Chapter 280: Chapter Two Hundred and Seventy Nine.

Back at the hospital...

Meera was pacing restlessly, her eyes fixed on the hallway where they had wheeled Arjun away.

Karan watched her from the nearby seats, exhaling softly before walking up to her.

“Meera, you need to sit. You look exhausted.” he said gently.

She didn’t even glance at him at first, her gaze remained locked on the door.

Then she finally turned, her voice quiet but trembling.

“Don’t worry, Karan. I’m fine.” Her hands twisted together nervously. “Did you reach out to the others?”

Karan nodded.

suddenly, familiar voice broke the tension.

“Meera?”

Her head turned around, and there, rushing through the hospital entrance, were her father, Siddhartha, and Mr. Madhav.

“Papa…” Her voice cracked. She ran straight into her father’s arms.

He pulled her close, holding her so tight.

“Oh, thank God you’re safe.” he whispered against her hair, kissing the top of her head.

When she finally pulled back, her lashes were wet.

“Papa… Arjun… Arjun is in surgery.” she said, voice breaking halfway through.

Her father sighed deeply, brushing her hair from her face with trembling fingers.

“Meera..” Mr. Madhav’s voice came next, calm but heavy with worry.

She turned to him, and the moment she did, he stepped forward and enveloped her in a firm, fatherly hug.

“It’s okay.” he said softly. “Don’t worry. Arjun is strong...he’ll make it.”

Meera nodded, her lips quivering. She looked so fragile, so unlike the bride she was meant to be today.

Her once-perfect makeup was streaked with tears, her wedding lehenga stained with blood and dust.

The girl who should have been glowing in celebration now looked like she’d walked through war, and she had.

“Meera.” Siddhartha called gently. She looked at him, her hazel eyes dull with exhaustion.

“You look tired.” he said. “We’re here now, okay? Why don’t you rest for a while?”

But she shook her head immediately.

“No… I don’t want to leave. I’ll wait here. I have to.”

Her voice was soft, but it carried a quiet determination that made Siddhartha sigh.

He gave her a small, understanding smile, then gestured to Karan with a subtle nod to step aside.

They moved to a quiet corner away from Meera and the elders.

Siddhartha lowered his voice. “Where’s Shaurya? Did you guys get him?” His eyes flicked between Karan and back to Meera and the fathers.

Karan’s jaw tightened. He ran a hand through his messy hair, frustration clear in his voice.

“No. He disappeared before we could get to him. But Varun shot him, I’m sure of it.”

Siddhartha exhaled sharply, anger flashing in his usually calm eyes.

“So he’s still out there? That bastard…” He clenched his jaw. “After all this, he still slipped away.”

Karan nodded grimly. “We didn’t have time to search. I had to get Boss to the hospital fast, and some of our men are badly injured too.”

“But this is bad.” Siddhartha said quietly. “If he’s not dead, I have a bad feeling he’ll come back.”

His eyes shifted toward Meera, who sat a few feet away talking softly with their fathers, her hands trembling slightly, her face pale but composed.

Karan exhaled slowly, dragging a tired hand through his hair.

“That’s what I fear most.” he said. “And at it is now, Meera is in more danger and I'm not talking about Shaurya or Arjun…”

He trailed off, his voice dropping. “She’ll become a target against them too. It will be everywhere that two powerful men are after just woman. Think about it.”

Siddhartha’s jaw tightened. He understood immediately.

His fists clenched at his sides, the weight of the truth pressing between them.

“This is a mess.” he muttered, he looked back toward the girl who’d already been through hell.

♤♤♤

Meanwhile,

deep in the woods, inside a secluded villa far from town...

The lit room smelled of blood.

Shaurya sat slumped on a leather couch, his skin ghostly pale, sweat clinging to him.

“Fuck!” he growled, clutching his side as blood oozed from a wound near his ribs.

His breathing came in harsh, broken gasps. The bullet had gone deep, too deep.

“I told you not to trust that snake, Suhana.”

A woman’s voice broke through the silence, it was laced with irritation.

She stepped out of the shadows, a tray of medical tools in her gloved hands.

Jhanvi.

She set the tray on the table and crouched beside him, her eyes scanning his battered body before sighing.

“You’re lucky you’re still breathing. The bullets are in nasty places.”

“Enough talking, Jhanvi. Just, treat it.” Shaurya muttered.

Jhanvi rolled her eyes but obeyed, dipping a cotton swab in antiseptic before pressing it against the wound.

He groaned, teeth grinding.

“This is going to hurt.” she warned. “And honestly, you deserve it.”

Shaurya’s jaw flexed as she began to work, metal scraping lightly against skin as she tried to reach the embedded bullet.

“You’re so damn stupid, Shaurya.” she said firmly but not cruel. “You started a war by kidnapping one of the most dangerous men’s woman. What did you think was going to happen? That it would be easy?”

He barely responded, his head falling back against the couch, sweat sliding down his temple.

His breaths came shallow.

“And working for that woman..” Jhanvi continued bitterly, “you really thought Suhana would keep her end of the deal? She’s a snake. You should’ve known better than to fall for her tricks.”

Shaurya’s lips curled into a faint, bloodied smirk.

“I don’t care about Suhana… or any deal.” he rasped. “I want Meera. That’s all that matters.”

Jhanvi froze for a moment, then scoffed, shaking her head.

“You’re insane.” she muttered. “What the hell did you even see in her? She’s not like us, Shaurya. She’s beautiful, yes. Innocent. Soft. Someone who doesn’t belong in your world, or Arjun’s. And yet…”

She looked at him, a mixture of pity and disgust in her eyes.

“…you’re willing to burn the whole damn world just to have her.”

Shaurya’s breathing slowed, his eyes fluttering open just enough to meet hers.

She worked with efficient, until finally the stubborn piece of metal fell into her gloved palm and she dropped it into a tray with a soft clink.

“I thought my cruel black heart would never beat for anyone after my mother… but Meera, she changed that.” He laughed weakly, a sound that had no joy.

“I feel it. My chest, when I think of her, it moves. When she’s close, it races like a frightened animal. When she’s far… it hurts. I want to lock her up so she can’t leave. She’s with someone who doesn’t deserve her. He doesn’t deserve to keep her.”

Jhanvi didn’t look up, she kept one steady hand on the wound as she dabbed and stitched, “It’s obsession, Shaurya. You’ll get over it.” she said flatly.

“Don’t call it that.” he snapped, breathing shallower now.

“It’s not–” His face slackened as weakness crept in. For a moment he swallowed and tried to finish, but the sentence died in his throat. “I… I will get her. Even if–” his voice broke, and he went quiet.