Kajal's face twisted—shock first, then fury, then something far more wounded. She shoved Kiara aside, her voice breaking with a mixture of desperation and stubborn resolve.
"Ask for anything else, Kiara. Jewels, power, my life itself if you want it—but not this. I cannot spare Yuvaan."
Before Kiara could even steady herself, Kajal's pupils narrowed to slits. Her serpent instincts surged to the surface, her jaw unhinging ever so slightly as the deadly forked tongue darted out—fast, precise, aimed straight at Yuvaan's throat.
"NO!"
Kiara moved before thought existed.
There was a soft, terrible sound—like flesh being pierced by a burning needle.
The strike landed.
But not on Yuvaan.
Kiara gasped, her hand flying to her neck as a violent tremor ran through her body. A thin, sinister line of venom glowed where the tongue had hit her.
"KIARA!"
The scream tore through the chamber.
Yuvaan caught her before she hit the floor, his arms shaking as he held her limp form. Her fingers curled weakly into his shirt as she struggled for breath.
Kajal froze.
Her eyes widened, her fangs retracting instantly as horror unfurled inside her—a kind that broke through centuries of hardened scales and instinct.
"I… I struck my own child…?" her voice splintered, barely a whisper.
The power around her faltered. The magic in her blood thinned. She staggered back as if someone had ripped out her spine.
Kiara's head lolled against Yuvaan's shoulder, her breath shallow, her lashes fluttering like someone fighting to stay tethered to life.
Yuvaan lifted her, his voice trembling as he pressed his forehead to hers.
"Kiara… what have you done? Why did you—why would you do this?"
Her lips barely moved.
"Because… you wouldn't have survived it."
A tear escaped the corner of her eye.
"And… I couldn't watch you die."
Kajal made a broken sound—something between a hiss and a sob—as she fell to her knees, her hands shaking violently.
"I didn't mean… I didn't… Kiara…"
Her voice cracked completely.
"Not you. Never you."
But Kiara couldn't hear her anymore. Her eyes had rolled shut, her body going rigid as the serpent venom began to spread.
Yuvaan's grip tightened around her as if he could fight death with sheer refusal.
"Kiara! Look at me—hey—look at me!"
Her fingers twitched once, brushing his cheek, then fell still.
The silence that followed was thick enough to shatter every heart in the room.
And Kajal—powerful, feared, untouchable Kajal—was left shaking in the ruins of her own rage, realizing the curse she had feared all her life had finally come true:
She had destroyed the very thing she lived for.
Kiara's skin began shifting colors—pale at first, then an eerie shade of blue blooming under the surface like frozen veins. Her lips trembled as the venom surged through her bloodstream.
Vikram dropped to his knees beside her, his fingers checking her pulse, his face tightening with every second.
"This is… serpent venom of the highest potency," he whispered, almost afraid to say the rest. "If it spreads to her heart—Kiara might not make it."
The words hit the room like a thunderclap.
Bhoomi stifled a scream, covering her mouth, while Yuvaan's entire body went rigid as if someone had ripped the ground from beneath him.
"No."
His voice cracked.
"No, there must be a way to stop this. There has to be a way to save her."
"Yuvaan—lay her on the sofa, quickly," Vikram instructed, forcing himself into composure. "I'll check the Reeva Granth in the basement. There might be an antidote—something ancient, something strong enough."
Yuvaan scooped Kiara into his arms, her body frighteningly cold, her head falling against his chest. He carried her to the nearest sofa and gently laid her down, brushing the hair from her face with trembling fingers.
"Please…"
The word wasn't a prayer—it was a plea to the universe.
Vikram didn't waste another second; he sprinted out of the room, his footsteps echoing down the corridor as if chased by time itself.
Bhoomi collapsed beside Kiara, gathering her unconscious daughter into her lap. She stroked Kiara's hair with shaking hands, tears dripping onto her forehead.
"My child… my baby… wake up, please…"
And across the room—
Kajal stood frozen.
Not as the serpent queen people feared.
Not as the powerful creature who ruled with venom and pride.
Her scales receded. The fangs withdrew. Her body shifted painfully back into human form—as if her very soul rejected the monster she had been moments ago.
Her face was ashen, her eyes brimming with a terror she had never felt before.
"I… did this," she whispered, barely audible.
"My hatred… my stubbornness… I hurt her. I hurt my Kiara."
Her knees buckled, and she clutched the edge of the table to keep herself upright. Every breath felt like fire.
Yuvaan didn't look at her—not once.
His gaze was locked on Kiara's paling face, on the rise and fall of her unsteady breathing. His hand stayed tightly wrapped around hers as if that alone could anchor her to life.
Kajal watched the two of them—her daughter fighting for breath in another man's arms—and something inside her finally shattered.
For the first time in her immortal existence…
Kajal felt fear.
Real, gut-wrenching fear of losing the one person she loved more than her own pride.
And as Kiara's skin turned a deeper shade of blue and her breaths grew faint—
Kajal realized the truth with a pain so sharp it stole her breath:
Her hatred hadn't destroyed her enemies.
It was destroying her daughter.