Chapter 1 1. Death

"Papa wake up! open your eyes!!" she cried wholeheartedly in front of the lying corpse. "Mama look at him!! wake him up!! he will wake up Please wake him up," she turned towards her mother who looked almost lifeless showing her state of stupor. "Papa! my papa! Don't leave me alone. What I'll do without you?" Her eyes were red and her whole form was shaking with her sobs. The whole room was filled with her desperate pleas and cries. Last night, she had dinner with her father, and in the morning he was no more. He died due to a heart attack, The reason for his heart attack was the constant stress and hypertension which increased the blood pressure and eventually myocardial infarction. "It's time for the Janaza(funeral)" her cousin, Daniyal spoke from behind which made her cling to his father's dead body like her life was dependent on it. "No!! No! He is alive!! No!! I won't let him go! Please don't take him!!" Her aunt moved forward to help her to get off of her father's body and with full resistance she finally moved and hugged her aunt tightly and cried on her shoulders. The men in the house shouldered the body and headed for the graveyard while she cried and cried till her tears died down. Her mother couldn't seem to get out of the trauma and immediately locked herself in the room after all the guests left which came for the funeral. She took sleeping pills to escape reality, leaving her only daughter to herself. It was noon but Zahra still had locked herself in her room. She could not accept the fact that his father was no more. The bitter reality was eating her from inside deepening the hollow pit in her heart in which she had been caged for the last 5 years. Her parents were all she had. This never mattered to her that they were poor but she only craved happiness and attention from her parents. After her father's death, she only wanted to die along with him. She had no wish to live. She was so connected with her father. Always trying to do things that could make him happy and content. Be it good grades in her class or earning a scholarship from the university. She always looked up to him and wanted to be like him. A man full of self-respect and dignity who would do anything for his family. She was just thinking about the memories she had created with her father and that made a fit of sobs hit her hard. Big sobs raked her whole form and she was a crying mess within minutes. A knock on the door ceased her sobbing and diverted her attention. She only wished her father was knocking on the door. And this thought alone deepened her grief. "Who is there?" she asked in her heavy voice which was all hoarse due to crying. "It's me, Daniyal,""Daniyal," she whispered to herself. On realizing he stood there, she immediately stood up and ran towards the door, unlocked it, and gave Daniyal a bone-crushing hug. Her emotions took a toll and she started to cry wholeheartedly on his shoulder. He was left bewildered, it was the first time, his love had hugged him or touched him. Nonetheless, he patted her back to soothe her. His heart wrenched on seeing her vulnerable state. Daniyal and Zahra both deeply loved each other. He was related to Zahra from her mother's side. When her parents were working hard to earn money he was always there to dismiss her loneliness and gave her the best company ever and since then they both realized they were in love and their relationship began. He was the only man whom Zahra trusted other than her father. Despite being in a relationship, Zahra didn't permit him ever not to touch her in any way neither she allowed him to even hold her hand. "Shhh Zahra sab thk ho jaye ga. Don't cry." Daniyal said soothingly. (Shhh Zahra, everything will be fine) "mein kesay na rou, meray baba chalay gaye mje akela chor kar," With that, her sobbing renewed. (How come I don't cry? My father left me leaving me all alone) "mein hu na Zahra, mein hu tmharey saath aur hamesha rahun ga" ( I am with you Zahra and always will be by your side) "mje kabhi mat chorna Daniyal mein tmhare beghair nahi jee sakti" Zahra said. "Promise me you'll never leave me" (Never leave me alone Daniyal I cannot live without you) "I promise, I swear on my life I will never leave you but first relax and calm down. Please stop crying Zahra, my love" Daniyal cooed her. "Ehm Ehm" someone faked a cough as a gesture to make their presence known. Zahra lifted her eyes and saw Shoaib, the elder brother of Daniyal standing there. She immediately left Daniyal's shoulder and reached for her dupatta (scarf) which was on the bed inside the room. "Assalam Alaikum Shoaib Bhai (big brother)," She said in her heavy voice, and her eyes casted to the floor. Anyone could easily say she was nervous. (Greetings) "Wa alaikum salam." He turned to Daniyal, "Daniyal ammi (mother) is calling you downstairs. Go now" Daniyal nodded and headed downstairs. Zahra on noticing that she'll be alone with Shoaib immediately tried to follow Daniyal and when she walked past Shoaib, he abruptly grabbed her elbow and whiffed in her fragrance to intimidate her. Zahra forcefully let her hand go of him and ran downstairs. While he only smirked as if he had won something. She has been facing this harassment for the last 5 years. Whenever she went to her aunt's place his eldest son, Shoaib would harass her. But she kept quiet because she thought in the end she would be accused of possessing a bad character. Moreover, her parents used to be too busy to give her any time and they lost her trust. She became hesitant about telling anything to her parents and they were also covered in heaps of work to note any changes in her daughter. Zahra noticed that her parents were overburdened on something so she did not want to increase their burden and henceforth kept quiet. And for the last 5 years, continuous harassment and her parent's negligence made her nature introverted. She no longer was an extroverted girl who wanted to live her life to the fullest. A feeling of dread always crept over her nerves whenever any male was around. She did not trust anyone easily, especially men. The harassment led her mind to create a haunting perception about men in her mind and she always tried to get away when any unfamiliar person was around her. She judged all men with the same eye. The eye that was born as a result of the harassment. She had been locked in a shell of her own. Talking to herself about her situation. Looking at the mirror, clearing her tears, she won't find any shoulder. Whenever she would try to tell about this harassment to her mother, her mother would always be too busy to pay any attention to her. On the other hand, her father was more busy than her mother. At times, she won't be able to see him for weeks given his work requirement. The workload on him had always been too much. Her parents won't talk about the core problem in front of her. They would try to act lively yet an intense tension-filled atmosphere will always be there. They won't go to shopping, or restaurants as it was becoming too expensive for them to afford. They had begun living from hand to mouth in past few months and this financial condition had been not suppressing but rather growing. Seeing her parents too tensed and worked up, she couldn't find it in herself to worry them more by telling them about the harassment when she was aware, her parents were very much dependent on Shoaib's family. "Amarra sab thk ho jaye ga, Allah par bharosa rakho" (Amarra everything will be fine, have faith in Allah) Right now, they were sitting in the drawing-room and her aunt was sitting beside her mother and was consoling her. "Neelam, sab thk kaise hoga akhir? mein apnay mujtaba k beghair kia kru gi? mein tw uss k beghair kuch nahi kar pao gi." Her mother cried on her sister's shoulder. (Neelam, How will everything be alright? What will I do without my Mujtaba? I will not be able to do anything without him) "Allah par bharosa rakho. Sabar Karo." Neelam consoled her sister. (Believe in Allah. Be patient) Zahra came and sat beside her mother on the couch to comfort her but tears again brimmed in her eyes making a sharp pain in her nose indicating she was on the verge of crying, at last, she couldn't hold her emotions and salty tears cascaded down her eyes soaking her cheeks. She only wanted to be strong at least in front of her mother but her emotions could not seem to get in control. Her father was her life and she never once thought what her life would be without her father. The mere thought of it always made her depressed but now her life took the biggest turn leaving her in a blind alley. Currently, she has no goal nor any will to live. And she was praying for her death in order to meet her father. "Ammi, please stop crying," she beseeched, while she was crying her eyes out. Her mother laid Zahra's head on her lap and gently caressed her long brown locks to ease her daughter. But Zahra didn't have it and began to cry out loudly. Her body shuddered with big sobs flushing her face red. She cried her heart out on her mother's lap and at last sleep engrossed her. .... Her eyes fluttered open and she found herself in her room. Her head was aching so badly that her whole face seemed to be frozen. Then reality hit her hard and what she thought was a dream happened, her father was no more with her. Before her emotions could control her, she heard unfamiliar voices coming from downstairs. She thought that they must be the people who came for condolences but their voices and the vicious way with which they were talking tell another story. She grabbed