Unfinished Battles

The Oberoi mansion was unusually quiet when Arnav returned.

Too quiet.

Anirudh stood by the fireplace, his arms crossed, his face unreadable. Ayush and Aryan sat on the couch, their gazes fixed on Avni, who was pacing across the floor, her frustration evident in every step.

The moment Arnav entered, all eyes turned to him.

"You refused the deal, didn’t you?" Anirudh’s voice was low, but there was no disappointment. Just certainty.

Arnav didn’t respond immediately. He removed his coat, placing it neatly over a chair, and only then did he speak.

"I don’t negotiate with people who think they can threaten my family."

Avni exhaled sharply, shaking her head. "Great. Now, what? I just wait for the police to come and arrest me?"

Arnav’s gaze locked onto hers. "No one is touching you."

Avni scoffed. "You can’t control everything, Arnav! This isn’t your business boardroom where people just follow your orders!"

Ayush sighed. "Avni—"

"No!" she snapped. "You all act like this is just another one of Arnav’s ‘wars’ to win, but I’M the one who’s going to suffer for it!"

Arnav’s eyes darkened. "You think I don’t know that?"

Avni hesitated.

"You think I don’t know that if Siddharth can’t use the law against us, he’ll try something worse?" His voice was calm, but the rage beneath it burned like wildfire.

Aryan sat forward. "So what do we do? Just wait for him to make his next move?"

Arnav smirked—a dangerous, knowing smirk.

"He already made it."

An Unexpected Guest

As if on cue, the front doors swung open.

A man walked in.

Dressed in a crisp black suit, sharp eyes scanning the room. He had the presence of a predator—silent, calculating, and dangerous.

Anirudh immediately stiffened. "What the hell are you doing here?"

The man stopped in front of them, his hands in his pockets.

"My name is Vikram Sethi," he said smoothly. "And I just saved your sister’s life."

Silence.

Avni frowned. "What?"

Vikram took out a folder and placed it on the table. "That case against you? It’s gone."

Anirudh quickly flipped through the papers—his sharp eyes scanning the legal details. His expression hardened.

"This… this is real," he muttered.

Avni blinked in confusion. "But how?"

Vikram smirked. "Let’s just say… Siddharth Malhotra just lost his biggest supporter in the legal system."

Arnav finally spoke. "And why would you do that?"

Vikram turned his gaze to him, a silent battle of power between the two men.

"Because I need a favor," he said.

A New Threat

Anirudh set the folder down. "What kind of favor?"

Vikram’s smirk didn’t fade. "The kind that involves bringing down the entire Malhotra empire."

Aryan whistled low. "Wow. You don’t aim small, do you?"

Vikram’s eyes flickered with amusement. "Neither does Arnav Oberoi."

Arnav leaned back against the couch, arms crossed. "You want to use me as your weapon."

Vikram shrugged. "Call it a partnership. You and I both know Siddharth won’t stop here. He’s going to come at you again. Harder. Dirtier. I can help you destroy him before he even gets the chance."

Avni bit her lip. "And what do you get out of this?"

Vikram’s smirk finally vanished, replaced with something colder.

"Siddharth Malhotra ruined my family," he said simply. "Now, I plan to return the favor."

Silence stretched between them.

Then, Arnav stood.

His gaze didn’t waver. "If I agree… you don’t touch my family. Ever."

Vikram extended a hand. "Deal."

Arnav didn’t take it. Not yet.

Instead, he turned to his siblings. "This isn’t just my fight anymore. It’s all of ours. If you don’t want in, walk away now."

No one moved.

Ayush cracked his knuckles. "Like hell we’re walking away."

Aryan grinned. "I’ve always wanted to take down an empire."

Anirudh sighed but nodded. "We end this."

And finally, Avni—after everything—took a deep breath.

"Let’s finish this," she said.

Arnav smirked. And this time, it wasn’t just dangerous.

It was deadly.

To Be Continued