CHAPTER 12: Part 2 (CLAIMING THE HORIZON)
Recap:
The kiss was slow, sweet, and filled with a promise that terrified me as much as it thrilled me. In that sunlit room, with a tiger watching us, I forgot about the feud. I forgot about the secrets.
I just wanted to stay in this farmhouse forever.
~MRITYUNJAY (POV)~
The afternoon sun began to mellow into a warm gold as we moved out onto the wide, stone balcony. I had expected Ishika to keep her distance from Saber, but the beast had other plans.
He followed her like a shadow, his massive shoulder brushing against her hip until she sat down on the low outdoor sofa. Immediately, Saber dropped his heavy head onto her lap, pinning her legs down and closing his eyes with a contented huff.
"He really won't leave me alone, will he?" Ishika laughed, her small hands disappearing into the thick fur of Saber's neck.
I leaned against the stone railing, watching them. A strange, sharp pang of jealousy hit me-a ridiculous emotion to feel toward my own pet. "He's a traitor," I grumbled, crossing my arms. "I'm the one who feeds him, but he's acting like you're his long-lost mother."
Ishika looked up, her eyes bright with amusement. "Are you actually jealous of a tiger, Mrityunjay?"
"I don't like sharing, what's mine," I countered, though my lips twitched. I sat on the edge of the sofa, nudging Saber's flank with my boot. "Move over, you oversized rug."
Saber didn't even open an eye. He just let out a low, vibrating purr that made Ishika giggle.
"How did you get him?" she asked softly, her expression turning curious as she looked at the magnificent predator. "He doesn't feel like a 'pet' you just buy. There's a story here, isn't there?"
I looked at the tiger, and for a moment, the farmhouse faded away, replaced by the scent of dry brush and the sound of a gunshot.
I chose my words carefully. She didn't need to know about the blood on my hands or the business I ran at night. She only needed to know the boy.
"My father," I began, my voice turning flat. "When I was ten, Abhijeet decided it was time to take me on a Shikar-a hunting trip. He thought I was old enough to see how our family 'conquered' nature."
Ishika's hand stilled on Saber's head.
"He wasn't hunting for food. He was hunting for a trophy," I continued. "He found a tigress. She was beautiful, fierce... and she was protecting a small cave. My father didn't hesitate. He shot her right in front of me. To him, it was just another wall hanging. To me, it was a tragedy."
Ishika's eyes filled with a sudden, sharp sadness. "That's horrible. You were just a child."
"I ran to the cave while he was busy celebrating with his friends," I said. "Inside, I found a tiny, shivering ball of fur. Saber. He was barely a week old. He looked at me, and I saw a reflection of my own life-a motherless creature in a house full of people who only cared about power."
I looked toward the horizon, where the fort loomed in the distance.
"Abhijeet wanted to leave him there or sell him to a private collector. We were arguing in the middle of the camp when Bade Rana Sa arrived. My grandfather had come to oversee the end of the expedition."
"What did he do?" Ishika whispered.
"He looked at the dead tigress, then at my father, and finally at me, clutching that tiny cub to my chest. My grandfather has always been a man of few words and he is complex, but he values what's right over what's easy. He told the camp, 'A man is measured by what he chooses to keep alive, not by what he destroys. Do what is right.'"
I smiled faintly at the memory. "I looked my grandfather in the eye and told him I was taking the cub home. I told him if my father could take a life, I had the right to save one. My grandfather nodded. He told my father to stand down and commanded that the cub be brought to the Haveli. He said, 'If the boy wants to raise a king, let him.'"
Ishika was looking at me with an expression of profound, soul-deep understanding.
"You saved him," she murmured, leaning her head back against the cushion. "You both grew up together. Two kings in a palace."
"Something like that," I said, finally reaching out to stroke Saber's back. "He's been with me through everything. He's the only one who doesn't care about the Rathore name or the money."
Ishika reached out and took my hand, squeezing it tight. "I think the ten-year-old boy did a very good job, Mrityunjay."
I looked at her, then at the tiger pinned to her lap. I didn't tell her about the underworld. I didn't tell her that Saber was trained to protect me from assassins. I just let her believe in the boy who saved a cub.
For now, that was enough.
To Be Continued...