Page 166 of Since You Stole My Heart

Kashvi quickly said, ‘Di, it’s not his fault.’

Siya turned a confused gaze towards her. ‘Then tell me whose fault it is, because I swear my head is going to explode if someone doesn’t give me an answer soon.’

Abhay rubbed a hand over her back, whispering something into his wife’s ear. Siya drew in a deep breath and loosened her grip on Kashvi’s shoulders.

‘It’s Dad,’ Dhruv said, and that alone was enough.

‘Of course it’s him,’ Siya scoffed bitterly. ‘Why would he ever leave us in peace?’

‘Guys,’ Vihaan called urgently, pulling their attention towards him. ‘You need to look at this.’

‘What is it?’ Abhay stepped closer and bent down towards the laptop balanced on Vihaan’s lap.

Vihaan pointed at the screen. ‘Kuber unlocked the folder. There’s so much dirt in here. Politicians, celebrities, rich families, you name it. Viraj is literally holding millions for ransom.’

‘Not Viraj. My father,’ Kashvi corrected quietly. Karthik had implied he targeted many people, but the sheer scale of it still shocked her.

Siya cursed again, her restraint hanging by a thread.

Dhruv tore his gaze away from the laptop. ‘This is it. We got him. We can send him to jail and make sure he never hurts any of us again.’

Swayam nodded immediately. ‘We need to report this to the police right now.’

‘I’ll call the Commissioner,’ Siya said, reaching for the phone Abhay handed her.

Before she could dial, Kashvi caught her wrist. ‘You can’t do that.’

Siya’s brows pulled together. ‘Why not?’

Kashvi drew in a deep breath, trying to steady her frayed nerves. ‘Because you need to know the full truth before you do anything.’

Swayam studied her carefully. ‘Kash, who were you talking to in the bedroom?’

‘My father,’ she said, turning towards him.

He held her gaze. ‘What did he say?’

‘If we go to the police or the media, he’ll expose me as a murderer,’ she said, the words sounding distant even to herself.

‘What the fuck?’ Siya shouted.

A deep crease formed between Dhruv’s brows as his fists clenched. ‘Is he out of his mind?’

Swayam kept his gaze fixed on Kashvi, his hand rising to cup her cheek. ‘Baby, listen to me. He can make up whatever lies he wants, but we won’t let anything happen to you. I’ll protect you, I promise.’

There was so much love and acceptance in his eyes that Kashvi’s heart cracked at the realisation that she was about to lose it all.

‘He’s not lying.’

‘What?’ Swayam, shock flashing across his features.

‘He’s not lying. I killed someone,’ she repeated numbly.

The colour drained from Siya’s face. ‘Kashu... who?’

Kashvi squeezed her eyes shut, and a tear slipped free before she finally confessed. ‘Our mother.’

Chapter 32