"Tell me what you need. I'll try to help you,"
Alok said, pretending to be kind.
Nidhi listened quietly to everything they were saying about her.
Her heart was already filled with bitterness.
So these are the people I once called my parents, she thought.
I did everything for them. I gave my heart and soul just to earn their love.
And today, I am the one running this house, yet they are talking about giving me money.
Alok took out a card from his pocket and said,
"There's one hundred thousand in this card. Take it. The password is 123456."
"Why are you giving her so much money?"
Maya panicked and immediately tried to stop him.
Alok signaled her to stay quiet, then looked at Nidhi and said coldly,
"I just want you to leave from here and never come to see Grandma again."
A mocking smile appeared on Nidhi's face.
She looked at the bank card in Alok's hand but didn't react.
"Is it less? Do you want more?"
Alok asked impatiently.
"Take whatever you're getting and be sensible,"
Maya said, curling her lips in disdain.
"Don't expect more than this."
Nidhi watched their behavior with empty eyes.
Alok stepped forward, grabbed her hand, and tried to place the card on her palm.
But Nidhi loosened her hand.
The card slipped and fell straight to the floor.
Seeing this, Maya exploded in anger.
"What do you actually want?" she shouted.
"Alok, are you seeing her attitude? We raised her for eighteen years, and now she doesn't even show basic gratitude!"
She glared at Nidhi fiercely.
"There's not even a trace of shame in her eyes. I know girls like her very well. You don't want money—you want our property! That's why you came here to manipulate Mom."
She pointed at Nidhi aggressively.
"But listen carefully—stay away from us and our mother from today onward!"
"One crore,"
Nidhi said softly, smiling as she spoke each word slowly.
"Then I might consider it."
"Are you dreaming?" Maya screamed.
"Why don't you go rob a bank if you want one crore?"
Before Maya could continue, Nidhi replied with a smirk,
"Robbing a bank is a bit risky. That's why I thought of robbing you instead."
"Y–You—!"
Maya was almost driven mad with anger.
"I won't give you even a single penny! Do whatever you want!"
She snatched the card back from Alok's hand and shouted,
"If you don't leave right now, I'll have you thrown out!"
"Then go ahead,"
Nidhi said calmly.
"Call someone and have me dragged out."
"Don't test my patience," Maya snapped.
"This is the VIP floor. Not everyone is allowed here."
She was about to call the staff when suddenly a deep voice echoed from behind—
"Nidhi."
It was the first time Shubham had called her by her name.
The moment she heard his voice, something stirred inside her heart—
as if someone familiar had called her.
Nidhi turned around and saw Shubham standing a short distance away in the corridor, watching her intently.
Without thinking further, she walked straight toward him, taking long strides.
Within moments, both of them disappeared down the corridor, completely ignoring the Mehra family.
"Who is that man?"
Maya asked curiously, staring in the direction they had gone.
"Is he her father? No… her father can't be that young. Maybe her brother? Her grandmother is sick too—maybe he's admitted here as well."
Her mind raced.
"Can they even afford this hospital?"
Watching Nidhi vanish at the end of the corridor, Maya turned to Alok and said,
"I think we should shift Mom to another hospital. If Nidhi keeps coming here, she'll become a big problem for us."
Alok had the same thought.
But in the entire city of Mumbai, no hospital had better resources than City Hospital.
This was where his mother could get the best treatment.
"Mom likes her,"
Maya said nervously.
"I'm scared that if Nidhi keeps meeting her, Mom's heart will soften again."
Her mind went back to what happened three months ago.
When Kamini Dadi found out that Nidhi was not her biological granddaughter, she couldn't bear the shock and collapsed.
After regaining consciousness, she had declared firmly—
"As long as I'm alive, Nidhi is my only granddaughter. She will not leave this house. Anyone who tries to throw her out will lose all ties with me."
The most painful part was that when Aashna came to the house, Kamini Dadi showed her no affection at all.
To protect Aashna and drive Nidhi out as soon as possible, Maya and Alok did everything they could.
Without informing Kamini Dadi, they posted Nidhi's details on an adoption information site.
That was when Nidhi's biological family contacted them and said they wanted to take her home.
When Kamini Dadi found out the truth, she was so shocked that she had to be hospitalized.
Taking advantage of her absence, Alok and Maya finally threw Nidhi out of the Mehra family.
"Mom has almost lost her senses because of old age,"
Maya complained bitterly.
"That's why she loves Nidhi instead of her real granddaughter."
She clenched her fists.
"I'm only worried that if Nidhi doesn't disappear from our lives, she'll become a huge problem in the future. What if she interferes in Aashna and Lokesh's relationship?"
Alok sighed deeply and said,
"We'll think about all this after going home. For now, we should talk to the doctor about transferring Mom."
He took a deep breath and started walking.
"Anyway, we don't have any other option."
On the other side, Nidhi was walking behind Shubham while replying to images one by one on her phone.
Because she had been busy since morning, she hadn't been able to reply to her work emails and messages earlier.
Her attention was completely on her phone when, all of a sudden, someone passed by in a wheelchair and almost collided with her.
Seeing this, Shubham immediately pulled her to his side and said,
"Be careful."
Nidhi was startled. Her focus instantly shifted from her phone.
She looked at Shubham and said softly,
"Thank you."
Shubham smiled slightly and continued walking ahead.
Nidhi once again lowered her gaze to her phone and got busy replying.
Later, when they were sitting inside the car, Shubham noticed that Nidhi seemed lost in her thoughts.
Suddenly, he asked the driver to stop the car.
"I'll be right back,"
he said briefly and stepped out of the vehicle.