"Every time you escaped his wrath, I bore the scars and bruises of what were held against you and that too double of whatever that came your way because that was the truce he held against me, I never took a second thought while accepting it, I don't think you're blind to not see the scars because you saw them and asked me about it, The so called life I lived in your mother's place is no where near heaven and it could only be near hell but accepted that because i promised your mother" said Vanya crying.
"I tried my very best to shield you from what all his wrath held but you didn't bother to change, you turned out the same way he did, you tortured a girl when you had no right to punish her, even if she was the one sinned" said Vanya and took a deep breathe to control. "What's worst is that she's innocent and my kid who also I tried my best in raising, disappointed me and orchestrated the whole thing which resulted in a poor girl's tears whose parents trusted me while giving her to us" said Vanya and tears streamed down her eyes.
"Do you think your mother will be happy knowing that? Do you think she'll be proud knowing that you tortured an innocent girl" asked Vanya sharply and Parth stood there silent. "Tell me" said Vanya and that even startled Parth, "No" he said softly in guilt. "Loudly" said Vanya and Parth looked upto her, "No" he said. "Your voice never refrained to accuse her but it refrains to accept your mistakes?" said Vanya in disbelief. "Your mother didn't want you to turn like your father but you turned exactly like that, You proved the power of his genes and blood over ours" said Vanya.
"Me and Aabha have Nirmala and Sahdev's blood in our veins, you have Aabha's and Rishi's but you proved that Rishi's blood is enough to leave both of our efforts in the gutter, I tried my very best to give you a place of love and warmth but failed to know the extend of hatred and misunderstanding you held against me, I felt the tension but I thought that it was teenage stuff but it went way beyond my hold" said Vanya. "All I request you is to make amends, don't torment that girl further" begged Vanya.
"If you want I'll bed on my knees for that, since that's the only way your bloodline might understand" said Vanya and Parth stumbled towards her, fell on his knees. "Please don't say that Mom, You'll always be my mom and your orders are my everything" said Parth holding her hand. "I'll do whatever you say, I'll beg Laila to forgive me" said Parth. "Bold of you to assume that she'll forgive you after all of this, She's not Vanya, Aabha or you know Prachi, She's more like the reason you did all of this, Purvi" said Vanya giving him a reality check.
"I wonder that did my blood have any impact on any of you, didn't me or Aabha contribute to half of your genes, three of you turned just like him" said Vanya in frustration. "Why did I live to see this day, I wonder would this have happened if I didn't marry your dad" said Vanya in absolute frustration. "Mom please don't say that, I'm sorry" said Parth. "You're asking the wrong person" said Vanya sharply. "Call in your dad and Purvi" said Vanya absently and Parth went outside to call them with his demeanour showing his failure.
"Are you fine Vani?" asked Rishi and rushed towards her, "Help me up" said Vanya. "Why Vani, you're still weak" reasoned Rishi and Vanya stared at him with her bloodshot eyes, "Please" said Vanya. Rishi helped her up and she walked towards her daughter, Purvi stood there nonchalant observing the room, amused to find her elder brother lost. She deduced that her mother might've put him on a guilt trip and now she's next. She stood there confidently while Rishi helped Vanya walk towards her. "I don't know where did shame go lost on you" said Vanya completely astonished.
Slap! the sound reverberated.
Rishi held his wife to get her balance due to the force she gave for impact. Purvi held her cheeks tight, "Mom" she complaint. "Who gave you the right to play games with all of our lives, Is because you're Purvi Manvik, huh?" asked Vanya sharply while Purvi stumbled a bit. "I should have reprimanded you, this is my mistake, This is your Dad's mistake for spoiling you and not teaching you some discipline, never giving you accountability" said Vanya and turned towards Rishi. "You never left a chance in discipling the boys, You were so harsh on them"
Vanya paused to catch her breath, "I had to stand to stop you, you punished them for the slightest of things but you completely left accountability on your daughter, why?" asked Vanya and Rishi stayed silent to not provoke her more. "If you showed a slight of that on her, a little but of accountability is all I'm asking for, That might have showed her that people are not pawns on her game, People have a free will and it's not something she can toy with" said Vanya while her bloodshot eyes stared down at Rishi.
