.
Six whole years.
Gone.
Lost.
Dead to the world.
Sometimes when I looked at Veer,
I caught this broken relief in his eyes.
Like he still couldn't believe I was alive.
Meanwhile my own memories remained shattered.
I remembered London.
Our mansion.
Veer.
Meera.
Advik.
Our dates.
Our fights.
Our life.
Then suddenly,
Darkness.
Nothing after the kidnapping.
No faces.
No names.
No memories.
It was like someone erased six entire years from my existence.
The doctors had warned everyone not to pressure me.
No stress.
No forcing memories.
Nothing traumatic.
Apparently the brain could shut down dangerously under emotional shock.
So nobody asked questions anymore.
Nobody pushed.
And honestly?
I was grateful.
Because every time I tried remembering,
My head started hurting unbearably.
A soft knock interrupted the room suddenly.
Veer looked toward the door.
Then his expression shifted slightly.
Not cold.
Not warm either.
Just controlled.
"Come in."
The door opened slowly.
And a man entered.
Tall.
Broad shoulders.
Black shirt perfectly fitted.
Sharp jawline.
Messy dark hair.
The kind of face women probably wrote poetry about.
For one tiny second,
Something strange flickered inside my chest.
Not memory.
Just,
Something.
His eyes landed on me instantly.
And God.
The intensity in them startled me slightly.
Like he'd crossed hell just to see me breathing.
The room grew quieter afterward.
Advik's arm around me tightened subtly.
Meanwhile the stranger stood near the door silently.
Like he didn't know how close he was allowed to come.
I frowned softly looking toward Veer.
"Who is he?"
The question visibly hit the man.
Something painful flashed across his face briefly.
Gone in one second.
Veer answered calmly before silence became awkward.
"He's the one who saved you from the highway."
I blinked slightly.
The highway.
The accident.
The blurry rain.
Something faintly painful stirred in my head.
But disappeared quickly again.
I immediately straightened slightly looking toward him properly now.
"Oh."
My voice softened instantly.
"Thank you."
God.
How do you thank someone for saving your life?
I gave him a small grateful smile.
"Really... thank you so much."
The man stared at me silently.
And somehow,
My polite gratitude looked like it physically hurt him.
Still,
He nodded once.
Coldly almost.
"No need."
His voice.
Deep.
Controlled.
And weirdly familiar in a way I couldn't explain.
The room became awkwardly quiet afterward.
Because unlike everyone else,
This man looked completely out of place here.
Like he belonged to another chapter of my life I couldn't access anymore.
Meanwhile I noticed something strange.
Everyone around us looked tense.
Especially Veer.
And the stranger too.
Their eyes met once briefly.
Something unspoken passing between them.
Then gone instantly.
I looked between them confused.
Did they know each other before this?
Before I could ask,
My head hurt faintly again.
I pressed my fingers lightly against my temple.
Immediately the stranger moved forward instinctively.
"Wha-"
He stopped himself abruptly halfway.
The room froze slightly.
Because whatever he was about to do,
It had clearly been natural for him.
Automatic.
Like caring for me wasn't unfamiliar.
His jaw tightened immediately afterward.
Then he stepped back again silently.
Meanwhile I stared at him strangely.
Why did that tiny movement affect me?
Why did my chest feel weird suddenly?
Advik gently touched my shoulder pulling my attention back.
"You okay?"
I nodded softly.
"Just slight headache."
Meera immediately stood.
"I'll call the doctor."
The room shifted again afterward.
Small conversations started.
My aunt asking about medicines.
My uncle talking to Veer quietly.
Meanwhile the stranger remained near the window silent the entire time.
Not speaking.
Not sitting.
Just there.
And somehow,
The sadness around him felt unbearably heavy.
Finally after several minutes,
He looked toward me one last time.
And softly,
"Take care."
Something about those two words made my chest ache unexpectedly.
Before I understood why,
He turned and walked away.