Page 137 of Entangled Vows
“Chairman of Excel Group, Ajay Thakkar. The same man your father fought in boardrooms for years. You were too busy playing princess to notice.”
Her jaw dropped. “You... you are the son of the man who sent that marriage proposal to my father?”
“I am his nephew,” Karan continued, bitterness lacing his voice. “I was supposed to be the heir… until I failed him. All because I couldn’t make you fall for me, couldn’t convince you to marry me. That’s why he put me in your college. Told me to get close to you. Make you fall in love with me. He wanted a merger through marriage to gain complete control over the business. But your father always refused the proposal. That crazy old fool…”
Tears burned her eyes. “Maybe my father always refused because deep down he knew you were a piece of shit.”
“Shut the fuck up,” Karan sneered as he yanked a fistful of her hair. Mahika whimpered in pain.
He gritted out. “That’s why my uncle disowned me. Gave everything to my brother… all because I couldn’t have you. He even dragged your father into gambling and buried him in debt. My uncle set him up. All your father had to do was agree to our marriage, but he somehow paid off the debt and walked away. And then he died. For the whole year I fed the paparazzi the same story over and over: that the company was collapsing because your father had embezzled money. You thought it was over, but I wouldn’t let it go. I kept stirring the trouble because I wanted the chaos, hoping that would tear you all apart. I thought… maybe fate was finally on my side. Maybe I could have you… and get back my business.”
He slammed his fists on the steering wheel. “And then that damn will cropped up, and you married that son of a bitch, Vikram. All my years of hard work, wasted.”
Mahika’s mind screamed at her to run, to escape. But she stayed calm. She needed to be the smart one now and try to get out of here.
“Karan, listen to me.” She faked softness, pretending to tremble with emotion. “Maybe I was wrong. Maybe... maybe it’s not too late.”
He blinked, confused. “What are you saying?”
“Let’s get married,” she said, forcing out a sweet smile. Her cheek still stung from the slap. “Take me to the temple. Right now. I want this.”
“You’ll marry me?” he asked, hope flickering in his eyes.
“Yes. But I need air. Please. The foul smell is making me dizzy.”
After a moment of hesitation, he reached for the lock, the click echoing in the silence. The second she heard it, Mahika sprang into action. She shoved the door open, and a gust of freshair hit her face. Then, without thinking, she slammed her elbow backward into Karan’s throat with a sickening crack. He groaned loudly, a string of curses following as his head crashed into the window with a sharp thud.
Still dazed, he tried to recover, but Mahika didn’t wait. She bolted, sprinting towards the road, her heart hammering in her chest.
Rain lashed her face and she ran as if a demon were chasing her. And in a way, it was. Her feet slipped in the slick mud, sending her sprawling. Her bracelet clattered to the ground and slid off her wrist. She tried to reach for it, but when she heard the sound of Karan’s approaching footsteps, she left it there and ran again, harder than ever.
Her clothes were soaked and muddy, but she kept going. Her heart pounded like a drum against her ribs, and her lungs screamed with each burning, desperate gasp.
“Mahika!” Karan screamed.
She glanced back, and he was right behind her. His footsteps pounded the ground, his curses cutting through the rain. And his eyes… they were wild, furious, and murderous. Literally.
“You ungrateful bitch!” he roared, slamming into her with the force of a madman. “I’ll carve our names into the temple walls… with Vikram’s blood!”
Screaming, she shoved him off and stumbled onto the rough asphalt of the road, but he was on her again in seconds, his breath hot on her neck. His arm locked tightly around her waist, pulling her closer. He yanked her back as if she weighed nothing, slamming her against a rough tree trunk and knocking the wind out of her.
“You think you can run?” he hissed, his face inches from hers, his breath hot and vile. He pulled out a worn-out mangalsutra, its beads grimy and tangled. “You will marry me. Do you hear me? No one gets to have you. Not your precious husband. Not even that little thing growing inside you.”
Mahika froze and stopped struggling. Her protective instincts kicked in. No matter what happened, her baby had to be safe. She’d die if it came to that.
But… how the hell did this asshole know?
Her mind raced, her voice coming out cold and sharp. “There is no baby, you filthy bastard. I married Vikram for the beach house in Australia. I’m divorcing him in a few months anyway.”
It was the truth, but also a lie. She knew exactly why she was saying it. To protect her baby and Vikram from the monster in front of her.
Karan sneered, his voice dripping with menace. “I’ve been in the shadows, watching, waiting. Did you think I’d leave you alone at the mall? No, Mahika. I was right there. I saw you in the pharmacy, saw what you bought, saw the way you looked devastated when you came out of the restroom. That was when it hit me. If I didn’t act now, I’d lose you forever. So, I came for you. Today had to be the day when I took you from that man you call your husband. That was why I was waiting outside in the parking lot. For you.”
“Why are you doing this?” Her voice cracked.
He smiled eerily as his voice turned sinister.
“Because you’re mine. I don’t want anything of him left in you. No memory. No trace. And if I have to erase his reminder with my own hands, I will.”
