Well, it's the last chapter. And I really want you guys to cry. Like full on sob.

-• reunited •-

8 Hours Later

"The body found in the mountains of Jaigarh was confirmed to be his."

In a matter of seconds, the enormous Veer Mahal falls in a mourning silence of its King's demise. It wasn't a fall of an Empire, everyone knew it can still thrive in the absence of its incompetent King, then what brought it down to its knees? This gaping hole that had swallowed the shimmery sparkles of optimism, the darkness that consumed the sheer beauty of life. A death of a coward, shaking the most powerful men of the country.

Yuvraaj reels back, shock holds him hostage. He grips the back of the chair and settles down before his knees could give in.

Three hours of relentless searching had delivered a news that flipped their entire lives upside down.

"Taranya!" He hears Vivaan scream. When he looks, he finds his little sister unconscious in the arms of his second born sibling. And then he looks at each one of them. Yuvaan, Agastya, Arush, Ayush, Vivaan. Torn down, in disbelief of the news, seconds away from falling apart.

Responsibilities dawn in. He can't fall weak. He can't reveal they've been broken down to pieces and vulnerable to the world. He can't. He has to pick up his dropped heart, put on a cold mask, and look after his family. The last hope has been whisked away. The last man he wondered if he could shoulder responsibilities with has been taken away.

"Take her to the room." He orders. Vivaan obeys with tearful eyes. He's holding back from crying in front of their siblings.

"I'm sorry, but we need you to come along to claim the body." The police inspector says.

Yuvraaj forces himself to nod. "I understand. Let's go," mustering up the leftover strength, he gets up.

"I'm coming along," Yuvaan steps forward.

Yuvraaj looks at him in surprise. "You drive."

Yuvaan nods and heads upstairs to retrieve his car keys. Yuvraaj approaches his remaining siblings. Agastya stands still in his spot, his blood shot eyes filled to the brim with tears. They roll down his cheeks silently. He doesn't make a sound. He can't. Not when both of them hear the twins cry softly in the cup of their hands.

"Will you be strong for those little two guys over there?" Yuvraaj whispers, placing a tender hand on the younger man's cheek.

Agastya sniffles softly, inhales a shaky breath and gives a confident nod to his brother. Yuvraaj wraps his hand around the back of his neck and yanks him in the cushion of his arms. Agastya weeps soundlessly on the firm chest. Yuvraaj rubs the broad back, pulling away seconds later to wipe the tears from those beautiful onyx eyes.

"Take them to their rooms," he instructs gently.

Yuvaan returns downstairs with the set of keys jiggling in his hands. Yuvraaj turns around and summons the royal staff for a quick word.

"Make sure this doesn't go out. Not until I officially reveal it to the press. If I hear rumours, consider yourself fired." He warns and walks off briskly past the officers. The senior inspector wears his cap and instructs the two constables to follow him. As they get in their Jeep, Yuvaan brings the car from the garage and waits until his elder brother is properly buckled.

The drive to the hospital is quick. But the walk from there to the mortuary feels the longest. Each step of the two men in sync, slowed, forced, bound by the fear of the upcoming. The officer opens the large metal door, revealing a body covered in a white cloth on the stretcher.

Yuvaan turns around in reflex, grabbing his brother's arm as the inevitable stands in his face, unable to refute anymore. Yuvraaj places a hand on his back, patting it gently in reassurance.

The two walk in with heavy hesitation. Yuvraaj steps forward as Yuvaan keeps his back to the body, glancing repeatedly over his shoulder, as if he's afraid of the horror coming alive.

The doctor approaches the body and slowly unveils the face.

Yuvaan glances back just in time to catch the view of a familiar, pale, ghostly face peacefully asleep, forever. He stumbles aside, gasping aloud, his limbs trembling. The truth pounces on him so fast he suffocates underneath and starts shaking his head violently.

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no-"

"Stop, Yuvaan, stop! Stop!" Yuvraaj grabs his shoulders.

Yuvaan continues chanting under his breath. "No, no, no, no-"

"Stop, for God's sake! Stop!" Yuvraaj pulls the man into his arms. Yuvaan bursts out. He bursts out like the river breaking the boundaries. The sea wrecking the ships. The sky roaring with thunder. He bursts out and he falls apart. Like pieces of puzzles, like house of cards. He falls apart like world ripping in two. And he lets the grief consume him. He lets the grief cut down every hope he had webbed with gentle hands. The sudden absence of his last parent warps him.