"You had no right to Punish Laila, You had no right to put your life in danger for that, You had no right to put the gun on your brother's shoulder and shoot, You misused all of our love and protectiveness for you, You made your brother punish an innocent and bear the weight of the sins he caused because you wanted him to be the sinner of the person you didn't like, while he thought he was simply doing justice" said Vanya shouting on Purvi while she occasionally flinched at her mother's words. "I Can't even believe that my own daughter would do this to someone" said Vanya.
"All of you turned like him and none like us, Why can't any of you have a bit of morality in you" said Vanya and started wheezing. Rishi was offended but it wasn't a moment to act on since he valued her life more. "Both of you get out now" said Rishi in his thundering command tone, Parth and Purvi rushed out. Rishi held Vanya in his arms to calm her down and Vanya's breathe slowly turned normal. "What if I didn't ask you to marry me that day, none of this would have occurred" said Vanya erratically.
"Purvi wouldn't have existed to make Parth do this, Prihan wouldn't have done any of this to avenge my tears, You might've married another woman who would've done better upbringing than me" rambled Vanya. Rishi twisted Vanya's arms behind her and she winced in pain, It brought her out of the haze. He pinned her against the wall, "You think this is your fault, if you think that then you're very wrong about me" said Rishi and Vanya's red eyes shot against his dark eyes. "Without Aabha, there's nothing stopping me from getting you and it would've just been a bit"
His eyes darkened and closed in on her, "I would have made you mine by hook or by crook, Your will or not, You still would be Mrs. Vanya Rishi Manvik and nothing could stop that" said Rishi and crashed his lips against her. He released all his offense in that kiss, making it hard for her to be against and even breath. He released her and she struggled heavily to breathe, "Make no mistake of even wondering that I would leave you in any universe, under any given situation" said Rishi in an intimidating manner and Vanya barely nodded, "Words" threatened Rishi.
"Yes" Vanya managed to say. Rishi laid her down and went outside to see his kids standing there with a plethora of expressions on their face. "I'll get back to you in a moment, I promise it won't be great for you" Threatened Rishi and Parth looking down. He knew the consequences of his action are starting to arrive, The same consequences Laila warned him about whenever he hurt her. His father was not going to spare him, not because his father would do anything different in his place. Only because of the pain this is causing on his wife, Mrs. Vanya Rishi Manvik.
"I mean this to each and every one of you, I will not spare any one of you and don't expect even a speak of mercy if you hurt your mother" said Rishi in a menacing manner which sent chills down their spines. "You three might not know, but your brothers know how I was before your mother decided to shield you" said Rishi and left. Prachi and Pulkit gulped in fear, the aura radiated fear so powerful that they forgot how to breathe. A sense of nonchalance couldn't leave Purvi completely after everything that happened.
"Purvi, I swear you don't still see it but I'll tell you that he won't spare any of us if anything happens to mom" said Prihan after seeing her stature but she stood stubborn. Parth finally spoke out, "Purvi, you might think that you're his favourite and that's the truth, You're the first born from his love Vanya but remember that, it's the very thing that makes you special and You'll always come after her" said Parth and Purvi's facade started to break. "He won't think twice in slicing us into pieces if it hurts her, She's the priority"
"None of us are there, We stand close because we are her priority, The day that starts hurting her" Parth paused, "We all are gone, we don't stand a chance" said Parth. Purvi gulped for once, Pulkit and Prachi looked at each other while Parth and Prihan's eyes stayed glued to the floor. Parth and Prihan knew that they needed to prepare themselves for the impact that going to hit them soon, Purvi was now concerned for herself now while Pulkit and Prachi embraced themselves for what's left to unfold infront of them now.
