Page 107 of Twisted Alliance

No, it cannot be. It cannot be Shivay. He is sleeping.

“He might be armed and dangerous. Surround him when he gets here. Meanwhile, I will use his wife as a shield.”

She felt fingers surrounding her arm as she was yanked up. She could barely stand. “Stand up!” her brother ordered. “There is a knife against your throat. If you move, you will die.”

She desperately tried to remain steady and not move.

She heard the sound of a vehicle approaching and stopping. A door opened and shut.

Slowly through her blurred vision of tears, she saw the darkly handsome face of Shivay Thakvar.

He wasn’t asleep on their bed where he was safe from any threat. Instead, he was standing in the middle of the desert, surrounded by danger. He hadn’t brought any of the Thakvar security with him, either.

Oh God. No.

She wanted to cry out and tell him to run, but the knife on her throat cut into her skin, stopping her from speaking.

Shivay watched her. She couldn’t read anything in his eyes. He must have discovered already that she had stolen his phone. He must have come to confront her and her brother for the betrayal.

Her lips trembled, knowing she might not get the chance to beg for his forgiveness.

He turned his gaze away from her and looked at her brother. “I know you want me. Let Ishani go and take me instead.”

Her heart jerked in shock, listening to him negotiate with her brother.

“N-no…” she gasped out even though the knife cut into her skin.

“How bloody touching,” her brother said. “The little bitch betrayed you many times, yet you came to save her. Tie him up and put him on his knees in front of me!”

Ishani watched as one of her brother’s men stood behind Shivay and tied his hands. Her eyes blurred seeing Shivay standing passively. She knew what Shivay was capable of. He had always fought and overpowered his attackers easily. But because of her, he couldn’t.

The man pushed Shivay until he fell on his knees in front of her brother.

“Don’t hurt Shivay!” she cried out.

There was a laugh from her brother before the knife at her neck was removed, and she was shoved away. She stumbled and fell to the ground. She immediately tried to get up and go to Shivay, but one of her brother’s men grabbed her hand and dragged her away.

“Please,” she begged. “Let Shivay go! He is the real heir!”

Her brother glared at her. “If you don’t shut up, I will slit his throat right now.”

Ishani stifled a sob behind her hands. She watched as her brother circled Shivay.

“Shivay Thakvar, I have to tell Mr. Tantra how easy it was to trap you,” he said. “He overestimated your power when you escaped the attack in Africa.”

“Who is Tantra?” Shivay asked calmly.

“Tantra is a powerful man. He was the one who found out that you are Mihir Thakvar’s heir six months ago.”

A gasp escaped Ishani.

Her brother turned to look at her shocked face. “Yes, dear sister. I knew Shivay Thakvar was the rightful heir even before he arrived at Singoor. But I had been waiting too bloody long to gain respect and control of the Singoor oil wells to risk losing it to a legitimate heir. So, I tried to get him killed on your wedding night and in the oasis, but the bastard escaped.”

Devraj laughed. “You willingly helped me drug him on your wedding night. But later, I had to use your mad mother to throw suspicion on you. I stopped her medication on time and had her begging for your visit. I knew she would be fine by the time you arrived. And I also ensured the Gujjar priests would let the Thakvar heir know of the oasis tradition.”

Ishani’s heart ached at her brother’s deliberate deception. She had trusted him and nearly got an innocent man killed on her wedding night. She had believed the oasis attackers to be the Kabalis.

Her vision blurred when she realized how Shivay was always in danger because of her.

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