His to Hate.

Chapter - 19

Even though every clip was pulled off the television and the internet, there were still traces. Last night, I could not return back to the bedroom because it meant that I would have to face her after everything I had put her through yesterday.

By seven in the morning, I had a complete file on my desk. Thirty-two pages. Timelines. Audio pattern analysis. Old interview clips. Algorithmic voice-matching reports. Metadata trails from public performances she had never remembered as dangerous.

"They went completely after her, leaving no detail behind." Abhimanyu, who had just flown back home made his way to my office.

I nodded.

"That YouTube account, even my team had not dug up while they were running a background check on her for you. I fired them." He added, sitting.

I raised an eyebrow at him.

"Incompetency is something you know I will not tolerate." He replied, scanning through the file.

"This is invasive." my legal advisor said carefully, standing across the desk.

"It is unlawful." I replied. My voice was calm. "File for criminal breach of privacy. Digital exploitation. Psychological harm. Defamation."

He nodded. "The channel will fight. They'll claim public interest."

"There is no public interest in any woman's private life and especially not my wife's." I said. "Proceed."

"Bhaiya, you need to see this." Yuvaan entered my office with his laptop and kept it in front of me.

"There are millions of videos on social media with bhabhisa's photo and her voice singing in the background. Even Abhimanyu's cyber people cannot track each and every single one of them." He said, scrolling.

"This will take time," Abhimanyu said quietly. "The internet doesn't forget. It only scatters."

"I know," I replied.

Yuvaan was still standing, restless in a way he rarely ever was. "People are already speculating. Fan pages. Opinion pieces. Some are romanticising it. Some are blaming her. Some are blaming you."

I closed the laptop.

"Shut down comment sections where legally possible." I said. "Flag the rest. Prioritise platforms with highest engagement first."

Yuvaan nodded immediately and stepped back.

"Release a single statement," I continued, turning to my legal advisor.

"What should it say?" he asked.

I thought for a moment.

"Media intrusion into private life will not be tolerated. Legal action is underway. Further speculation will be treated as contempt."

He hesitated. "Nothing about her?"

I shook my head. "She has nothing wrong that she needs be defended publicly. What she needs is to be left alone."

That ended the discussion.

Once everyone left, the room went quiet in a way I disliked.

I stood up from the chair and walked to the window, then stopped halfway. The file was still open on my desk. Thirty two pages. Her life pulled apart neatly by people who had never met her.

I did not read it again.

My phone buzzed. Another update. Another estimate. Another reminder that nothing could be erased completely.

I stopped near the coffee table, my free hand clenched tight without me noticing.

"They crossed a line." the voice on the other end said, Vihaan Raichand.

"They fucking did." I replied.

I brought my fist down hard.

The glass of the table shattered under my hand.

The call continued. I didn't react immediately. Only when warmth ran down my wrist did I look down. Blood. Small cuts, one deeper than the rest.

"Sue them for an amount that will leave them bankrupt ," I said. "No settlement."

The call ended after he told me that I had nothing to worry about as far as court was concerned.

I stood there for a moment, staring at the broken glass on the floor. Then I turned and left the room.

She hadn't eaten since yesterday afternoon. Her door was open.

Inside, Parthvi sat on the bed with Ishaan. A snakes and ladders board lay between them, the pieces scattered carelessly. Ishaan was laughing, already halfway across the board. She was pretending not to notice he had skipped squares.

Her hair was loose today. No bun. It fell over one shoulder, slightly tangled.

Ishaan saw me first.

"Bade Papa!" he said, then stopped. "What happened to your hand?"

Parthvi looked up.

Her eyes went straight to my knuckles.

She stood immediately.

"Sit," she said.

Not angry or gentle, just firm.

I sat on the couch.

She brought the first-aid box from the cabinet and sat next to me on the couch, wrapping her fingers around my wrist and rested my hand on the cushion resting on her lap so delicately perhaps thinking that she will worsen it.

Her fingers were steady. She cleaned the cuts carefully, even the smallest ones and pressed cotton against my skin, making sure the bleeding stopped but she never looked at my face.

Her brows were drawn together slightly. I noticed she held her breath when she pressed near the deeper cut.

