25. Again Mumbai?
My breath grew shallow as Ishaan continued. “Yugant doesn’t hate your brother the way you think, Dhwani” Ishaan said. “He hates that he doesn’t understand what really happened.”
The car slowed at a signal.
“He lost four family members in a single day,” Ishaan went on, voice steady but firm. “And yet he still ordered reinvestigation. Do you know what that means?”
I didn’t answer.
“It means somewhere inside, he believes Samarth bhai might be innocent. And if bhai is innocent… then someone else is the real killer.”
The signal turned green.
“And that someone,” he added quietly, “might be the same man who just tried to lock you inside that mansion.”
Silence filled the car.
Everything inside me felt unstable.
“So you’re saying…” I whispered, “going back to Yugant isn’t walking into destruction?”
Ishaan gave a faint, knowing look.
“Sometimes,” he said, “the safest place to stand is right in the middle of the storm—if the storm is fighting for you.”
“He’ll think I’m selfish again,” I said, staring straight ahead. “That I only came back because I need him. And honestly… that’s not wrong. I never saw any selfish person more than me.”
Ishaan didn’t soften. “Then don’t give him the chance to call you selfish.”
I frowned. “How?”
“Give him something he wants in return.”
I turned to him. “And what exactly does Yugant Raizaada want? Revenge? Control? Peace? Blood?” I let out a dry laugh. “What can I possibly give him?”
Ishaan’s expression went unreadable again. “That’s between you and him. I’m not stepping into that battlefield.”
Battlefield.
That’s exactly what it felt like.
The car slowed and finally stopped outside a hotel. The engine went silent, but my thoughts didn’t.
“I need rest,” Ishaan said, unbuckling his seatbelt. “So do you. Think clearly. Not emotionally. Tell me your decision in an hour.”
I kept looking at the glass doors ahead.
“Book the tickets back to Mumbai,” I said.
He paused. “Are you sure?”
For the first time in days, my mind wasn’t racing. It was still. Cold. Focused.
“I’m sure,” I replied quietly. “For the first time in my life, I’m not running. I’m choosing.”
He studied my face for a second, then nodded. “Alright. I’ll book the first flight.”
We stepped out of the car.
The air felt different.
Jaipur was behind me again.
And this time, I wasn’t returning to Yugant because I was trapped.
I was returning because the real enemy wasn’t him.
And if I had to stand in the middle of a storm again—I would make sure this time, I wasn’t the one drowning.
?
We barely rested for two hours in Jaipur before heading back to the airport. Ishaan kept his word. First flight. No drama.
By 7:30 PM, we landed in Mumbai.
My head was splitting in two.
Morning — Mumbai to Rajasthan.
Evening — Rajasthan to Mumbai.
Twenty-four hours. Two flights. One emotional execution. When I left in the morning, I didn’t think I would be back the same day.
At 8:30 PM, the car stopped outside Raizaada Mansion.
My heart started pounding so loudly I was sure Ishaan could hear it. My palms turned cold.
Yugant.
And worse — Daadi.
She won’t kill me physically, I thought.
She’ll kill me with words. Font size 72. Bold. Underlined.
God, give me strength.
I opened the car door and stepped out.
The mansion lights were on.
Alive.
Waiting.
Ishaan stretched beside me, cracking his neck like he just finished a workout instead of escorting a walking disaster.
And okay — not in a wrong way but Ishaan was hot.
Calm. Calculative. Robotic. Efficient. Dangerous-silent type.
That kind of hot. Sorry, Respectfully hot.
Shut up, Dhwani. My mind shut my thoughts.
Right.
Focus.
Ishaan didn’t wait. He walked inside like spending the entire day managing my chaos had drained his will to live.
I followed.
The moment we stepped inside, my eyes lifted towards the dining table.
Daadi.
Daadu.
Dhritika.
And of course Yugant Raizaada. They were already looking at us. Every step toward that table felt like walking into a courtroom. My throat dried. Dhritika looked worried. Daadu looked concerned.
Daadi looked ready to execute me publicly.
“Hey!” I waved dramatically, like I had just returned from a school picnic.
Dhritika smiled instantly and waved back.. She was built of sunshine.
Daadi’s eyes narrowed. “Where have you been since morning, girl?”
There was more worry than anger in her voice.
For me?
Excuse me?
“I… went to a water park,” I replied with a straight face.
Ishaan turned slowly and looked at me like he regretted ever saving my life.
“Oh, water park?” Daadi arched a brow. “And Ishaan went to bring you back like you’re five years old?”
I nodded. “I get lost easily.”
Daadu chuckled. “Sharda, stop worrying and let her breathe. She’s back. That’s enough. Let the girl eat.”
My brain froze.
