He groaned in pain as another whip lashed against his back. He wondered if Shah Zaman wanted nothing in return, why not just kill him and be done with it? But then, he knew the reason. He wanted to actually break Ozhan.

Too bad for Shah that he was already broken_both body and soul. He had broken his soul himself with every life he took and Shah himself had done the honors of breaking his bones.

His thoughts vanished as a cry escaped his mouth when a wooden stick was broken along with his lower rib. At this point, he had lost count of the injuries he had and the pain he felt. His head spun, threatening to shut down at any instant. But he refused to give in.

"You know the pain will end with just a single word. 'Stop'. Say it and i'll end all this." The smugness in Shah's voice made him more resolute in not giving in. He didn't want Shah to gloat any more.

But he had neither physical nor mental strength to keep that resolution firm. Life was draining out of him with every drop of blood that seeped out of his body. He had no sense of day or night anymore since he was transferred into a room (more like a shithole) with no windows. But he assumed that two days were up when Shah pretended to look at the time and then called his brother.

"Time's up, Khan", Shah gloated. Even though his mind was practically shut, he could still hear Yazaan screaming from the other end. He could only imagine how his brother must have been feeling at this moment. He knew  Yazaan would've been raging right now, wanting to go on a killing spree.

"You should've tried to find him instead of wasting your time on useless threats. Too bad." Shah winced and kept the phone at a distance to prevent deafness. "Even if he doesn't die from my bullet, which trust me i prefer over anything else, he's going to die anyway with the blood loss. And you know I'm not merciful enough to waste my money on a doctor for him."

No, you're not. He tried to imagine what was brewing in Shah's head but in vain. There was no knowing what was going on in that twisted brain of his. Kind of like himself.

"Easy, tiger. Hhmmm?", he mused. "What can we do then? I mean, i admit two days wasn't a fair time. But he doesn't have any more time. How can i forget!? Your wife is a doctor, isn't she? She'd be delighted to help out her devar! Its settled, then. But as i said before, be fast, Khan. 'Cause no one will be able to save her."

Fuck! He hadn't a clue how Shah was aiming to accomplish that because she was protected by an army of guards in that house but knowing him, he'd find a way. He just hoped Yazaan didn't do anything stupid and pave a path for him.

Yes, Yazaan was the best boss he could ask for. But often times, he was ruled by his anger. That's why he kept Ozhan at his side. For him to show the rational side to him. But he wasn't there to help him out. And there was alot he could do wrong.

Like deciding to send her back.

•~•

She was going back.

He had sent this order through Abeerah two days after that incident. To say she was relieved would be an understatement. She was glad he hadn't come himself to impose the order on her. She didn't know if she was the one avoiding him or it was the other way around. Overall, she was happy she didn't have to see his face.

The only reason she was hesitant to leave in an hour as planned was that she wanted to apologize to Bi Jaan. And the thing stopping that was her pride.

Admit it or not, you are a bit proud.

Sanem's words which she once said to her during their third year of residency reverberated in her mind. At that time, she had gotten really defensive about it and it seemed like reality was mocking her about it now.

She stood in front of the brown wooden door, her fist suspended in air, gathering courage to knock. She didn't have any problem in apologizing. Infact, when it was her fault, she never waited a second before saying sorry. But it was hard to do so when she couldn't convince herself that what she had done was wrong.

Yes! Not a word that i said was wrong. There is no point in apologizing. It would just prove that i don't stand by what i said, she argued with her own conscience.

Maybe, yes. But the values i so much uphold prioritize two things above all and that are respecting my elders and not imposing my values on others. I went against both of these in just five minutes. She reasoned back, which seemed like the most difficult task to her.

But then, she remembered what she had once read in her father's journal. Even if you are right, it matters not if your methods are wrong. With the decision made, she rapped on the door once.

"Finally, beta. I was beginning to wonder whether i had to come out to you", came a firm but inviting voice.

I am not even going to question how she knew i was there.

She went inside and sat beside Bi Jaan at her gesture after saying Salam. As per her nervous habit, which were neither many nor often, she began picking up non-existing lint on the bedsheet. Swallowing, she started:

"I'm sorry, Bi Jaan."

There! That feels relieving!