"He can't be gone! He can't be gone! He gave me hopes to live by, he celebrated my existence like I'm the most precious in the world, he can't just leave me! He can't just go like this! He can't!"

The lady doctor pulls the cover back, her eyes moist, lips turned down. "I'm sorry to interrupt but you'll need to sign a few documents before we can allow you to claim the body." She says softly.

Yuvraaj nods. "Yes." He holds his brother tightly, not giving up until Yuvaan calms down. The loud, heart wrenching sobs recedes into soft, gentle cries. He walks the man out and guides him back into the car. Yuvaan doesn't resist. He stares blankly ahead as the older brother leans in, "I'll be back in a few minutes." Upon receiving no response, Yuvraaj unwillingly pulls back and walks back into the hospital.

The formalities take up more than a few minutes. After an hour of toiling and turning from one counter to another in order to complete the procedure, he's finally allowed to take the body home.

The ambulance drives behind their car.

Yuvraaj sighs when he notices the crowd of reporters and cameras swarming the front gates of the palace. Yuvaan winces when the flashlight glares at them through the windshield and ducks his head lower, keeping it down until they enter the premises of the Veer Mahal. The ambulance drives in behind before the gates automatically close while the guards keep the people at bay.

Overnight, the celebratory palace prepares itself for the funeral. Invitations are sent to close and distant relatives. Priests are brought in to help the family perform the last rites.

Taranya doesn't wake up for the next 24 hours.

When people try convincing Yuvraaj to let go of their father before the body starts decaying, he shuts them up with a glare. They're not sending away their father without letting each of his kids see him for the last time.

"Princess Taranya is awake!" Juyi runs downstairs to deliver the news.

The six brothers rush to their sister's room and halt at the threshold, taking in the disheveled state she was reduced to on her bed.

Taranya hated waking up to the world that didn't have her father anymore. She had tore open every pillow, ripped off the blinds, crashed everything to the floor, shouted and cried in agony, but nothing helped calm the raging pain. If anything, it grew and grew and grew until she started having illusions of drifting into a never-ending darkness with nothing but her father's voice leading her deeper inside.

She heard him. He still exists there.

"Little star,"

"Come to me, Little star,"

And it drove her wild enough to scream until her throat ached. But in the quietness of her numb mind, the little whisper of her father echoed the loudest. She was helpless in front of the gentle call. It was her father. And no matter how loud she cried, she never won against the voices in her head.

First her mother.

And now her father.

Taranya's worst nightmare came alive.

She is an orphan.

So when her eyes fall on her six brothers at the doorstep, she doesn't stop herself from expressing every anguish she is suffering from within. They walk in and the door closes behind. Agastya embraces her first. Tara clings to him, her face pressed to his chest, her hands holding tightly onto his arms. Cries rip from her throat, muffled, almost tired, shaky breaths rattling her chest, her body a hollow mould of misery and pain.

Vivaan presses his fist to his mouth, holding back his tears. The scene in front of him shoves him right into the ruins he had collected himself from.

With great strength, they manage to drag Taranya out of her room. She keeps her face buried in one of her brother's arm. She didn't know who it belonged to, she was just relieved to hide from the reality.

When she peeks from her safe space, she sees people she doesn't recognise. They stare at her in pity. She is familiar with a few faces, but she can't name them anymore.

The funeral audience fails to believe this is the ever so charming, beaming, Princess Taranya Singh Chauhan, whose smile is rumoured to lit up the entire sky.

This is her?

Tangled locks, sunken cheeks, blood shot, swollen blue eyes, dark crescent hanging beneath them. This is a mere skeleton with flesh and blood.

Almost lifeless.

Taranya's gaze falls on her father sleeping in the middle of the room. She gasps and runs down, ignoring her brother who shouts her name.

"Dad!" The call of hope.

She collapses near his deathbed and leans over, cupping his pale, cold cheeks. Then frowns seeing the cotton buds plugged into his nose. "What the hell! How would he breath!?" She removes them and throws them aside. "Dad?" She cups his cheek again, smiling tenderly, ignoring the hot, heavy tears pouring out of her eyes. "Dad, look it's your little star. C'mon wake up. Wake up, wake up, wake up!" She smiles playfully.

A choked sob breaks her little moment. She lifts her head to see her bestfriend next to the staircase, crying in her palm.

