The heavy oak doors of the palace finally closed on the last of the departing vehicles as night fully settled over Jodhpur. Nandini had left with her family, the music had faded into the quiet desert air, and the sprawling estate plunged into a rare, peaceful silence. Tomorrow was a designated off-day for the family to recuperate; the highly anticipated mehendi ceremony wasn't until the day after.
Rajveer loosened his collar, bidding a polite goodnight to the head of security before making his way up the marble staircase to his quarters.
When he pushed open the door to his room, he stopped. Devika was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the expansive bed. The vibrant lehenga-choli was still perfectly intact, but all jewellery had been abandoned; she was actively crunching on fresh apple slices from a silver platter while staring at something on her laptop screen with wrapped, undivided attention.
Sensing the shift in the room's atmosphere, she looked up. The moment her eyes met his, her face broke into that familiar, sparkling smile—even though her mouth was completely stuffed with apple. She reached out, playfully patting the empty space on the mattress right beside her.
A faint, unbidden smile touched Rajveer's lips. He walked over, unbuttoning his waistcoat, and sat down where she had indicated.
Devika immediately tilted the platter toward him, offering the fruit with an expectant blink. When he declined with a respectful shake of his head, she shrugged her shoulders cutely, picking up a paring knife to slice into another apple.
"Aapko itni raat ko bhook lag gyi?" he asked, his curiosity finally getting the better of him. To be completely honest, he hadn't seen her eat a single bite during the entire day. A sudden realization hit him—at the dining table earlier, she had spent the entire time running around, serving everyone else, without ever putting a plate together for herself.
"Hmm!" she swallowed the bite, waving the paring knife lightly in the air. "Vrat tha humara aaj!"
Rajveer blinked, a fresh wave of shock washing over him. This woman had done nothing but hit him with whiplash and surprises since the moment he stepped off his jet. She had been fasting. Absolute, strict fasting. And yet, she had been hopping, running, and dancing with enough kinetic energy to power the entire palace all day long. Was she a machine or something?
Noticing the absolute bewilderment etched across his face, Devika let out a bright, musical giggle. She stuffed another slice into her mouth, leaning forward to snap the laptop screen shut before he could get a glimpse of whatever she was looking at. He didn't even care to look; his attention was entirely consumed by her.
Suddenly, her expression shifted into intense concentration. She leaned in closer, studying his face with the scrutiny of a scientist examining a rare specimen.
Rajveer cleared his throat, shifting slightly under the weight of her close-range gaze. "Kya... dekh rahi hain aap?"
"Dadi sa ne kaha tha dimple padte hain aapke," she murmured, her eyes darting between his cheeks. "Hume to nhi dikhe. Muskurayiye zara."
"Jii?" Rajveer managed, entirely flabbergasted.
In response, she actually held up her fingers, stretching the corners of her own mouth into an exaggerated, theatrical smile to demonstrate the concept to him as if he were a toddler.
The sheer absurdity and cuteness of the gesture broke through his guarded, cold exterior. A genuine, deep chuckle escaped his throat.
"Aiiii Shiv Ji!!!" Devika squealed in pure excitement, clapping her hands together as she caught sight of the indentations. "Aapke to sachmuch dimple padte hain!! Aapko pata hai aapke dono gaal mein padte hain!"
Rajveer couldn't help but marvel at how she was confidently increasing his own knowledge about his own face.
"Sacchi? Mujhe to pata hi nhi tha," he replied, his voice mirroring her playful, lighthearted cadence. The realization that his body was even capable of producing such a relaxed tone shocked him.
"Mucchi!!" she shot back, nodding vigorously in admiration.
"Lagta hai aapko humare baare mein bahut kuch pata hai," he noted, leaning back slightly, testing the waters.
"Bilkul!" she answered without a fraction of a second's hesitation. "Hume to ye bhi pata hai ki aapko gajar ka halwa bahut pasand hai. Isliye to humesha khud se bana ke bhejte the aapke liye. Aapne khaya? Kaisa laga?" Her big round eyes locked onto his, eagerly reminding him of the small, unlabeled tiffins that used to arrive with his family's care packages in Europe.
"Bahut accha. Very tasty," he replied, nodding with genuine admiration. As he watched her, he noticed the rapid evolution of her expressions—moving from curiosity to intense self-pride, and now, settling into pure, unadulterated mischief.
"Hume kaise pata hoga?" she complained, her voice dropping into a playfully dramatic pout. "Aapne to kabhi phone bhi nhi kiya. Aadmi kabhi-kabhi gift vagaira bhej deta hai."
