Chapter 81 — The Room That Still Smelled Like Her

That night, the Dreewan mansion felt lifeless.

No one spoke loudly.

No one touched the food laid untouched downstairs.

Even the walls seemed quieter.

But inside Veeresh’s room—

everything was collapsing.

The moment he entered, the silence hit him brutally.

Because the room still smelled like her.

Her perfume.

Her shampoo.

The faint scent of the medicines she hated taking.

Everything was still there.

Nothing had changed.

Except her absence.

Veeresh stood near the bed for a long moment before finally sitting down slowly.

And that’s when he saw it—

her black thread lying near the pillow.

Probably removed absentmindedly before sleeping the previous night.

His fingers trembled while picking it up.

A memory hit instantly.

“Never remove this, beta.”

His mother’s voice echoed in his mind.

And suddenly everything became unbearable.

Veeresh bent forward, gripping the thread tightly in his fist.

He remembered her sleeping peacefully in his arms.

The way she clung to his shirt.

The way she called him Salvatore when she was emotional.

The way she laughed while feeding him halwa just hours ago.

Hours.

That was all.

A few hours ago she was alive.

Talking.

Breathing.

Smiling.

And now—

nothing.

A broken sound escaped his throat before he buried his face into his hands.

For years Veeresh believed pain made people stronger.

But this pain—

this was destruction.

Pure destruction.

His breathing became uneven as memories kept attacking him one after another.

Her first night at the penthouse.

Her panic attacks.

Her saying: “I felt safe with you.”

Her asking him: “Can someone like you love?”

And then—

the last thing she did.

Saving him.

Veeresh shut his eyes tightly, tears slipping through anyway.

“She pushed me away…”

His voice cracked.

“She chose me to live.”

The guilt tore through him viciously.

Because for the first time in his life—

someone loved him enough to die for him.

And he couldn’t save her back.

He looked toward her side of the bed slowly.

Empty.

Cold.

His chest tightened painfully.

“She was finally starting to heal…” he whispered.

A pause.

“And I couldn’t even give her peace.”

Veeresh leaned back against the headboard, exhausted beyond words.

For the first time in years—

Salvatore Dreewan cried without hiding it.

Not out of weakness.

But because the woman who became the center of his existence was suddenly gone—

leaving behind only silence, memories, and a room that still felt like her.

Chapter 82 — Every Memory Hurt

Veeresh sat alone in the dark room, unable to sleep.

The city lights outside flickered through the glass walls of the balcony, but inside him everything felt empty.

Silent.

Dead.

His eyes slowly moved toward the side of the bed where Poornima always slept curled against him.

And memories began attacking him one after another.

—

The club.

The first time he saw her properly.

Black strapless gown.

A glass in her hand.

Pain hidden behind arrogance.

And the way she looked directly into his eyes and called him—

Salvatore.

A small broken smile appeared on Veeresh’s lips through tears.

Even then she was fearless.

Even then she walked toward danger without hesitation.

He remembered her asking him shamelessly:

“Are you virgin?”

Despite everything, a painful laugh escaped him.

“She was crazy…” he whispered.

But that same reckless girl had trusted him with her most broken night.

—

Then came the memory of that penthouse night.

Her tears.

Her saying: “Make me forget everything today.”

At that time, he thought it was desire.

Now he understood.

She was drowning long before he entered her life.

And somehow, in his arms, she had found silence for the first time.

Veeresh shut his eyes tightly.

“She slept peacefully with me…”

That thought alone destroyed him.

Because she had spent years surviving nightmares and panic—

yet slept safely beside the very man who first approached her with revenge in his heart.

—

Then their engagement.

The chaos.

The way he walked onto the stage and kissed her before everyone.

The shock in her eyes.

Her whispering angrily: “Salvatore, what are you doing?”

And him answering: “Claiming my prey.”

Back then it was ego.

Possession.

Today he understood it differently.

She was never prey.

She was the only person who slowly made the devil inside him feel human again.

—

Then the truth.

The real truth.

Poornima standing with a gun as a child.

Broken.

Crying.

