𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕮𝖗𝖎𝖒𝖘𝖔𝖓 𝕮𝖗𝖔𝖜𝖓.

37. 𝓔𝖈𝖍𝖔𝖊𝖘 𝖔𝖋 𝕯𝖊𝓿𝖔𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓

37. Echos of Devotion.

Arjun ~

My wife, my Little Flower, is a ball of fire is what she is. Every word she spoke with all the convection she had within her was a pure testament to her sheer skills and ability to be a good Queen.

Doubting her was a rare mistake on my end, I had no remorse in admitting.

"Ranaji, they are waiting for us." Papa's voice interrupted my thoughts, pulling me back to the present moment. I nodded in acknowledgment and together we entered the conference hall. Technically, Papa was due to retire soon. Siya had already thrown a retirement party for him, but I had asked him to stay on for a while longer. Finding a suitable replacement had proven to be a challenging task, and we both agreed that no one could quite fill his shoes. It was just one of the many aspects of Papa that I had always admired.One of the many things I have always admired about him.

The meeting stretched for more than four hours and by the end of it, they had taken and agreed to the deal proposed by us, give or take, on our terms.

" The jet will be ready for take-off in about twenty minutes Ranaji." I was told by one of the security staff and we left for the airport.

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After we landed back home, I insisted that Papa head home to rest. It had been an exhausting day for him, and there was nothing more he could attend to at this moment. As he reluctantly departed, I made my way toward the sprawling palace lawn, the usual gathering place for everyone at this hour.

To my surprise, there was an eerie stillness in the air, and the usually lively lawn was deserted. Not even Jahanavi, who typically played around the palace, was in sight.

"Hukum, everyone is at the hospital," one of the palace guards informed me when I inquired about the unusual absence. My heart sank at those words.

"Why?" I found myself stammering, my voice trembling with concern, an unprecedented experience for me.

"Ranisaa was shot earlier today while returning, Ranaji," he replied, and in that moment, my world was turned completely upside down.

Time seemed to lose all meaning as panic coursed through me. I rushed to the hospital with a sense of urgency I had never felt before, and I knew that Papa would be right beside me, just as concerned for her well-being as I was.The hospital loomed ahead, a sterile fortress of hope and despair. My footsteps echoed in the empty corridors, the anxiety of the unknown gnawing at my heart.

"Arjun... Arjun," Mom came rushing to me, her hand shaking as she grabbed mine.

"Siya... she was shot right next to the heart, Arjun," she choked out, her voice trembling with emotion. "The doctors are saying that the chances of her surviving are very low. She had just returned home after that press conference when someone shot her, right here in the Palace, our home." Tears streamed down her face as I held her, keeping her from collapsing.

"Swati, please, try to hold yourself together," Dad intervened, wrapping his arms around my sobbing mother.

I turned to the nurse who stood nearby, desperate for any information. "Where is the doctor? I need the doctor here immediately," I implored, my voice filled with urgency.

"Ranaji, the doctors are currently in the operating room. Ranisaa will be out of surgery any moment now," the nurse replied, trying to offer reassurance.

I then approached Samarth, "I need you to find out who was behind this," I told him. "I have a strong suspicion about the identity of the attacker, as do all of us here, but I need concrete evidence, and I need it within the next twenty-four hours." He only needed to be told once.