The next day.
I glanced at the clock. 7:39 p.m.
I was in the kitchen, washing a knife under the tap. Just a few more minutes, then I could go home. A small smile curved on my lips as I wiped the wet patch on the sink cabinet.
That moment, Maya entered the kitchen.
"Hey Vidya, we're going to dinner tonight. Five of us," she said casually, patting my shoulder.
I furrowed my eyebrows. "Five of us?" I asked, confused.
"Yes. Me, you, dad, mom… and grandma."
My eyes widened the moment I heard the word dad.
My heart skipped a beat.
Charan Rathore...?
Before I could say anything, Maya quickly added, "Shh… don't tell Kathir," and walked out of the kitchen—just like that.
I'm getting into a big problem now…
How do I escape this?
Yesterday I already erased the evidence that Charan had come here. Now I'm supposed to take his mother to him secretly? I don't want to do another mistake. He warned me. He made it clear.
I rolled my eyes and stepped out of the kitchen, but my heart dropped the moment I noticed Kathir Rathore sitting at the dining table, focused on his laptop.
How can I take his mom to see his father… without his permission?
As if sensing my guilt, he looked up and glanced at me.
My breath hitched.
I immediately looked away and walked past him, pretending like I didn't notice anything.
"Vidya, you go bring Renuka here. We'll be waiting in the car," grandma said from the living room.
I nodded and was just about to head upstairs when—
BANG!
A sudden loud sound made me stop and turn.
Maya had fallen to the floor, her eyes wide in shock. Five men in black outfits, their faces covered, stormed into the house.
Kathir jumped up from his chair. One of the men raised a gun and pointed it straight at him.
"Don't move," the man warned, tightening his grip on the weapon.
Kathir's body tensed immediately. "Who are you all?" he demanded, voice sharp, his body alert—ready to react, but frozen by the gun.
Panic. Everything turned into panic.
My whole body froze. From head to toe. I couldn't even move. Maya was still sitting, trembling.
Grandma's voice cracked. "Please… don't harm my grandson…"
The man didn't respond. He kept the gun aimed at Kathir, just a few inches away.
Kathir's jaw clenched. His eyes were burning with rage, but the gun held him still.
The other four men ran upstairs.
"I said stop!" Kathir shouted, but they didn't listen.
My heart was hammering so loud, I could barely hear anything else. Maya was still shaking. Grandma was pale. And I—I didn't even know what to do.
Then the men came back down.
They were carrying Renuka aunty in her wheelchair. Her body was strapped tightly so she wouldn't fall. She couldn't move. She couldn't speak. The paralyzed had taken everything from her.
My eyes widened in horror.
They're taking her...
"Where are you taking her?!" I shouted, panic in my voice.
Kathir screamed too. "Don't touch her!"
He tried to move, but the man raised the gun again—ready to fire.
I didn't think.
I grabbed the vase from the corner and threw it with all my strength.
CRASH!
The vase smashed right onto the man's head. He collapsed to the ground, unconscious. Blood spilled near his face.
Kathir looked at me, stunned—but only for a second—before he sprinted outside.
My hand trembled.
I stared at the man lying on the floor.
What did I just do?
But there was no time to think.
I turned and ran outside. Maya and grandma followed.
And then—
I saw Charan Rathore.
He stood there, giving orders to the men who were loading Renuka aunty—still in her wheelchair—into the car.
My heart dropped.
"Don't you dare take my mom from me!" Kathir shouted, running toward him.
But two men stopped him.
One of them hit him hard at the back of his knee, forcing him down to the ground.
"Dad! We asked you to stay calm!" Maya screamed, her voice full of tears.
The two men pinned Kathir down. I could barely breathe watching it.
Charan Rathore just laughed.
"I think my son has already forgotten who his dad really is."
Kathir's eyes were burning—furious and unblinking—locked onto his father like he was trying to set fire to him with just a look. His jaw thickened, clenched so hard I could almost hear the tension crack in his bones. Two men leaned into the car, trying to untie Renuka aunty from the restraints and settle her limp body in the back seat.
My chest tightened.
No... no, she wouldn't want this. She wouldn't want to leave this house—her home—by watching her son suffer.
Kathir twisted and fought, his muscles tensed under the grips of two men holding him down. But he couldn't break free. Charan Rathore only stood there, amused. His eyes scanned the chaos like he was watching a show he wrote himself. Grandma trembled by the stairs, her lips moving in silent prayer. Maya stood frozen, eyes wet and hopeless, her hands shaking like leaves.
It was getting hard to breathe.
Then—
"Ahhh!"
My eyes shot wide open.
Winston.
The soft, loyal Winston was sinking his teeth into the arm of one of the men holding Kathir. The man let out a scream, loud and sharp, and swung his leg—
"NO!" I gasped.
Winston cried out as the kick landed, and something shattered inside me. I ran—faster than I've ever moved—straight to him.
"Let go, Winston!" I begged, hands trembling as I tried to pull him back.
But he wouldn't stop. He was defending his master.
Kathir's eyes locked onto mine in that split second.
They didn't scream, they didn't shout—
But I could feel them. Please save him, they said. Save Winston.
I tugged with all my strength, arms shaking, and finally—finally—I pulled Winston away. But in his frenzy, he turned and bit down—
"Arghhh!" I cried out, dropping him as pain ripped through my arm.
The bite was deep. My whole arm pulsed, blood trickled down, and my fingers went weak. I held it close, trying to steady my breath.
Before Winston could leap again, my eyes darted and found a wooden log lying nearby. No time to think. I grabbed it and swung—straight at the second man who hadn't been attacked yet.
"Ah!"
He turned with a furious grunt, and in one blink—
His hand flew to my neck.
I gasped.
His grip was brutal—tight—suffocating.
My hands clawed at his arms, nails digging in, panic flooding my chest as air left my lungs in choked gasps.
"Dad, please stop this!!" Maya screamed, voice broken.
Charan didn't even blink. He shook his head slowly, like this was nothing.
My eyes blurred. My chest burned. My legs weakened.
I tried to fight—I slapped, I kicked—I could feel my strength slipping.
This can't be the end.
Not like this.
Please... someone... help...