Ishaan hovered nearby for a moment, then lost interest and ran out.

She applied ointment, wrapped gauze around my hand and secured it with tape. When that was done, she stood and turned to put the box away.

Her dupatta caught in my watch and she turned around and tugged once but it did not come free and she sighed, irritation slipping through her control.

"Wait." I said, standing up.

I leaned forward and held her stuck dupatta corner under the watch. My fingers brushed her wrist and she froze for one second.

I freed the fabric and handed it back.

She took it immediately, stepping away and Daadisa walked inside the room.

Her eyes went first to me, then to Parthvi and the first aid box in her hands.

"So this is what you are doing now?" Daadisa said, her voice cold. "Playing nurse after creating drama in this house?"

Parthvi stiffened beside me.

"Bas." The word cut through the room.

Daadisa turned sharply. "Rudra...."

"Ek shabd aur nahi Daadisa."

I stepped forward, placing myself squarely between them.

"Aap Parthvi se iss tarah baat nahi karengi. Biwi hai yeh meri aur Ratangarh ki Raanisa. Kisi ko bhi inse batameezi se baat karne ka adhikaar nahi hai, mujhe bhi nahi." I said and turned myself towards her, my eyes trying to find hers but she was looking down.

Daadisa's lips pressed into a thin line. "Have you forgotten who you are speaking to?"

I met her gaze without hesitation.

"Nahi Daadisa," I said. "Par aap bhul rahi hain, yeh Parthvi Rudra Raisinghania hai, Ratangarh ki Raanisa aur jo izzat iss audhe ke saath aati hai, Woh sab ab inki hi hai."

Daadisa held my gaze. Long. Hard. Like she had done my entire life, waiting for me to blink first.

I did not.

"This house has survived for generations because of discipline," she said finally.

"This house will survive now because of dignity," I replied. "And dignity starts with how we treat her."

Parthvi's fingers tightened around the first-aid box. I could see it from the corner of my eye. She still hadn't looked up.

Daadisa exhaled sharply. "You are letting sentiment cloud your judgement."

"Daadisa, iss ladki ki poori zindagi hum cheen chuke hain isse.

Aur kal jo hua hai, woh inki wajah se nahi, balki inke saath hua hai.

Aap apni nafrat ko door rakh kar dekhengi toh samajh mein aayega aapko ki na chahte hue bhi mai ek aisa insaan ban chuka hoon jisse shaayad Maasa nafrat karti agar aaj woh humaare beech hoti.

" I let the words out before I could filter them.

Daadisa's face changed at the mention of Maasa. Just for a second. It was there and then it was gone, buried under years of pain.

"Aap Bhul rahe hain ki aap Rana hai Ratangarh ke, Rudra aur yeh audha aapko kamzor banne ki anumati nahi deta hai." She warned me.

"Being the king does not permit me to be cruel either, Daadisa and especially to my wife, of all the people." I told her.

She laughed, short and sharp. "So you are choosing her over this family?"

I did not hesitate.

"I am choosing what this family becomes next Daadisa and it will not become something that my mother would have despised." I closed my eyes for a brief moment before looking at her again but she was looking at Parthvi.

"You make my grandson weak, girl. Before today, he had never lost control and hurt himself like this. This is all on you." She said, venom dripping from her voice.

"I don't have that power to make your grandson do anything, ma'am.

I am your culprit's daughter and despite any title that comes along with being his so called his wife, I will always be the person here who will never do anything right.

" I heard Parthvi's voice in a low whisper but her words cut sharp across my chest and made me look at her.

Blank. Nothing, not one single expression of anger or hurt.

She was gone.

The girl I had brought to this palace, the girl I had married was gone and in place of her was someone building just walls so high that no one will ever be able to breach them.

Daadisa glared at her once and then looked at me before she made her way out of our room and Parthvi turned away from me and walked out to the balcony.

I don't know why, but I followed her.

She had folded her arms and was looking at a distance but right till where the eyes go, only the palace land was visible.

"I didn't ask you to fight my battles." she spoke after a while.

"I know." I replied.

"Then don't." she said, still not looking at me.

"I did not fight your battle," I said. "I fought mine."

I waited for her to say something but she kept herself quiet, looking ahead while I looked at her.