On Bi Jaan inquisitive gaze, she continued: "I shouldn't have spoken to you like that. That was wrong of me to do. I don't have any right to force certain beliefs on someone. And nothing in this world can justify my lack of regard towards you. Please forgive me."

Bi Jaan smiled and put her wrinkled hand on top of the smooth one, stopping its involuntary action.

"Its okay, beta. I can understand. Everything is new for you here. And its hard to accept everything that is against your beliefs."

And you SHOULDN'T accept it ESPECIALLY if you KNOW its wrong! was on tip of her tongue but she withheld it. There wasn't a point in explaining anything to her. She would refuse to accept it. To each their own.

"Just be careful next time." Bi Jaan patted her hand once and removed it. "Allah nigehbaan!" (May Allah be your protector!)

She smiled. "Allah Hafiz."

She walked out of the room, feeling content. There was only one thought in her mind.

InshaAllah there won't be a next time.

•~•

She didn't want to get in the car.

No, she hadn't developed some sort of feelings towards him which she was just realizing. She didn't want to get in the car with the man she didn't know. The man looked intimidating enough without the added knowledge that he worked in mafia and he was supposed to drive her. To Lahore. A full day of journey. With extra three cars for protection. But she also knew this was the only way she could get out of here.

Yazaan's men won't do something to me, right? They know I'm his wife.

She turned back to look into the balcony of the house where she stood a night before. Now there stood Yazaan. Yazaan Ibraheem Khan. His hands tied at his back, his posture stiff.

Can i trust this man? THIS man?

No. Her question was answered without a second of waiting. A man who breaks his word and forces himself on a woman, be she her wife, isn't worthy of trust. And if i can't trust him, i can't trust his men as well. Allah! Please keep me under your protection.

He saw her facial expressions changing from worry to query to disgusted in a moment. It wasn't hard to understand what she was thinking and he would have definitely tried to make amends if he had the patience to deal with her annoying and challenging self right now.

She turned back around and sat in the car. He watched it getting smaller and smaller until it disappeared in the horizon.

Thirty minutes into the drive, she had finally relaxed a bit when she was slammed against the front seat. The car had been stopped suddenly. Was that a gunshot? She thought she had heard something loud before her face was pressed against the back of the seat.

Blinking twice, swallowing hard and trying to control her breathing, she straightened and managed to voice out: "What happened?"

No reply came for a minute. She dared to look at the driver and the guard in the passenger seat. Their heads were bowed down but there was no mistakening the red liquid on their pristine white shirts.

Are they dead?

She felt a strain on her leg but she ignored it and shook the driver. No response.

"Can you hear me?"

No response.

She forwarded her shaking fingers towards his neck, checking for a pulse. None. The driver was, without a doubt, dead. She checked the guard's pulse as well and was disappointed again. Having seen dead bodies a countless times was probably the only reason she didn't pass out yet.

What the hell happened? The car doesn't even seem damaged.

To find the answer to her question, she raised her head slightly and gasped as she saw two holes in the windshield. Wide eyes, she watched as a bullet rang in the air, penetrated the windshield and lodged itself in the driver's shoulder. Just a centimeter away and it would've been her skull.

She shrieked. Then the chaos started.

Bullets flew everywhere The door on her side was opened and a guard who she vaguely remembered, appeared. He was crouched low as to avoid the mayhem.

"Mam, you need to get out of the car and take cover. We're under attack."

No shit, Sherlock! She would've said if she was in her right state of mind but she just nodded vigorously then and crept out of the car. No matter how much she tried to cover her ears with her hands, they still rang with each gunshot.

She followed the man, off the road and behind a huge boulder. She sat down and hugged her knees, chanting the only thing that came into her mind.

Ayat-ul-kursi.

She shrieked again as a bullet hit the man in the stomach and he fell down. She closed her eyes and covered her ears tightly, rocking back and forth, so as to avoid the reality. The groans of the man somewhat made her concious.

Without thinking, she dragged him with difficulty behind the cover of the rock and put pressure on the wound with her hands.

"Listen to me. Stay awake. Okay? Don't close your eyes. Don't."

She had no idea how many men were out there fighting. How many were dead? How many were injured? How many were trying to save her? How many were trying to kill her? And for the first time, she didn't even care. She just wanted to escape here. Wanted to hide in her mother's embrace. Wanted to hug her brother.

"Hey! Don't you die on me!", she slapped his face lightly. "You'll get help. You'll live, understand. Hey! Open your eyes."

