Mishti placed her hand over Komal’s gently, stopping her finally. “Abhimanyu was only doing what he thought was right for his brother,” she said softly. “Please don’t blame him.” Shepaused, as a tear slipped down her cheek. “What Karan went through as a child… You and I can’t even imagine it, Komal. Losing his mother like that, right in front of his eyes…” She looked down, swallowing the sob rising in her throat. “I wouldn’t wish that pain on anyone.”
Komal’s eyes filled too. “I know,” she said quietly. “I understand now why he is so distant, why he never showed you affection. I get it. But as a woman, I can’t stand by and watch you suffer for something you never did.”
Mishti wiped her tears and lifted her gaze to Komal. “That’s why I need a favour from you.”
Komal straightened immediately. “Anything. Tell me. How can I help?”
Mishti said something softly, what she had in mind, and Komal’s jaw dropped.
“Mishti… you? You can’t be serious! No. This isn’t right.”
Mishti held her hand firmly, trying to make her understand. “I need to do this, Komal. And I can’t do it alone. I can’t ask Divya bhabhi for help either. You’re the only one I can trust.”
Komal hesitated, absorbing what she had just heard. “But what if Karan finds out?”
Mishti exhaled shakily. “That’s exactly what I’m scared of.” She pulled her hand back suddenly. “No… You are right. I don’t want you getting into trouble because of me. Forget I said anything. I’ll manage on my own.”
“No. You’re not doing this alone.” Komal cut her off at once. “I’m going to help you, Mishti. I always wanted to. I just need a couple of days to figure out how.”
Mishti swallowed hard and leaned forward, hugging her tightly.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
Komal hugged her back, patting her gently, but her mind was already racing. She wondered if Mishti was choosing theright path, because if Karan ever found out, the fallout would be merciless.
****************
A week later
Mishti hadn’t come to the office for almost a week now. Karan did not ask her to either. He told himself it didn’t matter now. Whatever he had needed her for, he had already achieved. Trinity had served its purpose. At least, that was the explanation he gave himself. But somewhere deeper, he knew the truth was far uglier. The truth was, he did not know how to face her again.
In that entire week, they barely spoke, nor did their paths cross even by coincidence. Karan left early in the mornings and returned long after the house had settled into silence. The Lexi Group deal had reached its final sign-off, and the chain reaction had begun. With Karan pulling the chains of decision for Lexi Group, their investment plans for Trinity were cancelled. Contracts were being pulled back. Long-standing clients of Trinity & Co were suddenly hesitant to trust the company anymore, which in turn led to delayed payments.
Even within DG Group, Daksh fought relentlessly to stabilise the damage, scrambling to renegotiate terms, injecting whatever liquidity he could, trying to hold the company together. But the cracks were already too deep. Karan knew it was only a matter of weeks or months before Trinity and the DG group collapsed because of the losses it could no longer carry.
When Karan returned home, it was Maria who always gave him updates about Mishti. She never waited for him to ask, nor did he ever tell her to stop. She fed him with every small update about his wife.Mishti was in her room. Mishti had gone out for a while. Mishti hadn’t eaten much.Maria told him everything.
He also learned, without asking, that she barely cooked anymore. She no longer spent time chatting with Abhimanyu theway she used to. She had withdrawn from the rhythms of the house, from people, from herself.
Even Rajat had tried to reach out to her. He had suggested going out, doing something to lift her mood. But Mishti had politely refused him.
She went out on her own sometimes. To meet Komal. To sit quietly in the Shiv temple. Or she would spend long hours alone in the garden of the mansion, staring up at the sky as if searching for something she had lost and did not know how to name.
Every update turned him anxious more than the last.
Karan did not know how to change any of this. More than that, he did not know if he even had the right to try. His purpose had never wavered. Revenge against the Goels was the foundation of everything he had built.Mishti was a Goel.And if he allowed himself to soften, to ease the distance between them, would that not be a betrayal of his own blood? Of the mother who had died because of that family?
That single thought kept him rooted where he was.
So he let the days pass as they came. Mishti although stayed away from him in every possible way, yet she never truly left his mind. She was there in the silence of the nights, in the pauses between meetings, in the spaces he pretended not to notice. She was physically absent around him, but present in every waking moment of his daily routine.
***************
Today, Mishti was out again at the Shiv temple, but this time she was not alone. She had asked Divya to meet her there.
The temple courtyard was calm in the early hours. The moment Divya saw Mishti standing near the steps, her composure broke. She walked straight up to her and wrapped her arms around her tightly. She cried without holding back, and Mishti, who had been trying so hard to stay steady, could notcontrol herself anymore either. Her tears came silently at first, then more freely, soaking into Divya’s shoulder.
They did not speak for a while. After offering their prayers, they sat side by side on the temple steps. Divya wiped her eyes and looked at Mishti carefully, as if trying to read her without hurting her further.