"Janet, stop crying." Taranya chastises. "He's just playing a prank. Let me tell you, he's a great actor, okay. Don't belittle my dad's acting skills." She shakes her head. "Dad, silly Janet believes you're actually dead. C'mon, wake up and prove her wrong. He'll wake up," she looks confidently at her best friend.

Janet shakes her head.

Taranya frowns. "He will."

Janet muffles her cries and shakes her head again.

"He will," Taranya whispers.

Janet faces away. Her shoulders start to tremble.

"Why won't he?" Taranya looks down at her father, sitting next to him with her knees pulled up. "Why won't you, Dad? Want to leave me like Mom did? C'mon, you're better than that." She scoffs.

"We neet to hurry up." She hears someone say.

Tara sits by as people rush to fulfill the cremation rituals. As the eldest son, Yuvraaj is authorised to the role of the Kartā. He changes into dhoti and performs every ritual under the guidance of the priest. When it's time for the body to be cremated, Taranya watches blankly. Her eldest brother does everything, beginning from kindling the fire of the funeral pyre to the completion of the last rites. She watches from distance as the fire rises to devour the sky and the flesh of her father's existence is perished, leaving ashes in the wake wake.

On the eleventh day, the people leave, main gates close, and the entire Veer Mahal quietens.

"Dad wanted his ashes to be spread around Tara's mother's grave." Vivaan speaks up that night.

Taranya lifts her head. A frown covers her well-crafted but dull countenance. "Why would he talk about his death?"

Three figures freeze.

"Dad was battling cancer. Last stage." Yuvaan reveals.

Taranya gasps in disbelief. "You guys knew? And nobody told me!?" She gets up from the couch, stepping back in shock as she looks at her brothers in disgust.

"I didn't know about it." Agastya shakes his head, looking at his brothers demandingly.

"I didn't either." Ayush mumbles.

"Same, I had no idea." Arush states.

Taranya quickly joins the dot. "You were mentioned as his guardian for that very reason, right?" She asks Vivaan. "Yuvaan Bhai and Yuvraaj Bhai found the news through you."

He nods softly.

"Why not us?"

"We didn't want to stress you-"

"You don't get to decide that!" She screams.

"I'll be in my room, excuse me." Janet leaves after a tentative glance at her best friend. She is going through the worst of her life and Janet had no idea how to handle everything. Her parents had come and gone, sharing their condolences, and she requested them to leave without her even though she knew it's going to be difficult staying here for the next few weeks.

"Oh, God!" Tara holds her forehead. "Oh God, now it makes sense. I mulled over so hard. What made them change their attitude towards Dad? Why are they suddenly acting so kind to him? You guys pitied him!" She hisses.

"Tara!" Yuvaan says sternly.

"Am I wrong?" She wipes off the tears from her eyes. "Did you not give him attention because you thought the man is almost on his deathbed? You're so disgusting!"

"Tara, enough!" Vivaan says, hurt at her words. "You alone did not lose your father. We did too. Stop finding reasons to blow up on us."

"My father didn't need to be pitied just because he was suffering a terminal disease!" She snarls.

"He was our father too!" Yuvraaj glares at her.

Taranya scoffs out a chuckle. "You sure never let him feel that." And she storms off to her father's room, slamming the door shut behind her.

She goes to his wardrobe and takes out every piece of fabric owned by him. She dumps the clothes on the bed and curls up on it, bringing her knees to her chest as she explodes with the overwhelming emotions once again. She cries hugging his shirt. His scent is stronger here. His presence so palpable and obvious. The feeling torments her. But she doesn't want to let go of the pain, afraid she'll be letting go of her father as well. This is all she had of him. The remnants of his existence, trapped in the things owned by him.

Taranya doesn't realise when she falls asleep, but it's already dark outside when her eyes open. She recoils seeing a figure sleeping at the side of the bed and quickly reaches out to turn on the lights.

"Rudra?" The name leaves her mouth in a whisper.

His eyes flutter open and the light stings. He lifts his head off the bed, stumbling back when he finds her eyes on him.

"What are you doing here?"

He lowers his head to the ground and gets up on his feet. "I came to confess."

"Confess what?" She asks coldly.

"I was the last person your father talked to." He whispers. "He-" a strangled sigh escapes his mouth, "I practically forced him in the mouth of the death. I'm sorry." His voice heavy, spoken with a shudder.

