THREE MONTHS LATER:

Advith smiled forcibly at his father's comment as he talked something about a family member to Advith's fiance's family. Everyone had gathered for a family dinner to celebrate Advith and Devika's engagement. He looked back at his food and ate the rice with distaste.

"Advith, would you like to show me the garden?" Devika asked. However, before Advith could deny or accept, his father interrupted.

"Of course, Devika! Advith would definitely go." In response, Advith merely smiled and nodded to Devika.

When they were out in the garden, strolling slowly, Devika initiated the conversation.

"You know what I like the most about you?" She asked. In the past three months, he had realized that she was a very bold and confident girl...a trait that he very much appreciated in every woman. She was straightforward with her thoughts and didn't hesitate to put her mind upfront.

"What?" He asked in a gentle tone as he continued to look forward.

"Your shyness." She answered giving him a brief glance.

He chuckled as he finally looked at her.

"Am I shy?" He confirmed.

"You are...at least in front of me. You are confident in business matters but when it comes to women, you just...shy away!" She smiled.

Advith sighed and thought over it a bit.

"It's not like that. It's..." He didn't know how to continue.

"It's about Vidhushi, right?" She asked which stilled him at the place. He turned around to face her completely.

"How do you know about her?" He asked with narrowed brows.

Devika smiled before continuing.

"You have mistakenly referred me by her name at least 5 times in the past." She smiled.

Advith took a sharp breath. He didn't remember he did that!

"You love her?" She asked.

"If you knew about her, then why did you never ask before?" He asked in return.

"I thought you would tell me someday yourself...when you would be comfortable. Love is a tricky affair, I know." She answered.

"Devika, I am really sorry! I never realized that I should talk about her with you. And, yes, I love her."

"Then why did you say yes to the engagement?" She asked very calmly.

"It's...very complicated."

"Is it about the caste? I know that your father is very particular about these things." She concluded that it might not be about the religion as 'Vidhushi' was a Hindu name.

"Yes. But, there are many other obstacles. She is married." He said with a sad chuckle.

"What?" Her surprise was clear.

He chuckled. "I know! It's complicated."

"You love a married woman?"

"She married after we fell in love."

"Do you still love her? Because, if that is the case, then we should cancel this engagement right away." She suggested.

"You are a good girl, Devika. As much as I want to live my entire life with her, I can't. Plus, my parents would not let me live without marriage. So, for the sake of my mother's happiness, I said yes to this union. If you are uncomfortable with what is in my heart, then you may please break off the engagement. But, I can assure you that, if we get married, I will be loyal to you." He said with a smile. This was getting messy.

Devika sighed.

"Advith, I have no problem with your past. Everyone has their own past. I loved a man, too. But, he turned out to be a *** and cheated with my own friend in England. So, I know your pain. From day 1, this union between our families has been a...compromise. I do not want to break this engagement because I know you are a good man. But, can you promise me one thing?"

"Uhh...Yes?"

"Our wedding will be after 6 months, as the priest has suggested. I will not hold any grudge against you if you break the engagement before our wedding day. But, after our marriage, I want you to be loyal to me and give us a fair chance...and forget Vidhushi. Would you be able to do that? If not, please break this engagement right away." She said.

'Forget Vidhushi?' His heart felt heavy.

Devika smiled and took the liberty to grasp his hand gently.

"Take your time to think about it. Bye, Advith." She mumbled and raised herself to plant a feathery kiss on his cheek and left the premise.

He remained standing at the same place wondering over Devika's words. He was sure of his loyalty towards his future wife...whoever she would be...but forgetting Vidhushi! It was impossible!

.

.

"Vidhu!" Kunal called for his wife as he entered their room in haste.

"Mumma, I will call you back." Vidhushi told her mother on phone and cancelled the call.

"Yup?" She asked as she stopped folding the clothes and faced him.

"We will have to visit Dr Dhawan tonight." He said to which she narrowed her eyes. Dr. Aman Dhawan was her father's doctor.

"Why? What happened?" She asked.

"He is very sick...some kind of cancer. And, his doctor says that he has only a few days left. So, we should go and visit him. He took care of your father after all!" He said.

"Oh my God! How did this happen? Yeah, we should definitely go." She panicked. She always respected that doctor. He had always prioritized her father when he was admitted and made sure that she was not stressed out. He was an honest doctor.

"Okay. Be ready at 8 pm. Okay? I will pick you up." He said and left to his work.

After 30 minutes, she got a text message from an unknown number.

She opened it and her heartbeat escalated.

'Vidhushi beta (child), please meet me in St. Monti Hospital. Room 345. Come alone. Kunal must not know about it. It is about your father.'

She frowned.

'What nonsense is this? Who is calling her in the hospital and why alone? And, what about papa?' She wondered.

