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I was the road I was destined to walk on. That was what I told myself every damn day since my brother died. Ershad Bhaijaan's death wasn't just a tragedy. It was a message. A declaration of war.
So when Bhabhijaan's voice broke through my thoughts like a slap to the face, I didn't flinch. But it stung.
"Sultan, why are you doing something that left us with a trauma?" Her voice shook. Fear laced every word. Her eyes, once warm, were now full of terror. At me. And that was something I despised.
"If you people decide to stay weak, then I don't care," I spat, bitterness dripping from every syllable. "I can't forget the way they murdered Bhaijaan. I can't sleep without seeing his face in that blood."
"Revenge will give you nothing but emptiness," she said, her voice cracking. "He's not coming back. Even if you kill them all. You can't do this alone."
She was right. But it didn't matter. Because my rage didn't care for logic. Or loneliness.
I remembered the moment they came for me. The ones who had taken my brother tried to erase me too. My blood soaked the ground, leaking from the bullet holes in my stomach. My body collapsed before I even realized I was falling. But they were all dead. I made sure of it.
They tried to wipe out the Khan bloodline. But they forgot one thing.
I'm not just part of it. I am the bloodline.
I dragged myself through the shadows of the alley, each step heavier than the last. My leg screamed from a deep stab wound, but I didn't stop. I wouldn't stop.
And then, out of nowhere— Something, no—someone, collided into me.
Tiny. Warm. Fragile.
"Hey!" I growled, turning, ready for another enemy. But instead, I saw a little girl clinging to me like I was her savior.
A girl with messy hair, flushed cheeks, and tears in her big round eyes.
"Please don't make me go back," she sobbed. "Those dogs were gonna eat me!"
I blinked. What the hell?
"You shouldn't be out so late," I said, deadpan, trying to shake her off. But she wasn't letting go.
"Walk with me, please! It's dark and... and they might come back!"
I should've left her. I had blood in my mouth and death in my hands. But instead, I asked—
"What happened with the dogs?"
She sniffled, voice rushed and chaotic. "I was walking home from the library, and they came outta nowhere! I stuck my tongue out at them, and then they chased me!"