Taranya frowns. "What are you talking-"

The ebony eyed man removes his mask, revealing himself in his true form, with his true identity, to the woman he loves.

Tara gasps, her hands fly to her mouth in shock.

"Virat Rajawat was my father. Your father told me the night he disappeared, they talked. I told him the last text he received from my father mentioned some place. It was the golf club they used to attend together when they were young. Maybe my father left us a proof to bring the Chairman's crimes in light. And maybe I was right. Because your father found a sheet container in the locker. But then I found out the Chairman had a tail on him. On everyone in your family ever since Inayat's murder mystery was exposed. I was too late to inform your father." He looks up at her vulnerably.

Taranya feels a bile rise in her stomach. She rushes to the bathroom and throws up. Shourya follows and squats down, reaching out to help her when she stumbles back, holding up a hand for him to not cross the line. She pulls the flush and scoots away until her back touches the bathtub.

"Don't -" she whispers, eyes stuck to the floor. "Don't come closer. Just- Just go away." She wraps her arms around her knees. It's suddenly so cold.

She didn't expect this betrayal.

But she is too overwhelmed with everything to make sense of it. Her head feels like it's going to blast anytime soon. She clutches it and drops her face between her knees.

"Esther -"

"Go!" She interrupts.

"Tara, let me explain -"

"Go!" She raises her head to scream. Grabbing whatever she could get hold of, she throws it at him. "Go! Go! Go!" Getting up, she picks up the lotions and shampoos, hurling them at him until he's out of the bathroom. Then she slams the door shut and rests her forehead on the frame, breaking down in heavy sobs. "Go! Go! Go!" She hits the door with her fist. "Just go away. Get out of my life. Don't ever show me your face. Please just, don't."

Shourya closes up from the other side and places his hand on the door. "Tara, I'm sorry. I'm so terribly sorry. Please, hear me out once."

Taranya shakes her head and slides down, her back to the door, arms wrapped around her knees and she lays her cheek on the cushion of her arms, staring blankly into the void.

She didn't care Rudra and Shourya is the same person. It hurt her, but she honestly didn't care about him anymore. Because what rang loud and clear in her head was the fact that her father was murdered and the murderer had come to their palace, offering his fake condolences. The thought makes her throw up again.

She pulls the flush and gets up to wash her face. When she opens the door, Shour- Rudra gets up too and looks at her hopefully. She walks out of the room and goes straight to her brother's study.

"Yeah, we'll be in London -" Yuvraaj turns around when he sees Tara entering the room. "I'll call you later." He hangs up, taking a step forward in her direction before he halts in shock when Shourya follows up behind. "What-"

"I told her the truth." The young man confesses.

"Taranya -"

"He was murdered, did you know that?" Tara asks bluntly.

Yuvraaj nods. "I do."

"And you're doing nothing? That sick man killed our father and you're just sitting here!?" She accuses.

"No, Tara!" Yuvraaj steps closer. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves. That's what got us here. We can't fight him yet. But I promise you, when we do, I'm going to make him beg for mercy. He'll pay. I swear to God, I'll make him pay."

Tara breaks down in tears in his arms. He hugs her tightly, pressing a hand down her head gently. "I want to kill him. I want to kill him!" She sobs.

"I know. I know how you feel. I feel it too." Yuvraaj consoles.

"And please ask him to leave." She says, referring to Shourya. "I can't stand him anymore."

Shourya bites his lower lip and quietly steps out of the room, pulling the door close. This isn't about him. And he isn't going to make it. She needs time. He has it. He is hers anyway. She can take as much time as she wants. She can take forever.

Taranya doesn't leave her room until the time of the flight. She stays cooped up, not even eating the meals served to her on time. The will to survive withers away everytime the daunting realisation of her father's untimely death haunts her.

Janet tries making her feel better. But Taranya rarely responds. With every passing day, the absence that's supposed to feel mild, grows even stronger.

Until the day she stands in front of her mother's grave and watches her eldest brother spread the ashes around it. Winds don't blow, but the sky darkens and similar to the first time she had seen her father, it rains.

Taranya falls to her knees in front of her mother's grave and gently traces her father's ashes scattered on the inscribed name: Scarlett Evans.

Rain impinges, helping the reunion of the two lost souls.

A painful smile joins the tears rolling down her eyes. Taranya sniffles.

"The story finally got its desired ending, Mumma. The Prince and his Red reunited."

-• the end •-