Page 16 of Rudra Nandani: The Saga of Control And Seduction

“Rudra, please...don't ruin me anymore,” I wriggled to get off his hold, but he sucked intensely on my back.

“Ahh,” I whimpered as soon as I felt his lips instil tension in my skin.

Gripping the bed sheet, I pushed my face against the mattress, biting my lower lip to restrain the sound.

“Sss….” I hissed, and the moment he left my hand, I turned to slap him with all my might.

His face jerked, with a little cut on his cheek caused by my ring, and he moved off me.

“How dare you?” I lunged at him, clutching his kurta12, pushing him against the headboard.He had me fuming with anger.

“I can dare more. But dare you marry him, Nandani, and you will see my wrath,” He seethed, holding my wrists to push them off his collar. Looking into my eyes, he added,“Many would want to marry you. You can marry any man but him. Not him. Never.”

I stared deep into his raging, bloodshot eyes.“It is only him whom I will marry. I’ll let him touch me, do anything he wants to do to me in bed, and I will bear his child. And you'll not be able to do anything about it,” I said.

He sucked in a deep breath and nodded his head.“I have my eyes on you. You still have time to think about this, and if I ever, ever, ever catch you thinking about marrying him or see you anywhere near him again, you must bear the consequences,” he warned me.

“Get out! Get out of my life,” I yelled at him.

His knuckles whitened as he clenched his fists and walked towards the window.

My heart wrenched with fury as he paused and turned around to give an ultimatum before stepping over the window.“If you do not want me to do something, we both will regret it. Drop this plan, Nandani. This is no joke.” Turning back, he jumped out of the window.

“I will not,” I screamed confidently, running to the window, seeing him leaving. When he left, I closed the windows and walked to the mirror to see what he did to my back. I held my breath when my sight fell on a dark bruise forming right below my nape.

“I hate you,” I cursed under my breath and went to my bed to get some sleep.

The visuals of his actions kept running through my mind until I fell asleep.

?? ? ? ?

I woke up early the next day. It was Gangaur13,and I had to keep a fast for my would-be husband. Both married and unmarried women celebrate this festival. Where married ladies pray for their husbands’and family’s good health, unmarried girls observe this fast to get an ideal husband.

And there was a belief that if an unmarried girl looked at a man’s reflection in the still waters of a pond under the starry sky, that man would be her husband. So, I just had to see the King's face during the pooja14in the evening.

I bathed early in the morning and changed into a yellow lehenga.

I couldn't wear anything revealing, as he had marked my back the night before, so I opted for a covered blouse. While wearing all the jewelry, Suman helped me, and suddenly she asked,“Nandani, I don't think the king is a good man. Are you not scared of him?”

I looked at her in the mirror and answered,“Trust me, he is a good man. And don't worry about me,”

I went for the prayers, and when I returned, I stayed in my chamber the whole day since I was fasting.

In the evening, I prepared for the main pooja. My mother asked me to keep my face covered and sent me to the other side of the pond because the daughters wouldn’t perform nuptial rituals in their father’s presence.

My grandmother, a group of soldiers, and a few attendees accompanied me.

I knew the king would be there. The ritual was sacred and proven to confirm the wedding. My heart beat fiercely as I stepped down the stairs by the pond. I kept my prayer plate beside me and heard the footsteps of someone descending.

“The King has arrived,” Suman whispered, and I started my prayers.

I let the sacred burning Diya15float onto the water. Closing my eyes, I was all set to see the king’s reflection in the water. I knew he was standing two steps to the right of me.

I was about to open my eyes when an arrow flew at lightning speed out of nowhere towards the king. My gaze fell on Rudra's face in the water as he stepped forward to save the king, taking the arrow in his arm.“Ahh….”

Chaos erupted among the attendees, and the surrounding people began screaming at the sudden intrusion.

Rudra guided the king,“This way, your majesty.” I saw the king leaving because of the sudden attack, and my lips wobbled, not believing I had just seen his face in the water.

---