A scream tore through the room as Avya plunged the knife into his other palm without a hint of hesitation. She pulled it out just as mercilessly, her voice colder than ice, her words sharper than the blade itself.

"Only answer what you're asked… or the consequences will be beyond your imagination."

Saying that, she gripped his hand tightly and, with that same bloodied knife, ripped out his nail. Her deadly eyes locked onto him like a predator eyeing prey, but even now, he didn’t speak the truth. With a whimper, he lied through gritted teeth, "I… I didn’t do anything… ahhh!"

But before he could even finish, another scream echoed—Avya had now chopped off one of his fingers, without uttering a single word.

And she didn’t stop there.

One by one, four of his fingers were gone. By now, the man was trembling, almost unconscious with pain, and finally broke down. He confessed everything, his voice trembling with fear, and fell to her feet.

"Queen… please forgive me! Just one chance… I swear I won’t make this mistake again!"

But Avya—her eyes already blazing red with fury—grabbed his throat and leaned in, her rage spilling through every word.

"Forgive you?"

She tightened her grip, cutting off his breath, watching him struggle. And for some twisted reason, it gave her peace.

Looking into his panicked eyes, she whispered in that same chilling voice,

"You thought I would forgive you?

How naïve.

In my world, mistakes don’t come with second chances…

They come with consequences.

And trying to harm the one I protect…

That was your final one."

She finally released his throat. He coughed violently, gasping for breath. A few seconds more and he would’ve been dead.

Avya turned to Krish and ordered in a low yet deadly tone,

"Drag him through every layer of pain until death feels like a dream.

Then send him to Max — tell him it’s from me."

(Max — Avya’s pet tiger.)

Without another word, she walked out of the room and made a call, giving someone clear instructions. Jack followed right behind her.

As soon as they left, horrifying screams filled the air — screams so chilling they could make anyone’s soul shiver… but here, no one flinched. No one cared.

Avya walked into one of the palace rooms to freshen up — her face and clothes drenched in that man’s blood. She looked lethal. So deadly, even her reflection might’ve stepped back. Jack quietly disappeared into his own room.

---

Meanwhile… at the Rathore Mansion

The entire family sat in the living room, eagerly waiting for Isha. Suddenly, the doorbell rang.

Everyone rushed to the door while Nitika ji went to get the aarti plate. Puja ji quickly opened the door — and there she was — Isha, standing outside with a bright, infectious smile.

Everyone's faces lit up seeing her. Even Abhay, who rarely showed emotions, had the ghost of a smile on his face.

He might be heartless for the world, but his family… they were his everything. Especially his two sisters. Though, Misha — being the youngest — was the most pampered.

Coming back to the moment…

Isha beamed at them all. “Hello everyone!”

Puja ji instantly hugged her tight. Isha hugged her back — but then, she felt something wet on her shoulder. Pulling back, she looked at Puja ji, and saw tears in her eyes.

“Mumma? Why are you crying?” she asked, concerned.

Puja ji chuckled softly, wiping her tears. “These are happy tears, beta. I’m just so overwhelmed seeing you after so long.”

Hearing that, Isha wiped her tears playfully and said with a dramatic flair,

“Sweetie, these tears are too precious to waste. And you know na… I hate tears.”

With that, she kissed her cheek and winked. Puja ji laughed, her heart full.

Abhishek ji, who was watching the mother-daughter moment with a smile, pretended to frown.

“Haan haan, you both carry on. We don’t even exist. Let us at least meet our princess too.”

Puja ji rolled her eyes. “Such jealousy!”

Everyone burst into laughter. Abhishek ji shot her a look, but she totally ignored it and took the aarti plate from Nitika ji. After performing the aarti, she brought Isha inside.

Now in the living room, Isha took blessings from all the elders. Then she rushed to Abhay and hugged him tightly.

“I missed you so much, big bro!”

Abhay kissed her forehead and stroked her hair.

“Missed you too, princess.”

Then she moved to Dev and hugged him too.

“Didn’t really miss you… but just for formality — I missed you.”

She gave him a teasing smile.

Dev smirked. “Same here. Life was peaceful without you. Now the chaos is back.”

