"Good morning, Harsh uncle," Sathvik greeted the legal advisor as soon as the man entered his cabin.

"Morning, Sathvik. How's married life?" Harsh asked.

"Good. Devangana is wonderful," Sathvik said with a smile.

"Good to know. I was a bit worried about your impulsive decision," Harsh said.

"Honestly, Harsh uncle? One of the best decisions I made in my life," Sathvik admitted, making the older man smile.

"How is Muskaan?" Harsh asked, and Sathvik sighed.

"She is happy. The frequency with which she asked for her momma reduced considerably. It is quite bittersweet. We are glad that she is at an age where she can move on without much grief. And yet, it is quite disheartening to think that she will grow up without knowing her mother," Sathvik said morosely.

"That's the rule of mankind, Sathvik. Life has to go on, no matter what," Harsh said, making Sathvik let out a sad sigh, remembering his sister.

"Harsh uncle, what was it that you wanted to talk about yesterday?" Sathvik asked, getting to the point.

"Mrs. Iyer had submitted the report in favour of you, Sathvik," Harsh said.

"Wow, that's good news."

"Yeah, it is. But Rajveer's mother had appealed at the court, stating that she has more rights over her granddaughter," Harsh said.

"What the f*ck? Her appeal will be rejected, won't it?" Sathvik asked.

"You know that woman? She is very manipulative. I think we should arrange an unofficial meeting with the lady," Harsh said.

"She has been hounding me for a while. My security team managed to keep her at bay," Sathvik said.

"She is the one instigating her son too. Raghuveer is not very keen on his mother's plans. That woman is so damn greedy," Harsh said with disgust.

The next few hours passed with meetings after meetings, and Sathvik came back to his cabin all tired.

"Sathvik, shall I order lunch for you?" Soumya asked.

"No, thank you, Soumya. You can take your break now," Sathvik said, and Soumya left.

Sathvik dialled Devangana's number, who picked up the call on the second ring.

"Sathvik ji? Are your meetings over?" Devangana asked.

"Yes, and I am very hungry. I can eat an elephant now," Sathvik said tiredly.

"I will be there in half an hour, Sathvik ji," Devangana said and hung up the call.

True to her words, she was in Sathvik's cabin within half an hour.

"Muskaan was having her afternoon nap, so I didn't bring her," Devangana said as she set the carry bag on the tea table in front of the small couch in Sathvik's cabin.

"That's nice. I get to spend time with my wife," Sathvik said as he sat on the couch.

Devangana served lunch for both of them.

They enjoyed their lunch, having small conversations about random things.

"So, what was that important talk Harsh uncle wanted to have?" Devangana asked.

"About Muskaan. Mrs. Iyer submitted her report in favour of us," Sathvik said and proceeded to let Devangana know about the rest of the things Harsh told him.

Devangana was silent for a moment, and then she looked at Sathvik.

"Could it be possible that the woman is genuinely missing her granddaughter? She too lost her son," Devangana said hesitantly.

"I don't know, Devangana. I don't trust that woman. I once made a mistake of turning my back on Priyanka because I was too angry and hurt with her decisions. And I lost her. Maybe if we hadn't shut her out completely, she would have come to us when she started realising their true intentions. I am not going to let that family ruin my niece too," Sathvik said vehemently.

Sathvik's phone rang, and it was a call from a frantic Nilima asking him to come home soon.

"Something is wrong at home. Mom sounded very panicked," Sathvik took hold of Devangana's hand and hurried out of the office.

The moment they stepped into the hallway of the Acharya mansion, Roop came hurrying towards them, as though she had been anxiously awaiting their return.

"Thank God, you are here. There is someone—"

"So at last," a harsh woman's voice began. "I have been waiting, God knows how long, to see my granddaughter, and this... this creature has totally refused to even give me a glass of water. But then I suppose I should not have expected anything else. After all, like master, like servant."

Devangana gasped, instinctively taking a step back from the woman who had erupted into the hallway.

All sympathies she had for the unknown woman vanished as she took in the woman with cold eyes.

She was of average build, dressed in a black, almost see-through saree, which looked openly far too young for her.

The woman fixed Sathvik with a fulminating glare, totally ignoring Devangana's presence as she demanded theatrically, "Where is my darling son's precious little girl? Where is she? You have no right to withhold her from me—"

"Calm down, Mrs. Kalki Malik," Devangana could hear the icy distaste in Sathvik's voice as he interrupted her emotional tirade.

"Calm down! My son is dead, thanks to your ill-omened sister. And now you are trying to steal his child from me. I won't allow you to get away with it, Sathvik. I am sure the courts will support my claim that her place is with me. After all, I have a blood tie with her that is far stronger than yours. You are only her mother's stepbrother, while I am her grandmother," she announced triumphantly.

"You may, as you say, have a closer blood tie to Muskaan than I do. But according to the law, I am her legal guardian," Sathvik said.

"You? You who turned your back on your sister. How can you possibly be a better candidate to look after the baby?" Kalki countered.

"That is something to be given thought, isn't it, Mrs. Malik? In spite of Sathvik ji turning his back on her, Priyanka made sure that her baby's custody would go to her brother. And I am sure when she made the will, she had no idea that she would die in an accident soon and that your son would also die the same day," Devangana interrupted, making Kalki focus her glare on her.

Devangana ignored the glare and continued her theory.

"And I wonder why Priyanka found it necessary to name her brother as her baby's guardian when there is every possibility that the baby's father might have been alive," Devangana said.

"Who the hell are you to interfere in my matters?" Kalki asked, her face turning red with fury, and Devangana knew she had hit the mark.

"Devangana Sathvik Acharya," Devangana introduced herself proudly, and Sathvik smirked, seeing the furious look on Kalki's face.

"You make me sick," Kalki threw the words at Sathvik, who looked back at her with a bored expression.

"If you think for one minute that there is any way I would allow you to have any contact with or influence over Muskaan after the way you and your son ruined my sister's life, then you are very, very wrong," Sathvik said icily.

"Let me tell you this once and for all. I want Muskaan, and I intend to have her. And there is no way that you can stop me." She paused and then said softly, "And if you think you could cheat my darling granddaughter out of her trust fund, left to her by her late grandfather, you are highly mistaken, Sathvik."

Sathvik let out a cold laugh as he heard that.

"So that's what this is all about? Priyanka's trust fund?" Sathvik said grimly.

"And now that belongs to Muskaan," Kalki said.

The greedy look in her eyes, which Kalki was making no attempt to conceal, sickened Devangana.

"Get out." It was Devangana who uttered those words, too angry to let the woman stay under the same roof as Muskaan.

The woman stared at Devangana in disbelief.

"Did you just—"

"You heard my wife. Leave," Sathvik said, pointing at the door.

"This is not over." The woman raised her chin and threw them each a fulminating glare and walked out.

A/N

Here goes the next shot...

Please do vote comment and share..

Love,

SF❤️