her dupatta and headed downstairs. She was halfway through the staircase when she could hear them. "We want the rest of our money back," a goony voice demanded. "How could we even give back this much money when you know that all we have is this house? Why don't you go and ask Asim?" the desperate voice of her mother had her eyes widened. She didn't know what was happening and what money were they asking for. "Asim told us that you have the money and all the papers had Mujtaba Shabbir Syed's name, not Asim's" another voice snapped. "Asim made us sign those papers we only demanded 1 million, not 20 million, which we know we are not able to pay.""We don't care our boss only wants the money and it's up to you to pay back our money in the given time""How could we gather this big amount of money, it will almost take a lifetime to pay back the rest. For the last 5 years, we made all possible efforts but it is next to impossible to gather this much money in such a short span which you are asking""Either you give us this house or return our money" After hearing this Zahra was left bewildered and immediately ran toward the TV lounge, from where the voices were coming. She was hysterical at the moment and didn't care about the outcome. She only did what she wanted and what she wanted was for those people to leave her house, immediately. "NO!! LEAVE US AND OUR HOUSE NOW!" she shouted frantically in shock. All the heads immediately turned towards her. Her mother, her aunt, Shoaib, and Daniyal were there. Those two goons eyed her lustily and exchanged glances with each other showing that a mischievous plan hit them. "Zahra, go inside" Daniyal seethed after noticing those two men exchanging glances. "NOW!" he boomed. Zahra jumped but didn't back off. "First ask them to leave our house. NOW!" she said with the same intensity. "Let's make a deal," one of those men suddenly said. "What deal?" Shoaib asked. "Either you give us this house," the goon looked around, observing the house. "Or what?" Neelam challenged. The men looked at her then at Zahra, "or hand over this girl to us" Everyone visibly gasped out of shock. "Now it's up to you what you would like us to give""Take this house but don't dare to even look at my daughter. I will claw your eyes out." Amarra deadpanned looking straight in their eyes. "Two days," he raised his two fingers, "we give you only two days to leave this place." and with that, those two men left the house. Zahra was traumatized, it was a thunderbolt for her. She never knew such inhumanity existed. She stood baffled at her place for a good two minutes. But her aunt's question took her out of her trauma and now she was anxious. "Where will you go, Amarra?" Neelam asked. "You can stay at our house, khala (Aunt)," Shoaib said. Zahra knew the hidden motive behind his suggestion. He only wanted to be close to her so that he could easily do whatever he wanted to do with her. "But I think Waqas won't allow it. You can stay at our place for a week, for a month even though I want you to stay for your whole life but still her-" Amarra voice cut shot her sentence. Waqas was Neelam's husband. He was a very greedy person and a penny pincher and if he let Ammara and Zahra live in his house he definitely would humiliate them with every step they took and Amarra knew that. "I know where we will go," Ammara announced.

Chapter 2 2. Him

People walked past him with their gazes held down and meekly greeting him. He only gave a curt nod to them and continued walking towards his lift. His domineering aura had them go past him fast as they could and try their best, not to match his eyes. Their heartbeat got erratic in his presence and they walked with their blood-pumping organ almost jumping into their throats. Nobody knew whose last day could it be at their work, their small mistake could lead them to a level of humiliation they never knew ever existed. After all, their CEO had his hawk-like calculative eyes on everyone but you would never know when he would be observing you. He got to his lift and hit the top floor button, where his office resided. On reaching there, he saw his second in command, Yawar, standing in front of his office door, delved into conversation with someone, unaware of the fact that he also stood there. He rested his eyes for a few moments on the man whom Yawar was walking before looking away. He went for his office door and walked past them. On noticing his boss had reached, Yawar immediately dismissed the person and entered the office, the white door silver plated with the CEO's name, IRTAZA HAIDER SYED. The name he created over the years by his hard work, making the company progress by leaps and pounds. And so did his family name. As soon as his second in command entered, he found Irtaza standing by the large glass window, viewing the whole city with his narrowed grey eyes. While looking from that building, analyzing cars that appeared like toy cars and busy city traffic, his mind was invested somewhere else. "Who was he?" he asked without turning back. His hands were inside his pockets. "He was Asim, came here for some documents, nothing so important," Yawar immediately spoke. He only gave a curt nod, before facing Yawar and told him to sit and Yawar sat down. "Work is done?" he asked after sitting on his black swivel chair. His voice held authority. "Yes, boss, May I?""Proceed" Yawar nodded and stood. He moved towards the left wall of the office while he only sat there typing a message on his phone. Yawar clicked a hidden button inside the wall and a secret door to a lift opened, revealing a badly beaten man with roped hands, gagged mouth, and blindfolded eyes. Blood spattered all over his face, his nose was broken and his cheekbones had green and blueish marks. He was breathing slowly and hard with his mouth. Another man stood beside him to balance him. He was a bloody mess, nose smashed and eyes almost shut with swelling. His arms were wrapped around his guts like he was holding them in and he was beaten as badly as he could be. Yawar viciously snatched the beaten man's arm and followed him to the front desk. He made the man kneel in front of Irtaza and stood beside the man. The other guard who was in the lift also came and stood on the other side of that beaten person. The blindfolded guy was kneeling at the center while Yawar and the other man stood on each side of him in front of Irtaza's desk. Irtaza placed the phone on the desk and steepled his fingers, observing him, who shivered. Both his subordinates could feel his steely gaze on them, making them as vigilant as they could be. They knew no details could be missed by their boss's eyes. And they didn't want to challenge him on that. He had always been apt, calculative, and sharp with a specialty of not showing what would be going on in his mind. Eyes were windows to the soul. This sentence never worked for him, given the training he had received over the years of masking his emotions. And he was the maestro of that. While dealing with business, mafia, or other things, his eyes won't leash a flicker of emotion in front of his men. That side of his was just kept for his family. "Report," he commanded after a few moments of silence "Boss, he is Faizan, one of the most trustful men of second in command of the Osmanis," the other man from the lift, whose name was Amaan reported Irtaza. "We found him when we raided one of their warehouses, but he is too stubborn to give out any information other than that they also are going to raid some of our warehouses yet he did not spill out their locations" he further reported. Irtaza flew his forefinger and mid-finger of his left hand signaling something to Yawar and he immediately left the room through the hidden lift. He took a deep heavy breath and opened one of his drawers to take out his Beretta 92FS. He stood from his chair, the gun in his left hand, and took menacing long strides toward his prey. The heavy, sharp sounds of his boots striking against the marble floor had the whole room enveloped in eerie silence. Sweat started to pop out of the kneeling man's face, he very well knew in whose territory he was. The country's most notorious mafia leader had him clutched in his paws and he very well knew that by hook or by crook he would be spilling out the information very soon. "So, you feel like keeping your mouth shut? Hmm?" Irtaza was now standing just in front of him, the tip of his gun caressing the man's face. "I don't know anything," he feigned ignorance yet his shivering body gave the gestures of what he knew and what he didn't. Irtaza pressed the tip of his gun underneath his chin, lifted his face, and removed the blindfold. The man's swollen eyes now stared directly into Irtaza's piercing grey ones as he asked again. "You won't tell us?" That look, that dark look in his eyes, paralyzed him in fear. "Th..ey" Faizan stuttered unable to form any coherent word and took short labored breaths. "They what?" he smirked and removed his gun, underneath his chin. Faizan immediately unlocked his eyes and looked downwards not daring to look straight into his eyes. "Speak up," his voice deceptively calm. "They are g..going to raid t..two of your penthouses, o...one near to the airport a..and one to the west..st of the seaport," he immediately spilled out the locations. Faizan was well aware that sooner or later he would almost torture him to death for the sake of the information. "You should have brought him to me in the first place," Irtaza indirectly told Amman while eyeing the man, skeptically. "Will you leave me now?" the man