But the last of life drained out of him.

Dead.

The first death on her hand. The first man she couldn't help. She lost knowledge of her surroundings. She resumed her position against the boulder. The blood on her hands soaking her white scarf and some smeared on her face too, mixing with the tears and dirt.

A hand grabbed her shoulder firmly making her gasp loudly. Her trembling body shook even more under that touch.

"Shh! Its me. Its me. Its me."

The familiar voice quietened her down a bit. She looked into the pools of brown which were so like hers. They reassured her as much as one could be under a raging freaking war.

"Arsalan!" She jumped on him, hugging him tightly. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to get you. You're safe now. Let's get out of here first. Don't raise your head."

Allah tera shukar hai!

He guided her towards a silver car away from the ones she came in. It felt like an eternity getting there. As soon as they both settled in it, she huffed out:

"Hurry please. Lets go."

Her eyes went to the rearview mirror and for a second, she couldn't speak.

Then,

"Arsal, run!"

She grabbed the door handle, but too late. A hand grabbed her from the back seat and covered her mouth, limiting her ability to move as well. She struggled against it, her wide eyes watching Arsalan, begging him to either save her or run away: she didn't know herself.

Had she been well enough to understand things better, she would've noticed all signs of intoxication visible on his face and how he had walked into the fire zone without any worry or how he was sitting there doing nothing. But she didn't. Instead, the only thing she could think of right now was Arsal's safety.

It was like déjà vu. A needle pricked her neck and her breathing slowed down. It was exactly how Yazaan had kidnapped him.

Except, this time, she didn't have any word to put her trust on.

•~•

"HOW THE FUCK DID IT HAPPENED?!"

He roared, his hands gripping Musa's collar.

"Lala, they were too many. Before we could go there for help, they had already killed all of our men and taken bhabhi. "

In the back of his mind, he knew where the problem laid. Right in my decision! It was his fault. He hadn't paid heed to Shah's clear warnings. I'm an idiot!

But was he going to accept his fault?

No!

"Find them. If you want to live, find them. Else, Wallahi, you'll curse the day you were born."

•~•

The second she opened her eyes, she backed away, scared for her life. A man double her age, who looked like a C-grade villian, was practically on her face. She was sitting on the floor against a pillar, her limbs surprisingly untied.

"Finally! I've been dying to meet you!", the man cried out in glee.

Her expression must have betrayed her fear because he said, "Oh! Don't be afraid. No matter what your husband has told you about me, I'm not at all inhospitable."

What the hell are you talking about? Who are you? But her voice didn't do her bidding.

"Oh! Come on! Don't look at me like that. I've been nothing but nice. If you don't believe me, ask your mother!"

She gasped. As he moved away, her eyes widened on seeing the figure hunched against the wall opposite her.

"Ammi!"

She half ran, half crawled towards her and engulfed her in a bear hug. Breaking away, she checked her body for injuries, ignoring her mother's inquiry about her health and safety. The bruise on her mother's face made her see nothing nothing but red.

"Kuttay! Main tumhein jaan se maar doon gi!", she yelled, all while charging at him.

(Dog! I'll kill you!)

He grabbed her arms, effectively stopping her assault.

"Tch tch tch. That's not how this works, young lady. You're supposed to ask me what you're doing here and blah blah blah. You're supposed to be too scared to threaten me."

"Bhaar main jao, khabees insaan. Bloody bast-"

"Don't even bother. You don't even know words bad enough for me."

But her thoughts were already occupied by something else. She scowled at him and grabbed her mother's hands.

"Ammi, how did this happen? You- you were fully protected. Uncle was supposed to protect you. And- and. Arsal? He came to get me. Why was he here? Did you send him? And where is he?"

Too many questions unanswered, but instead of answering any of them, her mother just peppered kisses all over her face, all while tears flowed out of her eyes.

"Awweee! Such a cute moment. I almost feel bad for ruining it."

She rounded on him, displaying all the hate and disgust she could muster.

"Where is my brother?", her nostrils flared. "What have you done to him?" Behind her, her mother sobbed on the ground. Who knew that they were sobs of regret?

He smiled. His amusement hinted that he knew more than she did. Something that would certainly break her.

