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“No.” Neil looked affronted. “Spiderman is the best. Come on, Uncle Aaryan. You’ll love this new movie, I’m sure. You cannot say no.”
“Of course, I’ll watch it with you,” Aaryan said.
Her son’s lips curved into a smile—a smile that resembled his father’s so much.
Her heart stuttered. Neil was the spitting image of Dev. Avi had told Neil several years back that his father was dead. But, off late, he’d been very curious about his father and had been asking many questions about him. Questions which Avi didn’t want to answer, and hence she’d passed that baton to Sanjana to take care of. After Aaryan and Sanjana had fallen in love, Avi informed Neil that Sanjana was his aunt, his dad’s sister.
Sanjana answered Neil’s queries about his father whenever he had them without giving away the most pertinent fact, which was that Dev, in fact, was alive and was here in Dubai.
What was worse was that just the previous night, she’d overheard Neil tell his best friend, Josh, how much he missed having a father and that he prayed daily that his father was alive somewhere and was searching for him.
Neil’s conversation with his friend had been heartbreaking. God! How could she ever tell her son that the man who’d sired him was a villain? And that she hated him.
Avantika pursed her lips. Dev had come to Dubai only to make her life a freaking nightmare. He had given her sleepless nights, worrying that he’d bump into Neil somewhere and recognize him. It had almost happened once.
She had taken Neil to Hotel Kempinski, where Neil was supposed to meet a friend. Just as Neil had rushed toward the hotel café, he’d crossed a group of men, and Dev had been one of them. She’d quickly hidden behind a pillar from Dev and called Neil to stay at the café until she came to get him. Only once Dev had disappeared had she taken her son and left from there. Even now, her heart plunged into fear when she remembered that narrow escape. Till date, she worried that it could happen again. That’s why she had to give Dev his twelve days. Once done, he’d disappear from her life, and she could breathe easily again.
She pressed her temples. All of their lives had changed ever since Dev had appeared in Dubai. He had constantly found ways to interfere in the lives of her brothers and had put obstacles in their way with the intent of destroying their business and their relationships with their girls. Unfortunately forhim, her family had emerged stronger and better from all those ordeals they’d faced. Nonetheless, she’d been living in a constant state of worry, waiting for whathe’ddo next. And now she was tired of waiting, tired of all his games.Shewas what he wanted; hence, onlyshecould end his reign of terror.
Taking a deep breath, Avi addressed her son. “Why don’t you go and take a shower, and then we can all have dinner?”
“Sure, Mom,” Neil replied. “Is the whole family eating together?”
“Yes,” Avi answered for all of them. If she was going away tomorrow to give that devil his twelve days, then she needed to plan with her family.
“And once you’re out, we need to talk,” she told Neil.
His brow furrowed. “Is everything okay?”
“Of course.” She tipped her lips into a smile. “I have a work assignment I have to travel for. I’ll be gone for a few days, and I need to talk to you about that.”
Her son frowned. “But Mom…”
She shook her head. “Bath first.”
Reluctantly, Neil grabbed his football bag and headed to his room. Only once his door was shut she pivoted to face her family.
Avi pointed at Neil’s shut door. “He is the reason I need to do this. That man can never learn of Neil’s existence. I promisedhimthat I’d be there when he called. If I don’t do this, maybe he will find another way to come after me…after all of us. I’m tired of living in fear, wondering what he will do next. Wondering what will happen if he sees Neil.”
Vihaan began to protest and Avi held her hand out. “No, Vihaan. There is no choice in this. He cannot find out about Neil. He…can’t. He’ll keep coming after me until I fulfil my promise to him. So, I’ll give him the twelve days he wants, and hopefully, we all will be done with him. Hopefully,hewill keep his end of the bargain and leave Dubai and thus allow us all to go on with our lives.”
Sanjana’s face fell, but she didn’t say anything.
Aaryan went to Avi and grasped her shoulders. “How can I send you to him? Protecting you and keeping you safe is my job.”
“You have protected me…us for far too long.” Avi patted his cheek. “It’s my turn to protect my child and you all.”
When Aaryan remained silent, Avi added, “I’ll be fine, Aaryan.” She looked at her family around her. “I need you all to look after my son while I’m gone.”
Sanjana stepped forward. “Aaryan and I can take him for a vacation somewhere. Neil is off school, right?”
“Yes.” Avantika agreed. “That seems like the best thing to keep him busy. I’ll tell him I have a wedding to shoot in Bahrain, and I’ll be away for a few days.”
Being a photographer at several elite weddings, Avi, as it is, spent a few days away from Neil whenever she had to work at outstation locales during the wedding season. And as long as Neil was busy vacationing, he wouldn’t ask too many questions about her. And the fact that he’d be out of the country gave her even more courage to face Dev.
“Shaurya and I will remain here and be available at all times to you in case you need us for anything,” Vihaan said.
“Just be careful, okay?” Shaurya said, pulling her in for a hug.