asked. Fear was evident in his voice. "Yes, I surely will but first accept this little present of us," he said, amused, and turned the man's face with his handgun to the wall where the door for the lift was, and there came in Yawar with two bodyguards behind him holding another badly beaten fellow. Faizan had his eyes widened and shock was obvious on his face but he immediately covered it. "I do not know who he is," he told Irtaza. "I did not ask you anything," Irtaza quickly reciprocated, "now did I?" Yawar kicked in the man brought him in front of Irtaza and made him kneel as well. Irtaza placed the tip of his gun right above the second man's skull and looked straight toward Faizan. "See what they made us do," he said to Faizan, nonchalantly, and after a short while, the whole room boomed with a gunshot. It was right into the skull of the other man. A body lay dead on the floor blood oozing out from the top of his head. Faizan only shivered and kept looking towards the dead body in bewilderment. "Do tell your boss we caught his fucking spy" Irtaza seethed. He placed the sole of his shoe on his head, crushing the dead man's skull. "And don't forget to take this shithole with you," he bent down and tightly grabbed a fistful of his hair and smashed his forehead right onto the floor. "Tell your fucking boss to stop messing with me or he'll have hell to pay," with that he smashed his head again causing stars to invade his vision. "Understood?""Y..yes, lea..vee me" he croaked. "Yawar!" Yawar immediately nodded and asked the other men to take these two and they did so. "He was lying," Irtaza told to Yawar and Amman when they were left alone in the room. "It was all planted that man was only there to mislead us," he calmly said while sitting back and placing the gun on the desk. "Sir, then why did you let him go?" his third in command, Amman asked. Before Irtaza could answer his question, the realization hit him and it dawned on him that it was all planned. The rivals planted that man to misguide them but their boss beat them to it and made them think that they bought the lie Faizan told them. He was once again greatly impressed by the level of intelligence his boss possessed and nodded to him indicating he got his answers. "These Osmanis are getting on my nerves I want to wipe their existence as soon as possible. Yawar you are going to keep tabs on their head, Khurram Osmani. Station your must-trusted and skillful men around him. I want every single detail of his every activity.""Ok Boss, on it" Yawar nodded. "And yes you Amman, they soon will be attacking one of our penthouses. I want you to give a red alert to all the penthouses and ask their heads to tighten the security.""OK boss, consider it done" Amman affirmed. "And that man Faizan keep a check on him and right after 3 days seize him again, I'll deal with him" he ordered. His elbow rested on the wooden desk and his forefinger was pointed in a downward direction as he gave orders. They both nodded. "Boss an issue needs your attention," Yawar spoke "What is it?""We granted a loan to a man of 20 million but he died this morning and his family is not able to pay the rest of the money back,""Do what is necessary. 20 million is neither a big amount nor extracting 20 million from them is the issue at hand""OK boss""And next time lend money to someone worthy enough to pay back. I don't want this to happen again," Yawar looked down in shame. "Sorry boss, it won't happen again. Asim brought that man to me. He assured me that he was reliable""Nonetheless, it shouldn't be happening again," he instructed. "Moreover, send some more men to the west side to help Moosa let go of the drug consignment easily" Moosa was his first in command and his childhood friend. He was in charge of all big operations held under his Mafia and this operation of shipping the drug consignment out of the country was the biggest issue for him at the moment. He will be getting a billion-dollar after the successful shipping of consignment but his rivals were creating obstacles from doing so. And the biggest enemy of his Mafia at the moment was the Osmani family. He wanted to make the operation successful as soon as possible and then deal with his rivals comfortably. "Yes sir," they both said with unity. "Now, you both may leave" Amman left the room. "Yawar" Irtaza called him when he was about to leave the room. "Yes boss?" he turned around. Irtaza was twirling a pencil in his fingers as if in deep thought. "I don't trust that man Asim. If he acts out of the way then keep an eye on him and if not then still I don't want you to trust him completely," He directed and placed the pencil back. Yawar knew the sharp observing skills of his boss, he just had to look at somebody's face to judge him thoroughly. And now he was getting fishy about Asim so it bothered Yawar and he decided to follow Asim to gauge whether he acted suspiciously or not. "Noted sir!" Yawar asserted. "You may leave." he ordered and opened his laptop to start up for work. Yawar was about to leave the room when suddenly an old man entered the office. "Well, well young lad I am certainly not going anywhere," his jolly voice spoke. Irtaza immediately recognized the voice and his head shot up. His grandfather was there. He did not expect him to visit his office. "Assalam Alaikum Shabbir Uncle," Yawar greeted him. (Greetings Shabbir uncle) "Wa alaikum salam beta, jeetay raho," He replied. (To you too. Live long) And after exchanging a few casual dialogues Yawar, left the office while Irtaza stood up, his hands in his pockets, and observed his Dada (grandfather), wondering what emergency brought him to his office. "Well, dada (grandpa) what brought you here today?" he asked when they were both alone. "Clearly, it's not the way to address your grandfather, you little donkey" He spoke while sitting on the swivel chair in front of the desk, and Irtaza sat back in his seat. "Alright. I apologize. Now tell me," He smiled. His grandfather was the only person to whom he was closer. And he was the one who passed his Mafia empire to his eldest grandson. Of his time, his granfather was also renowned as the most ruthless Mafia boss. And now he was holding the empire which his grandfather built over the years. Irtaza learned the skills, adroitness, and experty of the Mafia world from him. Yet his grandpa was the only person with whom Irtaza had his frank and cheerful attitude . "Huh young lad, curious, are we?" the old man cheered. "But the first promise you would have to agree to what I will say""It depends on what you say," he argued back. "First promise me" his grandfather coaxed. "No, first you tell me," he contended. "If you aren't going to promise then I am not going to tell, now it's up to you." his grand father declared. "Hmm, ok, fine I promise," He said pensively. "Am gonna show you some pictures from which you have to select one," his grandfather announced, merrily. "For what?" he raised his brow. "For you to marry my son," Was his nonchalant answer. With that, he popped out a few pictures of some girls, out of his pockets and handed them over to him. "Seriously grandpa, you came all the way from haveli (mansion) for this," he contended while taking the pictures and going through them. Irtaza clearly knew his grandparents were hell-bent on his marriage and overexcited whenever the topic was brought up but he did not expect his grandfather to barge into his office and make him approve of one of the proposals at gunpoint. "Yes, seriously my son, now select,""You can see it's in my workplace, not any marriage bureau, we can discuss it at home," he randomly turned the pictures. . "I'm sorry son, I gave my word to your dadi (grandmother) I will not be coming back until you choose a girl, so I am not going anywhere," Irtaza knew if his grandfather had made his mind on something he would do it no matter what so Irtaza decided to do as he said. He looked at each of the pictures, skeptically and after carefully observing each of them he faked scowled. "Ouch old man, you hurt me. You do not know my taste," he dramatically said, smirking. "If it's not according to your taste then show me the one according to your taste, my boy" he challenged. "If I show you then promise me you're going to stop showing me girls and pestering me to marry," Irtaza's face suddenly turned all serious and the little smile on his pink lips flew away. "First show me the girl.""First promise me," he coaxed. "Like father Like son," the old man muttered under his breath. "Ok I promise now show me!" he exclaimed. Irtaza opened the drawer to his left side, took a picture out of it and handed it to his grandfather. He took the picture from his grandson's hand and eyed it, observingly. "Well, do you like her?" Irtaza questioned him. A foreign excitement on his face. "Yeah I certainly do, she is beautiful but....but she seems quite familiar have we met before?" he asked with uncertainty. "I do not know that you've met before but you know her very well," Irtaza smiled, looking him in the eye. "But first I shall make myself clear that I'll only and only marry her," he declared. The old man knew if his grandson had his eyes set on something he would surely get it. It did not matter to him if it was seven seas away or if it was deep down the earth, if he wanted anything he would go to any extent for it. And now if he wanted to marry this girl, he would marry her with or without his consent. Because it ran in his blood to always get what he wanted. "Ok, now tell me, who is she?" He asked seriously. "She is Mujtaba uncle's daughter, Zahra,"