She thought about ignoring the message. But, thinking about her father, she finally decided to give it a chance. However, going alone was impossible. Kunal had given strict orders to her bodyguards to never leave her alone and to always follow her. How would she trick the men?

A plan formed in her mind instantly.

She called for a driver to take her to her mother's home. She knew that no bodyguard was allowed inside her mother's house. They only guarded outside. So, she will trick the guards from there.

And, that is exactly what she did. It was already 11 am. She came out of the backdoor of her mother's home after telling her mother all about the plan and the text message. She borrowed her neighbour's car and drove to the mentioned hospital.

While she walked towards room 345, doubts and fear started developing in her mind. What if it is a trap planned by Kunal's enemies? What if Kunal is testing her loyalty towards him? She would be doomed if any one of the options was true.

Taking a deep breath, she knocked at the door twice.

A girl of about her age opened the door and raised her brows.

"Hi, I am Vidhushi. Aa...." She didn't know what to say anymore. But, on seeing the girl's expression, she became confused. The girl immediately motioned her to come inside.

"Hi! Papa has been waiting for you. Please come." The girl said softly.

"And, you are?" Vidhushi asked.

"I am his daughter, Sneha. Please talk to him while I stay outside. If you need anything, please call for me." Sneha smiled and left after Vidhushi nodded.

Vidhushi walked towards the curtained enclosed area and slowly moved the shield.

"Dr Dhawan?" She exclaimed when she saw the familiar face. He looked severely pained with all those tubes running into his body. He was bald now, but she recognized him straight away.

"Vidhushi beta." Dr Dhawan smiled when he saw her.

"Uncle! What happened to you? Are you alright?" She asked as she sat near him.

"Just counting my last few days, beta. Are you doing fine?" He said slowly. It appeared as if it was highly exhausting for him to talk.

"I...I am good, uncle." She hesitantly replied. It was awkward to tell a patient that you were doing great, after all.

"Kunal is here?" He asked.

"No. But, why did you call me alone? Kunal and I were about you visit you tonight." She said.

"Kunal wouldn't have let me speak about your father." He said tiredly as his voice broke. She panicked as she thought he needed water.

"Are you okay, uncle? Should I call your daughter?" She asked.

"No, no. She must not hear about what I am going to tell you. She will hate me forever." He said as a tear escaped his eyes.

Vidhushi stilled. What was going on?

"What...do you want to tell me about papa, uncle?" She asked slowly.

He took forever to speak.

"Your papa was recovering very fast." He started. She knew it already.

"And, he was very friendly to me. He would often talk to me about you. He would specifically tell me to inform you that..he was not in pain, even if his nights were very painful. But, still, he was recovering after we started giving him the...medicines that were exclusively brought from the Philippines. But, then..." He took a deep breath.

"What happened then?" She asked. Her heartbeat has escalated as she could predict the direction of the conversation.

"The day before the new medicine was to be administered to him, Kunal threatened your father to..." He took a deep breath again. Vidhushi's jaw clenched again as she exactly knew what he was going to say.

"...ask you to marry Kunal as his...last wish." He stated. She was severely angry about it. And she decided to confront Kunal tonight.

"Your father denied saying anything like this to you. But, Kunal threatened him by using your mother as leverage. Kunal was unsure of how the new medicine was going to work for him. He had doubts about your father dying after taking the medicines. So, he wanted to clear the path before your father died."

Things started becoming clear to her. She now understood why her father asked her to marry Kunal when clearly he hated him like anything. Many times, he had even told her to stay away from Kunal. But, she just ignored her father then. That was because she was determined to not marry Kunal in the future. She only saw him as a friend even though they pretended to be in a relationship. Kunal always knew it. So, this is why he did what he did!

If Vidhushi thought the conversation had ended, she was wrong.

"The day your father told you about his fake last wish, I had given him the new drugs. I was sure of its success. And, I was right. He started recovering and I immediately phoned you about it. But, beta, before you could come, Kunal visited him. I was there in the room." He said as fresh tears poured. The machine connected to his heart started beeping fast as he recalled the memory. Even her heart was racing.

"Your father told Kunal that he would tell you all about Kunal's threats. He even said that he would never give your hand to him, till he is alive." Dr Dhawan said.

Vidhushi felt an excruciating spark of pain run through her heart.

"No!" She whispered as she anticipated what must have happened. She only begged heaven for it to be not true...whatever the doctor was going to say.

"Kunal looked scary at that moment. I was internally begging your father to be quiet and not talk in anger. And, what I feared was already done. Kunal...whispered something in your father's ear and then...out of nowhere he smiled. I had never seen Kunal smile like that. There was an insane glint in his eyes."

But she knew what that glint was all about.

"What did he do?" Vidhushi shouted in desperation which startled the old man.

After few deep breaths, he replied.

"Kunal killed your father."