[10th January 2025]
[RAJVANSHI ESTATE - DELHI]
The Rajvanshi Estate stood atop the hills, draped in silence, like a temple carved for gods who no longer answered prayers - only demanded obedience.
Adityanath Rajvanshi, the man who ruled legacies and silenced bloodlines, stood at the center of the great study, his eyes narrowed on his eldest son, Madhav Rajvanshi.
"You were assigned to clean up everything. Every trace of her existence. And yet the girl who helped Ruhani is still out there?" His voice was deceptively quiet, laced with venom.
A sudden crack echoed through the chamber as Adityanath's hand struck Madhav's face. The impact was sharp, brutal.
"You don't understand what this means, do you?" he hissed. "She was right there, living under our nose with Ruhani for months," Adityanath hissed, not needing to raise his voice to convey fury. "And you let her slip."
Madhav's jaw was clenched. "She vanished before our teams arrived. We searched the surrounding villages and forest routes. She left no trail."
"I don't want excuses, I want her dead."
Adityanath poured himself a drink with calm cruelty. "Anyone who aided Ruhani... anyone who knew of Rudra... dies."
The name twisted in the air like smoke — Rudra.
A muscle in Madhav's jaw jumped, but he said nothing.
"She helped Ruhani hide," Adityanath continued, swirling the amber liquid in his glass. "She protected her. That makes her either loyal to my traitorous grandchild... or useful to someone else. Either way – she is a risk."
Only a handful in the estate dared to speak Rudra's name at all.
He was the ghost in their attic, the heir who had tried to abandon the family legacy and paid for it.
"I don't want her found," Adityanath said, stepping closer. "I want her eliminated. I want her wiped from this earth before her knowledge becomes a weapon against us."
Madhav remained silent, the sting on his cheek blooming red, but his thoughts were racing.
He hadn't told his father everything. He did suspect the girl was more than just a caretaker. He'd seen the remnants of a life in hiding-clues hidden in plain sight. But nothing that screamed of newborns or blood.
'The girl' had done a good job covering her tracks.
'Too good.'
"Double the search grid," Adityanath ordered. "No one stops until that girl is found. If she knows about Rudra's location — or worse, if she knows he's alive—we have no room for error."
Adityanath's eyes narrowed. "No one hides that well unless they've been trained... or protected."
He took a sip. "Find her, Madhav. Before someone else does. Before Rudra does."
Madhav gave a tight nod and turned to leave.
"And Madhav—" Adityanath's voice halted him at the door, "If you fail me again, your brother will take your place. There's no room for softness in this house. Not anymore."
Adityanath stared into the fire, the embers dancing in his eyes like ancient omens.
'Rudra! My child,' he thought to himself, a flicker of doubt beneath the fury. 'Where are you hiding? You have no idea what big mistake you've made.'
Madhav nodded and left the room.
But something else sat heavy in his chest.
A suspicion.
A fear he hadn't dared to say aloud:
What if Ruhani wasn't hiding just herself... but something else?
Something born in secrecy.
But he pushed the thought aside.
For now, the only order was to hunt the girl.
And ensure she never spoke a word.
____
[THE COTTAGE – HIMACHAL PRADESH]
The crying never stopped.
It clawed at Vidya's sanity like dull nails on glass - constant, relentless. The tiny cabin's wooden walls amplified every wail. Her own trembling hands were red and cracked from the cold as she rocked both infants, whispering broken lullabies she remembered Ruhani humming once.
Her body ached.
Her arms screamed.
Her eyes burned from exhaustion.
But she dared not rest.
The twins were hungry again. The last drops of milk were gone.
Her own stomach howled in protest, but she had long stopped listening to its complaints.
Then-
Crunch.
Her muscles tensed instantly.
The unmistakable sound of footsteps outside.
Her heart slammed against her ribs like a drum of war.
'It was too early. No one should be here.'
'Not yet.'
'Had they found her?'
'Had they tracked her down already?'
She gently lowered the twins into the tattered basket lined with scarves, grabbed the small hunting knife from beneath the wooden floorboard, and moved like a shadow—silent and precise—toward the door.
She had done worse with less.
The door creaked open—
And she struck, knife ready to slit a throat.
But froze.
Because the woman who stepped into the cabin wasn't a threat.
She wasn't armed. She wasn't masked.
She was still, watching Vidya with guarded but calm eyes.
Aria didn't flinch.
She had come in expecting to confront a scared girl. To demand answers. To use the years of hardened steel she'd built into her spine to get to the bottom of whatever hell Rooh had been pulled into.
But this...
This wasn't what she expected.
The girl—barely eighteen—in front of her was trembling, her eyes wild with fear and desperation. Her face was streaked with dirt and tears. She looked like she hadn't slept in days.
Vidya's hand didn't lower.
She didn't trust calm.
'Calm could kill you faster than rage.'
But then, the stranger spoke.
"I'm Aria, Aria Maheshwari " she said softly, her voice surprisingly warm and kind for someone standing inches from a blade. "Ruhani Roy sent me."
That name.
That name cracked through Vidya's frozen exterior like lightning through ice.
Her jaw trembled.
The girl's eyes flicked over her face — searching for a lie, an attack, anything she could defend against. But Aria made sure there was only honesty in her posture, only quiet calm in her expression.
"I have proof," Aria said, slowly pulling a crumpled envelope from her coat pocket. "This was in the letter." She unfolded the photograph carefully and held it forward.
It was the same photo Vidya had hidden in her pocket.
Her grip faltered.
Aria noticed.
"I don't mean you any harm. I came to help... I swear it."
Vidya still didn't speak, but her shoulders dropped, just slightly.
The knife trembled in her hand.
And then the twins began crying again.
Louder. Shriller.
Vidya turned, eyes wide with panic. Her body moved to block them automatically, shielding them even from someone who might be a — friend.
Aria was surprised to see the young girl with such strong instincts.
At the same time she was glad and relieved to see the girl so determined to protect the kids, that weren't even hers. The girl herself looked like she would pass out any moment—but it seemed that her own condition is the least of her priority. She has done enough, now it's my turn.
She glanced at the near-empty hearth, the frost creeping along the window, the girl's bare feet, and the gauntness of her cheeks.
Without another word, she turned and left the cabin.
Vidya stood frozen, knife still clutched tight. Her brain screamed 'trap', screamed 'mistake', screamed 'run'. But her legs didn't move. Even if they did, there was nowhere she could run towards, nobody to turn to except—her.
Aria Maheshwari—Ruhani di had told to trust her—to go to her that she is the only one who would help. And Vidya had no other choice but to believe on her hope.
Minutes later, Aria returned-with a canvas bag slung over her shoulder.
She dropped to her knees beside the twins, opened it, and began pulling things out: a thermos, some stale bread, a clean towel, a flask of water, a clean bottle.
She didn't look at Vidya as she poured the milk into the clean bottle she brought. She simply worked, fast and efficient, like a soldier. Or a mother. Or someone who had long stopped waiting for someone else to fix things.
She gently unscrewed the thermos and poured warm milk into the bottle.
Vidya watched, stunned silent.
"Here," Aria said, holding the bottle toward her. "Let's feed them first. Then you too."
Her voice was steady, her eyes kind but firm.
"You're not alone anymore."
The knife finally dropped from Vidya's hand.
And for the first time since Ruhani has disappeared, she let someone help.