The mansion's grand hall stood quiet, as if even the walls were holding their breath.
Romy stood in front of Prem Choudhary, calm yet intense. There was steel in his voice, but also something else… loyalty, conviction, and a quiet ache he hadn't voiced yet.
"Uncle," Romy began, "I didn't want to interfere in family matters, but this time, I can't stay silent."
Prem looked up from the papers on the table, eyes sharp. "Go on."
Romy stepped closer, dropping his tone. "When I was in Switzerland with Preety, I saw Naina. Not alone, but with another man. Intimate. Close. Too close to be just a coincidence."
Prem stiffened.
"She's lying. This woman is dangerous, manipulative, and she's trying to trap Monty," Romy continued, jaw tightening. "I didn't say anything earlier because I wasn't sure, but now... with this video? With her lies spreading like wildfire? I know what she's up to."
Prem was silent, absorbing every word, the tension in the room thickening like fog.
"I need to go back to Switzerland," Romy said firmly. "Get the hotel records, CCTV footage, and speak to people who saw her there. I'll find evidence to clear Monty's name. But to piece it all together, I need Monty with me."
Prem raised a brow.
"I need to understand how he ended up in her room, what really happened that night. Every detail. And for that, Monty needs to trust me, stay with me, and help me dig."
There was a pause. A heavy one.
Finally, Prem nodded slowly. "You have my permission. Take Monty. Find the truth. Clear this stain from our name."
Behind them, at the doorway, Monty had heard the last few words. His breath caught.
Stay with Romy...?
His mind raced back to that touch at breakfast. The way his pulse had misbehaved. The flutter he refused to name. And now, this?
He stepped forward hesitantly, voice low. "You… want me to come with you?"
Romy turned, their eyes locking.
"Yes," he said, softer now. "You'll have to trust me, Monty. Not just with the truth… but with yourself."
Monty swallowed hard.
His heart betrayed him in that moment.
It wasn't just justice he was walking toward. It was something deeper. And far more dangerous.
______________________________________________________________________________________
The chilly air of the bar wrapped around them as they stepped inside, the same dimly lit space where Monty had lost fragments of his memory that fateful night. The faint scent of cologne, alcohol, and secrets still clung to the walls.
Monty looked around, tension stiff in his shoulders. "This is where it happened," he said under his breath, scanning the place with wary eyes. "I remember... flashes. Music. Lights. But nothing clear."
Romy didn't say much. He simply led Monty toward the security office at the back, his fingers clenched tight into a fist. Inside, after some negotiation, they were granted access to the archived CCTV footage.
The screen flickered to life.
Monty leaned forward, heart thudding as he watched his own blurred figure on the screen, slightly swaying from the alcohol, but laughing, eyes glazed with intoxication. The camera angle shifted… and then it happened.
Monty pulled a handsome stranger, tall, dark-haired, with an air of careless charm, into a sudden, passionate kiss.
Romy's jaw tightened.
His eyes didn't blink as he watched Monty's hands rest on the man's jaw, then slide down his chest. That moment stretched unbearably long. And when Monty finally pulled back in the video, dazed and flushed, Romy's breath caught.
Monty turned, sensing the tension beside him.
Romy's expression had changed. His calm exterior cracked just slightly, revealing a flicker of something raw. Possessive. Jealous.
"Do you," Romy said, voice sharp, "just kiss anyone when you're drunk? Anyone who looks at you twice?"
Monty blinked, caught off guard. "What?"
Romy didn't look away. "You seemed pretty eager in that video. Like you couldn't wait to melt into him."
Monty's throat tightened. "I didn't even know I did that. I was drugged or—"
"That's not what it looked like," Romy cut in, stepping closer, eyes stormy. "You weren't resisting. You were... enjoying it."
Monty turned away from the screen, his chest rising with emotion he couldn't name.
"And why does it bother you?" he shot back suddenly. "You're here to help me or judge me?"
Romy was quiet for a beat too long.
Then he said, quietly, "Because maybe I didn't like watching someone else touch you like that."
The air between them thickened, charged with something electric, unspoken, and impossible to ignore. Monty's gaze dropped to Romy's lips for half a second too long. The silence said more than words could.
And for the first time, Monty wasn't sure what was more dangerous, Naina's lies… or the way Romy made his heart betray him.