Chapter 3 3. A visit to the past

Here she stood again yet this time not with her husband but with her only daughter. She never in a million years thought that one day she'll have to return to the same place which abandoned her husband only because of marrying her. Flashback "Mujtaba, I am nervous, I don't think your father will accept me" Both of them stood outside the haveli gates, ready to enter before she stated her assumption. "I am with you Ammara, I am with you, You need not worry yourself" He assured her. "But.. he asked you not to marry me, Why would he accept me now?""Ammara you are a very virtuous and upright woman. He does not know you yet but when he would recognize the real you, he will accept you." he held her hand and lightly caressed it to relieve her. "Now come on, we should go inside," They moved towards the haveli gates, the large gates opened and let them in. She looked around to analyze the haveli and her mouth hung open. The haveli certainly was so lavish. She never had been to such a beautiful place before. Its posh exterior left her in awe. The mere lawn was so breathtakingly beautiful. It was beautified by lush green grass, trees, and heavenly flowers like roses, lilies, daisies, tulips, and what more. The contrast of the scorching sun radiantly shining on the green grass, ornamental trees, and beautiful flowers with a fountain in the middle amazed her to no extent. It was such a masterpiece. And now she felt out of place. She could understand the reason why Mujtaba's father did not want to accept her as his daughter-in-law. She belonged to a lower-middle-class family. And his father might think her off as a gold digger. Her parents passed away when she was 18 and her elder sister who was already married after their parent's death shifted her to her own house and supported her all the while. And 1 year later when she got a scholarship in one of the universities of Islamabad, she crossed paths with the love of her life, Mujtaba. Love happens in the most incomprehensible and unfathomable ways. And so was their love. They both could feel an unusual and unknown attraction between them when they were around each other. They realized that it was love. They deeply love each other. But Mujtaba's father was a mafia don and a very strict person regarding rules. He laid the rule that every man or woman of their family must have to marry someone within the family. Marriage outside the bloodline was not allowed. Ammara was neither a part of their family nor from their bloodline but Mujtaba loved her madly and despite his father's warning of not marrying her, he still married her and shifted to Lahore because his father ordered him to leave the haveli after their marriage. They leased an apartment there but his father's displeasement with him didn't suit him well. Then he decided to take his chance and now both of them were on their way to gather blessings from his father and request him to accept Ammara as his daughter-in-law. Ammara kept on examining the haveli. Its interior was more opulent than its exterior. Her footsteps halted and she came across a door. Mujtaba was still holding her hands and her grip tightened when she realized it was his father's study. He knocked on the door and both of them entered into his study and found him seated on his chair. "Assalam alaikum, Agha Jaan," Mujtaba greeted him. His father snapped his head upon realizing his son, his disobedient and defiant son is here along with his wife. His anger knew no bounds when he saw both of them standing in front of him. (Greetings, Agha Jaan) "Why are you here?!" he snapped. "Agha Jaan we are here to take your blessings," Mujtaba told humbly. "Did you take my blessings when you had your nikkah?" (Nikkah: Marriage) "I am sorry Agha Jaan bu-""I do not want to see your face again! get off of in front of my eyes!!""Agha Jaan please at least give us a chance.""Did you listen to me when I asked you not to marry this woman? Didn't I order you not to marry her? Still, you married her and now you are asking me to give you a chance? When you cannot give a chance to what I say then why should I listen to you now?""Whole life I did as you say but for the first time I took one decision, one single decision against your orders and you disowned me for that? How is that fair? Do not I have a complete right to decide with whom I should marry? "This woman," he pointed towards Ammara, "this woman had wrapped you around her pinky finger that you are going against your father" "No Agha Jaan it's not what you think. She is a very upstanding and righteous woman," "I know how much a pious and righteous woman is she. Only because of her today you are standing against your father. You've displeased me. You preferred this woman over me! Over your father!" "No! No Agha Jaan I never preferred anyone over you. No one can take your place in my heart. But at least I had this much right in my life to decide whom I want to marry! I love her!" "Huh love! Don't you love your father? Get out of my sight right now!" "No! Agha Jaan I love you and respect you with all my heart! please forgive us, please at least give us one single chance. I am your son. I am your blood. Please forgive us, if we had hurt you" "If you want me to forgive you Mujtaba Shabbir Syed," he stood from his chair and moved towards them, "then divorce this girl right now" Ammara's eyes widened. She had no idea his father would make such a demand. All the time she only bore this humiliation for her husband, but the demand of divorce left her bewildered. "Amarra is a very honest and innocent woman. You don't know her yet. You will accept her when you will know her. I can't divorce her not now not never." "If you can't divorce her then you are no longer my son. I disinherit you from all of the property. Leave my house along with your gold digger wife before I throw you out" Mujtaba couldn't bear the disrespect of his wife anymore and turned around to leave. "And if my blood runs in your veins then never step into this haveli again and don't show your face even if you're dead," With that, Mujtaba opened the door and left the haveli. For Forever. Flashback ends 'Don't show me your face even if you're dead' these words of his father kept ringing in her ears. 'Ammara, never inform my father of my death' these were her husband's last words. Till the last breath, he only had respect for his father. Till the last breath, he only complied with his father's order. 'I am sorry, Mujtaba. I couldn't keep up your will. I am sorry. I have nowhere to go. Our home has already been taken. We're on the roads. This is the last place where I could seek some shelter' she internally told her husband. Before a tear could escape her eyes, her daughter's troublesome voice broke her reverie. "Mama, I'm nervous. They won't accept us," Zahra stated her assumption. They stood 5 feet away from the haveli gates, holding all the stuff they packed. "Let's hope for the best. We should go inside now," Ammara sternly stated trying to maintain a strong composure outside but inside she was crumbled and broken. But she knew she had to be strong, for her daughter. If it was not for Zahra, she had never came back to this place again. "Let's go" she started to move towards the haveli gates but a tug on her arm halted her movements. "Mama I don't think that he will let us live in there, he abandoned my father then why would he accept us?" Zahra said again. "If he will not allow us to stay then I'll ask Haider to give us a place to live" Haider was Mujtaba's elder brother, who loved Mujtaba like his own son. Despite, his father having cut all the ties off with Mujtaba, Haider was still secretly in contact with his younger brother. "But mama you told me that no one can go against the head of the haveli if he is the head, then how Uncle Haider, without his consent, will help us?" "I know my Zahra, but we can hope that he has passed on his position as a "head" to one of his son or grandson, then we might have some chances to stay in there," she affirmed. "Even so, he is still the eldest, how come someone can go against him?" "Being the eldest and being the head are two different things, if the head approved it, regardless of the consent of the eldest person in the household, it still has to happen no matter what." "Hope so, he is not the head anymore, I am really afraid to face them, mama," "Zahra, daughter, there is no need to be afraid of anyone, your mother is with you and always will be and Allah is there who loves you more than seventy mothers combined. Believe Him and only Him, what He will do, will be the best for us" she relaxed her daughter although from inside she was a nervous wreck and moved towards the gates, holding Zahra's hand. For the past 20 years, she had no idea about haveli and its inhabitants. She had never talked about his father with Mujtaba after that haveli incident and the only person she knew here was Haider. She had even no idea whether Mujtaba's father was alive or not. They didn't contact him for the last 20 years as his father had cut all the ties from him and his family. She was worried for her daughter, if she was all alone she would have gone to any old age home but now she had her daughter, who has the complete right at this place. She could only hope that his father could let them live in this haveli, if she have to she'll work as a maid only for her daughter. ZAHRA's POV We are heading towards my grandfather's haveli and I am so afraid to face him. Why would he accept us when we were the sole reason for his