𝖉𝖎𝖘𝖎𝖑𝖑𝖚𝖘𝖎𝖔𝖓 | ✓

𝔱𝔴𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔶 𝔣𝔬𝔲𝔯

Kalyani paced outside the door, hesitating to knock on it. The guilt had been eating her alive and she couldn't bear the thought of her own grandsons hating her—— she had already lost her children and her daughters-in-law.

Omkara may forgive her, but Gauri never would. She had shattered the trust Annika and Gauri had had in her.

Gathering up the courage, she knocked tentatively on the door, which was opened by an unamused Omkara.

"Aap?" He asked confused.

"Kaun hain Omkaraji?" Gauri's curious voice was laced with exhaustion. Gauri came to stand beside Kalyani, her eyes narrowing as her lips pursed. "Aap," she stated coldly.

"Andaar aa sakti hoon main?" She asked nervously.

Gauri said nothing, stepping back to let her in, as Omkara glanced between the two women hesitantly.

"I wanted to talk to you," Kalyani began.

Gauri pursed her lips, as she watched the elderly woman take a seat in front of her. Learning about her parents-in-law and her elder sister's parents-in-law hadn't been shocking—— truth be told, Gauri had been hurt but not surprised at the possibility of Tej, Jahnvi, Shakti and Pinky Singh Oberoi having done such a thing.

She knew Pinky and Tej Singh Oberoi held great value for the reputation and wealth of the family: the prestige and the ability to flaunt what and who they were in the faces of the rest of the world.

Jahnvi and Shakti Singh Oberoi were merely existing, without confronting or correcting their spouses' errors. While one indulged in alcohol, the other indulged in endless prayers.

But at the end of the day it was the same: one member of the couple thrived off of their socioeconomic status, uncaring of who else suffered, while the other one took no responsibility, ever.

It had pierced her heart, however, to learn that the woman she had been calling Dadi for nearly a year had known about the death of her parents and hidden her sons from the cells of prison. Gauri knew that Kalyani hadn't known that two of the Oberoi bahus were the daughters of the people her own children had murdered—— but as her sister had questioned: had Kalyani Oberoi thought that that made it alright?

Bhavya had been insulted and arrested in front of the entire world because Kalyani had wanted to keep on hiding the truth about Kalyani Mills from the rest of the world. Bhavya's parents had not even been spared, let alone the little sister she had lost.

Gauri wondered if the elderly woman in front of her would ever feel as guilty as she currently did, if the daughters of Harsh and Sara Trivedi had not ended up being Oberoi bahus.

She felt a reassuring hand squeeze her shoulder. She looked up to see her husband smiling sadly, his eyes shining with resilience and love for her.

Gauri placed a hand over his, before clearing her throat, "Bataiye."

"I wanted to apologise," Kalyani began slowly. Gauri stayed quiet. "I'm not excusing what my sons did."

"If you're going to add the word but after that, it would be quite contradictory," Gauri replied.

Kalyani sighed, "It happened a long time ago. By the time I found out what they'd done it was too late."

Gauri pursed her lips. She truly wondered if guilt had made the elderly woman desperately hold on to the hope that her grandsons might turn out different than their fathers. Kalyani Oberoi was remorseful—— that much was clear—— but Gauri couldn't forgive the woman who had decided to just let it all go and drop all responsibilities on her Jiju and her husband.