Chapter 11 — The Ruthless Decision

The study room was dimly lit.

Veeresh stood near the window, his expression unreadable as he stared into the darkness outside.

The words Poornima had thrown at him continued to echo in his mind.

I hate you.

I will never forgive you.

One day, you will understand my pain.

Veeresh reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette.

He lit it slowly, taking a long drag before exhaling the smoke into the quiet room.

A few moments later, the door opened.

Mr. Qureshi walked inside.

He looked at his son for a moment before closing the door behind him.

Mr. Qureshi: "Son, what have you decided?"

Veeresh remained silent for a few seconds.

He took another drag from the cigarette before finally turning toward his father.

His expression had changed.

The guilt was still there somewhere beneath the surface, but the ruthless man everyone knew had returned.

Veeresh: "I am not leaving her."

Mr. Qureshi studied him carefully.

Mr. Qureshi: "Even after everything she said?"

Veeresh gave a cold, almost emotionless smile.

Veeresh: "She can hate me."

He took another drag.

Veeresh: "I have no problem with that, Papa."

Mr. Qureshi raised an eyebrow.

Veeresh: "But leaving her is never going to happen."

His voice was firm.

There was no hesitation in it.

Mr. Qureshi: "She has made it very clear that she doesn't want this marriage."

Veeresh looked toward the door.

Veeresh: "I know."

Mr. Qureshi: "Then what are you planning to do?"

Veeresh slowly turned back toward him.

His eyes were cold.

Possessive.

Certain.

Veeresh: "She is my obsession."

Mr. Qureshi remained silent.

Veeresh: "I have craved her for five years."

His father's expression changed slightly.

Veeresh looked down at the cigarette between his fingers.

Veeresh: "Five years, Papa."

He exhaled slowly.

Veeresh: "I waited. I watched from a distance. I kept myself away because I knew the time wasn't right."

He looked up again.

Veeresh: "And now that she is finally here, you expect me to simply let her walk away?"

Mr. Qureshi studied his son.

He knew that expression.

He had seen it before.

The same expression Veeresh wore when he had already made a decision and nothing in the world could change his mind.

Mr. Qureshi: "What if she tries to leave?"

Veeresh's jaw tightened.

For a moment, silence filled the room.

Then he answered in a low voice.

Veeresh: "I will pull her back."

Mr. Qureshi looked at him carefully.

Veeresh: "I will pull her back and cage her with me forever."

His father's eyes narrowed.

Mr. Qureshi: "Veeresh."

Veeresh looked directly at him.

Veeresh: "She is not leaving me."

There was no anger in his voice.

That was what made it more dangerous.

It was certainty.

Absolute certainty.

But after a moment, his expression softened slightly.

Veeresh: "I am ready to give her time."

Mr. Qureshi remained quiet.

Veeresh: "I will wait for her."

He looked toward the ceiling, knowing Poornima was somewhere upstairs.

Veeresh: "She can scream at me. She can hate me. She can call me every name she wants."

A faint smile touched his lips.

Veeresh: "But I will still be here."

Mr. Qureshi stared at his son.

For a moment, he did not see the son he had raised.

He saw the ruthless politician the world feared.

The man who never backed down.

The man who never allowed anyone to take away what he had decided belonged in his life.

But beneath that ruthlessness was something his father had rarely seen.

Obsession.

Veeresh had wanted Poornima for five years.

And now that she was finally his wife, he had no intention of letting her go.

Mr. Qureshi slowly shook his head.

Mr. Qureshi: "You know she may never forgive you."

Veeresh looked at the cigarette burning between his fingers.

Veeresh: "Then I will spend the rest of my life waiting for the day she does."

He took one final drag before extinguishing the cigarette.

Veeresh: "But I am not leaving her."

Mr. Qureshi looked at his son for a long moment.

He knew Veeresh.

When he made a decision, there was no turning back.

And this time, his decision was not about politics.

Not about power.

Not about reputation.

It was about Poornima.

The one person who had managed to make the ruthless Veeresh Qureshi willing to wait.