He shook his head in fake disappointment, making her pout.

They were whispering, so no one else caught their banter.

Then she walked over to Misha. But Misha turned her face away with a huff. Clearly, she was upset.

Seeing this, Isha gently held her face and asked with a pout,

“Why is my little doll upset with me?”

Misha was secretly loving the attention but kept her sulky face on.

“You don’t love me! That’s why you came to meet me last.”

Isha giggled. That just made Misha sulk even more.

Pulling her cheeks, Isha said,

“Aww my cutie! I came to you last so I could talk to you peacefully.”

Misha’s eyes widened with curiosity. “Really?”

Everyone smiled at her adorable tone. Isha grinned and said,

“Muchchi!”

And both of them burst into laughter, their bond lighting up the room — filling everyone’s hearts with warmth.

Just then, something clicks in Misha’s mind. She quickly grabs Isha's hand and makes her sit beside her on the sofa. The rest of the family joins in as well. Misha, now comfortably seated, turns to Isha and asks curiously,

"Di, where's your friend? You said she was coming with you!"

That’s when everyone realizes they completely forgot to ask about the friend in all the excitement of meeting Isha. Abhay and Dev exchange confused glances—they had no idea Isha was bringing someone. Even Pooja Ji looks at Isha and says,

"Yes beta, wasn’t she coming with you? Why hasn’t she reached yet?"

Isha lets out a deep sigh and replies,

"She was coming with me, but something urgent came up. She’ll be here in a bit."

Everyone just nods in understanding.

Dev, who had been silently listening, couldn’t hold back his curiosity anymore.

"And who is this friend of yours?" he asks.

"She’s my college friend. We used to live together in London," Isha replies.

Now even Misha gets curious,

"Tell us more about her!"

Isha smiles lightly,

"There’s not much to tell. You’ll know when you meet her. Just know this — she doesn’t talk much."

Meanwhile, Abhay, who had been observing everything quietly, finally speaks up with his usual serious tone,

"Forget all that. What’s with this sudden return? Your course wasn’t even finished yet."

Isha shrugs playfully and says,

"Big bro, I just didn’t feel like studying there anymore. So I transferred to one of the top colleges here."

Abhay nods and tells her,

"Go freshen up. Dinner will be served soon."

She nods back and heads to her room while the others move to the dining hall.

A little while later, Isha comes back downstairs, fresh and cheerful. Everyone enjoys dinner together — tonight’s menu is filled with all her favorite dishes. After some more chatting and catching up, everyone heads to their rooms for the night.

---

Around midnight…

A mysterious figure stood outside Rathore Mansion.

Dressed in a white top and a black hoodie, the figure held a phone, repeatedly trying to call someone. But no one answered. Clearly frustrated, they took a deep breath, trying to stay calm, then looked toward the watchman at the gate — fast asleep.

The figure glanced around, then climbed over the boundary wall, quietly landing in the mansion’s garden. Dodging all security like a pro, they moved swiftly toward the house.

Inside the mansion…

Abhay was in his room — the biggest one, decorated in grey and white tones. He sat on the couch, working on his laptop.

Feeling thirsty, he looked at his empty water mug, set the laptop aside, and got up to head downstairs.

At the same time, the hooded figure had reached the house and started searching for a way inside. They spotted a slightly open kitchen window. Without hesitation, they slipped in through it.

Once inside, they took a deep breath and slowly moved from the kitchen to the hall.

Abhay was on the stairs when he noticed someone in the hall — the lights were off, so he couldn’t clearly see who it was. But a stranger sneaking around his house? That was enough. His eyes turned cold.

He flung the mug from his hand — thud!

Then quickly rushed down and grabbed the stranger from behind, covering their mouth and locking them in a strong hold.

His grip was iron-tight — no one could’ve escaped that.

The stranger froze just as they were about to turn around.

And the moment Abhay grabbed them — both of them felt a strange jolt… but neither acknowledged it.

Leaning in, his voice cold and sharp, he growled,

"Who are you… and what the hell are you doing here?"

His grip tightened even more.

The stranger tried to shake their head, tried to speak — but with Abhay’s hand over their mouth, nothing came out.

