Page 156 of Wasted Grace

Except for maybe one thing. And Advik takes it. The opportunity.

But I can see it in the way his shoulders drag down, even as he walks over and flips open his laptop. The reluctance. Thegrief. The hollow pause between motions of muscle memory. It’s almost as if he can’t bring himself to start mourning.

“I guess you want to know if the Sitara evidence is intact,” he says, almost to the screen. His fingers begin to move, mechanical and fast.

My heart aches at the resignation in his voice. The way he avoids eye contact. It’s like he doesn’t know how to feel—not yet. Like grief has become a job he never applied for, and now he’s showing up anyway.

“So...” Advik swallows hard, forcing his focus back. “I did delete everything. But... only because I realized Dev wanted me to.”

He pauses, letting the weight of that truth settle before continuing. “When he said it was okay to wipe it, I knew he had something in place. There’s a NAS server at GenVault—used only for our healthcare clients. Their data retention requirements are stricter, so...”

His hands don’t stop. They’re already chasing the thread.

“...he stored everything related to Sitara on the local server.”

He turns the screen toward us. And just like that, the breath I’d been holding rushes out of me.Of course Dev thought ahead. Of course he planned for the fucking worst.

Because deep down, he must’ve known it could cost him everything.

Garvit’s already at the laptop, taking over with sharp keystrokes and a sharp mind. Minutes pass in tight silence until he suddenly freezes.

“Jesus Christ,” Garvit mutters, eyes wide. “He baited Mehul with the son of the current Lieutenant General of the Indian Army.”

A disbelieving huff escapes him. “I see Mehul’s login history accessing the decoy account. All of it. It’s all here. It’s... allfuckinghere.”

His head snaps up, eyes lit with stunned triumph. “We got him.”

The room exhales.

Except Advik.

His face crumples in quiet pain. A ghost of a smile flickers across his lips, bitter and soft. He nods, rolling his lips inward to contain it all.

We have the evidence.

We have what we need to bring Mehul and his operation down.

What we don’t have...is Dev.

And I don’t think Advik’s ready to say that out loud yet.

Maybe he never will.

??????

I wake up with warmth engulfing me, and I know it’s Advik in an instant. I may have let it go before—pretended to sleep. But I can’t tonight.

I realize that we both need each other. His hold is tighter this time. More grounding.Unfailing.

A painful silence stretches before I break it. “Are you okay, Vik?”

I feel him stiffen slightly. “Yeah, baby. I’m okay. Go back to sleep.”

I nod as I snuggle closer. “I’m sorry for your loss. He was... he was a good guy.”

A humorless chuckle escapes him. “He was collateral, sweetheart. Don’t sugarcoat it. Could’ve beenmequite easily.”

I hold him tighter at his confession. “I’m still sorry. And I wouldn’t have let it be you.”