Veer's POV

I entered the dining area to have dinner and I must say this dining table and the chairs look like the ones that are in palaces. From the looks of it, Arjun loves to live like a king and everything that belongs to him should be grand. I see Arnav and Martha Mehra's picture on one of the walls and another one beside it which has Arnav Mehra holding little Arjun and Martha Mehra smiling at them. From what I have heard from my mother, martha Mehra was a noble lady and when ma was dying, she cried bitterly repeating how she wanted to fall at Martha's feet and seek her forgiveness for wreaking her family.

I know martha must have also gone through a lot but what was my fault in all this?! Even before I was born, my own fucking father asked my mother to get rid of this shit! Yes! He called me shit when he was a piece of shit, himself! No matter what kind of man he was, he loved Arjun the most maybe because Arjun looks just like him. He never saw me neither did he wished to see me so he never knew even I got his face.

My gaze stops on the other wall where I see Arjun's huge picture where he is standing with his hands in his pockets and did I forget to mention that arrogant smirk on his face. All I see is pride written all over his face, he is so fucking full of himself. Why?! Because he thinks he is the prince who had every right to be the king. If only father would have accepted me then I would have proved to everyone that I am ten times better than him. Life is so fucking unfair, despite what Arjun had done to all those people who crossed his part and even to innocents, he still gets the best.

I planted the bomb in Arnav Mehra's car but I had to do it so he realises what is pain. I have never killed other people like Arjun and I feel I am a better person than him at least I didn't use girls like tissues. I was with lily for my gain but I never told her I loved her because I didn't. Of course we slept together but that's different. I know she was with me only because I look like Arjun and that fucking got under my skin. Why everyone only gets close to me because I look like him?! Everyone except one, Radhika! She wants Arjun and only Arjun no one else will do. I respect her a lot for her loyalty and immense love for her husband but poor girl doesn't know he doesn't deserve any of it.

She doesn't even know the real Arjun, that ugly face which he keeps hidden under that handsome face. The day she comes to know his truth, she will never look at him the same way. I feel she could have done a lot with her life if only her husband wasn't Arjun. I know his nature very well, he likes to cage the things he love so that they always stay where he could watch them. I just hope he is dead and I don't ever have to see him again.

I walk to the dining table and cringe as I see chicken breast in the place and there is also crabs curry at the side.

"What is all this?!" I ask the house maid angrily.

"Sir, your favourite chicken breast and crabs curry." She replies.

Oh yeah that arrogant brute can even eat raw chicken if he doesn't get heat to cook it. I am a vegetarian and I can't even take the smell of this.

"Take this away, don't you have something in vegetarian?!" I ask in an enraged tone.

"We have made sweet patatoes and cheese toast for, her highness." She replies in a compliant tone.

"Why she won't eat all this?!" I point to the chicken and crabs.

"No, her highness is a pure vegetarian." She tells me.

Pure vegetarian?! Unfuckingbelievable! Arjun's wife and a vegan, how wierd it must be when they must be having food together. I know he likes chicken so much that he can eat it in breakfast, lunch and dinner.

My trance breaks when I hear the musical sound of bangles, I turn to the source and I can't even breath when I see her. She is dressed in a plain red sari which has a zari border, her long hair left loose in the front but what catches my eye is her mangalsutra and I tear my eyes away from her sinful beauty.

She comes to the dining table and takes her seat and I also sit opposite to her. I notice she is clearly ignoring me which suprisingly is bothering me. I smile at her but she only stares at me coldly. When dinner is served to both of us I notice she is only toying with her food.

"Are you just going to stare at your food?!" I ask her.

She looks up at me and doesn't say anything, she again goes back to toying with her food.

I don't like her silence, she should talk as when she talks, she looks very pretty.

"So you are going to ignore me now?!"I ask her softly.

She still doesn't say anything and I feel angry now. I am ready to take her accussations and insults but not her silence. I feel if we are to live together in this house and have no one to talk to, at least we can exchange a few words.

"So you think he loves you?!" I ask her in a provoking tone.

She still doesn't lose her cool so I have to push her more.

"You know something, Radhika you are very gullible and by gullible I mean you see the world through Arjun's eyes. Of course maybe that's how he trained you to but take my advice, you are finally free and you can do anything you want. Get out of the house and explore the world. Do you really want to stay caged?!" I ask her to get a rise out of her.

She stares hard at me,"You are very interested in me, aren't you?!" She asked clenching the words between her teeth.

Who won't be?! I am just shocked of the fact that she loves him even after he has married her by force and doesn't even let her be. Either she is too great or too stupid to not see where her life is heading. Why can't she see that face of Arjun which I have seen and known. Is love so blind that it clogs your thinking?!

"I just feel sad for you. You're both young and beautiful but look at you, tied down with a baby at such a young age when you should be working towards better life. Women of your age are so ambitious and look at what he has done to you." I tell her in a cajoling tone.