A heavy wave of guilt struck Rajveer right in the chest. It was true. In his stubborn rebellion against his lineage, he had completely ignored her existence, never once trying to contact her or send a token of appreciation in return for her efforts. But he had his reasons.
"Kaise bhejte? Hume aapke baare mein kuch nhi pata tha!" he countered, attempting to defend himself. "Aur... phone to aap bhi kar sakti thi!"
Devika raised a perfectly arched eyebrow at the sudden accusation.
"Accha ji! Meri billi mujhi ko meaw!!" she retorted, tossing her head back with a laugh. "Hume dada sa ne mana kiya tha! Aap to kar sakte the, aapke paas koi vajah nhi thi!"
Rajveer's brow furrowed in genuine confusion. "Dada sa ne? Kyun?"
"Unhone kaha tha hum aapko time dein," she explained simply, as if it were the most logical law of the universe. "Jab tak aap phone na karen, hum bhi aapko disturb na karen!"
The words silenced him completely. His grandfather had been protecting his space, and she had dutifully, patiently obeyed for seven long years, carrying the burden of his silence without a single complaint.
He looked down at his hands, the weight of his past arrogance pressing heavily on his chest. "I am sorry," he managed to say, the apology leaving his lips in a quiet, rough whisper.
Devika's sharp eyes instantly caught the downward shift in his mood. Without missing a beat, she pivoted, her tone instantly brightening to rescue him from his own guilt.
"Humpe sorry-vorry nhi chalta! Saza milegi!!" she declared, a brilliant, challenging smile returning to her face.
Rajveer looked up, matching her energy as a wave of relief washed over him. He bowed his head in mock surrender. "Jo hukum, Rajkumari."
His gesture made her giggle again, her shoulders shaking. "Aap jab bhi mehel se bahar jayenge, chahe ek minute ke liye bhi kyun na ho, aapko humare liye koi gift lana hoga. Ek phool bhi chalega!"
"Jab bhi bahar niklen?" he asked, an outright smile breaking across his face at the absolute innocence of the penalty.
She gave a firm, authoritative nod of mock seriousness. Before she could elaborate, the sharp, persistent ringing of her phone cut through the room. Devika pulled it out, her face instantly twisting into absolute irritation as she read the caller ID.
"Hume jana hoga!" she sighed heavily, turning to him with a look of comical despair as she swung her legs off the bed.
"Aapka jo chota bhai haina, Jai, ek kaam dhang se nhi hota usse!" she grumbled, stepping into her shoes with aggressive efficiency. "Kisi din chappal se maarenge bhego-bhego ke!!"
Rajveer's lips twitched upward. The mental image of this petite princess chasing his six-foot-plus brother with a footwear weapon was staggering. He desperately wanted to ask where she was going at this hour—especially after the highway attack—but he hesitated, wondering if he had truly earned the right to question her whereabouts just yet.
Devika threw a cheerful wave over her shoulder as she glided toward the double doors. "So jaiye. Plane se aaye hain."
With a soft click of the lock, she vanished into the corridor, leaving Rajveer alone in the quiet room, his mind entirely consumed by the whirlwind that was his wife.
---
The next morning, she was nowhere to be seen. Even when Rajveer walked down to the dining hall, her seat remained conspicuously empty. The table was fully set, and from the quiet whispers of the staff, he overheard that she had already given the maids precise instructions for the breakfast menu hours before anyone else had even woken up.
Without her presence, the vibrant energy from the previous afternoon seemed muted. His siblings were already complaining shamelessly, slouching in their chairs.
"Are yaar! Bhabhi abhi tak nhi aayi! Hume shopping par jaana hai!!" Harsh groaned, looking toward the head of the table. "Kabhi time par nhi aati, Maa sa!!"
His mother didn't scold them; she merely offered a patient smile and gestured with her hand for them to wait a little longer. They all knew better than to question her schedule.
Just then, the heavy front doors of the palace swung open.
Devika walked in, creating an instant, bizarre contrast. She was still wearing the exact same traditional lehenga-choli from yesterday evening, but thrown casually over it was the familiar, heavy black leather long jacket from the highway ambush. The hem of the tactical leather brushed against the vibrant silk of her skirt as she strode across the marble floor.
"Hello beautiful people!! Missed me?" she announced brightly. She exaggeratedly opened her arms, spinning around in a joyful circle as she glided toward the dining table.
As she neared his chair, she caught his eye and playfully wiggled her eyebrows at him in greeting. Rajveer, keeping his composure under the watchful eyes of the elders, merely responded with a slight, disciplined nod.