There was pain on her face, pain which she was trying to bury somewhere deep inside her head.

Something twisted in my heart again. This was the second time that she made me realise that I had a heart.

After a while, she moved and walked back into the room and I followed her.

She picked up the first-aid box, set it back in the cabinet, straightened the bedssheet that did not need straightening and picked up a book from the table, all while not sparing me even one glance.

That should not have bothered me, but it did. Right from the second I saw her, she had always looked at me in the eye and said whatever she wanted to say so this avoidance did not sit well with me and I had no one to blame but myself.

Parthvi made herself comfortable on one of the chairs in the balcony and kept the book open in front of her. Whether she was reading it or trying to avoid we was a different story altogether.

I sighed and made my way out of the room to find Ishaan. Only he could help me make her eat something.

_________________________

"Dominoes ka pizza aur Fanta, Bade Papa." Ishaan said proudly and told me his favourite food when I asked what was Parthvi's favourite.

"Ishaan, Parthvi ka puch raha hoon, tumhara nahi." I told him, picking him up in my arms.

"Areeee Pri ka aur mera favourite ek hi hai!! Sacchiiii bade papa aap mumma se bhi puch lo, Pri ne mujhe unke saamne hi bataya tha." I looked offended, huffing as he crossed his little arms.

My eyes went to Pankhuri who was already nodding at me.

"Pehele mujhe bhi believe nahi hua tha bhaiya ki Woh exactly Ishaan ki tone mein Ishaan ka hi favourite apna favourite batayegi but that did happen." She told me with a smile.

"Matlab mere chaar saal ke bete ka aur aapki pacchis saal ki Biwi ka taste same hai." Yuvaan did not hold himself back and laughed.

I had nothing to say in her defence, or in mine.

"Bhaiya mai jaake order karti hoon aur Ishaan ke haath Parthvi ke liye bhijwati hoon Pizza." Pankhuri said and I gave her a thankful nod.

"Dekha, mujhe sab pata hai." Ishaan kept his small palms on my face, making me look at him.

I refused to hold my laugh back.

"Baat toh sahi hai, tum genius ho. Toh Ishaan Genius Raisinghania, apne bade papa ka ek kaam karoge?" I asked him and he nodded enthusiastically.

"Apni Pri ko jaakar pizza khilaoge? Haan par usko nahi pata chalna chahiye ki maine tumhe bheja hai. Yeh humara secret hoga." I said.

"Pinky promise! Our secret bade papa!" He agreed and I put him down after kissing his cheek.

He hopped away happily to Pankhuri, excited about eating his pizza.

Yuvaan was still standing next to me when Pankhuri walked away with Ishaan.

"So," he said, quieter now. "How is bhabhisa?"

I did not answer immediately but eventually told him everything that had happened a while ago, everything that Daadisa said.

"Bhaiya, you did right. I know it must not have been easy to ask Daadisa not to do something but Parthvi is your wife and our Raanisa and even if she were none of these, she still would deserve the same respect as everyone.

We, of all people should have understood her the most because we have lived alone despite being surrounded for all our lives and she is doing the same thing now. " He said, looking at me.

I listened to him without interrupting.

Yuvaan had always been perceptive. He saw things before the rest of us were ready to name them.

"We grew up in this palace," he continued. "People everywhere. Staff. Relatives. Rules. Eyes. And yet, most days, it was just us."

He paused, then added, softer, "She's doing that now. Except she didn't grow up knowing how to survive it."

I looked ahead, not at him.

"She did not even ask for help," he said. "That should scare you more than her anger ever did."

"It does." I replied.

Yuvaan exhaled slowly. "I don't remember Maasa at all but from what I've heard from people I know what she would have said if she were here."

I know it l, too.

"She would have asked why a woman had to lose her family, her voice and her safety just because her father did something wrong even before she was born." he was right, this is exactly what she would have said.

"I don't remember much of her," I said after a moment. "But I remember one thing clearly. She never asked anyone to lower their voice around her. She made space for everyone instead of taking it."

Yuvaan nodded. "Exactly."

I glanced toward the corridor that led to my room. To the balcony. To her.

"She would have hated me for what was done to Parthvi. For taking her away from her family." I added.

