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“No… No… He can’t take her from here! How did he manage to take her from here? She can’t just leave me like this… She can’t!”

Vikrant stood silently next to him, listening to his words, his expression unreadable. After a moment of silence, he spoke in a calm, cold tone.

“Is that who you’re talking about? You mean the same woman you kidnapped—his wife? Well, he came and took her back, didn’t he? Took his daughter too. It’s over now. We should leave—there’s no point staying here. Virendra Chandel has probably taken them far away by now.”

Hearing those words, Ravindra turned sharply toward Vikrant. With blazing eyes, he grabbed his son by the collar and shouted furiously, his face inches away.

“All this happened right under your nose, and you just let it happen? How did he manage to get them out of here without you knowing? Find him—wherever he is. I want my Sonia back at any cost!”

Vikrant stared at him, stunned.

“Your Sonia? Have you forgotten that Mom died years ago? What are you even saying? I know you were attached to this place... but you’re not making any sense right now.”

Before Vikrant could say another word, Ravindra slapped him hard across the face. His eyes burned with uncontained rage as he screamed:

“She’s alive!”

CHAPTER 41

TRUTH

“She is alive…”

Ravindra mutters to Vikrant, his eyes darting around frantically like a madman, as if someone had suddenly snatched his entire life away from him. Vikrant’s eyes remain fixed on Ravindra, calm and collected, as he responds in a composed voice.

“What has suddenly happened to you? Did you have some kind of accident in England that's making you talk like this? It's been 22 years since she left.”

Ravindra sharply turns to look at him, suddenly realizing the gravity of what he has just said. His eyes widen in shock. Without wasting a second, he pulls out his phone and starts trying to contact people, but none of his calls are going through. Vikrant silently follows behind him, his pace slow, almost as if none of this chaos is of any concern to him. Ravindra turns around abruptly and looks at him in panic.

“I’m trying to call Malhotra! Why isn’t he answering my calls? What the hell is going on here behind my back?”

Vikrant, still calm, speaks in an eerily casual tone.

“When Chandel attacked, he was after the guns consignment. And you know very well everyone in the underworld is desperate for a seat of power. That’s why several people sided with him. Even those who pretended to be loyal to us, those who triedto extract our secrets under the mask of trust. Malhotra was one of them. So, last night, I killed Malhotra. You didn’t tell me you were trying to call him; otherwise, I would’ve informed you. Currently, there’s no one left whom we can trust. But I’m curious, why were you calling him?”

Ravindra stares at Vikrant in disbelief, his mind struggling to comprehend what he’s hearing. He runs a hand across his forehead, trying to piece things together, muttering to himself in growing anxiety.

“Where have you gone? Why did you leave me? That’s why I kept you chained, to make sure you could never leave me. How could you leave me like this?”

Vikrant watches his father’s unraveling with quiet attention. He takes great care not to reveal a single emotion in his eyes, nothing that would cause Ravindra to suspect anything. Walking over to him slowly, Vikrant gently places a hand on his father’s shoulder and speaks softly.

“Dad… Is there a problem?”

Ravindra looks at him intently. Deep down, he now understands no one else can help him at this point. Only Vikrant. Holding onto his son’s shoulders with urgency, he says with trembling desperation:

“Listen, I’ll explain everything to you later. But right now, the only thing that matters is finding Sonia. Somehow, by any means possible, you need to bring her back to me. Once she’s here, you can ask me whatever you want. Just get me my Sonia.”

Seeing the desperate and helpless expression in Ravindra’s eyes, Vikrant feels a twinge of confusion. But he knows he can’t walk away without understanding the entire truth. He calmly replies,

“Are you hallucinating? Or is this some other kind of psychological issue? Where exactly am I supposed to bring her from?”

At those words, Ravindra suddenly snaps in rage. He grabs Vikrant by the collar, shaking him violently as he yells:

“Why can’t you understand that she’s alive! She was always alive! I just locked her away because she was going to leave me! And I couldn’t let that happen! I love her! How could she even think about walking away from me? Chandel must have taken her when he attacked us! I know it! You have to bring her back—bring my Sonia back!”

Ravindra’s manic shouting echoes in the silent environment as Vikrant stares deeply into his father’s frenzied eyes. Ravindra lets go of his collar and continues, this time with more intensity and madness in his tone.

“Vikrant, you know how your mother had found herself a new lover. That’s why she decided to leave me. She wanted to abandon everything! She had an accident, but she survived. I couldn’t allow her to leave after that. The moment I got the chance, I locked her up here. Don’t you understand? I loved her! How could I let her walk away from me? Try to see it from my side—I did it out of love!”