“Wait… you were worried for me?” I asked, eyes widening. “Like… actually worried?”
Dhritika immediately leaned forward. “She asked bhai forty-two times—‘Where is that girl? When will that girl come?’”
“Shut up!” Daadi snapped, flustered. “I was not worried. I asked because—”
“because what?” I stepped closer, grinning.
“Because…” she looked at her empty plate like it held answers. “Because I thought you ran away. We need you. We have to find Samarth. That’s all.”
Oh.
That was the lie she chose?
I didn’t think. I just moved forward and wrapped my arms around her.
“Of course, Daadi,” I said softly. “I won’t run away. We have to find my brother, remember?”
She stiffened instantly and tried pushing me away. “Stay away from me. I don’t like you.”
“You asked forty-two times,” I reminded sweetly.
“That was the investigation,” she muttered.
“Investigation comes with anxiety?” I teased.
She finally looked at me properly.
Her eyes weren’t angry.
They were relieved.
“You’re trouble,” she said quietly.
“I know.”
“You give everyone heart attacks.”
“Working on reducing that.”
She sighed heavily and adjusted her dupatta with unnecessary aggression. “Sit and eat. And don’t ever disappear without informing.”
I blinked.
That wasn’t an order. That was a concern.
I smiled like an idiot and quickly went towards Dhrithika and sat beside her.
“See? She does love me,” I whispered loudly.
“I can still throw you out,” she warned.
I grinned. “But you won’t.”
Today it truly felt… like I had returned somewhere I wasn’t supposed to miss.
Ishaan quietly pulled a chair beside Daadu.
Soon the table was filled with the soft clinks of cutlery, the rhythm of normalcy. Too normal.
“Gala is in three days,” Daadu said casually, chewing. “How is everything going, Yugant?”
My hand froze mid-air.
“Everything is going well,” Mr Raizaada replied evenly.
I could feel his gaze on me. Sharp. Measuring.
I slowly leaned back in my chair, pretending to focus very deeply on my food like it held the secrets of the universe.
“Are we bringing the award home this time?” Dhritika asked brightly. “I still remember how sad Papa was when we lost five years ago.”
I gulped feeling so guilty for everything I did and I’m damn sure I wouldn't even realise this if Maheshwar Pratap Rathore wouldn't have betrayed me like that.
“Yeah,” Yugant said, his voice lower now. Colder. I looked up and met his eyes. “This time the award is coming home. At any cost.”
At. Any. Cost.
He didn’t look at anyone else. His eyes stayed locked at me.
“Right, Ishaan?” he added.
Ishaan didn’t hesitate. “Yes, sir. It will be ours. No matter what.”
I swallowed.
How stupid was I?
For months I played with this family’s trust. I stepped into their home with lies.
I manipulated their grief.
And now, sitting at this table… watching them talk about bringing honor back to their father’s name. Across the table, Yugant’s jaw tightened slightly. He wasn’t angry.
He was focused.
Hungry.
And after a long time, I wasn’t scared of him. I was scared of what I had almost destroyed. And what I might still lose.
?
I stood outside Mr. Yugant Raizaada’s room — not with lies this time, not with hidden motives, not with some half-baked plan in my head.
For the first time in months, I was here with a clear mind.
I need help.
And he’s the only one who can give it.
Taking a deep breath — which felt more like swallowing glass — I knocked. Knocking still felt unnatural. I usually barged into his life like a storm.
“Come in.” His voice was calm. Controlled.
I pushed the door open and stepped inside.
He was sitting on the couch, glasses perched on his nose, laptop open on his lap. Ishaan sat beside him with his own laptop, both of them looking like two corporate villains planning world domination.
Wait.
Glasses?
Oh my God.
Mr. Oldie looks hot.
I gulped.
Not in a wrong way.
Okay, maybe slightly in a wrong way.
But not that wrong.
Shut up, Dhwani. Focus.
I cleared my throat.
“I wanted to talk to you.”
Without even looking at me, he said, “Solve your personal matters outside my room, Ishaan.”
I blinked.
Ishaan?
Since when was this about Ishaan?
Ohhh. So Your Highness is pretending I don’t exist.
“I want to talk to you, Mr. Raizaada. Not Ishaan,” I clarified.
He finally looked up.
“I don’t talk to strangers. You can leave.”
That stung. And I know I deserved every bit of it.
If I were in his place, I wouldn’t even be this civil. I would’ve set myself on fire out of pure spite.
“Please. It’s urgent.”
“I just remembered I have an important call,” Ishaan said smoothly, placing his laptop aside. “Excuse me.”
Bless this robotic man.
He walked out.
I closed the door behind me and turned back.
Yugant was still sitting there, arms folded, expression unreadable.