"Kahan thi tum, Devika?" his mother spoke up, her voice dropping into a firm, motherly scold. "Kitni baar bola hai raat sone ke liye hoti hai. Kaam subha bhi ho sakta hai!"
Devika froze mid-stride, turning toward her mother-in-law. Instead of offering a defense or mentioning any excuse she had likely been running all night, she just flashed a sheepish, guilty smile. Ducking her head playfully, she used the massive pillars of the dining hall to comically slip out of her mother's line of sight, practically sneaking past the table as she retreated upstairs toward her room to change.
---
The fair was bustling with its usual chaotic energy. The men—Rajveer, Harsh, Vikram, and Jai—were dressed down in casual t-shirts and trousers, while the women—Devika, Nandini, his two sisters Avani and Sugandha, and Jai's girlfriend, Tara—wore simple kurtis and pants. They all wore masks over their faces to obscure their recognizable royal lineage. Going to a crowded local fair instead of a high-end mall had been Nandini's idea, a quest for excitement that everyone had embraced.
Now, the women were a flurry of movement, squealing excitedly as they combed through stalls of glass bangles and glittering jhumkas. The men followed behind in a state of uniform boredom, practically functioning as pack mules for handbags, shopped clothes, and jewelry.
"In logon ne hume yahan bag pakadne ke liye bulaya hai!!" Jai groaned, shifting the weight of three paper bags.
"Bilkul," Tara remarked with a swift, playful look. "Itne bade-bade muscles kyun banaye ho phir? Agar kaam hi na aayen!!"
The rest of the girls giggled, leaving Jai speechless.
Rajveer watched them, a faint sense of disbelief lingering in his chest. Devika had practically dragged him out of the palace after he initially insisted he couldn't come. In his entire life, he had never stepped foot into a local fair like this, let alone just to have fun without a corporate agenda.
"Oh my god, vo dekho!" Avani grabbed everyone's attention, pointing excitedly toward a massive, neon-lit cyclone ride. The other four ladies instantly squealed in agreement.
"Nhi! Nhi! Hume ulti aa jayegi!!" Harsh said quickly, taking a step back. The women merely glared at him in unison before locking arms and dragging the group toward the ticket counter.
"Aap log ghum aaiye," Rajveer attempted to excuse himself, only to be met with a strict, absolute "Nhi!" from Devika. Without waiting for a response, she reached up, grabbed his t-shirt collar with one hand, and firmly hauled him into the queue with her.
That afternoon became an unexpected revelation for Rajveer; he learned more about his siblings in a few hours than he had in all these years.
He discovered Harsh was deathly afraid of heights. As the cyclone ride gained momentum, Harsh kept his eyes tightly glued shut, hugging Nandini in sheer terror while Devika gleefully snapped pictures on her phone. Devika herself was entirely fearless, repeatedly trying to stand up as the ride whipped through the air, forcing a stressed Rajveer to keep pulling her back down into her seat.
He realized Jai was a shameless flirt, a stark contrast to the serious, disciplined tone he used when discussing family business over international calls. Jai spent the entire day dropping cheesy, or in Sugandha's words, "cringey" pickup lines on Tara. Tara's unbothered expressions showed she was completely immune to them, but it didn't stop the other women from teasing them mercilessly.
"Jai, agar Tara ko bulana hoga to kaise bulaoge?" Devika asked him during a break, entirely knowing what his answer would be.
Jai immediately flashed a smug, flirty smile at Tara. "Aaja Rani, maja karenge!!"
The group laughed shamelessly while Tara promptly slapped his shoulder, her cheeks flushing.
Then came the revelation of Vikram's secret. Devika leaned toward Rajveer, eyeing Vikram with mock sternness. "Aapko pata hai Rajveer, Vikram ki bhi ek girlfriend hain jise vo hume nhi milana chahta!!"
Vikram immediately rubbed his face in deep embarrassment, offering Rajveer a weary, helpless smile that suggested he had been tormented about this a million times before.
"Aisi koi—" Vikram started, trying to defend himself.
"Are hume sab pata hai," Avani cut him off ruthlessly. "Bhaiya chup-chup ke usse baaten karte rehte hain raat bhar. Us din jab hum haldi ki shopping ke liye gaye the, unhone ek earring ko apni jeb mein bhi rakha tha, humne dekha tha!!"
"Oooo, earrings!!" the siblings chorused in unison. Rajveer returned Vikram's weary smile, silently acknowledging the absolute lack of privacy that came with their family.
Through the continuous chatter, he learned that Sugandha was quietly content, preparing for her upcoming arranged marriage to his father's closest friend's son, while Avani was single, but "ready to mingle," as Devika loudly advertised.