Abhay warned again, his voice like steel,

"Stop shaking and answer my question… or I swear, you’ll regret it."

By now, the noise in the hall had woken everyone. One by one, the whole family came downstairs. Dev rushed to turn on the lights.

Abhishek Ji took one look at the scene and asked seriously,

"What’s going on, Abhay? What’s all this noise? And who is that?"

Abhay turned slightly to see his entire family standing behind him. He looked back at the stranger and replied,

"Dad, this person snuck into the mansion. I think it’s a thief. I caught him."

Gasps echoed through the room.

A thief? In Rathore Mansion? Impossible. Their security was air-tight. No way someone could sneak in like this.

But the stranger, now visibly annoyed at being silenced, had had enough.

They suddenly raised a knee — and hit Abhay square in the leg.

Caught off guard, his grip loosened.

At that exact moment, Dev turned on the lights.

Everyone’s eyes turned to the mysterious figure — their hood had fallen back during the struggle, and their hair flew wildly in the air.

But with their back facing everyone, no one could see their face.

Except for Isha.

She stood there — wide-eyed, mouth slightly open — in pure shock.

She had recognized that figure immediately.

And just then…

The figure turned around.

And in that moment — the entire Rathore family was left speechless.

The entire family was staring wide-eyed at the girl standing before them—someone who looked nothing less than a celestial being. Milky white complexion, long black thick hair, deep blue eyes that could drown anyone, and an innocent face that carried no expression.

Even Abhay found himself lost in those mesmerizing blue eyes. Something about them felt familiar. He squinted slightly, as if trying to place a memory, and then suddenly, a spark lit up in his eyes.

Whispering softly with a rare smile dancing on his lips—one he always hid before anyone could see it—he muttered, “Butterfly.”

While everyone was still lost admiring her, they were snapped out of their trance by Dev’s voice echoing in the room, “Can thieves be this beautiful?”

The family, now fully alert, all turned to glare at him. Dev gulped under their intense stares. But soon, he felt an even more dangerous gaze pinning him down. He turned, only to find Abhay shooting daggers at him with his eyes, as if given the chance, he’d hang him right then and there.

Dev shrank back a couple of steps, confused by his grumpy brother’s deadly stare. But before he could say anything, Abhay turned his sharp gaze away from him and back toward the mysterious girl, now with an unexpectedly soft look in his eyes. But in the very next second, he caught himself and composed his face into his usual hard expression.

In a cold, commanding voice, he asked, “Who are you? And what are you doing sneaking in like a thief?”

Before the girl could reply, Isha, still recovering from shock, rushed to her side and addressed everyone, “She’s not a thief. This is Avya, my friend—the one I’ve told you all about!”

Everyone looked stunned. If she was Isha’s friend, then why did she come in like some burglar? While that question was still floating in everyone’s mind, Pooja ji stepped forward and gently asked,

“That’s all fine, beta, but you could’ve just entered through the gate. What was the need to come in like this?”

Before Avya could reply, Isha interrupted, “Yeah! And why didn’t you call me? I told you to call me when you reached!”

She turned to look at Avya—who was now glaring at her so intensely that Isha almost stepped back, but somehow held her ground and retorted, “Why are you staring at me like that? I’m not scared of you.”

She said that, but only she knew how nervous she really was—because deep down, she did feel like she had messed up.

Avya proved her right, her eyes still fixed sharply on Isha as she said, “I did call you. Multiple times. But you didn’t answer.”

Hearing that, Isha bit her lower lip and gave a sheepish grin, “Sorry... my phone was on silent.”

“Was or is?” Avya asked, emphasizing the was, before turning her face away.

It was clear that her friend's carelessness had forced her to enter like some thief.

Trying to lighten the mood, Isha grabbed Avya’s arm and said in her best puppy face,

“Okay, okay, sorry! Don’t take my life now, please?”

She even held her ears as an apology.

Avya, as usual, melted at her expression. After all, there were very few people she considered her own in this world—and Isha was definitely one of them.

She nodded silently in forgiveness but didn’t say anything.

The rest of the family watched them with soft smiles. Avya then moved forward and touched the feet of all the elders to seek their blessings. The Rathore elders were clearly impressed by her respectful gesture and blessed her warmly.