son leaving him? In just two days my life turned upside down. I lost my father And then I lost the roof from my head. I lost my only home. The home where I created a lot of beautiful memories with my father. With that, I lost my mother's smile. I lost all the joyous memory which we created together. Ahh! What blissful days were those, even I didn't have much attention from my father due to his busy schedule but I still have him by my side? How much I wished I could die along with him. But I had to be strong for my mother. No matter if I am broken from inside but I won't let my mother watch me fall weak. She already had enough, I know how much my mother and father loved each other and after his death, she is totally broken but she has kept herself together only for me. My parents have suffered a lot of depression and anxiety and that's all because of that Asim. When those goons left our house that day my mother ordered me to pack all of the essentials and we will be leaving for my grandfather's haveli (mansion). My maternal aunt and we all were left bewildered, we all knew about the circumstances in which my parents were married. But Mama was dead set on to go there. My Aunt convinced her to stay at her place but mama knew my aunt's husband won't permit my mama and me at their house, so my mom decided to come here. We had a little money and after packing all our stuff we went to the train station, said our goodbyes to everyone and set on our journey. This voyage was the most sorrowful and depressed voyage ever since I came to knew about the actual reason behind my father's death. Asim was one of my father's colleagues and at first, he appeared out to be a friend. In those days baba was trying hard to earn money so he could construct a house for us. Yet, he got in a debt of 1 million which he asked from Asim. Baba trusted him, he gave the impression of being a very pious man and a good person, but it was all a facade. Asim made my father sign some documents in which it was claimed that my father had taken a debt of 20 million from a man called, Yawar. And after making him sign those documents, he gave us 1 million and took the rest of 19 million and ran away. My father didn't realize it until that day, when some goons were sent to our house, demanding their money back. Which was a huge amount of 20 million. They were the mafia's men and they threatened us not to go for the police else they'll kill me. Baba didn't want to take any chance on my life so he did what they said. All the documents had my father's name, his hands were tied. They continuously pressurized my father. He was completely bound. He worked hard like a maniac day and night only to pay back the money which he didn't even get. He kept telling them how Asim made him sign the documents but they never believed him instead they threatened him. That snake, Asim framed my papa and he was depressed and anxious to a level that it caused the heart attack. I was enraged and helpless tears streaked down my eyes because I couldn't help my father. That Asim was a devil, may Allah curse him. I could not believe my ears when my mother told me the whole story. I have been torn apart after listening to all of this. I was shocked but what I felt the most was rage, infuriation. I could not help my father in any way. This guilt was clutching my heart. I do not know what my father has been through and that's all because of that Asim. Oh Allah, does this inhumanity exist in this world? Is this the actual face of the world? Unsympathetic, insensitive, and merciless? There is no will left inside me to live anymore but I have to do it for my mother because now she is the one all I have. I am being strong for her and she is being strong for me. However, we have to survive, we desperately need a roof at our head, and this haveli is the last option to be our shelter. The haveli was huge, posh, and gigantic. Its exterior was so breathtakingly beautiful, I wonder what would its interior be like? I felt out of place because our house was nothing compared to it. It was so small and not so beautiful but still, I loved my home. We were getting closer to the large metal gates and a weird feeling inside was creeping me. My subconscious kept telling me something bad is going to happen to me, I had no idea about it. We stood right in front of the gates. A lot of security guards were at duty. All of them had handguns resting on the holster on their waist and snipers as well hanging on their shoulders. They all were bulky men, had a well-built body and bulging muscles. There was a small office kind of cabin near the gates, where a man was seated. On noticing us, he opened the window of that cabin and asked us, "Why are you here Madam?" "Ask Mr. Haider Shabbir that Ammara Mujtaba is here," my mom replied, asking for my uncle. He instantly called someone and after the call ended he nodded his head to us and signaled the guards on the gate to let us in. "You may go in," "Thankyou" With that the large doors opened, the metal clanking against each other. And we entered inside. Little did I know it was going to be a pit of hell for me. Little did I know these gates were my prison bars. And little did I know I was going to be caged here. Forever!

Chapter 4 4. The condition

After passing through the lawn, their footsteps halted and they stood in front of a large brawny door that led into the house. Both of them were nervous. Amarra was nervous because if they were rejected from this place they'd probably have no place to live. She was utterly worried for her daughter. And Zahra was nervous because her subconscious kept signaling about something havoc. Moreover, she does not want to let anyone humiliate her mother. She knew her grandpa wouldn't accept her mother and let them live here easily. They had to pass through a great ordeal to live here. Ammara's hands reached for the doorknob. She stared at the same door knob which once Mujtaba had turned so they both could enter. A feeling of disbelief coursed through her. Was she really standing here again? Was her husband really gone? And she won't meet him ever? Their happily ever after was so short-lived. So short-lived that it choked her and brought tears to her eyes. Zahra was quick to be on her side as she lovingly cleared her tears and passed her mother a smile. Ammara smiled back. She has to be her daughter's strength at this point. Her daughter needed her more than she needed her daughter as she engulfed Zahra in a hug and held her close to her body, inhaling her scent. Mujtaba didn't come but this time a part of him did come. His heart did come. He used to call Zahra, his heart. Despite he was under the ground, he was still here, along with her in the form of Zahra. Ammara turned the doorknob and pushed it inside, gulping in the tears that were threatening to surface in her eyes. The door opened and they both made their way into the house. They were left in awe. A very modernly designed lounge had their mouth hung open. Eyes wide open. Feeling out of place. Zahra looked around and she found some boys and girls sitting on the cream-colored sofas, centered in the lounge. All of them chatting and laughing haughtily. And all of them looked from 18 to 25 years of age. They were too engaged and preoccupied in the conversation to notice their presence. Zahra wondered where to go next, they couldn't be standing here all day. So she decided to approach them. As soon as she moved, a man in his early fifties came running down the stairs and proceeded towards them. Zahra stopped and looked towards her mother. Her mother knew who he was. "Haider bhai, Assalam alaikum" Ammara greeted. This caught everyone's attention in the room and all of those lads turned and looked at their Taya Abu (uncle) and had them, conjecturing, who these two ladies were. "Wa alaikum salam. Kia haal hai beta? Umeed hai k sab khairiyat hai!" He warmly welcomed them. (How are you dear? Hope everything is alright!) "Allhamdullilah" Ammara told. (By God's grace) "Mujtaba kidher hai aur kesa hai? Kia wo saath nahi aaya?" He asked softly and looked expectantly towards the door, hoping his brother would come. (Where is Mujtaba? And how is he? Didn't he come along?) On hearing Mujtaba's name tears brimmed in Zahra's eyes. Her throat clogged and her vision blurred. Her heart wrenched for her uncle who was expecting his brother to come from the door. Little did he know, he was never going to come. 