Meant To Be

Chapter 15

Hiya *waves*

Another update. Exactly a week after the previous chapter.

*Pats self on the back*

This is also the second longest chapter l have ever written.

*Another pat*

Shoutout to SrilekhaSrilu5 for being so damn supportive of me and this book.

And to Starwa22Starwa22 as well as prettybabyflower for being with this past year.

NOTE: if you have time, please read through the last two chapters so you can have the best of this chapter.

Hope you like it!
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When he spoke again, his tone sounded so sad that it tugged at my heart, melting my annoyance. Quietly, as if sharing a secret, he whispered, "I didn't want blood on my hands, lioness. Not more than I already did."

I stilled. "Veer?"

He dropped his hand from the frame. Shaking his head he said, "It's nothing lioness. I..I was done with it. The profits weren't much. Too many laws that changed too often. The people were hassle. So, I left. That's all."

Hmm.... Okay. Time to be direct then.

"And who do you think you are feeding that crap to?" I asked making his head snap to me.

I leaned on the arm of the single couch. "I am a market leader in defence vehicles and was offered to be one in artillery. That laws and profits excuse doesn't work on me."

With a blank face, Veer placed his glass on the table and headed towards the kitchen. "I know. I would just rather not revisit the past," he said grabbing the bottle of Cabernet from the bar then walking back to me.

"You can't revisit a place you never really left." I told him softly.

Trust me, l know. There's red in my ledger too.

Veer halted in his tracks. The bottle almost slipping from his hand.

Then slowly he made his way back and sat on the huge couch. He refilled both of our glasses before settling back against it. He picked up his glass and gazed at the shimmering tamarind water.

Knowing this isn't an easy thing for Veer to talk about I picked up my glass and went back to admiring the frames.

"Karam Defence System were the market leader or as people called it I was the King of Arms," Veer said after some time, making me look at him. He didn't meet my eyes; just looked out of the window. The dimming sunlight cast a 5'o clock shadow on his face highlighting his already sharp features.

"Mauryas had always been a part of the industry but a very small one. I brought it to the front in 15 months. The fastest tech, the most lethal weapons, the quickest delivery, the quietest transactions," he said with a far-off look in his eyes.

"Under my dad, we were just local suppliers of Radar systems," Veer said taking a sip from his glass, "Unlike Mittal Motors' jets and trucks, under me, Karam made any and every war weapon possible. Tanks, missiles, guns, IEDs you name it we made it. We became the biggest exporter of weapons to both the strongest and the most war-torn countries."

Veer put the glass on the table made his way to the window."It didn't matter who I crushed under my shoes as long as I was stomping forward. It didn't matter which company l took over, which one I destroyed, how many people lost their jobs. It didn't matter. The tradings were wrong. The industry was shady. The people were dangerous. I didn't care."