"You had no option there, bhaiya. It was either she came to this palace or watch her father die.

She chose what anyone would have in her place.

Even though Maasa would have hated us for what was done to Parthvi, we still owed it to Ratangarh and to Maasa to bring her justice and as twisted as it sounds, bringing her here was kindness.

Killing her father would have been worse.

You had to choose between bad and worse.

You chose the bad, the difficult and I will always stand by you, no matter what.

" He announced, keeping a hand on my shoulder.

"You cannot undo what was taken from her." he added. "But you can decide what is never taken again."

I turned to him then.

"She does not trust me," I said. "And she should not. I have never given her a reason to."

"Give it time, bhaiya. Don't rush to earn it. She will keep like you are trying to suffocate her if you do." He squeezed my shoulder once again before stepping away.

I nodded.

He then started to brief me about the meeting tomorrow and worked in the study and spent the next hour there.

When I was done, I closed the file and stood and make my way back to the room.

The door was slightly ajar and I heard Ishaan's voice. He was telling her something about his school.

I peaked in.

Parthvi sat at the small table near the balcony doors.

She was eating.

A slice of pizza rested on a plate in front of her. Ishaan sat opposite her, legs swinging. He was talking with his hands, sauce on his fingers, completely at ease.

She wiped his hands with a napkin when he got too messy.

I stayed where I was, just outside her line of sight.

Ishaan laughed at something he said himself and leaned closer to her, lowering his voice like it was a secret. She listened. She nodded once. Said something short in reply. He grinned, pleased with himself.

Then, he extended his slice towards her and asked her to take a bite.

She did, giving him a big smile. A smile I had seen for the first time.

When Ishaan finally noticed me, his eyes widened. He opened his mouth.

I shook my head.

He paused, then grinned like he'd been let in on something important and turned back to his food, lowering his voice as I stepped away.

Half an hour later, I walked back to the room.

It was empty.

The balcony doors were open and I walked out.

Parthvi was in the lawn below. Ishaan was circling her, small hands stretched out in front of him, eyes squeezed shut as he tried to find her.

She kept stepping just out of his reach, careful, light on her feet. The air lifted the edge of her dupatta, tugged it loose from her shoulder.

I walked out to the lawn.

Ishaan suddenly lunged forward, arms flailing, shouting something and crashed into Parthvi harder than he meant to.

She stumbled back straight into me, her back hitting my chest and my hands came up, gripping her arms to steady her before she could fall.

Her body went still and her breath left her in a sharp pull, like she had forgotten how to inhale.

I felt it against my chest.

She felt so fucking fragile against me.

I found my eyes trying to see past the hair that had fallen, curtaining her face when dupatta slipped completely then and slid down her arm, pooled near our feet.

She pulled away slightly, just enough to breathe, and we both bent down at the same time.

Our hands touched. Her fingers were cold against mine.

And she lifted her head up to look at me.

Blank again.

Her hand slipped free immediately after.

She straightened, turning her face away, shoulders pulling inward as if she remembered herself too late.

I picked up the dupatta and stepped closer, draping it around her shoulders. My knuckles brushed her collarbone as I adjusted it. She inhaled sharply, then clutched the ends of the fabric in both fists, holding it against herself.

Her gaze stayed fixed somewhere to the side, her jaw tight and lashes lowered, refusing to look at me but did not step away.

Ishaan ran past us, laughing and shouting something about winning. She smiled faintly at him, the tension easing from her face just enough for me to see it.

"Priii.....come here!! The rabbits are out." my nephew called out for her and she gave him a laugh and a nod, taking one step away from me and followed him without sparing me a glance.

I did not know what the right distance from her was.

Too close, and I became an authoritative figure deciding things for her.

Too far, and I was just another man who watched and did nothing.

I had brought her here to erase a blood fued but staying here meant learning how not to take more from her in the process.

And I had to learn that as soon enough because at the end of the day, she was my wife now and that word had always meant something to me because of what little I remember seeing Maa and Baba's marriage and if I wanted something like that, I would have to work for it with her and more often than not, I would have to work for the both of us.

I don't know if I could ever love her or if she could ever love me after what I did to her, but we would have to find a way to coexist as two people who are married.

And if that would require me to make some amends, so be it.