Page 118 of Trapped By the Maharaja
Keya might have lied.
???
After the small, private celebration, Ram and his brothers disappeared into the office to discuss something important.
Sanjana was asked to rest in a large, well-aired guest room. But she felt too restless and wanted to clear her mind with the outside fresh air.
The Rewa Palace gardens stretched endlessly, with their ancient banyan trees and carved stone pathways that gleamed under the afternoon sun. Ram had once told her this was the home where he and his brothers had grown up, running barefoot along these very paths and swimming in the river next to the palace.
Her sandals crunched against the gravel path as she wandered deeper, her eyes tracing the fountains and manicured hedges. She was walking towards the river when voices carried across the breeze.
“…she has to be stopped before it’s too late. I can’t have my son’s happiness compromised. Get me the updates the investigator sent on Sanjana.”
Sanjana froze. She recognized that regal voice.
It was Suchitra Devi.
Her instincts screamed to leave, but her feet carried her closer. Suchitra Devi stood near a marble bench, her posture regal, speaking low to her assistant, Mira.
Sanjana’s stomach dropped.She’s talking about me.
“…she has to be stopped before it’s too late.”It sounded like a threat.
Sanjana stepped forward before she could stop herself, her voice cutting through the still air. “Your Highness.”
Suchitra Devi turned, her expression cool, unreadable. Her dark eyes fell on Sanjana.
Sanjana’s breath rushed out, trembling, but her voice was steady. “I know what you’ve done.”
A flicker, the barest narrowing of Suchitra Devi’s eyes before stillness settled in again.
Sanjana stepped closer, anger tightening every word. “I know the truth about the past. About what was done to break Ram and me apart. I know it was you.” Her voice cracked for an instant, but she pressed on. “You had him drugged, manipulated and destroyed our love.”
Devi’s face remained perfectly still, like a mask carved of marble.
Sanjana’s throat burned. “But I won’t tell Ram. I won’t be the one to break his heart with the truth about his mother. He loves you and respects you, and I won’t take that from him.”
Devi tilted her head slightly, her silence loud and heavy.
Sanjana’s fists clenched at her sides. “The knife attacks and the sabotage at the hospital… if you’re behind them, then you’re not just targeting me. You’re putting your own son in danger because he will protect me.”
At that, something flickered in the queen’s gaze.
Sanjana pressed forward. “Do you care more about the purity of a royal bloodline than the safety of your own son?”
For the first time, Devi’s mask cracked. Her eyes flashed with fire. “Never question my love for my sons.”
Sanjana’s heart thudded in her ears, but she didn’t back away. “Then accept that I am the Devara Maharani. Your son has chosen me as his wife.”
Suchitra Devi was silent, her dark eyes fixed on Sanjana with an expression impossible to read.
Sanjana turned away, her steps echoing against the stone path. Every beat of her heart screamed the vow she had just spoken.
No matter what happens, I will not be intimidated. I will remain with Ram.
CHAPTER 51
Sanjana stepped out of the helicopter with the faint hum still buzzing in her ears. The dusky sky over Devara Palace was painted with streaks of red and orange. The familiar sight of the palace made her feel like she had returned home after a battle.