Shooting her uncle and cousin after learning they destroyed Zoya.

His sister.

Her best friend.

She didn’t kill for pleasure.

She killed because she loved fiercely.

Because she couldn’t bear injustice.

And what did the world give her for that?

Shock treatments.

Isolation.

Beatings.

Memory destruction.

Fear.

Veeresh’s chest tightened violently.

“She suffered for protecting your sister…”

he whispered to himself bitterly.

“And I made her suffer more.”

—

Then came the last memory.

The truck.

Her eyes widening.

Her pushing him out without thinking.

Not herself.

Not fear.

Only him.

She saved him instinctively.

Even after he hurt her.

Even after she doubted him.

Even after everything.

Veeresh buried his face into his hands as tears finally broke out again.

“She chose me…”

His shoulders trembled slightly.

“She saved me.”

And that was the cruelest part.

Poornima spent her whole life protecting people she loved—

Zoya.

Her brother.

Him.

And every single time—

she destroyed herself in the process.

Veeresh looked toward the ceiling blankly.

For the first time in his life, Salvatore Dreewan understood what true helplessness felt like.

Not enemies.

Not blood.

Not revenge.

But losing the one person who made him want to become better—

just when he finally learned how to love her properly.

Chapter 83 — The Devil After Her

Two years passed.

But Veeresh Dreewan was no longer the same man.

The man who once smiled rarely had disappeared completely.

And the devil people feared?

He became worse.

Colder.

More ruthless.

More untouchable.

After Poornima’s disappearance, something inside him permanently shut down.

The mafia expanded across countries now.

Italy.

Dubai.

Singapore.

London.

Salvatore Dreewan’s name became more dangerous than before.

People whispered it carefully.

Enemies feared him.

Businessmen obeyed him.

And the underworld knew one thing clearly—

after losing his wife, Veeresh stopped showing mercy.

Even in business, he became brutal.

Rathore Industries eventually collapsed completely under Dreewan control.

And Mr. Rathore?

Veeresh made sure he rotted in prison after Samuel uncovered the truth behind the accident.

The truck crash was planned.

Ordered.

Because Rathore believed if Poornima lost Veeresh, she would break completely and return to him forever.

Instead—

he lost his daughter forever.

And Veeresh destroyed everything he owned for it.

—

But despite all the power surrounding him now…

Veeresh remained empty.

Many women tried entering his life over those two years.

Models.

Socialites.

Daughters of powerful families.

Even dangerous women from mafia circles.

Beautiful women.

Smart women.

Women who wanted Salvatore Dreewan.

But Veeresh never touched any of them.

Never looked twice.

Because no woman could take the place Poornima had unknowingly carved inside him.

And honestly—

he didn’t want anyone else to.

That place belonged only to her.

Still.

Always.

Sometimes Samuel would carefully suggest:

“Sir… you should move on.”

And Veeresh would simply look at him once.

Cold enough to end the conversation forever.

Because how could he explain it?

Poornima wasn’t just someone he loved.

She became part of how he existed.

And losing her felt like surviving with half a soul.

—

Every night, Veeresh sat alone on the penthouse balcony.

The same balcony where she once slept peacefully inside while he smoked outside thinking about revenge.

Now revenge meant nothing.

He would sit there silently, looking at the stars above the city.

And sometimes—

he talked to her like she could hear him.

“I hope you’re happy wherever you are.”

A pause.

Then quieter:

“Why did you save me, Poons?”

The question never stopped haunting him.

Why him?

Why did she choose his life over hers?

Sometimes he imagined she was still alive somewhere.

Sometimes he hated himself for hoping.

And sometimes—

he simply missed her so badly that breathing felt exhausting.

He still drank occasionally.

But not the way he used to.

Because Poornima once told him while taking away his glass:

“Drink… but not every day, Salvatore.”

And strangely—

he listened.

Even after she was gone.

That was the power she still held over him.

The devil who terrified the world still obeyed a woman who no longer existed beside him.

And maybe that was the tragedy of Veeresh Dreewan—

He conquered everything after losing her.

Except the emptiness she left behind.

Chapter 84 — The Girl in Scotland

Scotland.

