𝗛𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗯𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗟𝗼𝘃𝗲

Shadows and Warnings

I backed away from the door, throat tight.

Then something else clicked in my mind. A memory.

Rehaan. A few days ago. His words echoing like a prophecy

"Some answers change everything."

Was this what he meant?

Was he warning me?

Or was he behind this?

No. No, it didn't feel like him. As twisted as it sounds, Rehaan's threats didn't scare me. They... challenged me. But this? This was fear. Cold and sharp.

Still, I couldn't ignore the truth.

Everything I was circling...Mehra, the shell firms, the ports were part of a much bigger game. A dangerous one.

And Rehaan Oberoi wasn't just a player.

He might've been the one writing the rules.

—

I clutched the photo, fingers trembling, as I stared into the darkness beyond the glass.

If they wanted me afraid, they had succeeded.

But fear wouldn't stop me.

It never had.

I would find the truth.

Even if I had to walk straight into hell to do it.

And somehow, I had the feeling the devil himself was waiting for me at the gates

Wearing a three-piece suit,
And watching from the shadows.

___

The photo was delivered.

I watched through the surveillance feed as Esha picked it up. Her face paled. Her hands trembled. She backed away from the door like she'd just opened a portal to hell.

Good.

She needed to be afraid.

She needed to stop.

Because the people hunting her didn't offer second warnings and I was running out of ways to shield her without breaking my cover completely.

But even as I told myself this was necessary... something in my chest twisted.

I hated watching her scared. Hated the way her fire dimmed for a split second. Hated knowing I had let that fear reach her doorstep.

But I couldn't stop it now.

The game was too far in.

—

"She got the message?" Vikram asked, stepping into the penthouse.

I didn't take my eyes off the screen. "She did."

"Good. Maybe now she'll back off."

I clenched my jaw. "She won't."

"She's a lawyer, Rehaan. Not one of us. This isn't her war."

I finally turned to him. "That's where you're wrong. It became her war the moment Mehra made her a target. The moment they realized she wasn't just smart she was dangerous."

Vikram looked like he wanted to say more but thought better of it. Smart man.

Because I was one second away from losing control and when I lost control, bodies dropped.

—

Later that night, I drove alone. No guards. No convoy.

Just me and the city I ruled in the shadows.

I found myself parked outside her building, engine humming low, hidden from sight. Her window was lit soft, golden, like her presence.

She was pacing. Clutching the photo. Talking to herself.

Still fighting.

Even now.

Even with threats on her life.

My fingers tightened around the steering wheel.

She reminded me too much of Aarav.

Stubborn. Brave. Honest in a world that didn't reward honesty.

And just like Aarav... she didn't know when to stop.

I couldn't bury another person I cared about.

No. Not again.

—

I lit a cigarette I didn't need and leaned back in the seat, watching her silhouette.

This woman... she had no idea what she was doing to me.

She made me feel human again in moments I couldn't afford to be.

And that made her the greatest threat of all.

Because loving someone in my world wasn't just dangerous.

It was a death sentence.

—

But the choice wasn't mine anymore.

Because the more I tried to stay away, the more fate kept pushing us back together.

And soon, the mask I wore would shatter.

She'd see me.

All of me.

And when that happened, she'd either run...

Or she'd burn right alongside me.

Either way -

There was no turning back now.

●☆●

So would y'all like the chapter?

That's our first time writing a book

Please do vote and comment, that's great support and makes our day.😊

NOVEL BY- ROSELLA 💗

We both are handling this account and the Instagram account too, and also we both are writing this book; in the future, other books will also be written by us

Follow us on Instagram for the updates and spoilers ✨️