20~ Shadows, Secrets, and Gold Chains

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When you play with fire,
be ready for the burn.
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˚♡ 🪷🪕🪞🦢⋆。˚ ❀

Who knew that the universe would take such a dramatic turn, twisting everything I thought I understood? As I sat in the living room, chatting with the orphanage girls over the phone, I couldn't help but think about how different everything was now

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Who knew that the universe would take such a dramatic turn, twisting everything I thought I understood? As I sat in the living room, chatting with the orphanage girls over the phone, I couldn't help but think about how different everything was now. These girls, once used as leverage against me by Mahendra and Devraj Seth, were finally safe under Adhiraj's protection. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined that the boy who once shied away from crowds in college now wielded this much power. He wasn't just Adhiraj anymore; he was ASR, Hukum-sa of Raipur, the man who made the world bend to his will.

As I spoke with one of the younger girls, her voice trembling but hopeful, my mind wandered back to those darker days. The days when Mahendra Seth treated me like a pawn, keeping me trapped under his thumb. I still remember the sting of his slap, the red mark burning on my cheek. The thought alone made my blood boil. How dare he?! Adhiraj might have killed him, but oh, how I wish it had been my hands around his throat, squeezing the life out of him. When I heard that Adhiraj had finished him off, I felt a sick sense of satisfaction deep in my chest. That man deserved every bit of the brutal end he met. That's why I never told Adhiraj about the torture I went through...I was afraid of just how far he'd go in his rage.

Mahendra had forced me into a corner so many times, playing on my fears. He made me weaken Adhiraj's position in business, made me undermine him when I should have been standing by his side. He wanted me to break Adhiraj, piece by piece. He knew that if he could keep Adhiraj distracted, if he could chip away at his confidence, the Rathore's would be easier to manipulate. I had to become the villain, the traitor in Adhiraj's eyes, all to protect him from something worse. The guilt still gnaws at me.

And then there was that one fateful day when I finally gathered enough courage to tell Adhiraj everything. I remember running through the rain to meet him, my heart racing with every step, determined to confess. But when I reached near his house, I heard he had been in a car accident. He had been driven off the road, his arm twisted, legs broken. The news broke me, especially when I found out Mahendra was behind it. I couldn't risk bringing more danger into his life, so I pulled away. And just like that, I became the villain Mahendra wanted me to be.

Even now, I wonder what twisted connection Mahendra had to the Rathore family. What did he have against them that he chose to ruin me to get to Adhiraj? If Adhiraj doesn't know, maybe Maa-sa does. I've kept this question buried, but it's time to dig it up.

Right now, I'm sitting in the living room with Maa-sa, Dadi-sa, and Priya. We're surrounded by stacks of luxurious sarees as an uncle demonstrates the latest collection. The heavy silk, the intricate zari work, the royal blues and maroons each one a masterpiece. Dadi-sa inspects each saree carefully, while Priya, as usual, is being her cheeky self.

"You should pick this one, bhabhi," she says, holding up a dark green saree with golden thread work, her eyes glinting with mischief.

"After all, it'll make Bhai-sa swoon. You have those curves, so might as well flaunt them!"

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