Page 86 of Entangled Vows
Mahika hesitated for a moment before taking a step away, as if trying to hide from his gaze. Her eyes locked onto the screen, and she froze.
Vikram didn’t miss a thing. The way her face tightened. The faint tremor in her hand. He saw it all.
When she finally spoke, her voice quivered, barely more than a whisper. Her face drained of colour, paling as if she’d just heard something devastating. Her eyes swept the room, searching for something… or someone. Then, with quiet resolve, she ended the call and began walking back towards him, her steps slow and measured, her every move betraying more than she realised.
He stood there, observing her like she was his next case study. Every flicker of emotion, every subtle shift in her expression, was laid bare under his sharp gaze.
He instantly knew something was wrong. The smile she gave him was too bright, too forced. “Done. Come on, now. Show me your moves, Grizz.”
Vikram nodded, and then right in the heart of the dance floor, he drew her close, feeling her breath catch in her throat. Before she could react, he guided her arms around his neck, his own hands slipping to her waist, a touch lower than proper etiquette allowed. But Vikram didn’t care.
Their eyes locked, and a spark of intense heat flared between them, burning away everything else. Even though they were surrounded by a room full of people, the feeling was far too intimate to be proper.
She offered a small, hesitant smile, but he didn’t return it. Instead, he asked her a question that stopped everything inside her.
“Why did you tense up when you answered your call?”
Mahika froze, her gaze dropping to the floor.
“I didn’t tense,” she said, too quickly.
“Don’t lie to me,” he growled, his voice low and rough. He lowered his head, catching her gaze. “I saw it, Momo. Tell me what was that.”
She rolled her eyes. “Grizz, it’s nothing I can’t handle.”
“I don’t want you handling anything for the next one year while you’re with me,” he snapped, but then lowered his voice, but no less firm. “Please, just tell me what the hell made you freeze like you’d seen a ghost.”
Something in his tone startled her. It was a soft, tender… something she wasn’t used to. It sounded terrifyingly like worry, and for a second, her steps faltered.
“I already told you it’s nothing,” she muttered. “So don’t overreact, okay? I’ve just been getting these blank calls from unknown numbers. It’s been happening for a while.”
He went completely still, every muscle in his body tensing.
“You’ve been getting blank calls?” he asked. “Since when?”
She sighed. “Stop reacting like that. It started after Dad passed away. Maybe a few weeks later. I don’t know. It just… began.”
“What do they say?” His arm tightened protectively around her waist.
She looked up at him and froze. His expression was not just angry, it was unnervingly calm, almost too calm. But his eyes told a different story. They were dark and deadly serious, like he was already planning someone’s murder.
“Nothing. No one speaks when I answer. But it doesn’t feel like a usual sketchy network glitch either, because there is no static or background noise. It’s just... silence. And I’ve always got this weird feeling that someone’s on the other end. Listening.”
The truth of what she was saying sank in, and his jaw clenched as pure, murderous rage settled over his features.
“Listening to your voice,” Vikram repeated, his tone venomous. He was furious, yet his body kept swaying to the music on instinct alone.
“I don’t know, okay? It just feels that way sometimes.”
“Does Mohit know about this?” Vikram asked, his voice tight.
Mahika shook her head. “No. I never told anyone. Just you. It’s just some weird calls. Probably someone dialled the wrong number…”
“No,” Vikram said sharply, cutting her off. He gripped her chin and tilted her face towards him. “Don’t you dare say it’s nothing.” His eyes were locked on hers now, dark and burning. “Some bastard’s been listening to your voice in silence for months, and you’re saying it’s nothing. He’s a fucking creep. A fucking stalker. That’s cyber stalking.”
She opened her mouth to respond, but the words never came.
Vikram finally realised they were still in the middle of the dance floor, and people were now looking at them. He didn’t care about the music, the people, or even the damn reception anymore. All he could see in his mind was the image of someone lurking on the other end of the line, silently listening to her voice, thinking God knows what.