Far away from the chaos of India, mafia wars, revenge, and memories soaked in blood—

life moved differently.

Quietly.

Cold winds brushed across the green hills while laughter echoed through the Roy family estate.

A young woman was running across the garden with a group of children, laughing as one of them almost fell while trying to catch her.

“Poons! Wait!” the little girl shouted.

Poornima turned back immediately, laughing brightly.

“No cheating, Emma!”

The sunlight fell softly over her face.

Peaceful.

Alive.

So different from the girl who once woke up screaming from nightmares.

From the balcony nearby, the Roy family watched her with silent relief.

Mrs. Aparna Roy smiled emotionally.

“She laughs freely now,” she whispered.

Mr. Roy nodded slowly.

“After everything… she deserves this much.”

Two years earlier, they had found her unconscious near the forest area after the accident.

Barely alive.

Broken.

Burned injuries across parts of her body.

No memory except one thing—

her name.

Poornima.

Nothing else remained.

No family.

No past.

No Veeresh.

The doctors called it severe trauma-induced memory loss after physical and neurological shock.

At first she barely spoke.

Barely reacted.

But the Roy family slowly rebuilt her life piece by piece.

Without pressure.

Without forcing memories.

And eventually—

she started smiling again.

Living again.

Now she worked with children in Scotland while helping Aparna Roy in her café and bakery business.

Simple life.

Quiet life.

Safe life.

Maybe the kind of life she was always supposed to have.

“Poons!” Aparna called from inside the house. “Come here!”

Poornima immediately ran inside.

“Yes aunty?”

Aparna placed a plate in front of her dramatically.

“Your favourite pasta.”

Poornima’s entire face lit up instantly.

“AUNTY!”

She hugged her tightly before immediately sitting down excitedly.

“Thank you!”

The Roy family smiled watching her happily eat.

No panic attacks.

No fear in her eyes.

No sleeping pills hidden beside her bed.

Just warmth.

Just peace.

Poornima ate happily while talking nonstop about random things from her day.

And none of them had the heart to remind her—

that somewhere far away, a man still looked at the stars every night wondering whether she was alive.

Because here—

she was finally breathing without pain.

Chapter 85 — A New Beginning

The next morning, the Roy household was filled with excitement.

Poornima came running into the dining room holding a letter in her hand.

“Aunty!” she called excitedly.

Aparna Roy looked up from her tea.

“What happened, Poons?”

Poornima's face was glowing with happiness.

“I have been selected for an internship in India!”

Aparna immediately smiled.

“Really?”

Poornima nodded enthusiastically.

“Yes! In Dreewan Industries.”

“That's wonderful news!” Aparna said, standing up and hugging her.

Poornima hugged her back happily.

“I can't believe it, aunty. I worked so hard for this.”

Aparna held her shoulders and looked at her proudly.

“You deserve it.”

Then she asked,

“You will be able to manage everything there?”

Poornima nodded confidently.

“Yes, aunty.”

“Good.”

Aparna smiled warmly.

“I am happy for you.”

Poornima's excitement only grew.

“Thank you, aunty!”

“Now,” Aparna said, clapping her hands together, “let us pack everything for you.”

Poornima laughed.

“Okay!”

The entire day went by in preparations.

They packed clothes, documents, books, her laptop, gifts, and all the little things she wanted to take with her.

Poornima kept talking about her plans, the internship, and how excited she was to finally work in a large company.

The Roy family listened with smiles on their faces.

By evening, her luggage was neatly packed and ready.

Aparna looked at the suitcases and then at Poornima.

“All the best, Poons.”

Poornima smiled brightly.

“Thank you, aunty.”

Aparna hugged her once more.

“You will grow. I know you will.”

Poornima's eyes sparkled with excitement.

“I'll make you proud.”

“You already have.”

Poornima laughed softly.

For her, this wasn't just a trip.

It was a new opportunity.

A new adventure.

A new chapter waiting to begin.

And as she looked at her packed bags, she couldn't stop smiling.

She was happy.

Ready for India.

Ready for her internship.

Ready for whatever came next.