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Within twenty minutes, Mannat came downstairs after getting ready. She wore a peach-colored Anarkali dress—simple in appearance but intricately and expensively designed.
Mannat could probably never afford such a dress in her life. As she descended the stairs, Yug sat at the dining table like a king, surrounded by four servants.
Two female servants came forward to serve him breakfast. The moment Yug saw Mannat, something seemed to shift in his mind. He signaled the servants with his fingers to leave, and all four exited.
While descending, Mannat avoided Yug's gaze, clutching her dress with both hands. Yug kept staring at her intently, as if mentally preparing a lecture for her.
Mannat reached the bottom and stood silently—neither stepping forward nor speaking. Seeing her stand like that, Yug snapped, "You're not a queen to stand there like that. Come here."
Mannat was boiling with anger inside at his tone, but against her will, she walked forward. She wanted to ask about her father. She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could, Yug shouted, "Include yourself among the servants in this house. Got it?"
Hearing such words from Yug hurt Mannat deeply, but ignoring the insult, she spoke, "I want to meet my father."
Yug stood from his chair and started walking toward her. Just as he was about to say something, a guard entered and said, "Sir, Ma'am's family is standing outside."
Hearing her family had come, a smile appeared on Mannat's face—one Yug noticed immediately. Her happiness didn't sit well with him. As Mannat took a step toward the door, Yug said in a sharp voice, "Where do you think you're going?"
Mannat froze. Yug instructed the guard, "Send them in."
The guard obeyed and went to let her family in. Turning to Mannat, Yug warned, "Without my permission, you won't take a single step beyond this threshold. Understood?"
Just then, her father shouted, "And who are you to stop my daughter?"
Yug turned to face Keshav ji, casually placing his hands in his pockets, and replied with arrogance, "I'm her husband. If you don't believe me, ask your daughter."
Keshav ji, seeing Yug's pride, responded, "She's my daughter. I know her better than anyone. I don't need your explanations."
Tears welled up in Mannat's eyes as she looked at her father. She wanted to run into his arms and cry her heart out. But Yug stood between them. Seeing the argument escalate, Mannat moved past Yug and hugged her father tightly, sobbing uncontrollably.
Seeing her cry, Keshav ji gently patted her back and said, "Don't worry. I'm here to take you back."
Hearing those words, Mannat cried even harder. Yug, enraged, came forward, grabbed Mannat's hand, and yanked her away from her father. Grinding his teeth, he said, "Didn't you understand when I said it once? From now on, you will not meet anyone. Got it?"
Meanwhile, Seema ji scanned the house from top to bottom. "What luck this girl has," she whispered. "Married to such a powerful business tycoon. She's truly fortunate." Sujata ji came forward and asked, "Mannat beta, what is all this? Why did you marry without telling anyone? Will you explain?"
As everyone bombarded her with questions, Mannat glanced at Yug. Her eyes reflected countless questions. Pihu stood before her and said, "Yes, di, tell us—why did you marry him? Tell everyone."
Mannat couldn't take it anymore. Standing before her father, she cried, "I want to go with you."
Her words infuriated Yug. Keshav ji placed a hand on her head and said, "Yes, beta, I've come to take you away from this monster."
Yug gripped Mannat's hand tightly and said with a threatening tone, "Seems like you've already forgotten what happened yesterday. If you want your family to return home safely, tell them to leave quietly. Otherwise, I won't give a second warning."
Terrified, Mannat folded her hands before her father and said, "Papa, please go. I'm married now. I need to stay here."
Keshav ji responded, "What marriage? I don't accept any of this. This was a fraud—he tricked you."
Yug smiled and replied, "Whatever the reason, I am your son-in-law. I've been tolerating a lot because of that. Anyone else would've lost control by now. So it's better you leave my house peacefully, or you'll be responsible for what happens to your daughter."
Hearing such words about his daughter, Keshav ji snapped, "How dare you even think of harming her in front of me?"
Yug, equally furious, retorted, "I always do what I say. Shall I give you a demo on your daughter?"
He called the security guards and said, "Make sure they return home safely."
Four to five guards came forward. Watching this, Mannat became so angry that she wanted to slap Yug, but she restrained herself.
Yug dragged her upstairs by the hand. Mannat tried to pull away, shouting, "Do what you want to me—hurt me, make me cry—but leave my family out of this!"
The guards told the family to leave. Keshav ji, feeling helpless, said, "There's no need for that. We're leaving."
Mannat broke free and ran into her father's arms again. She yelled at the guards, "No one will touch them, or you'll see what I'm capable of!"
Folding her hands, she pleaded, "Papa, please go. I beg you. I'll come see you soon."
Keshav ji placed his hand on her head and said, "I know why you married him. I'm the kind of father who couldn't save his daughter from a monster. Please forgive me, beta. I feel helpless."
Mannat replied, "No, Papa. You're not helpless. And you haven't raised a weak daughter."
As she spoke, Yug barked, "Enough with this family drama. Leave now, or I'll have you thrown out!"
Hearing this, Seema ji scoffed, "Let's go. We're not here to be insulted."
She took Pihu's hand and left, followed by Sujata ji. Keshav ji stepped out of the villa, devastated that he couldn't save his daughter from that beast. Once outside, his condition began to worsen. Pihu quickly helped him away.
Back in the villa, Yug dragged Mannat to her room, pushed her onto the bed, and sneered, "You said I made you cry and suffer? Well, seeing you in pain brings me peace."
Mannat stood up from the bed, faced him, and said nothing. Yug, grinding his teeth, shouted, "People don't even dare speak in front of me, and you slapped me?"
He grabbed her wrist, glaring at her. Mannat retorted, "Because that's what you deserved."
Her words only provoked him more. Yug now realized this girl wasn't afraid of him. He grabbed her hair and yanked her close, growling, "You're worth nothing. Yet you dare talk back to me?"
Mannat shot back, "That's the difference between this 'nothing' and you. You can't handle being humbled by someone you consider beneath you."
Yug's grip on her hair tightened. "I can still hear the echo of that slap. I wanted to kill you that day—but I didn't. If I had, I wouldn't have found peace either. And if I let you go, you'd be playing with that man's child—what was his name? Your so-called fiancé. And me? How could I forget that slap?"
Mannat struggled to break free and said, "You want to break me? Humiliate me? Fine, let's see who bends first. I'm not one to give up. My honor and dignity mean everything to me."
Yug let go of her hair and scoffed, "Dignity? Do you even know what that means? Dignity comes with power. And I have that power."
Just then, Shera knocked and said from outside, "Sir, Dadi has summoned you. If you don't come, she'll be here herself."
Hearing Dadi's name, Yug immediately left Mannat's room, rushed into his own, and got ready in a hurry.
It took him ten minutes to get dressed, after which he told Shera, "Let's go—quickly."
To be continue...