"Hahaha....." A monstrous laugh echoed in a big, old, and shabby yet stylishly furnished room where Swara was lying unconscious on a large wooden bed with her hands and legs tied.

"You were a relentless thorn in my meticulously crafted plan," the man snarled with a manic edge, clutching Swara's cheeks with brutal force. "I have waited for this moment for ages. How dare you ruin everything?" His eyes blazed with fury as he glared at her unconscious form, then he shoved her away with a violent jerk.

He strode to the mirror and jabbed a finger at his own reflection. "You did nothing wrong, Amit." Turning around, he spread his arms wide. "I, Amit Maheshwari, am not to blame. They wronged me. Despite being the younger, Rajesh was chosen as alpha simply because he was their biological son, while I was merely adopted."

"No, they were wrong, and I won't allow anyone to thwart what rightfully belongs to me. I'll eliminate anyone who dares stand in my way, be it Sanskar or this despicable Swara." Amit glared at Swara with seething animosity before reaching for his phone.

"I have her now. She's finally under my control. Take her away," he instructed the vampire chief general before ending the call abruptly.

Amit sold Swara to the vampires for a hefty sum, executing a masterstroke that killed two birds with one stone. Not only did he get rid of Swara, but he also ensured Sanskar's wrath would be ignited. Sanskar would undoubtedly go after the vampire king, and even after finishing him off, he would fail to save Swara. The heartbreak would leave Sanskar vulnerable, and then finishing him off would be a simple task.

As the realization dawned on Sanskar that he had been too harsh and had broken Swara's heart, he clenched his fists in regret. Acting on impulse, he threw on his jacket and bolted out of the door, running as fast as he could to make things right.

"Swara! Shona, where are you?" Sanskar's voice rang out in desperation as he reached the cherry woods, his eyes darting around frantically in search of her.

"I was certain I'd find you here in your usual spot. Where did you disappear to?" Sanskar's voice cracked with disappointment as he murmured to himself, scanning the empty area with a sinking heart.

"It seems she's not here," Parth remarked, snapping Sanskar out of his thoughts.

"No, that can't be right," Sanskar responded, his breath labored. "Whenever she's upset, she always comes here. I need to search every inch." With unwavering determination, he kept running back and forth from the cliff to the red waterfalls, his eyes darting around in a desperate search.

"She must've bounced back home," Parth remarked, prompting Sanskar to cease his sprint.

"Yeah, it could be. I just hope she's safe wherever she lands," Sanskar muttered, changing course towards Swara's old dormitory.

"She's got to be, 'cause I don't sense any danger near my mate. What about you?"

"Yeah, same here," Sanskar said as he fired up the car.

Racing to Swara's dorm at top speed, he pounded on the door in desperation, but there was no answer. After several futile attempts, he had a sudden realization and punched in his birth date as the passcode. The door clicked open, but as he entered, a sinking feeling washed over him. The dorm looked untouched, confirming Swara hadn't been there recently, leaving him disheartened.

"Where else could she be?" Sanskar rubbed his forehead with growing concern.

"Is there any other place she might ask for refuge for a while? Think about it, Sanskar; you know her habits," Parth urged, trying to brainstorm with him.

"She doesn't have any relatives or friends except Nikhil, and he's in the hospital. Damn, how did I overlook that?"

Sanskar stormed out of the dorm, jumped into his car, and raced toward the hospital. His hope shattered anew when he didn't find her there either, realizing she had never been there before.

"Sanskar, now I'm not feeling good about this," Parth said, a hint of fear creeping into his voice.

Sanskar didn't reply. Instead, he swiftly pulled out his phone and dialed the number of his head of security. Earlier, he had hesitated to involve them, hoping to find her on his own. Now, a sense of foreboding compelled him to take action.

He was behind the wheel when the call from the head of security came through. "Hello, any updates?"

"Alpha, the CCTV footage reveals Luna left the pack house and headed into the cherry woods," reported the security head.

"What do you mean, cherry woods? I was there right after she left, and she wasn't anywhere in sight," Sanskar exclaimed, steering sharply towards the cherry woods once again.