“Open the door,” he said flatly. “I don’t want anyone accusing me of rape again.”
The word punched straight through my chest.
I closed my eyes.
Yes. I had said it. The ugliest word. And I had thrown it at him.
“I’m sorry,” I said, stepping closer. “I’m really sorry. Please forgive me.”
His jaw tightened. “Is this apology as fake as you? Or is this another performance?”
“It’s not a performance or drama” I said, my voice smaller than I liked. “I’m genuinely guilty.”
“What should I do with your guilt Ms Rathore? And why are you even back?” he shot back. “Didn’t I tell you if you came in front of me again, I’d destroy you?”
“Then destroy me,” I whispered. “I’m ready. Do whatever you want.”
His eyes sharpened.
“And what do you want in return for your destruction?”
“What?” I breathed.
He stood up slowly, placing his laptop on the couch. “I know you well enough. Nothing comes free with you. So what’s running in that cunning head now?”
He wasn’t wrong though.
“I want the same thing I wanted three months ago,” I said quietly. “My brother.”
“You already have what you need,” he said coldly. “Those designs. Go use them. Do whatever you want.”
“That door is closed,” I said.
And before my pride could stop me, before my ego could drag me back up — I dropped to my knees.
“I made a mistake trusting Mr. Rathore,” I said, my voice shaking now. “I won’t repeat it. Your designs are safe. I won’t interfere in your Gala. I just want to go to the UAE. I just want to see my brother.”
I joined my hands. “I shouldn’t have done what I did these past three months. I know that. But I have no one else. I was drowning. And you were the only boat I saw.”
Silence fell between us for a few seconds.
“Stand up.”
I frowned. “Huh?”
“I said stand up.”
His voice wasn’t loud. It was controlled. Too controlled.
“I don’t want the woman I love kneeling or lowering her head,” he said, each word measured. “Even if she’s wrong.”
Love.
Did I—NO.
I blinked before actually putting my finger in my ear and shook it.
“Can you repeat that last line?” I asked cautiously. “I think my ears glitched.”
He groaned, dragging a hand down his face.
“I said stand the hell up before I lose my patience,” he snapped.
I flinched.
Okay. That tone? Not negotiable.
I scrambled to my feet so fast even my dignity didn’t get time to catch up.
Dhwani, beta… your fielding is officially set. Stand straight.
“Get out,” he said again, pointing toward the door.
“No,” I shot back immediately. “I can’t. Not until you tell me you’re helping me.”
His jaw tightened. “I have never seen someone as selfish as you in my entire life.”
“Congratulations,” I replied, my voice shaking but steady enough. “You won’t see anyone after me either, Mr. Raizaada.”
His eyes flickered.
“At least I was honest about what I wanted from the beginning,” I continued. “I didn’t fall for you and then play victim. I came for a reason. I pretended to be mute, dumb, harmless — yes. I lied. Because I had to find my brother. Please, help me.” My throat burned, but I didn’t stop.
Silence stretched between us.
He stepped closer. His gaze locked into mine — sharp, unreadable, dangerous.
“Help you? Sure.”
Hope bloomed in my chest. A stupid smile started forming on my face but died instantly with his next words. “But only as my wife.”
The air left my lungs. “What?”
“As. My. Wife.” He said it slower this time. Calm. Controlled. Final.
I blinked as he stepped ahead, leaning closer.
“ Wife as in that fake Revenge type?”
“ Wife as in that Real seven births together type.” he whispered slowly in my ear.
“Excuse me?” I pushed him away. “Did you just hit your head somewhere, I have absolutely no plans to get married right now.”
His expression didn’t change.
“The door is right there, Ms. Rathore,” he said coolly, gripping my chin and turning my face toward it. “You’re free to leave.”
I exhaled sharply and pushed his hand away.
What kind of cracked-out, emotionally unstable, proposal-giving, egoistic man has entered my life?
I rubbed my temples dramatically. “You know what? I don’t even have the energy to process whatever psychological twist you just dropped on me.”
He watched me cautiously as I walked straight past him—toward his bed.
“Yes, I’m aware this is your room,” I muttered while pulling back the comforter. “But my brain has officially resigned. It needs fourteen hours of sleep before it decides whether to accept a marriage proposal or file a mental harassment case.”
“Dhwani—” he started.
“No,” I raised a finger without opening my eyes. “We will continue this insanity tomorrow. Right now, my mind is buffering. If you want a reply, please wait while the system reboots.”
He stepped forward. “You can’t just—”
Too late. I lay down, pulled the comforter up to my chin, and turned to the other side.
“And if you try to drag me out,” I added lazily, “I’ll scream that you’re forcing your revenge wife. Choose wisely.”
I don't know what happened after that because darkness consumed me. Sleep swallowed me whole.
??????