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Of all her brothers, Vihaan was the most volatile when it came to Dev. In the last two days, she’d recounted bits of her time with Dev to her family, and her brothers still didn’t believe all was as she said. All of them refused to see Dev as anything other than evil. That was what Avantika, too, had believed at one time. Not any more, though.
“Because I don’t think he’s entirely bad,” she accepted out loud for the first time.
Vihaan stilled. Shaurya shared a shocked look with Aaryan before facing her.
“Is that what you believe?” Shaurya asked.
“What magic has he worked on you?” Vihaan growled before she could reply. “Just because he was nice to you doesn’t mean he didn’t have an ulterior motive, one we still don’t understand.”
“What ulterior motive could he have?” Avantika asked.
“This…gaining your acceptance, your complacency,” Vihaan said. “Once he has that, he will strike, and it will hurt you.”
“I don’t think so,” she said. “He’s incapable of hurting me.”
“Bloody hell! You’re already under his spell,” Vihaan muttered. “You’ve forgotten everything about the past, it seems.”
Avantika clucked her tongue. “I have not forgotten a single thing. I just think there’s more to that night than what we saw and believed.”
“Fucking hell,” Vihaan cursed. “I can’t believe you just said that. I’m so mad at you right now.”
“Vihaan…” Aaryan stood. “Calm down.”
“How can I?” Vihaan fumed. “You didn’t even say anything when she agreed to meet Dev tonight.”
“He’d already seen Neil,” Aaryan said. “Do you think he’d back away after that? Stopping him from meeting Neil would have put us back at war with him. He’d never rest until he found Neil. And more importantly, it was Avi’s decision.”
“Avi is not thinking correctly,” Vihaan retorted.
“Excuse me.” Avi slammed her hands on her hips. “I was with him for nearly a week. I’ve heard things and seen what he’s done for me. I know exactly what I am doing.”
“You’ve never gotten over him,” Vihaan lashed out. “Aaryan and I have spoken about this for years. You never took his name, but many a time when someone spoke of him, this wistful look would cross your face. Both of us always suspected that you hadn’t stopped caring for him despite his actions that night. And now your words are proving that to be the case. So easily you take his name now. Have you forgiven him? Is that what this is about?”
Vihaan’s words hit her chest with a force of a hammer. It was true that for years she hadn’t uttered Dev’s name aloud, thinking that by doing so, she was erecting an impenetrable wall between Dev and herself. It was, perhaps, merely a way of convincing herself that she was over him. She exhaled. Vihaan was right. She’d never gotten over Dev.
And all those imaginary walls she’d built—Dev had totally blasted them down. His name now rolled so naturally from her mouth as if she’d never stopped taking it ever.
And those little insights he’d given her into his version of the past had definitely ignited her curiosity. But forgiveness…
“I’m confused, okay…” she replied. “What I am certain of, however, is that I do want to hear him out.”
Vihaan ran a hand through his hair, looking pissed off. “I don’t know what to say to you. Why would you believe him? Why, Avi?”
Avantika removed a pen drive from her bag and handed it to Aaryan.
“What is that?” he asked, looking bewildered.
“See it,” she said.
Aaryan connected it to his laptop and hit play. When the video came up, Avantika watched her brothers go still, exactly as she had.
“Oh God!” Vihaan whispered.
Aaryan’s hands trembled as he ran them through his hair. His eyes never left the screen.
“Her shawl…she used to wear one all year around.” Aaryan inhaled and exhaled shaky breaths.
“Lavender…” Vihaan whispered, his eyes glued to the laptop screen. “She used to smell like lavender. Every time I hugged her, I’d inhale her scent. It was…it was…”