'Kaash Baba Kaash ap way uss darwazey sei Andar aajaye' she thought with dismay. (I wish Father I wish, you could come out of that door) Before Amarra could say anything Haider's attention diverted towards Zahra who was trying hard to control her tears. "Zahra!" He exclaimed. "Kesi ho beti? Kitni bari ho gyi ho MashAllah!" (How are you daughter? MashAllah you have grown up!) Zahra was overwhelmed by his warm gesture and when he called her "beti" it reminded her of his father and she could not control her emotions anymore. Her arms moved on her own accord and gave him a tight hug. She felt as if he was hugging her father which made fat tears roll down her eyes which were soon replaced by big sobs. Haider only wondered why she was crying and rubbed his hands at her back to soothe her. He let her cry to her fullest and she cried her heart out on her Taya Abu's shoulder. The whole room was enveloped in silence. Only her painful big sobs could be heard. Zahra hugged him tightly like he used to hug her father whenever he came back home after a day or two. Her Taya resembled her father in all the ways and that was enough to make her emotions out of control. She could feel her father's scent around him. She didn't know but she found an unfathomable connection with him. He was very much like her father. Her big sobs had grabbed everyone's attention and all the heads were turned towards their Taya Abu and the crying girl. Everyone pondered who was she. And why was she crying so wholeheartedly on his shoulder? The Ladies of the house who were working in the kitchen on hearing somebody's sobs immediately came out and the whole scene in front of them left them baffled. They clearly knew about Ammara and Mujtaba but they had no idea that Ammara would be coming back to Haveli with her daughter. And they too contemplated what Ammara is doing here again and that too with her daughter? And why her daughter is crying so painfully? And where is Mujtaba? And why they are carrying bags along with them? All of them kept looking towards them. After crying heartily, Zahra felt her tears die down and she cleaned her wet face with her hands and got off of her uncle's shoulder. Her face was blotched and her eyes were swollen red. Haider didn't find it right to ask her why she was too disturbed and only comforted her more. Zahra wiped her tears properly and after settling herself she looked around to find everyone's attention was on her and she cast her eyes down. "I am fine,""Ok beta, Agha Jaan is waiting for you both in his study," he told empathically. He was about to ask regarding Mujtaba but something inside him stopped him from doing so and he kept quiet. "Let's go," Ammara quietly said and grasped her daughter's hand, who tightened the hold, indicating she was nervous. Haider ushered them both to his father's study, meanwhile, no words were exchanged and when they reached the door he knocked and heard a harsh "come in," He opened the door and let them both in then followed behind and closed the door shut. Zahra was nervous and fidgeted with her fingers while looking down and didn't dare to raise her head. She always does that whenever she is trepidatious or apprehensive. "Why are you here again, Ammara bibi? To destroy the peace of our house once again?" an old man's voice coldly and calmly said. Zahra figured it out, it was her dada, Shabbir Murtaza Syed, who hated her mother to no extent. She was furious for letting him disrespect her mother and her head shot up rebelliously to counter him. She found him sitting on his chair on the other side of the table, sipping his coffee. Amara noticed the rebellious posture of her daughter but before she could say anything she squeezed her hand, indicating to her that it was not the right place. Zahra immediately got the signal and internally calmed herself to say anything. "Mein yaha par kisi ka sukoon barbaad krney na hi pehlay aaye thi mein buss yaha madad ki talash mn aaye hu," Amarra said softly yet confidently. (Neither did I come to destroy someone's peace before nor now, I just came here to seek help) "Is your husband dead that you came here for help?" He mocked. After listening to his words, Zahra hardly control her tears. She tried to emotionally shut down herself after her father's death but whenever his topic was brought up her emotions couldn't seem to get in control. And right now, she was trying her best to keep control of her feelings. "Yes, he died two days ago," Amarra said with a sharp edge at the end of her sentence implying she was close to crying. But Zahra consoled her by squeezing her hands. "What?" Haider who stood close to the door asked in total bewilderment. "Yes, his blood pressure shot up which...which caused a heart attack" she replied without looking towards him. "Why didn't you inform us?" Haider asked in complete shock. "To keep his will. His last words were not to inform his father of his death" she said looking down. Haider's throat clogged and before tears could escape he immediately left the room, his mind couldn't digest the fact his younger brother was no more. And now both of them were left alone with the old man, who put up a facade of looking unaffected by the news of his son's death. Zahra saw this in his eyes. He was deeply saddened by the news of his son's death but maintained a calm composure outside. "He was dead to me long ago and if you're here to inform us of his death, then you've done so, the door is there, you may leave" He coldly stated. "We have nowhere to go, I am left alone with my daughter.""Did your husband make you live on streets that you've nowhere to go?""We were in a debt that we couldn't pay back so those people took our house,""Whatever, I don't care. Leave my house, right now!""I need a place to live. Please let us live here,""Let you live here?" He sarcastically questioned. "Yes, please. I have no place to go" Her voice was small and shaky. "The answer is a big fat no. You may get out now" he calmly told. "Where would I go all alone with my daughter? Please let us live here!" her voice desperate. "Do you think I care? Go wherever you want to but not here!""Please!! have mercy where would I go along with my daughter? I have no place to go!" Amara begged. Zahra's eyes were already spilling tears out seeing her mother begging. She was broken witnessing her mother so helpless and vulnerable. "If you're playing an emotional card by bringing your daughter here, then you know that I disowned my son now you both are not related to me in any way""Mama we should go," Zahra spoke, she couldn't bear this anymore. But Amara ignored it. "Please let us live here, we're left alone in this world. Please I beg you to give us some space in your haveli" Amara's eyes were now filled with tears. She was doing all this for her daughter. Where could she probably go? On the streets? She cannot let her daughter live on the streets. No. Never. Also, those goons have seen Zahra now. After their demand, the safest place for her daughter would be this haveli. The only option was to beg him to give her a place to live. "Please,""I'll let you live here only if you agree to my one condition" he suddenly spoke. Amara's eyes sparkled. She now had a hope that there would be some chances to live under this roof. She knew how much of a cunning and manipulative man Shabbir Haider Syed was, but in this situation where he was her last hope, she had no choice but to agree to whatever he said. "I'll do as you say," she said.

Chapter 5 5. 'Scream and you're dead'

"I'll be announcing it at the dinner, meanwhile my servant will guide you both to your rooms" He called Ghulam Ali, his servant from the intercom to his study and within minutes he was here leading them outside the study towards their respective rooms, which his master has assigned to them. Zahra kept thinking about the cruelty of his grandfather. She surely saw the glint of sadness in his eyes but then why was he putting up a facade? Why had he humiliated her mother? Moreover, what condition would he want to put up? The door to the study opened but her head was bent down, engrossed in her thoughts when suddenly she smashed into a hard wall. Scowling, she slightly scratched her forehead to lessen the pain. The wall was a bit too hard for her liking. Two sleek black boots came into her sight and her eyes widened. 'It was not a wall. It was...was a man. What??!' She slowly looked upwards and saw a young man standing right in front of her. His height was tall with a well-built body and muscles popping out of his shirt. A sharp jawline and thick black lashes with well-defined cheekbones. His lips were pink and a light stubble was dusted on his cheeks. His nose was a bit crooked but it accentuated his features. The color of his eyes grey, light grey. She stared directly into his eyes and could see some shock in those light grey orbs but his eyes held a severe intensity. She does not know why but her heartbeat fastened and a feeling of dread washed her nerves. She did not get good vibes from him. His scrutinizing gaze reminded her of Shoaib and she immediately casted her eyes down to the floor and then it hit her, she has been gawking at him like a total maniac. "Sorry" she immediately mumbled. "It's ok" his voice was deep and authoritative. "Salam Saab," Ghulam Ali greeted that man who only nodded his head. "We should go madam" Ghulam Ali told them. And then they begin following him again. Both followed him to the end of the hallway where there were six rooms opposite each other. Ghulam Ali showed them the last 2 rooms and assigned one to Zahra and one to Ammara. Though they requested him to shift them into a single room all he said was, "its master's orders". And after giving them their respective rooms he went down to bring their bags and delivered them. Zahra was sitting alone in her room thinking about Daniyal. That day, when they were leaving, for the first time Daniyal held her hands and his eyes were glistening with unshed tears. He loved Zahra to infinity and when she was leaving him and he couldn't do anything about it, helpless tears made their way to his eyes. He was an undergraduate and till his graduation his father won't let him marry anyone. He was in a secret relationship with Zahra about which only Shoaib knew but Zahra was unaware of that. ' Zahra soon my studies will be completed then I will come to marry you and take you along with me. I am with you, Zahra. I trust you completely. I love you with my whole heart and soul. Promise me you will wait for me' these were the last words he said to her. 