He also quickly realized that when Devika wasn't observing a strict vrat, she became hungry every thirty minutes, systematically dragging the entire group to every single food stall that caught her eye. She kept her fasts every Monday—a deep-rooted tradition passed down by her mother. It was a tender, quiet subject; Rajveer learned she had tragically lost her mother and two of her brothers in an accident when she was only eleven, leaving her with her father, a stepmother, and her twin brother.
For the first time in seven years, Rajveer found himself smiling—laughing, even—more than he had in all his years in Europe combined. By the time they finally sat down at a quiet restaurant in the evening, he felt a distinct ache in his cheeks from the sheer volume of genuine laughter.
They placed their orders, and Devika excused herself to use the washroom. The rest of the table remained lively, reviewing the chaotic photos from the cyclone ride, when Rajveer saw Devika returning through the dining hall.
He raised a hand to call her over, but his movement froze. Devika was walking briskly, her index finger pressed against her lips, subtly signaling them to remain absolutely silent. She didn't stop at the table. Instead, she walked right past them toward the exit, flashing a quick, unmistakable hand gesture shaped like a gun.
Instantly, the atmosphere at the table shifted from casual holiday to lethal precision. Rajveer and his brothers straightened their backs, their faces hardening as they subtly scanned the room through the corners of their eyes.
Following her trail were five men. They wore ordinary kurtas and t-shirts, attempting to look like casual diners, but their eyes were hyper-focused entirely on Devika. One, two, three, four, five.
Rajveer's hand implicitly drifted to the small of his back, checking the grip of the firearm concealed beneath his t-shirt. His brothers did the same.
"Take the ladies to the cars. Now," Rajveer ordered Harsh in a low, commanding tone.
Without a word of argument, Harsh and the women immediately rose, slipping through the side exit. Rajveer and Vikram stepped out into the evening air, trailing the perimeter a safe distance behind Devika.
Outside, Devika was playing her part flawlessly. She held her phone to her ear, laughing lightly as if caught in a casual conversation with a friend, deliberately steering the five men away from the crowded market space. The moment she turned into a secluded, dimly lit alleyway, the lead man accelerated his pace and firmly grabbed her shoulder.
Devika spun around, instantly flashing her sweetest, most harmless smile. The man began asking for directions, and she gave them with wide, innocent eyes, looking entirely weak and defenseless.
Sensing an easy opening while she was seemingly distracted, a second man lunged at her from the side.
He never landed. Devika's foot lashed out with blinding speed, a brutal, precise kick landing squarely in his groin. As the first man reeled back in shock, she grabbed his outstretched arm, twisting it behind his back with a sickening crack, while simultaneously reaching into her boot. In a fluid, practiced motion, she whipped out a small pocket knife and hurled it at a third man advancing from the shadows. The blade struck true, embedding deep into his chest.
Before the remaining two could react, Rajveer and Vikram burst into the alley. Two suppressed gunshots echoed in the tight space, the bullets tearing precisely into the men's legs, dropping them to the concrete instantly.
Rajveer strode forward, pulling a spare handgun from his jacket and handing it directly to Devika. She took it without a word, professionally adjusting for the weapon's recoil, her stance instantly resetting as she scanned the rooftops, ready to kill anyone suspicious.
Rajveer felt a sharp smirk tug at the corner of his lips. The sheer contrast between the bubbly, dancing woman from few moments ago and this cold, calculation-driven operative now was mesmerizing.
"Aur bhi log ho sakte hain," Vikram muttered, using the butt of his gun to knock the last struggling man into unconsciousness.
"Hmm. Hooda ke aadmi hain ye. Kal dekha tha," Devika replied, leaning down to systematically rifle through the men's pockets for intelligence.
The moment the words left her mouth, she froze, biting her tongue in immediate regret.
Rajveer noticed the slip instantly, his eyes narrowing as Vikram's expression transformed into absolute disbelief.
"Aap Hooda ke yahan gyi thi?!" Vikram nearly shouted, the discipline cracking from his voice.
Devika merely offered a sheepish, evasive smile, completely ignoring the question as she pulle a stray burner phone from a guard's pocket.
"Bhabhi?!" Vikram pressed, his tone demanding an answer.
Realizing she couldn't dodge it, she turned around, tossing her hair back with an incredibly casual shrug. "Jai ke saath gye the! Akele nhi the."
Vikram's jaw dropped, his anger redirecting instantly. "Uss Jai ko to sachmuch chappal se maarna chahiye!!"
Ignoring Vikram's co
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