Vaidehi | ✎

[11]

this chapter is dedicated to thelostgemini0 🩷

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One week earlier.

Me and Radhika had just finished a flower arrangement lesson together in the royal garden and were heading back inside the palace when a strange man stopped us mid way. He is dressed like a royal, in plain white kurta and pajama similar to the ones I've seen Angad bhaiya wearing during sword practice.

"Mamaji!" Radhika addressed him.

The man smiles and pats her on her shoulder. "How's my favourite neice doing?" He asks. He looks handsome in an understated way and looks much too young to be Radhika's mamaji.

His eyes turn to me, smiling oddly,
"And this....isn't this our estranged princess?" He comments eyeing me up. I smile politely though my mood is far from being polite.
"It's a pleasure." I say.

He takes my hand without asking. Uncomfort washes over me.
"I've been wanting to meet you. And honestly this wasn't how I pictured you to be at all."

Something about him and his comment feels lecherous to me. But I try to shake the feeling off. Maybe I m just being paranoid because he is related to Devyani.

"When did you return mamaji? I thought this time you were going for long." Radhika jumps in.

The man nods, finally letting go of my hand. "Yes I thought so too. But then I heard about Raghavendra's marriage and how could I not be there for it. I've seen the boy grow up with you guys afterall."

Radhika smiles. "Ofcourse."

"Okay then you guys carry on. I hope I'll be seeing you both for dinner this evening."

"Absolutely. How can we miss it now that you're here." Radhika says sweetly before touching his feet again. I touch his feet too and we bid him a farewell.

"What happened to you?" Radhika asks me just as enter the palace, "you seemed off that time."

I shrug. "I m hostile to Devyani's relatives, what can I say." I add light-heartedly.

She laughs. "Uff ok my princess."

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Present.

"Vaidehi...." Suryanath sighs smiling gleefully acting as if he didn't just break into my quarters.

"Suryanath ji! What hell are you doing here!" I scream as I desperately try to cover my almost naked body with the heavy lehenga.

He smiles. "Don't worry, don't worry. I am not here to hurt you." What the actual hell is wrong with this man. He just broke into my space and is acting like a psychopath and is saying shit like I m not here to hurt you. Ofcourse you are here to hurt me. You are already hurting my pride.

"Listen, please go away. Or....or I'll scream."

He throws his head back and laughs taking slow steps towards me. I step back. "Why are pretty girls always so dumb. What do you think is going to happen if you scream huh?" His tone is now outright sadistic, "You are practically naked with a man of royal status. Did I mention you are also an illegitimate child and barely a few people even respect you here. Trust me, sweetheart if you are caught in a compromising position with me in the middle of the night, your reputation is down the drain. No one is going to believe you over me and your marriage is definitely off. So guess who is at disadvantage here? You."