"Should I pursue further investigation?" the head of security asked.

"No, there's no need. Just tighten security around the borders and keep a close watch on everything," Sanskar instructed, ending the call abruptly before dialing Laksh's number.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, Laksh. I know you must be going through a lot, and I didn't want to add to your troubles, but this is urgent," Sanskar began apologetically, a pang of guilt tugging at him for adding to Laksh's burdens while his mate remained in a vegetative state.

"It's okay. What's the matter?" Laksh's voice, though solemn, conveyed a readiness to listen and assist despite his own hardships.

"Sorry again to bug you, but Swara's gone missing. Security footage shows she headed into the cherry woods, but I've scoured the area and come up empty. I can't reach her through our mind link, and there's no sense of danger in sight," Sanskar rushed out in frustration.

"If the mind link couldn't connect and she's not in any danger, she's likely unconscious but safe. She's got to be somewhere around the cherry woods. Don't be sorry; I'll join you there, and we'll comb the area together."

While Sanskar scoured every corner tirelessly in search of Swara, she remained unconscious, oblivious to being carried by a vampire toward their territory.

"Ah!" Sanskar moved through the cherry woods with a vigilant gaze, searching for Swara, when a sudden, stabbing pain gripped his heart.

"What's happening, Sanskar?" Laksh asked urgently.

"My heart... it's hurting. Swara's in danger. Ah!" Sanskar grimaced, tears welling in his eyes as fear and worry consumed him.

"What? But you said..." Laksh began, his confusion evident, but he couldn't finish as Sanskar's pain intensified.

"Ahh!" Sanskar screamed, his cry echoing through the tranquil night in the woods. "I... I don't know..." he struggled to speak through the agony, his words trailing off as he noticed something glittering on the grassy forest land.

"This is Swara's," Sanskar said, picking up the shiny silver bracelet, its blue sapphire catching the light.

"Are you sure?" Laksh asked.

"Yeah, she never took this off. It's a relic from her mother," Sanskar confirmed, a faint smile appearing on his lips as he examined Swara's ornament. "Laksh, she was definitely here. Someone must have taken her," he said urgently, his hawk-like gaze suddenly spotting something on the ground nearby.

"Look, there're footprints. They could lead us to Swara. Let's follow... Ahh...." Sanskar growled again, his pain intensifying.

Laksh grasped Sanskar's hand gently. "Sanskar, don't push yourself. You need rest. I'll search thoroughly and bring you results as soon as possible. Trust me."

Sanskar hesitated briefly, but Laksh pressed on, and eventually, Sanskar reluctantly acquiesced. He had already deduced that it was likely the vampires who had been provoking him lately, and he knew he needed to conserve his energy for the upcoming confrontation.

Accompanied by two guards, Laksh tracked the footprints to an old, weather-beaten wooden house tucked away in a secluded corner of the woods near the southern border, an area with minimal security presence.

"What in the world? How is it that none of us knew about this?" Laksh exclaimed, breaking into the shabby house, but to his dismay, it was completely empty.

As Laksh combed through the surroundings, he stumbled upon pieces of rope and a scarf lying on a sizable wooden bed.

"This is Swara's scarf; I remember seeing her wear it this morning. It appears she was tied up here. But why would someone restrain an unconscious person?" Laksh pondered aloud.

Rubbing his forehead in concentration, he racked his brain to make sense of the situation. Suddenly, his eyes widened with realization as he pieced together what had occurred.

Sanskar stood beneath the running water, fully clothed, letting it soothe his pounding heart and calm his rattled nerves. He refused to let the challenging circumstances overwhelm him; he had to gather himself and bring Swara back.

After an extended time in the shower, feeling marginally relaxed, Sanskar grabbed a towel and dried his head. His attention was drawn to something in the trash bin. He reached inside and retrieved the item.

"What's this..." Sanskar murmured, his gaze falling on the three-inch-long white stick. He turned it over, realizing it was a pregnancy test kit. "And it's positive," he exclaimed, his eyes widening in astonishment.

"Swara is pregnant."