UNWILLINGLY HIS

Cleaning the mess

(Samaira’s POV)

I couldn’t stop myself from asking, the weight of everything hanging heavy in my chest. "So, we’re not safe here, and this is how you plan to protect me?" My voice cracked as the gravity of the situation settled over me. All the chaos, the gunshots, and Advait’s calm demeanor—it was like I was being pulled deeper into a world I never wanted to understand.

Advait’s face hardened as he looked at me, and for a moment, I saw a flicker of something—guilt? Regret? His jaw clenched as he took a deep breath. "I didn’t want you to see this," he said, his voice quiet but firm. "I wanted to get you out of here before things got out of hand. But if you need to know, Samaira… let me show you exactly how I protect you."

Before I could say anything, he pulled out his phone. His fingers moved swiftly over the screen, and suddenly the sound of gunshots pierced the air. My heart jumped in my chest, and instinctively, my hands shot to my ears, trying to block out the deafening noise. It felt like the world around us was falling apart.

Advait’s strong arms wrapped around me, pulling me close. His chest became a shield, his presence the only thing I could hold onto in the madness. The shots echoed in my ears, and I felt myself trembling against him.

Minutes passed, but the sound of violence lingered in my bones. Finally, the chaos outside began to fade, and Advait’s voice broke through the silence. "You can take your hands off now."

I slowly pulled my hands away from my ears, my body still tense. The air was thick with the aftermath, but it was quiet again. The kind of silence that weighed on you, made you feel like something was wrong.

"So, can we leave now?" I asked, my voice barely a whisper.

But Rhea’s voice interrupted, calm and collected as ever. "Just wait a moment. You won’t like the mess outside."

I didn’t respond. What was left to say? I wanted to scream, to ask why—why was I here? Why was he showing me this world? But I held back. My mind was too scattered, too confused to put my thoughts into words.

When we stepped outside, I was almost relieved to see that the area was quiet. The gunshots had stopped, but there was something deeply unsettling about the silence. The chaos I expected to see—the blood, the bodies—was absent. The area looked clean, like nothing had happened at all.

A guard came forward, dragging three men behind him. Their faces were bruised, their clothes torn, but they were alive. The way the guards handled them, it was clear they had been part of the attack. My stomach churned at the sight of them, at the realization of how far this world went.

Advait turned to me, his voice hard and commanding. "Take the gun," he said, handing it to me.

My hand hesitated, trembling slightly as I held the weapon. "Shoot them," he ordered.

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. "What? No!" I stammered. "I can’t—I don’t know who they are. Why—why do you want me to do this?"

Advait’s gaze softened just for a moment, but there was no pity in his eyes—only cold certainty. "Now you know what I’m capable of, Samaira. Now you understand why I’ve kept you in the dark for so long. You don’t choose this life. This life chose you."

His words hit me like a slap, the cold reality sinking in. I looked at the gun in my hand, feeling the weight of it, the weight of everything. My mind screamed for me to drop it, to walk away, but I couldn’t. Not yet.

Rhea’s voice broke through the tension. "Host them properly," she said, her tone emotionless. The guards nodded and led the prisoners away, but Rhea’s eyes never left Advait. There was a strange, almost calculating look in her gaze. She studied me like I was a puzzle she was trying to solve, and it unnerved me.

Advait turned to me, his expression unreadable. "Let’s go," he said softly, his hand wrapping around mine. "You don’t need to see what happens next."

I didn’t resist as he led me away from the scene, but the questions still burned in my mind. How much longer could I pretend not to know what kind of world I was living in?