chapter 12

Chapter ElevenWounds That Don’t BleedIt happened faster than either of them expected.The second ambush came not in the desert, not at the gates, but inside.Inside her haveli.Inside her sanctuary.It started with a scream.Not hers.Saira, the young maid, barely seventeen, had found a body by the north well. One of the guards — throat cut, uniform stolen. And by the time Maya reached the hallway—The attacker was already inside.But he wasn’t after her.He was after Rani.She had just returned from the strategy room. Hair still damp from a cold shower. Saree draped, earrings in her palm. Barefoot.She stepped into her chambers and paused.Something wasn’t right.The door had been locked. But the scent—Gun oil. Leather. Blood.She moved like a whisper. Reached beneath her bed for the pistol.Too slow.The attacker lunged from behind the curtain — tall, silent, armed with a silenced blade.But before he could reach her—Dev appeared.He didn’t shout.Didn’t hesitate.He tackled the man mid-air, the force sending them both crashing into the mirrored dressing table. Glass exploded. The room screamed.Rani turned, gun raised—But Dev was already on the ground.Bleeding.She fired twice. One bullet to the attacker’s back. The other straight through his skull.The man dropped. Lifeless.Dev didn’t move.“Dev.”No answer.“Dev—!”She dropped beside him, pressing her hand to his chest.Warm. Wet. Blood soaking through his shirt like ink.His eyes fluttered. Opened.She pressed harder. “Don’t move. Don’t talk.”“Too late,” he murmured, voice hoarse. “I think I’ve been stabbed.”“You have. And you’re not allowed to die.”“Is that a royal order?”She looked down at him — his lips trembling with a crooked smirk, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth.And something snapped inside her.Not rage.Not grief.Just raw, terrifying fear.The room spun into motion after that.Maya burst in, shouted for the medic. Two guards dragged the corpse out. Rani didn’t let anyone touch Dev.Only her.Her hands were shaking — for the first time in years.She pressed her scarf to his side. He winced.“I didn’t know you could bleed,” he whispered, trying to laugh.She didn’t smile. “You’re not allowed to be clever. Save your breath.”He stared at her, eyes starting to lose focus. “You care.”She said nothing.“I thought you’d just… watch me die. Say something poetic.”“You think too highly of yourself.”“No. Just of you.”She finally met his eyes then — and in them, he saw it.That one thing she always buried under silk and silence.Panic.Hours later.The medic had stabilized him. The bleeding had stopped. The blade had missed his lung by an inch.Rani sat beside his bed.Still in the same clothes. Still holding his blood on her fingers like it belonged there.Dev opened his eyes again. Weak. But alive.“Did we win?” he asked.She looked at him. “You took a knife to the ribs, Raichand. That’s not winning.”He smiled. “Still breathing.”“Barely.”They sat in silence.Then, his voice dropped. Honest. Bare.“I didn’t think I’d… react that fast. I didn’t even think. Just—moved.”She nodded slowly. “That’s what loyalty does.”“Was it loyalty?”Her eyes flickered. “You tell me.”He turned his head, wincing. “I didn’t do it to prove anything.”“I know.”“I just didn’t want him to touch you.”The room held its breath.Rani didn’t blink.She reached forward, brushed a strand of hair from his forehead.“You’re a fool,” she said softly.“But yours?” he asked, almost broken.Her voice caught.Then: “Don’t ask for things I can’t give.”Dev closed his eyes again. “I wasn’t asking. I was hoping.”She sat back, spine straight, heart unsteady.“I don’t do hope,” she whispered. “I only do revenge.”“Then let me be the weapon,” he said, drifting into sleep.She watched him in silence.Not a queen.Not a ruler.Just a woman who almost lost something she refused to name.Outside the door, Maya stood listening.Not spying.Just listening.And for the first time…She wasn’t sure who she’d protect if war broke between them.(Nxt)