Page 83 of Substitute Bride

Sharda, upon hearing this horrifying confession, clutches her head and collapses into a sitting position.

Vikrant, frozen in disbelief, holds his breath; he cannot believe that everything he once considered true was nothing but a grand deception.

And the man he worshipped like a god—his father—had destroyed countless lives.

Ravindra then turns his fury toward Parag and shouts:

"When the accident occurred and everyone learned that my beloved wife had died in it, I was devastated by her loss; however, during that time, I also achieved significant success and received a large number of votes… … (Turn to Vikrant) Now do you understand why I planned everything... When the accident happened, you had fallen into the valley and died. How did you come back? How is all this even possible? I was the one who shot you in the leg! That limp of yours… Yes, now I understand—it’s because of that. But how did you survive? …. "

Everyone was glaring at Ravindra with hatred, their eyes filled with disgust. Yet, he appeared completely unaffected, as if their hatred held no significance for him. Parag, unable to hold back the fury burning in his eyes, stepped forward and spat his words with venom.

"Yes, I did fall into the valley, but God chose to spare me. The truth is, I remained unconscious for many months after being saved by someone. And when I finally woke up, I came to know that Sonia madam was no longer in this world… If I had gone to anyone to tell them what you had done to her, no one would have believed me. Worse, I feared my family would be in danger. That fear kept me hidden. I stayed in the shadows, working silently, never showing my face. Meanwhile, the woman I loved—my wife—was here, dedicating every breath of her life to taking care of my parents and raising our two children. She gave her all without ever expecting anything in return. But I couldn’t be there for her.

I couldn’t even meet her once. The only thing I could do was send more than half of whatever I earned through someone I trusted, just so my family wouldn't be left completely alone.

It was through that same person," (he said, turning slowly toward Akhil), "that this man came to know about me. And the moment I found out what you did to Madam Sonia, I couldn’t hold myself back anymore—I had to come back. "

A heavy silence fell over the room. Parag's words didn't just echo; they struck.

They held pain, betrayal, love, and sacrifice.

He stood there limping but unshaken, carrying wounds far deeper than the one in his leg.

He also longs for his family for many years.

Vikrant grabs Ravindra's collar and asks.

“In that accident she had a miscarriage, or you did something that made her condition like this.”

“Yes, it was my fault. I shouldn't have done that. But she shouldn’t have said she’d leave me.

She knew how deeply I loved her. She would rather not live with me anymore.

She began to hate me. She kept saying she would leave me.

I couldn’t bear it. She was bleeding. I was aware that taking her to the hospital could potentially save the baby.

But when she kept saying she would leave me because of that baby, my rage exploded.

I beat her. I kept hitting her until she passed out…

. At that time, I was so extremely angry that I couldn’t control myself.

I lost all sense of right and wrong in that moment.

Sonia suffered severe injuries. She had serious injuries, even on her head.

And when she finally regained consciousness, she wasn’t the same; she had lost her grip on reality.

But why don’t any of you see this? Even after seeing her in that condition, I didn’t abandon her.

I still love her just as much as I did before.

She’s still with me today. It’s just that she keeps trying to run away from me again and again, and that’s why I had to tie her down.

What else could I do? You all know how deeply I love her.

Please, try to understand what I’m saying.

Sonia’s mind is stuck in one place; it's trapped in a single thought. But that doesn’t matter to me. If you want your mother back,"

Ravidra said, glancing toward the Vikrant with hope.

"Let's take her home. Let’s go back as a family, start again, like a proper family. Let’s forget everything that happened. Why cry so much over a child who didn’t even come into this world? There’s no point dwelling on something that’s already lost. Let’s move on."

There was something twisted in his calmness, his words dripping with justifications, as if his words could erase every scar.

He spoke with the conviction of a man who believed his actions were motivated by love, even though they had crossed all boundaries.

Yet, Vikrant's heart froze, caught between disbelief and the chilling realization that sometimes, obsession wears the mask of devotion.

“Right, Sonia…. Let's start again…”

Ravindra is sure everything will turn as he wishes; Vikrant is trembling with uncontrollable fury.

He tries to hold himself back, but the volcano within him is ready to erupt.

At that very moment, Sharda picks up Parag’s crutch and starts beating Ravindra with all her might.

Vikrant silently watches and makes no attempt to shield him.

He merely looks at Sharda, who is now beating him with a kind of satisfaction long overdue. Ravindra's crying echoed everywhere.

Vikrant’s eyes drift to Sonia, who, with slow and painful effort, gently lays her little daughter on the ground and, using support, begins walking toward them.

His eyes remain locked on her. A faint, serene smile graces her weary face, a smile so soft, so full of quiet relief, that it fills Vikrant’s heart with a deep sense of calm, like the first breath after a long, suffocating nightmare.

Vikrant immediately wants to rush to her side to help her, but as he watches her limping toward them, she suddenly spots a thick wooden log.

Her face lights up with a strange kind of joy as she picks it up.

Vikrant’s feet freeze in place. He slowly turns his back toward Sonia and shifts his gaze to Ravindra, who is already badly wounded.

