The next morning, Bani woke up to find herself alone in the room. Sitting up, she asked herself, "How did I get here?"
Just then, the bathroom door opened, and Reyansh stepped out. He was wearing only a towel. Bani's gaze lingered on him for a few moments before she quickly looked away and lay back down.
Walking toward her, Reyansh said, "Worst morning, baby."
Hearing this, Bani turned to look at him and remembered something she'd said before. Smiling bitterly, she replied, "Worst morning indeed."
With that, she got out of bed and headed toward the bathroom. But before she could go any further, Reyansh grabbed her hand and pulled her back toward him. Caught off guard, she stumbled into his chest, and they both fell onto the bed.
At that moment, Bani found herself on top of Reyansh. She shouted, "What are you doing?"
But Reyansh quickly flipped her over, pinning her beneath him. Grabbing her cheek with one hand, he said in a cold tone, "Keep your voice down. You're not in a position to raise your voice at me."
With that, he let go of her cheek. His grip had been so tight that Bani's eyes welled up with tears.
Then, he buried his face in her neck, taking deep breaths. His closeness made Bani extremely uncomfortable, especially since he was only wearing a towel.
Leaning into her ear, he whispered, "Your scent drives me crazy, baby. You know what? You're my most precious possession, and you'll always be mine. I'll never let you go."
Hearing this, Bani clenched her fists in anger. Reyansh lifted his head so their faces were just inches apart, their noses touching.
Looking into his eyes, Bani said firmly, "I'm not a possession."
Reyansh's lips curled into a devilish smile. Staring right into her eyes, he said, "You tell me, then. What are you? Every night, you're in my arms, in my bed."
He paused briefly, then added, "And all without any commitment."
Hearing this, Bani's eyes filled with tears, and Reyansh's devilish smile grew wider as he saw them.
Taking one of her tears onto his finger, he said, "Ah, your tears… you know, I love your tears. I want you to cry, but only because of me."
With that, he kissed her eyes, then got up and walked toward the closet without looking back.
Bani lay there on the bed, her eyes no longer wet with tears. What remained was pure hatred. She glanced toward the closet, then headed to the bathroom.
Bani stood under the shower as cold water cascaded over her, but inside, she burned with a fire that refused to be extinguished.
She spoke to herself, "Tonight, you'll find out what Bani Mehra is capable of. I won't let you go, Reyansh. Just one more night, and then your chapter in my life will be closed forever."
An hour later, Bani stepped out of the shower and went straight to the closet. She was wrapped in a bathrobe.
Sliding open her side of the closet, she pulled out a small Bluetooth device hidden among her clothes. This device was always connected to Kabir, and it was nearly impossible to trace.
Placing the Bluetooth earpiece in her ear, Bani said, "Bani reporting."
Kabir's voice came through, "Bani, everything alright?"
"Yes, Kabir," she replied. "I just wanted to tell you that I'm ready to do what you asked."
Kabir smiled on the other end, "I knew you'd pull through. Just don't lose to him."
With a steely tone, Bani said, "I won't. I used to do this out of necessity, but now I'm doing it by choice. And when Bani Mehra does something by choice, she never loses."
Kabir replied, "Good. Vinit and I will be at the cruise party tonight. You do your part, and we'll do ours. And one more thing—keep the Bluetooth on and stay connected."
"Okay," Bani said before removing the Bluetooth and getting dressed. After a quick meal, she returned to her room.
Bani rarely spoke to anyone, which led people to think she was arrogant. But she didn't care. Her only focus was completing her mission and getting out of here as soon as possible.
In the evening, two girls brought Bani her dress. Reyansh had already told her about the cruise party.
Dressed in a stunning black gown, Bani sat at the dressing table. The gown had thin straps, was backless, and had a deep neckline in the front. Her hair was styled over her right shoulder, with the left side pinned back with a diamond clip. She wore matte red lipstick, smoky eye makeup that highlighted her grey eyes, long earrings, a bracelet, and the ring Reyansh had given her.
Bani looked breathtakingly beautiful. As she admired herself in the mirror, lost in thought, there was a knock on the door.
Snapped back to reality, Bani opened the door to find a maid standing there. "Ma'am, sir has asked for you downstairs."
Taking a deep breath, Bani headed downstairs.
As soon as Reyansh saw Bani, he couldn't take his eyes off her. He muttered softly, "This beauty is all mine."
Bani walked up to him and asked, "Shall we?"
Taking her hand, Reyansh replied, "Of course, baby."