'I love you too Daniyal. With all my heart and soul. I only trust you. I promise I will always wait for you.' And these were the last words she said to him before she left. Zahra was depressed. Too depressed. Her father was no more with her. Daniyal was also no longer around her. The depression inside her was creating a vacuum in her heart. She only wanted to escape reality, her heart and mind couldn't seem to digest the things happening around her. An emotional turmoil was running inside her. She only wanted to breathe freely. Thousands of thoughts ran inside her mind depressing her more and more so she stood up and went straight to her mother's room. The lights of her room were closed, it was only lightened by the sunlight coming out of the curtained window, giving the room a dark and yellow-colored atmosphere. She saw her mother sitting on prayer matt, busy in her namaz. She laid down on the bed, staring at the curtained window. Sunlight was blocked by the curtains. The whole room was enveloped in silence, only small whispers of her mother's prayers could be heard. Her eyes closed and she slept. It was 7:30 pm when she woke up with a knock on the door. She immediately grabbed her dupatta and draped it over her shoulders. "Come in" her voice groggy. Her mother was sleeping beside her. A maid came in and informed her of the dinner and left. She went to the restroom and washed her face before changing her clothes. After that, she woke her mother up informing her about the dinner, and soon a maid came in escorting them both to the dining room. Both of them reached the dining room. Zahra looked around the room and analyzed it. It was a big, big room. A large table was placed in the center with a huge window to its left which was curtained. A giant chandelier dangled from the middle of the ceiling. Large paintings were hung on the walls. The walls were painted creamy. The ceiling was designed as well. The whole room was illuminated brightly and multiple decoration pieces were placed on the showcases. "Zahra, Ammara come sit," Haider called them who was sitting on the table. Zahra observed that everyone was sitting at the table some servants also stood by. Her grandfather sat on the head of the table, to the left of it was sitting the same man whom she crashed into and to the left of him sat his uncle. Those lads whom she saw in the lounge were also there. Two chairs on the right of the table were empty, Both of them moved and sat there. Ammara opposite Haider and Zahra opposite him. She was getting nervous. The utter apprehension of the condition her grandfather will put forward made her nervous. "Start the dinner" he announced. "Agha Jaan, won't Bi Jaan join us today?" one of the boys asked. "She is not feeling well. The news of your uncle's death made her sick, she won't be coming. Start everyone." His voice was void of any emotion. And everyone started eating. The clattering of dishes echoed through the room. Everyone was talking. Those boys and girls were also engrossed in their conversation. Haider served both of them with some biryani. Zahra began to eat but she felt something around her was weird. She felt like someone was watching her but whenever she rose her head there was no one. She thought she was being paranoid and continued with her dinner. Soon the dinner was over and all of them quietened. "Ammara, I'll let you live in this haveli only for one condition," Shabbir spoke through the eerie silence and looked towards her. She was looking expectantly towards him. Now, Zahra's hands were shivering a bit. Her sixth sense kept telling her something bad is going to happen. Her face was paled and her lips were turned white. She was utterly anxious. Was her restlessness really related to the condition? what the condition could be? Her sixth sense was signaling towards something else but she thought it was the condition about which she is being trepidatious. Only if she knew. "If your daughter, Zahra marries my grandson, Irtaza" he dropped the bomb. Zahra's mouth hung open. She was completely baffled. It took good two minutes for her mind to conjecture what he has said. "Well, What do you say, Zahra?" Her grandfather asked breaking her reverie. Daniyal's words kept echoing in her mind. 'I will come to marry you, Zahra.' No, she can't do this with Daniyal. She can't betray him. She can't break her promise. "I am sorry I won't marry anyone without my will" Zahra immediately spoke. "The choice is all yours, if you want to live here then you've to marry Irtaza, and if you don't want to marry him then you've to go," 'Who is he to decide whom should I marry' "I'll prefer going from here" she almost spat. "Ok as you wish. It's getting dark outside you both will be leaving tomorrow morning" with that he stood up and marched towards his room. Irtaza stood up from his chair and eyed Zahra out, dangerously, then left for his room. Then all the family members scattered and went away to their rooms. Ammara hugged her daughter when everyone left. "I am with you, daughter. I will always support you. If you don't want to marry him then we will try to find another place to live. Don't worry daughter your mother will always support you and protect you," She kissed Zahra's forehead, and then both of them retired to their room. Zahra was sitting alone in her room. Her back resting against the headboard, her eyes closed and her dupatta starting from her shoulder, sprawled all over the bed. She was mind-boggled. Her brain wasn't disgesting any of the things happening around her. She kept thinking about Irtaza, Daniyal, and a place to live. 'Why are they tying me into this relationship baba? Why should I marry someone against my will?! I love Daniyal! He is my savior, when there was no one beside me he was there to help me! I would've gone insane without him! I love him with all my heart and he loves me! I trust him and he trusts me! I don't want to marry Irtaza or whatever! Why Baba why? Tell me why life is being so hard on me? what did I ever do to deserve this? That Shoaib harassed me for so many years, I was left alone! You and mama were always too busy to give me any time, again I was left alone! I was going insane! But he, Daniyal was there to keep me on the verge of sanity, he was the one who brought me back to life, he was the only candle in my dark world, he was the one who supported me all the while! he is the one whom I trust with all my heart and soul! he is the one whom I love! And only for a roof at my head, I will leave him, I will betray him! I will break my promise! No! my conscience would never let me do that.' she internally told her father. 'But Baba where we will go? We will be thrown out the next morning and we have no place to go. Where we can go?' 'Trust Allah, leave all your matters to Him and only Him' her subconscious answered . ' You know what Baba I trusted Allah! I always trusted Allah but Allah never listened to me! Allah hates me. I don't know why but He hates me. He never listens to me! No matter how hard I pray, my prayers are never accepted, I begged Allah to keep me away from Shoaib! I begged Allah to save you! I begged Allah not to let anyone humiliate my mother! But you know what despite all my prayers, Shoaib still harassed me, you left me, your father humiliated my mother. Now I've determined I'll never pray, I'll never make any dua' 'Then, f or the first time believe in Allah and sleep' Her subconscious again answered. Her eyes were red and spilling tears out, soaking her white fluffy cheeks. How much she wished she can hug her father at this moment. She was left with only one option and that was to pray to Allah. ' Ya Allah, please help us! please I beg you! please help us to get a roof on our heads! Ya Allah please tomorrow morning they could not throw us out from this haveli! Ya Allah, please help my mother! please help me' she sent a prayer to the heavens and laid down on her pillow. Still, the feeling was there creeping her that something good is not coming. A big disaster is going to occur in her life. She again thought she is being paranoid. Within minutes deep slumber enveloped her unaware of the havoc she created. It was 2:00 am. Everyone was sleeping soundly in the haveli. All the lights were off and deep darkness was spread all over which was implying something bad, really bad is going to occur. A deafening silence echoed through each hallway standing as the silence before the storm. Only the high pitch chirping of night bugs could be heard in corridors. Zahra stirred in her sleep. A feeling of dread crawled over her nerves. She sensed she was being watched. The lights of her room were turned off. It was only illuminated by the moonlight coming out of the window, falling directly onto her face. She rubbed her eyes and slowly opened them. She leisurely sat down and her hands reached for the glass of water on the sight table. She felt something is weird around her. Something is not right. Her heart was beating fast in her chest and her senses were on high alert. Suddenly, she assume that she saw a silhouette of a man standing in the dark holding something in his hands aiming it towards her. She blinked several times to gain her vision. Before she could understand anything, he stepped forward out of the dark in the moonlight. Her breath hitched and her eyes wide opened when she saw him. He looked deranged. Ready to kill. His handsome features looked more attractive and dangerous in the moonlight. But what shocked her out of her wits was when she saw what he was holding. It's a gun! It's a gun! All her grogginess flew out of the window. She was about to scream for help but his next words knock the breath out of her lungs. "Scream and you're dead."

