Both brothers lunge at each other again, violently trading punches and shoving one another. They crash into the furniture, and a decorative showpiece shatters on the floor when Ayaan slams into the wall beside it. The couch scrapes across the floor as Raghav collides with it.
Mom instantly moves closer to me, and I grab her hand tightly without even realising it. My heart is pounding wildly because I genuinely have no idea what I’m witnessing right now. These two are actually trying to kill each other.
Another loud crash echoes through the villa as both brothers slam into a wall, hard enough to make me flinch.
“Why?” Raghav demands, grabbing Ayaan by the collar again. “You knew I wanted Siya here at RK Estate. Then how could you even think about moving her out of my reach?”
“I was trying to save you from that world, you idiot!” Ayaan fires back, shoving him away just as forcefully. Their heads nearly smash into each other in pure rage. Again. As though the rest of the room has ceased to exist.
“What are you doing standing there?” Mom asks, turning to at Kailash Uncle in alarm. “Go and stop them!”
But Kailash Uncle doesn’t move. His tired gaze remains fixed on his sons as he exhales heavily.
“No,” he says quietly. “Let them fight it out.”
Mom stares at him in disbelief. So do I. Uncle rubs a hand over his face before continuing. “They have too much buried inside them right now,” he explains. “Too much anger. Too much fear. This is better than letting it rot inside.”
I look at Mom in complete shock. And from her expression, I can tell she is just as stunned as I am. Because apparently, in this family, even an all-out war between brothers is considered perfectly normal.
“Yeah, let them fight,” Meher says calmly, one hand still resting over her baby bump. “The last time these two fought like this was at my dad’s political rally,” she adds, shaking her head dramatically. “Unfortunately, I wasn’t there to witness it. To be honest, I think I’m enjoying this a little too much. Maybe it’s the pregnancy hormones.”
I turn towards her in disbelief. She actually looks… entertained.What kind of family is this?
Even Haider is standing at the doorway with his hands folded, watching, but making no attempt to intervene. And somehow, I think I understand why.
Haider would stand against the entire world for Raghav, but not against his brother. Because somewhere deep down, even he knows this isn’t just anger between two brothers. It’s concern disguised as rage. Protection disguised as conflict. They’re not fighting because they don’t care about each other. They’re fighting because they care too much and don’t know any softer way to express it.
Meanwhile, Raghav and Ayaan are still trying to kill each other in the middle of the damn living room. Raghav shoves Ayaan hard against the ottoman. Ayaan quickly grabs him back, and both of them crash on the floor this time. The sound alone makes me flinch. Again.
As they struggle to gain the upper hand, Raghav jerks backwards after one of Ayaan’s blows, and the edge of the table scrapes against his forehead. A thin cut appears instantly and blood begins to trickle down his skin slowly. I don’t even realise I’ve taken half a step forward until Mom’s fingers brush against my arm.
Something inside me twists painfully at the sight. Not because I’ve forgotten what he did to me. But because seeing him hurt like this still feels… wrong. The crimson streak slides past the corner of his eye, and somehow it only makes him look more dangerous. More violent. More terrifying.
Ayaan wipes the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand and I notice blood there as well.
These two are totally insane. They charge at each other again like a pair of madmen. At last, Kailash Uncle steps in.
“Enough!” he roars, his voice loud enough to shake the entire villa.
For the first time since this madness started, both brothers actually pause. Kailash Uncle moves between them and forcefully shoves them apart with surprising strength despite his age.
“I said enough!”
Even then, both Raghav and Ayaan try to move towards each other again. And this time, Kailash Uncle finally loses it.
“Look at yourselves!” he shouts furiously. “You are behaving like sworn enemies, not brothers! Stop this right now before I completely lose my patience.”
Neither Raghav nor Ayaan listens right away. They are still glaring at each other murderously. Breathing hard. Looking ready to start all over again. And yet somehow, they stop.
“Get the first-aid kit,” Kailash Uncle orders Haider.
Ayaan lets out a humourless laugh and wipes the blood from the corner of his mouth.
“First-aid?” he says sarcastically. “For him?” He points angrily towards Raghav. “A small scratch on his forehead won’t do anything to this man.”
His jaw tightens visibly before he continues, his voice laced with bitterness. “Didn’t you see, Dad? This is the same man who walked into Vardhaan Mansion in Cape Town and slaughtered dozens of people.”
Mom stiffens beside me. We both saw it happen with our own eyes, but hearing it spoken aloud makes it sound even more horrifying.
