Rajat had been mistaken, Mahima was not keeping an eye on Raya, but on Peter.
Seeing Raya with Peter, Mahima immediately went to inform Tashyam.
Tanush studied the photographs carefully, trying to draw a conclusion.
"This is very strange. Is it possible that Raya doesn't really know much about Peter?"
Mahima nodded in agreement.
"Yes, that's what I think too. Peter Johnson was behaving very differently in front of Madam."
Tanush asked,
"Differently… what do you mean?"
Mahima explained,
"I've been watching Peter Johnson since this morning. As far as I've observed, he is usually extremely arrogant. But in front of Madam… he looked excited, almost like a child."
Hearing this, Tanush fell into deep thought.
It seemed suspicious to him as well.
Tanush had met Peter several times before.
Given Peter's personality and background, childish behavior in front of anyone was almost impossible for him.
Tashyam asked Mahima coldly,
"Any other updates?"
"No, Boss," Mahima replied.
"You may leave," Tashyam said.
Mahima nodded and left. She was a renowned spy and had been working for Tashyam for years.
That morning was the first time she had ever been caught.
Even if only for a short while, she had still been caught by Rajat.
That fact continued to bother her.
Tashyam leaned back against the couch and closed his eyes.
Behind his closed eyelids, Raya's beautiful face began to appear.
Tanush glanced at Tashyam, then spread the photographs across the tea table and sat down on the opposite couch.
Perhaps he was trying to figure out what kind of relationship could exist between Peter and Raya.
Just then, Shaurya walked in, muttering curses under his breath.
The moment his eyes fell on the photographs spread across the table, they narrowed sharply.
Picking up one photo, Shaurya exclaimed in disbelief,
"That witch… what is she doing with this mafia?"
Tanush looked at Shaurya strangely and asked,
"Who are you calling a witch?"
Shaurya immediately pointed at Raya's photo.
"This girl. She's the witch. Good thing Tashyam let her go. God knows what she thought of herself."
Hearing this, Tanush's eyes narrowed with interest.
He had never met Raya.
Right after Tashyam and Raya's marriage, Tanush had gone to Tokyo for work.
By the time he returned, Tashyam and Raya had already separated.
Tanush didn't know what kind of person Raya truly was.
But Shaurya's words and those photographs had sparked his curiosity.
Tanush asked,
"Why do you call her a witch? Did she do something wrong to you?"
Shaurya snapped angrily,
"What could that witch possibly do to me? I call her a witch because of her behavior. Do you know what she said? She said she had no interest in marrying Tashyam, that she was forced into this marriage. If she was forced, then why did she use my brother's unlimited credit card? Gold digger."
After hearing everything, Tanush sighed softly and nodded.
He understood why Shaurya hated Raya so much.
Shaurya had always been extremely possessive and protective of Tashyam since childhood.
So naturally, if a woman claimed she was forced to marry his brother, Shaurya would label her a witch.
According to Shaurya, sensible women should be hovering around his brother like flies.
Tanush looked at Tashyam and asked,
"Tashyam, do you have any idea about this?"
Tashyam opened his eyes, but said nothing.
Silently, he began gathering the scattered photographs.
Shaurya asked in confusion,
"What are you two talking about? And tell me, what is this girl doing with a mafia? Is he the reason she wasn't interested in marrying Tashyam? Oh God, girls these days… reading too many novels has ruined their minds. They think real-life mafia men exist like in fiction. Stupid girl. Now I understand why the Malhotra family abandoned her."
Tashyam stared at Shaurya coldly.
The temperature in the room seemed to drop instantly.
Shaurya felt it and stiffened, though he didn't let it show on his face.
Tashyam said firmly,
"We are not divorced yet. Show her the same respect you show me."
Shaurya nodded slowly. He understood that saying anything reckless right now would only backfire on him.
Tashyam said coldly,
"Go to your suite."
Shaurya frowned slightly but didn't argue.
He knew Tashyam's mood well enough not to provoke him further.
Shaurya left.
Now only Tashyam and Tanush remained in the suite.
Unlike Shaurya, Tanush was calm and composed.
Tashyam was putting the photographs back into the envelope when Tanush asked,
"Raya lives here in Amsterdam, right? Aren't you going to meet her?"
Tashyam's brows knitted together in hesitation.
Tanush continued,
"What's wrong? Haven't you thought about it? She's your wife. Call her. Tell her you're here. Go meet her. And if possible, ask her about Peter too."
Tashyam looked up at Tanush and said,
"I don't have her phone number."
Tanush laughed in disbelief.
