He sat in his office, all by himself, the table laid on the floor broken, along with the papers and files. Just one document remained a letter that mocked him. How could she?

His eyes were red, and as he held in the rage, his hands trembled because of the anger. That woman, how could she even propose divorce? This wasn't how things worked in the village. A woman asking for a divorce was just atrocious.

The village had certain rules. They followed the rules that favoured them and bent the rules for their own benefit. How could he accept it? He could leave her if he wanted, but he didn't want to.

He thought if he gave her some time by herself, she would rethink everything and forgive him, like he forgave her for trying to kill him. Wasn't this how relationships worked?

If he wanted, he could have killed her. But the thought of ending her, it didn't satisfy him. He wanted her with him, till she grew old, even when he looked at Ayesha, he would wish it was Seher.

Nobody dared to cross him. He was capricious and ruthless. But she did. Because she was just like him... she would fight back, and he loved to show her who was the powerful one between the two. The stronger one, he loved her attitude, she didn't care about anyone, and he was fine with that as long as she was with him.

But it seemed like he was wrong to give her too much freedom because now she was using it against him. He had to bring her back. He looked at the paper and brought the lighter from his pocket, burning it, letting the ashes fall on the ground.

When she arrived, he didn't confront her, at least not about the divorce. He noticed how the aura around her had shifted, and she didn't carry the confused or broken expression anymore.

He opened the door of the car, and as she exited, there was a look of disappointment as she eyed him for a second, he could walk. He was alive. 

"Why so sad?" He teased, but there was no humour. His eyes were bloodshot, and he reeked of alcohol.

Seher refused to indulge him, giving him no air. His grey eyes stared at her very closely with an angry smile on his face, "I found an interesting letter in your room..."

The trip was a long one, and she didn't know. She would be bombard with these stupid questions, "Having an affair with the soldier that worked for me?

She had left the house and most of her things in the room, Seher didn't want to return to the house or the room to get her things back then.

"Are you asking me or telling me?"

He chuckled darkly, the sound sending chills down her spine. "Should I be asking? Or should I be dragging you back to that wretched room and making you confess?"

His voice was low, dangerous, as he took a step closer to her, the smell of alcohol overpowering her senses. Seher didn't flinch. She held her ground, her face unreadable. He was back to his old self.

"You’re drunk," she said, her voice calm but laced with disdain. This was it. His eyes darkened.

"And you are a whore!" He sneered, his hand reaching to grab her wrist, pulling her closer, "You think I will tolerate this, Seher? You think I’m some kind of saint?" His grip tightened, and she winced but refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing her in pain.

"I think you're a fool", she shot back, pushing him away, and wiping away her wrist where he touched her with her dupatta, "Fool to continue this marriage, this marriage will destroy you. I will destroy you, because I don't want you. I will never want you, you disgust me".

His eyes darkened at her words, a storm brewing beneath his cold, grey gaze. "You think you have the power to destroy me, Seher? You’re nothing without me," he hissed, his voice a dangerous whisper.

"I’m more without you than I’ll ever be with you," she retorted.

His hand shot out again, this time grabbing her by the chin, forcing her to look up at him. "I won’t let you leave me again. Not now, not ever. You belong to me."

She glared at him, her heart pounding in her chest. "I belong to no one," she spat, trying to wrench herself free. But his grip was ironclad, his fingers digging into her skin with a bruising force."You will," he growled, his breath hot against her face. "You will, or I’ll make sure you regret every single word you’ve said tonight."

"You can try," she said coldly. "But you’ll fail. Just like you’ve failed in every relationship of yours."

His face twisted in rage, and for a moment, she thought he might hit her. But instead, he released her, shoving her away with a force that sent her stumbling backward.

"Get out of my sight," he snarled, turning away from her. "Before I do something we both regret."

Seher steadied herself, her heart racing as she looked at him, his back turned to her, his shoulders tense with barely restrained anger.

"You’re the one who will regret this," she said quietly, her voice steady. "Because one day, you’ll realize you can’t force someone to love you by abusing them. Saad you are just like your father."

She left right after, and later, as he stood alone in the darkness of his office, the reality of her words sank in, and for the first time, he felt the cold, sharp edge of fear.

She was slipping away from him, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.
But atleast she was with him, he had to make sure that she wouldn't runaway ever again.

___

Razia hugged Seher the moment she saw her, "You are back," she was in tears, "I knew he would forgive you, and you would come back to him, I prayed for this".

Seher loved her so much, for taking care of her, but their thoughts could never match. If she could convince the women from the village about the toxic rules in the village, why was it so hard to budge Razia?

"I didn't come back on my own, he created circumstances where I was forced to return",  she said and went to the shelves to find her diary and personal items missing.

"Where is my stuff?" She asked, getting upset... Razia hesitated before replying, "It's in his room, and I forgot to tell you, you will have to stay with Saad Sahib, this room will be turned into Musa's nursery."

She could see what he was doing, he wanted to poke at her nerves, or at least sentiments. But Saad hadn't realised yet that she didn't care about anything, "It's okay, I will shift to another room."

As she exited the room, she realised the doors to the rooms were locked shut. All of the rooms were locked.

"Where are the keys?"

"Saad Sahab's room".

Razia thought Seher would go to Saad's room, but instead, she was heading to the terrace. She followed after her, it was raining heavily when she reached.

Seher sat below the shed on the ground, her knees to her chest as she watched the rain.

"It's late... you should sleep."

Seher dismissed Razia, "I will sleep here. You should head back to your room."

"Terrace?"

She nodded her head, "Haan yaha songi, khula aasman hai, thandi hawayein hai, aur kya chahiye? (Yes, I will sleep right here under the open sky, there is fresh air what else do I need?)"

"Bed?" Razia asked, but she shook her head, placing her head on the cold floor.

"You will get sick." 

"Don't worry, it's not like I am directly under the rain, there is a shed," and it wasn't like this was the first time she had laid on the cold floor. She had experienced this before, when Saad had punished her to kneel outside in the rain.

"But-"

"Please go..." She said firmly, knowing Seher wouldn't give in.

"Alright, I will bring you blankets."

A few minutes later, Razia returned with a lantern, water, and few blankets.

Seher accepted the blankets and water silently, her expression unreadable as she wrapped herself in the warmth Razia had brought. The older woman set the lantern down beside her, its dim light casting flickering shadows on the terrace. Razia lingered for a moment, her heart heavy with worry, but she knew better than to press Seher further. As Razia turned to leave, Seher's voice, soft yet firm, stopped her in her tracks.

"Thank you, Razia. For everything." Razia looked back at her, eyes filled with concern.

"Sometimes for survival, you have to give up... I don’t understand why you make things so difficult for yourself."

Seher didn't respond immediately, her gaze fixed on the horizon where the rain met the earth in a blurred line. She could feel the cold seeping into her bones, but it was nothing compared to the chill that had settled in her heart. After a moment, she sighed and turned her head slightly to look at Razia.

"Giving up isn't an option for me," she said quietly, her voice carrying a note of determination. "If I give up now, then everything I've endured would have been for nothing. Then all of his abuse, I would be accepting them... If I give in, then every woman who has been mistreated will think it's their fate to endure it, that it's something they must accept without question."

With a heavy sigh, Razia nodded and turned to leave. "I'll be just inside if you need anything," she said softly, her voice laced with worry.

Seher nodded, offering a faint smile, "I'll be fine."

As the first light of dawn began to break through the clouds, Seher finally allowed herself to close her eyes.

___

This book might cross 40 chapters...