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Veeresh sat alone in his study, the city lights of Mumbai stretching endlessly beyond the glass. His glass of whiskey caught the reflection of his face — sharp, cold, and unyielding. Yet inside, a storm raged, one fueled not by his enemies, but by the woman who had tamed his darkness.

He thought again of Poornima’s words in London:

> “Veeresh… don’t hurt Simon. He may have done wrong, but his children are young. I don’t want them to lose their father.”

Veeresh’s jaw clenched. A bitter laugh escaped him.

> How could she think good for him?

The same man who cheated her, tried to kill her… and almost destroyed everything she loved?

He remembered the early days — Simon’s lies, the betrayal, the bullets fired that nearly ended her life. Rage bubbled beneath his skin, but he forced himself to take a deep breath. He had made a promise to Ruby.

> “I promised you, Ruby,” he whispered, voice low but firm. “I won’t touch him… only a warning. That’s all. You wanted him alive for his kids… and I’ll honor that.”

Veeresh picked up his phone. His thumb hovered over the screen before typing the message:

> “Consider this your last warning. One more step against her, and you’ll regret it for the rest of your life. Stay away from Poornima Chowdary and her world. – V.D.”

He hit send and exhaled slowly. A part of him still burned with fury, but another part — the part Poornima had awakened — restrained him. Mercy wasn’t weakness; it was the gift of the woman he loved.

Leaning back in his chair, Veeresh thought about the moment he had first realized Poornima had changed him. He remembered the hospital in London, her fragile hand in his, her small smiles teasing him even as she fought for her life.

> She made me want to fight for someone else, not just power.

She made me care about life beyond blood and fear.

She made me… human again.

A faint smile tugged at the corners of his lips, rare and genuine. The underworld king who ruled with an iron fist now carried a new strength — one born not of vengeance or cruelty, but of love and devotion.

Veeresh raised his glass to the night sky, letting the amber liquid burn its way down, and whispered into the silence:

> “You survived him, Ruby… and you survived me. I won’t let anyone harm you now. Not ever.”

Outside, Mumbai thrived, ignorant of the storm within its most feared ruler.

Inside, Veeresh Deewan, don, protector, and newly awakened lover, sat in silence — plotting, watching, and waiting for the next move… while carrying the quiet, unshakable truth: Poornima had changed everything.

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