Chapter 19: Shadows Closing In

Avni’s pulse hammered in her ears as she stepped out of the director’s office. The sterile hospital corridors felt colder, the walls closing in on her. A formal complaint? Anonymous? Someone wanted to ruin her, and she had a sinking feeling this was only the beginning.

She barely made it to the stairwell before her phone vibrated. Another message.

"You should’ve stayed in your place, Dr. Avni. Now, it’s too late."

Her fingers tightened around the device. Every nerve in her body screamed at her to do something, but what?

"Something wrong, Avni?"

She turned sharply. Reyaansh stood a few steps away, his hands in his pockets, his dark eyes scanning her face. He wasn’t asking out of concern—he already knew something was happening.

"You tell me," she shot back. "You seem to know a lot about my enemies."

His lips curled into a smirk, but there was no humor in it. "You assume I’m not one of them?"

She took a step closer, frustration bubbling to the surface. "Are you?"

He tilted his head, his gaze dropping to her lips for the briefest second before meeting her eyes again. "If I were, you wouldn’t be standing here, would you?"

There it was again—that maddening, cryptic way he spoke, like he was dangling a half-truth in front of her just to see how desperate she’d be to reach for it.

Avni exhaled sharply, forcing herself to focus. "I don’t have time for your games, Reyaansh." She held up her phone. "Someone is threatening me. Someone wants me out. And I need to know why."

His smirk faded. His jaw clenched.

"Then let’s find out," he said simply.

She blinked. "What?"

He stepped closer, invading her space, his presence a dark cloud that sent a shiver down her spine. "You’re not going to win this by playing fair, Avni. Whoever’s behind this? They don’t want you suspended. They want you destroyed."

A lump formed in her throat. "And why do you care?"

His fingers brushed against her wrist—barely a touch, but enough to make her heart stutter.

"Because," he murmured, his voice dangerously low, "I don’t like it when people try to take what’s mine."

The air between them crackled. His words. His touch. The way his dark gaze pinned her in place.

"You don’t own me," she whispered, her voice betraying how breathless she suddenly felt.

His fingers trailed higher, a deliberate, slow movement. "Not yet."

Her breath hitched. For a second, the threat hanging over her disappeared, replaced by something equally dangerous—him.

But Avni wasn’t foolish enough to fall into his trap.

She yanked her hand back, stepping away. "Stay out of this, Reyaansh."

His expression darkened, amusement flickering into something colder. "Too late for that, sweetheart."

And as she turned on her heel and walked away, she knew one thing for certain—she was in deeper than she ever intended to be.

And Reyaansh? He wasn’t about to let her go.