Vikrant walks over quickly and gently pulls Sharda into his arms. She, sobbing uncontrollably, tries to hit him with her frail hands to free herself, but he knows she has no strength left.

He doesn't have the courage to hear anything more, nor the strength to ask Ravindra a single question.

He just wants it all to stop. Ravindra, seated on the ground, starts wiping the blood off his face. But suddenly

“Ahhhh…”

A heavy blow lands on his head. Dazed, he tries to look up. Sonia, with all the rage in her heart, has slammed the wooden log onto his head. Her voice, sharp and trembling with fury, pierces the silence.

“You killed my daughter! You separated me from my son too!”

Vikrant stares silently at Sonia, eyes wide.

Ravindra, reeling from the pain, grabs the log and yanks Sonia down to the ground with it.

Vikrant immediately dashes forward to help, but Sharda holds him back.

Sonia, now on the ground, watches Ravindra attempt to grab her.

But she lunges forward, bites his hand, and begins hitting him repeatedly, screaming louder this time:

“You killed my daughter! You deserve to die too…. You monster…”

Ravindra, trying to restrain her, slaps her hard across the face.

Sonia falls to the ground. Vikrant can’t hold himself back anymore.

With furious strength, he charges toward Ravindra, grabs his injured leg, and drags him away from Sonia.

Ravindra now fully realizes Vikrant knows everything, and he’s not going to let him go.

In desperation, Ravindra tries to escape.

But Vikrant catches him again, throws him down, and drags him all the way to Sonia, who is now sitting on the floor, eyes locked on Ravindra with a cold, distant stare.

Vikrant drops Ravindra in front of her like a lifeless sack.

Sonia, watching everything, picks up a stone.

Her face is calm now, now turning furious.

Without hesitation, she hurls the stone at Ravindra’s head.

He cries out in pain. Blood begins to gush out, and he writhes, unable to even shield himself.

Vikrant watches Sonia’s face; there’s an indescribable peace on it.

Sonia slowly rises from the ground, her eyes shifting to the doll lying quietly—her daughter.

A warm, bittersweet smile stretches across her face.

She picks up another stone, far heavier this time.

With great effort, she raises it above her head.

Ravindra, gasping in pain, blinks and sees her.

And in that moment, fear overtakes him completely.

But before he can move, Sonia slams the stone down onto his skull.

"Ahhhh…"

Blood spurts from Ravindra’s head. He can’t move. He can’t speak properly. But the groans of agony echo everywhere. Sonia kneels beside him, her expression unchanged, as she listens to the dying man’s cries. She speaks again, slowly, like a haunting lullaby:

“You took my children away from me…”

Ravindra, even in such a broken state, can’t reach for his wounds, can’t soothe the searing pain. He lies there, crying like a child, helpless and destroyed. He tries to look at Sonia, who is only looking at him with hate; she is very happy to see him in pain.

Vikrant, now crouched in front of Sonia, places his hands on his knees.

His eyes don’t wander; they remain fixed on his mother.

This woman, who had endured unspeakable pain, humiliation, and torture at the hands of this man for years, now had a calmness on her face that was beyond words.

And Vikrant... all he wanted was to hold on to that peace.

To memorize it. To never let go of the serenity his mother had finally found.

Ravindra was gasping for what seemed like his final breaths.

Yet, his eyes remained fixed, unblinking, on Sonia.

She, too, stared back at him, but not with love or remorse, only with a quiet, stormy detachment.

And yet, the faint movement in Ravindra’s chest, the slow rhythm of his dying breath, seemed to unsettle her deeply, as if each of his remaining breaths was dragging her back into the pain she had tried to leave behind.

She slowly looked away, her eyes scanning the ground.

Then, she spotted it, a sharp, jagged splinter of wood, no longer than her hand, but pointed like a dagger.

The corners of her lips curled into the faintest smile.

With quiet determination, she dropped to her hands and knees and crawled toward it.

Her fingers wrapped around the piece of wood, and she pulled it close to her chest like it was something valuable, something meant only for her.

Vikrant was watching every movement carefully.

Sonia, moving slowly but with eerie calm, returned to Ravindra’s side.

She sat beside him and gazed at the sharp wood in her hand, turning it slowly, thoughtfully, almost like she was admiring a treasured relic.

Ravindra’s eyes widened with terror. His lips quivered.

With great difficulty, he turned his face slightly toward Vikrant, searching for mercy, for intervention.

Vikrant met his gaze, gave a soft, cold smile, and said quietly.

"You deserve this…"

Suddenly, Ravindra’s eyes froze, locked in a deep, final shudder, and his entire body stiffened.

Vikrant immediately turned to look at Sonia.

And there she was, her hand gripping the jagged piece of wood, now buried deep into Ravindra’s chest. She didn’t flinch.

She didn’t tremble. She simply leaned over and stared at him, calmly, intently, like one would study a painting or a memory.

She keeps staring at him; he is not moving.

The sight gives her immense happiness. Then, as if sealing a long-awaited chapter, she smiled, turned her gaze toward the doll lying silently, and softly whispered:

"Now he’ll never hurt you again… I’ve saved you."

A stillness settled over there, not just silence, but the kind that follows the end of something that should have ended long ago.