"Don't worry. Don't worry at all. He's perfectly fine. More than fine actually." He leaned forward on his toes, bringing his face closer to hers. "But that's not the question, is it? The main question is, why have i brought you here?"

She continued glaring.

"Come, i'll show you."

When she refused to walk, a man gripped her forearm and made her follow the old man outside of the small, empty room that she was in.

Ya Allah! Meri madad farma!

(Oh Allah! Help me, please!)

With just one step out of the previous room and into a spacious warehouse, she felt the need to vomit. Not only because of the sight. The sight was pretty regurgitating, with an almost unrecognizable body laying on the floor and blood covering every single inch of his body. And she would've if she hadn't been used to the sight of blood. But the smell. The smell of blood and vomit and piss and all other things she'd rather not mention, was heavy in the air.

"You do recognize your devar, don't you? I mean, it has only been four days."

Ozhan?

And suddenly, it all made sense to her. Why Yazaan was so tensed? Why he wanted to get her out of his life all of a sudden? The increased security. Everything.

Somehow, she couldn't believe that it was Ozhan. Even though she hadn't known him for long, she couldn't picture him as the broken man he was now. She wouldn't wish his state (which she could tell was pretty bad without even examining it) on anyone. Even her worst enemy. Which he, coincidentally, was.

"I want you to fix him. My men here will provide you everything you need to do that."

"And why would i do that?" She would've done it anyways. It was her doctoral instinct. But she didn't like to be told off. Especially by a bastard like him.

He gave her a sharky smile. "Might i remind you that your mother is inside?"

Allah! Is ko Ozhan se bhi zyada takleef main daal. Ameen!

(Make him suffer in even more pain than that of Ozhan's!)

Holding her breath, she sat down beside Ozhan. She was amazed at his resistance. Even after so much blood loss, he was still breathing. She tapped his face lightly.

"Ozhan? Can you hear me?"

He groaned and moved his head.

"Fuck! You're really here!", he rasped out.

"What a warm welcome!"

"My brother is really stupid!"

"You sound surprised." Cutting out the sarcasm, she said in all seriousness,  "Now don't waste your breath much. Answer me only when i ask you to, okay? And DON'T SLEEP ON ME! You've managed this far, manage for a little while longer."

She opened his eyes, ignoring the sticky mess on his face. Grabbing a torch from the basic tools she was provided, she checked his pupil dilation.

"How bad it is, Ozhan? Bad enough that you are in excruciating pain? Or where you don't feel anything?"

"First on some and second on others."

"Okay. I need clean towels and water. And then, antiseptic wipes, needle, thread...", and she voiced out a few other things loudly.

"You ain't getting all of that." A man her age spoke for the first time. She looked at him and glared.

"I'm not on cloud nine having to fix him anyway. Do what you want!" And she stood up.

"Shhh. Shehryaar. Give what the doctor wants. She's just doing her job." The old man chimed.

"Why do you want to treat him anyway?" She knew she shouldn't have asked that. What if he decides against it and kills him? Could she take another death today? But her mouth had no filter. Especially in tense situations.

"You haven't figured out these things yet, have you? I want him all fixed so i can break him again. 'Cause he hasn't suffered much. So, do your best job because the better he is, the more fun i'll have."

She just stood there, gaping at him like a fish.

"They call me Shah Zaman, by the way."

•~•

Assalam o alaikum, lovelies!😍😍
How are you all?
Have this story lost all hopes because of the break i took? Cuz many people didn't read the last chapter. I know that because i see the chapter stats almost everyday.😢

Anyways! Thank you to all those who have decided to tag along.🙏 i love you all so so much😘😘😘

What do you guys think of this chapter? Too boring? Too intense? I feel like i've expressed pretty well the emotions as i write. But then when i reread it, i feel like it's missing something and the third time, i'm like WHAT THE CRAP HAVE I WRITTEN?!
So i'm going to leave the decision to you. Do let me know what you think.

One more thing. With each chapter i write, i feel like im dragging things but when i read the events, i think that they were all necessary for setting a strong base. But i want to know your thoughts on it. Is it dragging or do you still find it interesting?

How do you think Arsalan's death will be? Will Yazaan once again kill in cold blood? Or...?🤔🤔🤔

That's all-

WAIT!!!

VOTE🌟 and comment🖋 And follow😊

Lots of love❤❤❤❤❤
Javeria