I am also doing this for myself as well as her because nothing will hurt Arjun more than Radhika's betrayal, he will be broken once he sees his wife breaking all the shackles and escaping his cage. I want him to feel how it feels when someone breaks your heart and step over it. If he is alive, he will die again after seeing the Radhika I will create in his absence and this one will be mine.

I see the lines of worry and doubt creasing her forehead and I smile.

"Did I put you in thought?! Good! I want you to think about your life from now on. Think about only yourself, Radhika." I smirk.

She is still quiet but I know she is thinking about what I am saying, her eyes are clouded with doubt but soon I will make things simple for her. Sweety, you are so gullible and I will have you one day but not by force. I will wipe Arjun's name from your heart, mind and soul and I will write my name on your heart one day. I can just imagine Arjun's face after seeing us together. I know I cannot inflict physical pain on him because he is too stronger for that but I can snatch his precious wife from him who he loves to death. I still remember how I had him on his knees when Rahil had pointed a gun to Radhika's temple. He can do any fucking thing for her and by anything, I fucking mean anything!

He loves her, that's for sure, Lily mentioned it to me that she had never seen Arjun deal with someone with so much patience. What's not to love! She is so fucking pretty and there is a kind of purity and serenity in those beautiful almond shaped eyes. No wonder he stopped his womanizing ways for her, at first I was shocked when I heard that he had completely stopped taking whores to his bed but now I understand why she has him under her spell. She might not be the most beautiful woman but her character and dignity is her most beautiful feature. She is so committed to her husband even though he doesn't deserve it, that itself explains how much integrity this girl has got.

"Even if you believe Arjun loves you then why would he try to change you?! Isn't love accepting the person the way they are?! You are just a pretty doll for him in my opinion." I tell her, giving her a pitiful look.

Yes, I am scheming but this is also true, that I don't want to hurt her at least not until I really have to. She is harmless but the child is the one I am worried about. I hope it's a girl so I will have nothing to worry about.

She stares at me with red angry eyes,"Enough! I am not saying anything that doesn't mean I can't say anything. So I am a pretty doll according to you?! Who told you that?! Oh yeah, your spy in our house, Lily! Did she ever tell you that she wanted to be that pretty doll?! Precisely Arjun's pretty doll. You know what both of you are jealous. She was jealous of me and you are jealous of Arjun!"

Jealous?! I don't even want to be like Arjun who has no conscience.

"I am jealous?! Jealous of what, Radhika?!" I ask her in an amused tone.

"Jealous of the fact that you were not born first! That you are not Arjun though you look like him! That you were born to some other woman and not Martha Mehra. Jealous of the truth that your own father loved him and not you. Jealous that he got everything and everyone's love and you got nothing! You are jealous that you don't have a Radhika who loves Arjun more than her life. You are jealous of Arjun and everything he has."

She clawed my wounds that were as fresh as the day when they were given to me. One thing sinks inside me is that turning Radhika against Arjun is very difficult. It seems for Radhika, her whole world is Arjun and her faith in him is unshakable. I feel sad for her because he clearly doesn't deserve any of it and this stupid girl is blinded by her love to see any sense in my words.

Husband, husband, husband, what else does she even know except this one word but I admire her loyalty even though it is of no use to me but I have admit that she is so deep down in love with Arjun that it has succumbed her whole existence.

"That's it! I have had it with you! You know what I am done reasoning with you. You are just a stupid puppet of Arjun and you don't understand and maybe you don't want to understand how he has ruined your life! I was giving you a chance to find yourself in all this. Okay! I accept I hate Arjun for the following reasons but tell me something, there was Veer, there was Arjun in this conversation where was Radhika?! Does she even exist?! What has she done?! Does anyone give her credit for sacrificing herself to become Arjun's pretty doll?! What is she doing with her life when she could have done so much better had she given a chance?!" I shout ask her to challenge her.

I want her to see herself in mirror once not as Arjun's wife but as Radhika, only Radhika. I want her to wipe off everything that has happened till now with her and be a blank slate and start afresh. Also I will be at profit if she forgets Arjun because she is the sole owner of everything but most of all I want to stab Arjun's heart by making Radhika mine.

I see unshed tears in her eyes and I feel guilt pricking my heart as I realised I took it too far in a day. I have to go slow otherwise I will end up killing her confidence which is the last thing I want. I offer her glass of water which she rejects with her hand.

"Veer, please don't do this, I have drilled this truth in my head don't make me think about my truth again." She says in a vulnerable tone as she wipes her tear stained face.

You or Arjun has drilled?! I still want to know what is that truth which is stopping you.

"What is your truth, Radhika?!"

"Arjun is my truth and reality, both, I am not supposed to think about anything else." She whispers weakly.

She turns to leave but I hold her wrist shocking her and myself both, she looks down at my hand holding hers and looks back at me, in my eyes.

