HIS UNFINISHED OBSESSION

Throne and Shadows [2]

For one brief second-

Samaira forgot everything else in the room.

Vikram.

The betrayal.

The danger.

All of it vanished the moment she saw him standing there alive.

Advait's gaze remained fixed on her for exactly two seconds.

Long enough to notice her trembling hands.

The panic still visible on her face.

The tears she was trying not to let fall.

And something shifted in his expression.

A softness.

Brief.

Almost invisible.

But it was there.

Then it disappeared.

His attention returned to Vikram instantly.

Cold again.

Sharp.

Dangerous.

"You really should stop underestimating me, Uncle," Advait said casually as he stepped fully inside the room.

The calmness in his voice somehow felt more threatening than shouting ever could.

Vikram's face hardened immediately.

"You think this changes anything?"

Advait smiled faintly.

"I think," he replied smoothly, "you're starting to panic."

"I'm not afraid of you."

"No," Advait agreed calmly. "You're afraid of losing."

The words landed perfectly.

Because for the first time since Samaira entered this room-

Vikram looked unsettled.

Not defeated.

Not yet.

But shaken.

His eyes flickered toward the doorway briefly.

Calculating exits.

Escape routes.

Options.

Advait noticed.

Of course he noticed.

"You know," Advait continued conversationally, "when I was younger, I genuinely respected you."

The room fell silent again.

"You were the only person after dad's death who still spoke to me like I wasn't broken."

A humorless smile appeared briefly on his lips.

"And all this time..."

His eyes darkened.

"It was you."

Something flickered across Vikram's face then.

Not guilt.

Never guilt.

But irritation.

"Don't look at me like that," he snapped suddenly. "As if your father was some innocent saint."

Advait's jaw tightened slightly.

"He built an empire with blood too."

"Yes," Advait replied quietly. "But at least he never stabbed his own family in the back for it."