The night air was thick with something ancient—rage. The scent of bloodlust lingered on Riaz’s skin as he stared at the blinking red dot on the GPS.

Kunal Kapoor was moving. Not randomly. Toward her.

Riaz turned to Aryan in the surveillance van. "Are we ready?"

Aryan nodded. "Your men are in position. If he so much as twitches wrong, we’ll bring him in."

"No. Not yet," Riaz said coldly. "Let him come close. Let him feel like he’s winning. And then… let him beg."

Aashika sat in her apartment wrapped in Riaz’s hoodie, scrolling mindlessly through her phone. Her heart hadn’t stopped racing since she got the threat. But she trusted Riaz. If he said she was safe, she believed him.

Still, the shadows outside the balcony felt darker tonight. A sound. The doorknob turning. She froze.

Footsteps. Heavy. Unfamiliar.

She grabbed the pepper spray from her purse and stepped silently into the hallway. A creak. Closer now.

Then—

Riaz burst through the back door, gun raised, eyes wild.

Kunal stood in the living room, mask half-lowered, caught mid-step.

Aashika gasped.

Kunal sneered. "You always had good timing, Malhotra."

Riaz’s voice was ice. "You’re in my world now."

Kunal lunged for Aashika. She screamed. But before he could reach her, Riaz fired.

The bullet grazed Kunal’s shoulder.

He collapsed.

Riaz was on him in seconds, gun pressing into his cheek, fury boiling over.

"You touched my door. You looked at her like she was yours. You threatened her?"

Riaz’s voice dropped to a whisper. "You just signed your death."

Kunal spat blood. "She’ll never be safe. Not from men like me. Not with you."

Riaz didn’t hesitate.

"You’re right. That’s why I’m erasing every man like you."

He pulled a black velvet bag from his pocket.

Inside: chloroform, zip ties, and a silver ring.

He looked at Aashika, eyes soft despite the storm.

"Tonight, I kill a demon. Tomorrow, I marry my angel."

Her breath caught.

"What?"

He looked at her, the blood on his hands already drying.

"I’m not waiting anymore, Aashi. The world can burn. But I’m not losing you again."

That night, Kunal Kapoor disappeared.

And the next morning, a diamond ring sparkled on Aashika Pandey’s finger—

While her fiancé made a silent vow, staring into the skyline:

Anyone else who dared to touch her…

Would never breathe again.