Laila folded her last saree with a precision that belonged to someone wrapping a memory instead of cloth. The suitcase before her was modest, just large enough that she can take what she wanted to bring with her and leave all the unwanted behind. The room was filled with ghosts. Ghosts of her unsaid torment, fake smiles, torture and fading self of her here but now she marked the end. She looked at the same mirror in which she often saw her broken but today, she chose a different style, today she breaks her shackles.
She stepped into the corridor without a sound. The hallway stretched long before her, lined with portraits of the Manvik's. She had never fit into the frame of this house, people were welcoming but one had their intentions wrong. She was too alive, too real, too unedited and unfit for the chaos. Today she would stop trying and walk out in dignity. Downstairs, the front door stood closed, grand and indifferent.
She descended the staircase slowly, each step weighted not by hesitation but by history. Each stair being the moments of her life lost behind these walls.
Prachi stood with trembling hands, clutching the end of her kurti. Her eyes were wide, red-rimmed, "You're really leaving?" Asked Prachi in a soft unsure tone. "Yes" Laila said returning the soft tone since Prachi never did her any wrong. "Please just stay until things settle, Until Dad calms down, Until Mom is will, until everything cools down" Prachi urged. Laila looked at her gently,"I've waited for the fire to cool for so long, all I ever got was smoke and I waited to find why the fire started, now I got my answers and there's no reason to stay anymore"
Prachi shook her head, "I didn't know- I swear- I thought- he just- Parth never-" she said stumbling her words. Laila's voice was steady, "You weren't supposed to know, That was the rule". "I never wanted this for you," Prachi whispered. "The people over here all too well in masking things, it's not your fault Prachi" a voice came from behind, it belonged to Romaisa. "Romaisa, I hope you survive unlike me, some promises are too venomous, it's your choice to break or stay, think wisely" said Laila in a sisterly manner and held her hand reassuringly.
"I know, I hope I'm going in the correct direction but I promise you that I'll not make it easy like the old Romaisa would, she died that day" said Romaisa reassuring her. "Take care Romaisa, I'm always here for you" said Laila and Romaisa smiled, "thank you, I'll be here for you too". Laila turned away and she stood in her tracks, something's don't change in a single instant. Parth stood at the far end of the hall leaning against a pillar with his demeanor unreadable. There was a silence between them that felt like a thousand unsaid words.
"You're just going to walk away?" he asked finally. Laila didn't move, "I walked away a long time ago but today I'm just taking my body with me". "I didn't want it to end like this" said Parth devoid of emotion. She turned to face him now, "You didn't care how it ended as long as it looked good while it broke" said Laila coldly, returning what she got all along. "I'll send the divorce papers and it will be great if you could sign it as soon as possible" said Laila and meet her eyes with his, yet it faltered.
Rishi held onto Vanya who came down after hearing the commotion, joined by the rest of the family members. "I'm sorry for failing you, I really wish that things were different" said Vanya and Rishi shot a stern look against Parth which made him Stare the ground. "I won't stop you from leaving but always remember you've a home here with a few exceptions, remaining everyone here will support you" said Vanya honestly, "thank you, you've always supported me and became the mother-in-law people pray to have" said Laila with a soft smile, "sadly I've failed in the mother position" said Vanya.
"Please don't say that, I don't want to leave here making you feel bad, I got my answers and there's no point in staying there, I'm sure his Karma will hit him and there's no need for me to act for it" said Laila and held Vanya's hand. "Take care" said Laila and Vanya smiled softly. "I'll" said Vanya in a reassuring manner, Laila smiled at Rishi while he nodded acknowledging it. "you too take care, don't annoy Prachi too much" said Laila to Pulkit and shook his hands, "I'll try, you take care" said Pulkit and Laila nodded.
"Bye" said Laila and dragged her trolley bag which had another bag on it. She was free finally
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