Chapter 6
The city hummed with the quiet chaos of early morning life, a buzzing energy that always felt strangely like an omen to Vedika.
She had spent the last three days piecing together fragments of the puzzle.
The documents Deepak had given her were a goldmine — corporate meetings, doctored paperwork, illegal transactions hidden behind false identities.
She had already passed the information on to a few trusted journalists who were working on getting it verified and making sure it was airtight. The public release would come soon — with the full force of investigative journalism behind it, Rathore Enterprises would be exposed.
But with every step forward, the fear tightened in her chest.
She couldn’t ignore it anymore.
Abhimaan Rathore was watching her now.
The silence in her apartment that morning was thick with uncertainty.
Her mother was at the market, and Kabir was still at school. Vedika sat in her small room, surrounded by files, going over the latest report.
Her phone buzzed, shattering the quiet.
A message from an unknown number.
“Your efforts are futile. Stay out of my way.”
”-A.”
She stared at the message, her heart pounding.
Her fingers hovered over the screen, but she didn’t respond.
Instead, she placed the phone down and tried to steady her breathing.
It was obvious now.
He was aware.
Abhimaan was more than just a businessman. He was a master of manipulation, a kingpin in the shadows of this city, pulling strings from behind a veil of wealth and power. And she had caught his attention.
But this wasn’t the end.
This was only the beginning.
⸻
By the time evening fell, the sky thick with the remnants of a summer storm, Vedika found herself in a familiar, uncomfortable place — standing outside a meeting room at a government office.
This was it.
The final piece.
She had an insider here too — an old contact who had worked for years as a clerk in the land registry. Tonight, he had promised to hand over physical evidence. Old land deals — backdoor arrangements with government officials, all orchestrated by Rathore’s empire.
It could be the smoking gun she needed.
As she waited, her phone buzzed again.
This time, it wasn’t a message.
It was a call.
She hesitated but answered.
“Vedika Sharma.”
The voice on the other end was calm, almost casual, but it made the blood in her veins freeze.
“Ms. Sharma,” Abhimaan’s voice purred. “I trust you’ve had a productive day.”
She gripped the phone tighter, trying to keep her voice steady. “You’re wasting your time, Rathore.”
He chuckled, the sound dark and rich with menace. “Am I?”
There was a pause. “You’ve been quite busy lately. Digging where you shouldn’t.”
“I’m not afraid of you.”
“Of course you’re not. You’re brave. I admire that.” His voice softened, then added, “But it’s a shame. You could have been so much more useful to me, Vedika.”
She bit back a sharp retort, trying to hold onto her professionalism.
But his words — the calm, seductive pull of them — were starting to take root in her mind.
“I’m not interested in being useful to you.”
The silence on the other end was heavy for a moment before he spoke again, his tone shifting. “You’re playing a dangerous game. And I’m beginning to wonder how long you can keep pretending you’re not in over your head.”
His words hit too close to home.
She wasn’t pretending.
She knew the risks.
But she wouldn’t back down.
“You think I’ll stop?” she asked. “You think you can intimidate me into silence?”
“Maybe not intimidate,” he said, voice low and calculating. “But I can offer you a different choice. A much more… comfortable option.”
“Enough with the games,” she snapped, her resolve hardening.
“Are you threatening me?”
His laugh was dark and amused. “Not yet. But soon, Vedika, soon you’ll understand exactly how dangerous I can be.”
He hung up before she could respond.
Vedika’s hand trembled as she ended the call.
Her heart was racing.
But she wasn’t about to back down now.
Not when she was this close.
⸻
She met her contact in the dimly lit parking garage beneath the government building.
Ravi was nervous — his eyes darting around, sweat beading on his forehead.
“Here,” he whispered, handing her a thick envelope.
“Everything you need is inside. Just… be careful. There’s no going back after this.”
Vedika took the envelope, feeling the weight of it in her hands.
This was it. The final step.
“Thank you,” she said, her voice steady despite the storm brewing inside her.
He nodded, his eyes darting nervously around again.
“Good luck,” he whispered, then disappeared into the shadows.
⸻
Back in her apartment, Vedika sat at her desk, opening the envelope carefully.
Inside were land transfer documents, signed by corrupt officials, and illegal bribes that had allowed Rathore Enterprises to seize entire plots of land for pennies on the dollar.
She had what she needed.
But as she stared at the papers, her phone buzzed once more.
Another message.
“You’ve crossed a line. I suggest you walk away now.”
She looked at the message with a scowl.
Abhimaan’s threats were growing more personal.
But Vedika wasn’t scared.
Not yet.
⸻
Later that night, as rain lashed against her window, Vedika sat on the edge of her bed, contemplating the documents.
She would need to meet with her journalists. The world needed to see this.
But something in her gut twisted, telling her this wasn’t going to be as simple as just exposing Rathore’s empire.
The deeper she went into this, the more she realized how tangled the web of corruption truly was.
Abhimaan wasn’t just a businessman; he was a man of power, of absolute control.
This wasn’t just about money — it was about breaking someone who dared challenge him.
⸻
Meanwhile, Abhimaan sat alone in the private office of his penthouse, his face unreadable as he stared at the screen in front of him.
He knew everything.
He had eyes everywhere, and his men had followed Vedika’s every move.
She was playing with fire.
But that was part of her charm, wasn’t it? Her stubbornness. Her need to challenge him.
A dangerous woman.
And he wanted her.
Wanted to break her.
Wanted to own her.
He leaned back in his chair, his fingers tracing the edge of his glass.
Tonight, he would make his move.
No more games.
He would make her an offer she couldn’t refuse.
And if she refused it… well, there were ways to make her listen.
⸻
In the dead of night, Vedika’s phone buzzed again.
“Meet me. Tomorrow. Same place. You won’t regret it.”
It was an invitation.
But this time, she couldn’t ignore the warning bells ringing in her head.