Then, Misha—who had silently observed everything until now—walked up to her with a big, bright smile.

“Hi Di, I’m Misha! The youngest and the most pampered one in this house!” she chirped before hugging Avya.

Avya couldn’t help the faint smile that crept onto her face—but like always, she hid it before anyone could notice. She patted Misha’s head gently in response.

And of course, how could our dear Dev stay behind while everyone was bonding?

Striding forward, flashing his best flirt-mode smile, he said,

“Hey beautiful, it’s great meeting you! I’m sure you know me already—The superstar Dev Rathore!”

He ran a hand through his hair and extended the other for a handshake.

Avya, shaking his hand calmly, replied in her ever-cool tone,

“Same here. Avya Kapoor. Sorry, I don’t follow actors.”

Dev’s face fell instantly.

Everyone else burst into laughter. Isha and Misha even high-fived each other while Dev glared at all of them with narrowed eyes. They quickly tried to suppress their giggles.

Meanwhile, Avya had been feeling someone’s gaze on her for quite a while now. When she looked in that direction, she was stunned to see who it was. But not a flicker of emotion showed on her face. She looked away, pretending not to notice.

It was none other than Abhay.

From the moment he saw her eyes, he knew—she was his “Butterfly.”

The one he had been searching for all these years.

He was observing her every move. The tiny smile she gave to Misha? That was enough to make his heart race.

But Dev flirting with her? That boiled his blood.

His fists clenched tightly, the veins in his hands clearly visible.

If it had been anyone but Dev, they probably would’ve been six feet under by now. But he took a deep breath, trying to calm himself.

Just then, he noticed Avya looking straight at him. His eyes lit up with hope, his anger forgotten.

But she… ignored him.

That—he did not like.

His eyes began to redden with rising rage, but just in time, Isha’s voice broke his trance. His expression slowly returned to normal as he turned toward her.

Isha, dragging Avya toward him, said with a grin,

“Meet him—my oldest and strictest brother, Abhay Rathore! I call him Big Bro!”

She brought Avya to stand right in front of him.

Avya extended her hand politely, face blank, “Nice to meet you, Mr. Rathore.”

It was impossible to tell what she was thinking.

Abhay didn’t like how distant she sounded. Was it possible… she hadn’t recognized him?

Shaking the thought off, he casually slipped one hand into his pocket and shook her hand with the other.

“Same here,” he said in the same calm tone, but then… blinked one eye.

Winked.

Avya quickly pulled her hand back and looked at Isha, who was staring at them both in total shock.

Avya looked around—only to see the entire family staring at her and Abhay like they had just seen a UFO.

She had no idea why they were reacting this way.

But Abhay knew.

And why wouldn’t they? The great Abhay Rathore—who hated being near women—just shook hands with one voluntarily. That too, with a smile?

To snap everyone back to reality, Abhay cleared his throat.

Everyone blinked out of their shock.

Pooja ji turned to Isha and said,

“Ishu, take Avya to her room, beta. It’s quite late—she must be tired.”

Then looking at everyone else, she added,

“Go on now, everyone. Time to rest.”

One by one, everyone retired to their rooms. Isha led Avya to hers.

And Abhay? He stood there staring at her retreating back until she disappeared from view.

Then… he, too, walked away.

---

Later that night, in Avya’s room—

Isha had shown her the room and left.

Avya now looked around. The room was exactly how she liked it—black and white theme, clean, minimalist.

Yup. Definitely Isha’s doing.

She changed into a loose white top and dark blue shorts.

It was 2 AM now.

And of course, there was no way she was going to fall asleep.

Not with her insomnia. Her doctor had warned her to stop relying on sleeping pills.

So, she opened her laptop and sat on the sofa.

Her luggage was already there—thanks to Isha.

She tried to focus on her work… but her mind kept drifting.

To him.

The same face that had haunted her for the past three years.

She had tried to forget him—but never could.

Was it possible… Abhay recognized her?

But then again—how could he? He never even saw her face properly.

But… that wink…

Did that mean… he did know?

Lost in thought, her mind wandered back…

to their very first meeting.

TO BE CONTINUED