They soon arrived at the cruise party. The guests were a mix of businessmen and mafia figures. The theme was all-black.
Seeing the scene, Bani thought to herself, "It feels like I've entered hell."
Reyansh led her to a corner and whispered in her ear, "Stay here, baby. I'll be back."
With that, he walked away. As soon as he left, Bani discreetly reconnected her Bluetooth earpiece in her right ear.
"Where are you?" she asked quietly.
The response she heard left her stunned. She began scanning the crowd, and then her eyes fell on a man who surprised her even more.
Kabir, from the other end, replied, "Wherever I am, I can see you."
Bani's gaze continued to sweep the room. "We've changed our appearance," Kabir said. "You won't recognize us easily."
Frustrated, Bani asked, "Tell me, where are you and Vinit?"
"Alright," Kabir said. "Look at the bar counter. The bartender with the beard—that's Vinit."
Bani glanced over and saw Vinit blink at her. "Okay, got it. And you?"
"I'm the waiter on your left, a little ways off. The one in the black turban, looking very Punjabi," Kabir said.
Bani looked over and saw Kabir blink as well.
"Got it," she said. "Now, where is he?"
Kabir replied, "Wait a moment. Vinit will get him to you."
Bani then asked, "Where did Reyansh go?"
Kabir answered, "He's in the basement, making a deal. Bani, go to the table behind you."
Following Kabir's instructions, Bani walked over to the table. Kabir continued, "There's a flower vase there. What you're looking for is inside."
Bani discreetly retrieved the item from the vase and whispered, "Got it."
"Good," Kabir replied. "Now I'll take care of my part."
Meanwhile, in the basement, Mr. Jackson said to Reyansh, "So, we can sign the deal?"
"Of course, we can," Reyansh replied.
Just then, a waiter accidentally spilled wine on Reyansh.
Flustered, the waiter apologized, "I'm so sorry, sir. It was a mistake."
Mr. Jackson, furious, yelled, "What the hell? Are you blind?"
While Mr. Jackson was fuming, a strange smile appeared on Reyansh's face. In a cold tone, he said, "I'll be back."
With that, Reyansh headed upstairs. He wiped the wine off his blazer and leaned against the cruise railing, staring at the moon.
Suddenly, he said, "You're here, baby."
Turning around, he saw Bani standing there, holding a gun aimed straight at him.
Seeing the gun, Reyansh's eyes widened in surprise. Bani coldly said, "Your time is over, Reyansh Oberoi."
Reyansh, emotionless, responded, "You really think this gun can take down Reyansh Oberoi?"
Bani replied, "Arrogance won't save you. You're still just a man, and a bullet will prove that soon enough."
Reyansh took a deep breath and said, "You betrayed me, Bani. I warned you—I hate betrayal."
Bani, filled with rage, snapped, "I'm just doing my duty. You've committed so many wrongs. And tonight, you were about to do something even worse."
"So you were planning to stop me. But now your plan has changed—you're going to kill me instead," Reyansh said calmly.
Surprised, Bani asked, "How did you know?"
With a devilish smile, Reyansh replied, "I know everything, Bani."
Then he began laughing maniacally. The loud music from the cruise party drowned out the sound.
Laughing, Reyansh said, "Our first meeting might have been a coincidence, but after that, every encounter, every step you took, was part of my plan. I wanted to see what my little baby would do, and today, I've seen it. Although, I didn't expect you'd be trying to kill me."
Bani retorted, "Then why didn't you stop me earlier?"
Reyansh smirked devilishly. "The thrill of hide and seek, baby. There's nothing quite like it."
Then, his expression turned serious. "I warned you not to betray me, didn't I?"
Gathering herself, Bani responded, "I've only been doing my duty, and I won't back down today. I'll kill you, and finally, I'll be free of you."
Without any emotion, Reyansh replied, "You betrayed me because I let you. Remember this, Bani: if I survive, no one will be able to save you from me. And one more thing—you'll never be free from me. My mark on you runs too deep."
Bani screamed, "Enough!"
With that, she pulled the trigger. The bullet hit Reyansh square in the chest, near his heart. She walked up to him and declared, "You're finished."
Reyansh, even while wounded, pulled her close and whispered something in her ear that left her stunned. Before she could react, Reyansh staggered back, collided with the railing, and fell into the water below.
Bani screamed, "No!"
Just then, Kabir and Vineet arrived.
Kabir grabbed her hand and said, "Let's go, Bani. We need to leave before Reyansh's men find out what happened." He began pulling her away, and as they left, Bani looked back and muttered, "I've lost."