In the next instant, she tears her gaze from mine and runs for the back door. One of her stilettos slips free in her rush, clattering across the floor behind her, but she doesn’t stop. Doesn’t even glance back. She vanishes into the night like someone who’s been running her whole life.
I release the man lying unconscious at my feet and push myself upright. I see her fallen stiletto lying a few steps away, pick it up, and head after her. But by the time I push through the back exit into the alley, it’s already too late.
They’re here.
The Vardhaan men close in on her like hunters circling their prey, but this time she doesn’t fight. She surrenders, standing tall, her chin lifted in defiance even as three sleek black sedans screech to a halt beside her, their doors flinging open with force.
When one of the men tries to shove her into the car, she shrugs off his grip, demanding her dignity back, and mutters something that instantly makes him step back at once. Only then does she step into the waiting car… on her own terms.
The others pile in after, and in seconds, the convoy pulls away, swallowed by the night, leaving me standing in the alley with nothing but her abandoned Louboutin in my hand.
I’m still staring at the empty street when a familiar voice cuts through my haze.
“Raghav?”
It’s Meher, my brother Ayaan’s wife.
Of all the people I could have run into tonight, it had to be her. Her eyes widen in disbelief as I turn around. She looks atme as though she’s seen a ghost. Maybe that’s exactly what I’ve become.A living ghost.
“What are you doing here?” I ask before she can say anything.
“I should be the one asking you that,” she fires back instantly. “What areyoudoing in Mumbai? And why haven’t you come home?”
I don’t answer because there’s something else I’m more bothered about.
“Where the hell are your guards?” I snap instead.
Right on cue, they burst through the back door, out of breath, and painfully late. My temper flares. I stride towards them in fury.
“You’re eleven seconds late,” I say coldly. “Anything could’ve happened to her in that time. Do you even understand the responsibility that comes with this job?”
They look at the ground like chastised children.Pathetic.
“Okay, okay, they’re here now, and I’m perfectly fine,” Meher steps between us, trying to play mediator.
“Don’t give me that‘I’m fine’shit. If they can’t do their jobs, I’ll put my own men on you.”
She blinks, startled. “You’re joking, right? You’d really putyourguards on me?”
“Yes,” I answer flatly, “becauseyoursclearly aren’t capable or reliable.”
A nervous laugh escapes her as she tries to ease the tension I have no intention of easing.
“Well, thanks, but no thanks. I already have Ayaan breathing down my neck and my brother Vishnu’s military-level security tracking my every move. The last thing I need is you throwing more guards into the mix. By the way, I’m here with Devika and Simran. I saw your silhouette from inside and thought it was you, so I came out.”
I ignore her explanation and give her guards one last look that promises consequences if they fail again.
“You shouldn’t take risks like this, Meher.”
“And you shouldn’t just disappear on us like this,” she shoots back. “Now, tell me. What are you doing in Mumbai?”
“Work.” One word. That’s all she gets.
“Work?” she echoes, her eyes narrowing. “And you didn’t think to inform Ayaan or Paapa? They’ll be furious.”
“I’ll handle them.”
“Fine. But right now, you’re coming home with me.”
