(Vivaan's POV)
Minutes ticked by.
The city slowly disappeared beneath a blanket of clouds. From this height, roads became thin lines, buildings reduced to insignificant blocks, and people... invisible.
I adjusted the strap of my wristwatch unconsciously.
The cabin remained silent. Exactly how I preferred it.
It should've been a commercial flight. A private jet was unnecessary for a journey this short. But negotiations worth billions didn't wait for boarding queues or delayed departures. Business had never cared for convenience.
My gaze drifted absentmindedly toward the window.
The mansion was behind me now.
Kruthi remained there.
Alone.
No.
Not alone.
Ayesha was there.
Naina.
Badi Dadi.
Enough people.
Enough security.
Enough reasons to believe nothing would happen.
Yet my thoughts wandered elsewhere.
Rushaan.
His parents.
The others.
I exhaled slowly.
She could take care of herself.
She had proved that much already.
Still...
A house full of people had never guaranteed safety.
I was on a way to make a negotiation of worth billions.
But at what cost?
A muscle ticked my jaw at the memory.
Skyline crest was lost. Without my permission. Without my seal. Without my knowledge.
And this wasn't a victory. It was a compensation.
Ajay's connection to Vivaan and Mr.Khandelwal.
The hindrance in my work.
Rushaan vying for Kruthi.
Rushaan blackmailing Ayesha.
Ayesha suffering his ordeals...
I paused.
A peaceful mind was better for a strategic meeting.
What happened, can't be changed...
What will happen, can't be said...
What is happening... is my responsibility.
I checked the time.
It was a long way to France.
Seven hours left before taking off.
I took the magazine from the table to distract myself from the thoughts.
Business, logistics and everything else I considered nonsense.
"Sir, lunch?" The air hostess asked me.
I shook my head.
Again.
I ignored her lack of words in the sentence.
I refused...
for the fifth time.
The first time she asked was a rather long sentence in which lunch was the main topic and it became the supporting one.
I unlocked my phone for a moment.
It was on airplane mode though connected to the plane's wifi.
I opened whatsapp to check if my secretary had sent me the required corrected files.
"I've had lunch."
I paused.
She messaged. Good. No questions, no explanations, no overdramatic concern. Just practical.
My secretary had sent me the mails already on whatsapp.
Efficient.
I viewed the mails one by one. Not to mention that some mails which required my main attention were in the last and those who didn't require attention were right on the top.
Not her fault.
Timeline issues.
"Sir, would you like to have lunch?" She asked again expecting my refusal.
But this time I nodded.
She placed the tray before me.
I looked at it for a moment before standing.
Serving someone wasn't necessary.
I preferred doing it myself.
I sat again on my seat with the meal.
But then this eerie silence. Moments back it was comforting.
Now? -It was killing.
But I am used to it. I wonder when the last time I laughed properly. It almost seems foreign now.
And so...
my thoughts started to take over me.
I unlocked my phone and opened whatsapp.
Mirhan.
Look into Skyline Crest.
Track Rushaan.
Inform me immediately if anything unusual happens.
The message was delivered within seconds.
Good.
Problems weren't solved by thinking about them.
They were solved by assigning them.
I locked the phone and resumed my meal.
Skyline Crest wasn't lost.
It had merely changed hands.
Whoever believed they'd won...
had only delayed the inevitable.