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Diya was now the face of a famous French perfume called Devi - the embodiment of a fierce, feminine goddess. She was also the muse of an eccentric French designer who had come out of retirement to design clothes especially for her. It was safe to assume that she was one of the most successful Indian models to hit the international runway.
I frowned even harder and tried to focus on the document on my screen, but I was plagued by a strange restlessness. When I glanced out of the window, I realised that it was close to dusk. It was the perfect time for a ride. The sands would be cooler now and I knew Pasha, my Arabian horse, was waiting to be exercised. None of my stable boys could handle him for too long because - to put it bluntly - Pasha was a brat. He was more snooty about his pedigree than even my grandmother and wouldn’t tolerate being ridden by anyone but me.
I rang for the butler and asked him to have Pasha saddled and ready for me, and fifteen minutes later, I was galloping across the Thar desert, trying to outrun my demons.
By the time I brought Pasha to a halt on the crest of a dune, we were both out of breath. I panted heavily as I stared into the beauty of the white sands at dusk. I had travelled all over the world, but no other place called to me as the desert did. I could never settle in Europe like so many other Indian royals had done because I was a desi through and through. I needed to see the vast expanse of the desert from my window each night to know that all was right in my world.
It had taken blood and tears to hold onto the view in front of me, and I could never give it up for the pleasures of the French Riviera.
Pasha tossed his head to let me know he was bored of standing in one place, but I held him steady because I could see something moving in the sand in the distance. It could be nothing, but I knew from experience that anything that moved stealthily in the dusk across the desert towards my land had to be bad news. And I knew how to get rid of unwelcome guests.
As I watched, the figure - a woman - scrambled across the sand, fell and forced herself to get back on her feet. She was running from something, that was for sure because she kept looking back as she ran. And to my surprise, I spotted a couple of quad bikes chasing after her.
They had come from the direction of Ayush Goel’s mansion. It was ironic that his land bordered mine, but that thought spurred me into action. From what I had heard, Ayush liked to hunt his women. He preferred the thrill of the chase to a more classic seduction. Not on my watch, I swore, as I tapped Pasha in the flanks to signal him to go faster.
The bastards on the quad bike had surrounded the woman and were dismounting slowly.
I was too far to see her expression, but she had to be terrified.
Pasha and I galloped to her rescue, but we were still too far to do anything.
One of the men reached out his hand to grab the woman who was standing very still as the men circled around her. She slashed at him wildly with her free hand. It was the act of a cornered animal, with no skill or technique, but it worked.
I was too far away to see the blade in her hand, but I knew it had to be sharp and deadly because he fell to the ground clutching at his neck as his body convulsed. The rest of the attackers backed away as she swung her blade around wildly, heading back to their quad bikes.
To my horror, they pulled out swords from under the seats of their quad bikes and advanced on her again. Her wild hair flew across her face as she stared down the four men coming at her with their swords raised.
With no time to lose, I kicked Pasha in the flank and he set off towards them.
They stopped and turned around at the sound of his hoofbeats. I tugged on his reins and Pasha rose on his haunches, bringing his front hooves down on the man standing closest to us. The men cursed loudly as they scattered, but they regrouped and came at us with their swords.
I jumped off Pasha’s back and knocked the first man out with a swift kick to the head. Pasha moved to stand in front of the woman, protecting her from the attack, harrumphing and kicking out at anyone who got too close to them. Once I was sure she was safely out of the way, I gave all my attention to the three men who were swinging their heavy swords at me.
They came at me one by one, and I whipped my scarf off my face and used it as a lasso to disarm the first guy who was shocked when his sword slid out of his hands neatly.
Before he could understand what was happening, I kicked him hard in the chest and followed it up with a hard punch to the jaw. He grunted as he went crashing to the ground.
The man behind him took one step forward and I braced myself for the attack, but his companion pulled him back.
“It’s him. The beast of Trikhera,” he whispered.
Clearly, he had recognised me. The two men backed away, leaving their friends groaning on the sand.
“Walk away now if you value your lives,” I growled softly and they bowed hastily as ran to their bikes.
The woman stepped out from behind Pasha hesitantly after they rode away on their bikes and I realised that the woman I had just saved was Diya!
CHAPTER 3
DIYA
Ihad lost track of time and now it seemed as if I had lost track of reality. Was this a fucking dream?
It had to be. Because try as I might, there was no way to explain what had just happened.
Just one hour ago, my life was normal. Uncomfortable as hell because my mother had forced me to visit the Goels, but normal. And now, the illusion of normal had been blown to smithereens.
What kind of world had I stepped into?
