The Charade

52| 𝕻𝖆𝖌𝖆𝖑𝖕𝖆𝖓

Chapter 53, 54 and 55 are updated on Scrollstack and Patreon!

AUTHOR'S POV

"I loved you so much, Mr. Agnihotri. So deeply, so recklessly, that I destroyed myself in the process. I don't even remember when it started—when I fell for you. But I do remember the moment I realized I had ruined myself for you, shattered into pieces I can't put back together. And now... now I am nothing but a ghost of the person I once was.  I crave you in ways I can't comprehend."

Kashi's eyes spilled tears as she looked at the man beneath her.

Her hand trembled as she cupped his cheek.

"I wanted to be a good daughter. That's why I married the guy my elders chose. But, but your ex-wife—she ruined everything. She looked down on me and said things to me I couldn't bear. And what your brother did to me in that car, while we were coming from my home, a part of me felt scared. Scared for the future. But still, I hoped I could cope with it. Until... until I saw that bitch mixing Viagra in Dhir's milk. I was numb. Scared. And I didn't know what to do. I sat there on that bed, crying, thinking about all those things your wife said to me, thinking about how your brother touched me in the car. I was crying even before anything started. It hurt me so much, but I knew one thing: that night, Kashi Rao would die. What I would become was your wife—a woman who wanted only you. Just you."

Her tears slid down uncontrollably.

"I knew Reyaan was our son. I was scared at times when I realized how you were able to guess all my moves. Your distance maddened me. I tried to plan everything, but I realized how sharp-minded you were—more than anyone could ever know. After you chained me, humiliated me, I understood how far you could go if I disobeyed you. For the next month, I planned how to kill your wife."

Her eyes shut tightly as she inhaled sharply.

"I mixed cyanide in her tea. If I had known you would kill her the same day, I wouldn't have wasted my energy doing that."

"And then we finally got married." She smiled, wiping her tears. "Finally, we were together." Her eyes spilled more tears as she continued.

"I wanted to confess all this to you a year ago, even before our baby was born. But you didn't come back home. You broke me so badly. You made me doubt myself, doubt my thoughts, wondering if it was the right time to talk to you."

Her hands cupped his cheeks as she leaned down, pressing a tender kiss to his lips.

"I loved you without even knowing how to love someone. I fell for you, fully aware of how much I had messed everything up. I knew I was entangled in the web of the Agnihotris, and to break free—I had to break myself. And I did. All for you."

Her thumb gently caressed his cheek as her eyes darted everywhere but his eyes.

"The values your family upheld were impossible to break. I acted. I pretended. I hurt myself. I hurt others. I ruined everything. I killed. And I was ready to be killed if it meant staying close to you."

Her voice trembled as she paused, tears welling up once again.

"I am not..." She faltered, unable to find the words. Her lips quivered, and her chest heaved with the weight of emotions that refused to settle. Finally, she whispered, "I am not the person I used to be, Mr. Agnihotri. But I am yours. Entirely yours, in ways I can't even explain."

"Not a word more." His calm voice made her heart skip a beat. As he covered her, he stood, picking her up in his arms without saying a word.

Kashi felt her tears flowing uncontrollably as he strode toward the mansion.