"Everyone has a right to think for themselves, Radhika." I say firmly as I look in the eye.

"Arjun thinks for me and he knows what is best for me, I will never question him. He is my husband and he has all rights to decide for me." She replies in a low tone and I felt she was trying to convince herself more than me.

"Don't try to take Arjun's place in my heart and life, you will never meet any success. I am his and I will always be his." Saying so, she pulled her hand out of my grasp and I wasn't holding her tightly either.

I watched her as she turned to leave and all of a sudden her foot slipped and she lost her balance, I held her by waist to stop her from falling. I stared deep in to her eyes but she looked away and straightened up.

"Thank you." She mumbled and walked away.

Whatever Arjun has is incomparable to Radhika, she is so different, so devoted to him even when I feel a part of her is unhappy, the part which still longs for freedom and identity. I have to trigger that part of her so one day it will overpower her love for him and she will come to me for help and that's when I will play my card. Man, I can't wait to have her in my bed, I want a feel of that beautiful girl at least once. Even pregnant, she looks so desirable and I can't wait to touch her. My only obstacle is that child, she is carrying, Arjun's heir will be a problem if it's a boy and then I will have to ship that child off to some boarding school and keep it as away as I can.

I don't want to resort to cruelty but if I have to, I will. I know for a fact that Radhika will fight me tooth and nail to keep her child with her but I will be inviting a feud if I let the child stay if it's a boy. I don't want the history to repeat itself so I wish and pray that it's a girl then I will let Radhika keep her here because as it is a girl cannot ascend the throne in our world. I just hope and pray it's a girl so that it eliminates future possibilities of someone threatening my inheritance.

Radhika's POV

His words felt like stones being thrown at my heart, he disrupted the smooth flow of my thoughts. I can't believe this man's words are affecting me but I am not stupid to not realise its the truth in his words that is playing havoc in my mind.

My eyes fill up as my mind takes me to instances where Arjun made it clear what he thought about women working. Women are not men's equal, they are best kept at home to look after the house and children, women are weaklings so I don't recruit women and there are so many things he has said here and there and if I start to think of all of them then the night will pass but I won't be done.

Why is he like that?! Of course I don't love him any less because this man has pinpointed the truth to me. I still love Arjun and will always do, its just he upsets me so much when he says things like that but I keep quiet because I don't want to spoil his mood. I don't say anything because I can't bear to see him upset or angry with me, I don't like it, I hate it! I love him so much that I let him have his way even if I don't agree with him.

Am I so weak that I don't have an opinion?! No Radhika! Don't think about all this, its not the right time for all this. Are you so selfish to think about yourself when you don't know if your husband is alive or not?! My conscience rebukes me and my tears stream down my cheeks.

"Veer, please don't do this, I have drilled this truth in my head don't make me think about my truth again." I beg him as I wipe my tears.

Radhika, for the longest time of your life, you wanted love, you craved for human touch and warmth and you have it now, you have it all! Arjun loves you so much and you love him too then what is the need for freedom?! You don't need it as much as you need Arjun, do you?! You have Arjun, Sam, Mariam Aunty and this child, what else do you need?!

"What is your truth, Radhika?!" He asked me.

"Arjun is my truth and reality, both, I am not supposed to think about anything else." I say in a low tone.

Yes, stick to your words, Radhika.

I turn to leave but Veer holds my hand and stuns me! How dare he?! I look at him with fury filled eyes but I know I can't do anything.

"Everyone has a right to think for themselves, Radhika." He tells me.

If I think only about myself then who is going to think about my poor, innocent baby?! I am not selfish and I don't know how to be selfish, whether or not I am Arjun's pretty doll still his doll and I will not go against him not now not tomorrow, never! This man cannot be trusted, I know it in my gut that he is planning something.

"Arjun thinks for me and he knows what is best for me, I will never question him. He is my husband and he has all rights to decide for me." I reply to him in a low tone but I just wanted to clear things to him.

I agree Arjun has done a lot of bad things to me but can I overlook the good things he has done for me?! The way he puts me to sleep with my face pressed against his chest, has he ever done this for someone?! He makes sure I eat on time and I do not skip my meals as I feel lazy to eat. When he touches my cheek tenderly and looks in my eyes and tells me he loves me, my heart thumps with joy in my chest. When he brings me closer to his chest so close that I can put my face against his heartbeats and he wraps his hands around me, my soul feels satiated.

I love him the way he is and there are things I don't like about him but I accept him with all those things. I feel Veer is trying to create a rift between me and Arjun but I won't fall in his trap. I don't love just Arjun's face that I will jump all over the next person who looks like him, I love the whole Arjun with his arrogance, his anger, his ego, his care behind his rough exterior, his everything. No one can be Arjun for Radhika, No one!

"Don't try to take Arjun's place in my heart and life, you will never meet any success. I am his and I will always be his." I tell him harshly as I pull my hand out of his grip and leave.

To be continued.....