Chapter 6 6. Manhandled

Tears filled in her fear-stricken eyes. She began to shiver in fear. All the scenes of her harassment begin to run in her mind like a tape. Her mind was chaotic, thinking about what he wanted from her. Somehow, she knew what he was doing here. A voice inside her kept saying that it was all because of the rejection. It's all because you rejected him right on the face in front of everyone but she paid no heed to it because this mere thought was making her tremble. "What do..o yo..u wan..t?" she stammered "Stand up," his voice menacing as he signaled with her gun. She only shook her head violently and clutched the blanket tightly. Her eyes widened. Her heart was beating in her ears and the utter trepidation made her want to throw up. She had no idea what frightened her more than the gun or his mere voice. He sighed and put down his gun, taking a step towards her. She only crawled back on the bed looking at him fearfully. He moved closer and placed his knee on the bed, while Zahra reached the far end of the bed, and before she could get off the bed his hand abruptly caught her ankle and yanked her back so that she was in a lying position. He hovered over her petite frame and caged her dainty wrists with his hand, holding the gun. She began to thrash violently to free herself and was about to scream for help when his calloused hand rose and slapped her hard on her white fluffy cheek. All her movements died down and she stilled, completely. The slap was so hard that she was feeling dizzy and her head turned to the other side because of the impact. The tears that she was trying to control spilled out of her eyes. They were tears of pure terror and humiliation. Never in her life, she was slapped by anyone. Before she could get out of the previous assault, his hand grabbed a fistful of her hair and jerked her head, which was turned to the left, towards himself. "Scream, fucking scream now!" he challenged staring directly into her fearful eyes. She said nothing but looked at him with pure terror in her eyes. It's been only two minutes and the amount of fear he has instilled in her was uncountable. "Fucking dare to disobey me, I repeat, fucking dare, and what I'll do will be worse than this," he gritted and tightly grabbed her hair making her stand from the bed. Her scalp burned with a searing sensation and she clawed at his hand with her fragile wrists He left her hair and covered the distance between them. She tried to step back but the site table of the bed halted her movements. She realized she has no place to go so she bent her head down casting her eyes down to the wooden floor. He came close, too close invading her personal space. She could feel her body shaking back and forth and then she registered her whole body was trembling. Fear. Anticipation. Dread. Horror. Only these four feelings were running inside her right now. A voice inside her was telling her that he was definitely here for something catastrophic but she did not want to pay any attention to it. It was making her tremble more and more He stood right in front of her but the sheer trepidation building inside her stopped her from looking straight into his eyes and she kept her eyes down. She was noticing every move of his while her body kept trembling. Her legs were wobbly and her chin quivered. Tears kept flowing out of her eyes and a feeling of helplessness crossed her heart. He threw his gun on the bed placed his left hand on the small of his back and jerked her body forward so that their chests were touching. She gasped with the sudden movement and her eyes widened. Her heart was now thundering in her chest with this proximity. She wanted to push him back and run away from this place but he was so strong moreover, she had no courage to fight him. He raised her head with his chin and leveled his eyes with her. His eyes were boring into hers with an intensity, rage, and a cold calmness that she wanted to hide somewhere. But all she did was look down. His thumb caressed her chin and slowly moved towards her jawline. She only felt disgusted and repulsion. After 5 long years, he got rid of Shoaib but another monster came across her life who was worse than Shoaib. He never slapped her but he did and that was enough to erupt the fire of fear inside her. He suddenly grabbed her throat and slammed her petite frame on the wall which made her wince with pain. He tightened his grip and jerked her forward a bit and then bang her back again to the wall. He again jerked her and then again bashed her back to the wall. It felt like a mountain has been fallen on her back and she could hardly breathe. She opened her mouth to scream for help but the tight grip on her throat hindered her. Her hands clawed at his rough hands to loosen the grip but all in vain. She was helpless. Completely helpless. She pleaded with him with her eyes to let her go. Her whole body was now trembling with a lack of oxygen. Her legs couldn't bear her weight anymore and she would have fallen if it wasn't for the tight grip on her throat. He left her throat and she fell to the ground coughing violently and taking deep breaths to normalize her breathing. Meanwhile, he picked his gun from the bed and took long menacing strides toward her shaking form. With every step, she only moved backward until her back hit the wall causing her to wince with pain. He now stood right in front of her holding the gun. "Lea..ve me..e" her voice barely above a whisper. He squatted down to her level and kept looking intensely at her shaking form. He tugged a stray strand of hair behind her ear which was hindering his view. She flinched at the contact but didn't dare to utter a single word. Only fearful whimpers were escaping her lips showing how much afraid she was of him. Her chest heaved up and down with anticipation. His gaze lingered on her breasts which were showing off a bit because of the low neckline and a look of lust entered his eyes. Zahra on noticing where he is looking immediately covered her breasts and tried to move more into the wall. His gaze lifted and now he was looking directly at his fearful face and wide eyes. "Say that again," he calmly demanded staring directly into her eyes. "Wh..at?" she stuttered still covering her front. His gun moved towards her forearms which were trying to shield her bosoms from his view but failing miserably. The nozzle of his gun began to caress her forearms and she immediately moved her arms to get away from his gun, giving him the sight he wanted and he pulled away from his gun. "Say what you said on the table," This knock the breath out of her lungs. Her stomach churned and her vision blurred with tears of fear. Her heart begin to beat erratically in her chest so that she could hear it. Thump Thud Thump Thud Now she could bet on her life she is up to nothing good. She got bad vibes when she first saw him but she ignored it then. And now it was confirmed that rejecting him in front of everyone must have hurt his ego. That is why he is here but for what? Her thoughts her stirring her mind and she got more and more afraid thinking about his demand. She was afraid would be an understatement. She was doomed She just wanted to run and run and hide in a place where he could never get her. His intense gaze was shaking her from the core. He stared directly into her widened eyes but she couldn't match his intense gaze and looked downwards. "Come on, say it." He rose her chin with his fingers. His eyes her daring not to look anywhere. She slightly shook her head. Only her ragged breathing could be heard in the dark and silent room. A deep throaty chuckle resonated in the room giving more rise to her irregular breaths. She had no idea what he is up to and her insides were churning with fear and anticipation. "No?" he cocked his perfect brow. She shook her head more. All of a sudden, his whole demeanor changed. His pupils dilated, his jaw clenched and his eyes now looked monstrous. Her breath hitched and her throat clogged seeing his outrageous appearance. Her eyes were begging him to leave her. To let her go. She did not want those things to happen again which were happening to her for the last 5 years. Suddenly, his fingers threaded through her locks and jerked her head forward causing a sharp breath to break out of her lips. Now her ear was close to his mouth, his stubble slightly tickling her cheek. He slightly shooked her head here and there, yanking her locks. She hissed due to the immense pain he was causing to her honey blonde locks. He brought her head close to her ear and his warm minty breath was now falling onto her ear. Zahra's heartbeat fastened and she clutched her shirt so tight that her knuckles turn white. "Señorita, one should think before he speaks." he huskily whispered near her ear and jerked her head back so that now he was staring directly into her eyes. Grey to brown. "Right, señorita?" he questioned quirking his perfect brows. His eyes were dangerous. His fingers still holding her locks. She nodded her head like a lost puppy unable to form any word out of fear. He tightened his grip on her hair. She clawed at his hands but he painfully tightened his grip more. Her head faced the ceiling. She looked helplessly at him. "Words baby doll, words.""Yy..ee..ss" she croaked and then he left her hair. He stood up and smoothed his clothing while she sat down, near his foot with a swollen cheek and disheveled hair. She thought he is done with her but she didn't know yet he is not even close.