"You don't have her number? Meaning, for the past two years, you haven't met your wife, nor spoken to her even once. Brother, what kind of man are you? I understand you were confused, but as you said… Raya is still your wife. You're not divorced yet. At the very least, you could've spoken to her once or twice."
Tashyam didn't respond.
From his emotionless face, it was impossible to tell what was going on in his mind.
Standing up, Tanush said,
"I'll see if I can get Raya's contact number from someone in the Malhotra family."
Tashyam remained silent.
Tanush slipped his hands into his pockets and walked out of the suite, he always carried the aura of a perfect gentleman.
Evening was about to fall.
A faint darkness and mist had begun to spread everywhere.
Shaurya was pacing the front yard of the resort, talking to someone on the phone, when his gaze suddenly fell on a car entering the resort compound.
He disconnected the call and stared at the car intently, as if trying to recall something.
Suddenly, Shaurya's eyes narrowed.
"This is that vintage car… the one I was about to buy at the London auction. But that stupid girl bought it before me by paying ten times the price. The world really is small, this car has appeared in front of me again."
Watching the car, Shaurya let out a cold sigh.
He liked that car a lot.
And it wasn't as if he didn't have the money to buy it.
Shaurya had plenty of money, but the lawyer inside him had refused to let him buy a car at ten times its actual value.
The vintage car stopped at the entrance of another villa, and a girl stepped out from the driver's seat.
Dressed in a maroon bodycon dress and high heels, she looked stunning.
Shaurya's gaze shifted from the car and locked onto her.
The girl casually tossed the car keys toward the valet standing outside the villa. The valet caught them and drove the car away to park it elsewhere.
She took out a small mirror from her purse and adjusted her hair while looking at her reflection.
Standing at a distance, Shaurya was staring at her with his mouth slightly open.
It looked as if he had never seen a woman before in his life.
Suddenly, someone covered Shaurya's mouth and said,
"Your jaw is going to drop."
Shaurya flinched and immediately turned to his side.
Tanush was standing there.
Shaurya's handsome face instantly turned red.
Looking straight ahead, Tanush said,
"Looks like you've fallen in love at first sight again."
Shaurya asked in surprise,
"How do you know that?"
Tanush smiled.
"It's written all over your face."
Hearing this, Shaurya rubbed his face awkwardly.
Tanush warned,
"Be careful. She's not an ordinary woman."
Shaurya looked at Tanush with shining eyes and asked,
"Do you know her?"
Placing a cigar between his lips, Tanush replied,
"Yes…"
Shaurya immediately asked,
"Who is she?"
Lighting the cigar, Tanush said,
"Sofia De Vries, the only daughter of the Prime Minister here. She's also a powerful businesswoman herself. This resort belongs to her."
After hearing this, Shaurya looked back at Sofia.
She was repeatedly glancing toward the compound gate, as if waiting for someone.
After a while, three expensive sports cars entered the compound one after another.
Seeing them, a wide smile appeared on Sofia's face.
Peter stepped out of the first car and walked over to Sofia.
From the second car, another young man stepped out, he looked to be around the same age as Sofia and Peter.
Sofia smiled at him and waved her hand.
"Adrian… over here."
Adrian looked at Sofia. There was no expression on his handsome face.
He silently walked toward Sofia and Peter.
Shaurya and Tanush were watching everything.
Looking at Adrian, Shaurya said in shock,
"Isn't this… this guy Andrein Van Oranje-Nassau? The new king here, the one who ascended the throne last year?"
Taking a drag from his cigar, Tanush nodded.
Watching them closely, Shaurya said,
"Interesting. I didn't expect the king here to have connections with a mafia like Peter Johnson."
Tanush didn't respond.
His gaze was fixed on the third car, which had now stopped at the villa entrance.
While talking to Sofia, Peter opened the car door.
Raya stepped out of the car, wiping her nose with a tissue.
Her back was facing Shaurya and Tanush, so neither of them could see her face.
Peter asked her,
"How did you catch a cold? You were perfectly fine this morning."
Placing a hand on Raya's shoulder, Sofia said,
"My darling hasn't been well these days. Because of the weather change, she suddenly gets fever and a cold."
Peter asked Raya,
"Did you take your medicine?"
"I did," Raya replied. "I'm getting better now."
Sofia said,
"Come on, let's talk inside."
Peter nodded.
Sofia turned to head inside the villa.
At that moment, Shaurya and Tanush's eyes fell on Raya's face.
The instant they saw her, The cigar slipped from Tanush's lips and fell to the ground.
Meanwhile, Shaurya's eyes widened so much that it looked as if his eyeballs would roll out in the next second.