chapter 5

Jasmine was on a mission. If she was going to survive this crazy story, she needed to figure out who the evil wife was before things took a turn for the worse. But with three fiancées to investigate and her limited access to the family, she had to get creative.

Day 1 of Operation: Spy on the Fiancées.

She decided to start with Vidisha, the sweet and supportive fiancée of Siddharth. Vidisha was often in the garden, sipping tea and chatting with the family's elder women. Jasmine, trying to be inconspicuous, hid behind a large potted plant, pretending to water it while straining to hear their conversation.

Unfortunately, she leaned a bit too far forward, and before she knew it, the plant tipped over, taking her with it.

"Oof!" she grunted, landing on her back with the plant on top of her. Vidisha and the ladies turned to look at her, shocked.

"Jasmine, are you okay?" Vidisha asked, concern in her voice as she rushed over.

Jasmine, trying to maintain her dignity, stood up and dusted herself off. "Oh, yes! Just checking if this plant needed, uh, more soil. All good!" She gave a thumbs-up and awkwardly shuffled away, her face burning with embarrassment.

**Day 2 of Operation: Eavesdrop on Naira.**

Next up was Naira, Ranbir's bold and adventurous fiancée. Jasmine figured she might catch her plotting something, so she decided to follow Naira discreetly around the mansion. When Naira entered the library, Jasmine hid behind a large bookshelf, peeking through the gaps.

But as she strained to hear what Naira was whispering about on the phone, her foot got caught in the long drapes. She tried to free herself, but instead, she ended up pulling down the entire curtain rod.

The heavy drapes fell with a loud crash, sending dust everywhere. Naira turned around, startled, while Jasmine struggled to untangle herself from the mess.

"Uh… just doing some spring cleaning!" Jasmine said with a sheepish grin, holding up the fallen curtain like a prize.

Naira raised an eyebrow but then laughed. "You're a very… thorough maid, Jasmine."

Jasmine forced a laugh and quickly escaped the room, her face redder than a tomato.

**Day 3 of Operation: Spy on Tara.**

Determined not to mess up this time, Jasmine decided to keep an eye on Tara, Abhiraj's fiancée, during breakfast. Tara was always perfectly poised and seemed too perfect to be true.

Jasmine positioned herself behind a decorative pillar, thinking it was the perfect hiding spot. From there, she could see Tara and the other family members at the dining table. But as she leaned to get a better view, she lost her balance and fell sideways, banging her head against the pillar with a loud thud.

"Ouch!" she yelped, rubbing her head.

Everyone at the table turned to look at her. She quickly stood up, trying to play it cool.

"Just, uh, checking the stability of this pillar. Everything seems fine!" She knocked on the pillar awkwardly and then walked away as casually as she could manage.

Back in the kitchen, she slumped onto a stool, feeling defeated. "I'm the worst spy ever," she muttered to herself.

One of the other maids, who had been watching Jasmine's antics for days, couldn't hold back her laughter anymore. "Jasmine, what are you doing? You've been acting so strange lately!"

Jasmine sighed. "Just trying to… understand the family better," she said vaguely.

The maid giggled. "Well, good luck with that. But maybe try being a bit less, um, obvious?"

Jasmine nodded, feeling a bit more determined. She couldn't give up now. Somehow, she needed to get closer to the fiancées without drawing too much attention to herself. If only she could figure out which one was plotting to destroy the family!

As she was pondering her next move, she noticed that Vidisha had left her purse on a nearby table. *Maybe I can find something in there,* Jasmine thought, sneaking over.

She opened the purse carefully, glancing around to make sure no one was watching. Just as she was about to sift through it, she heard a deep voice behind her.

"And what exactly are you doing?"

Jasmine jumped and whirled around, her heart pounding. It was one of the Rajput brothers, his arms crossed and his expression curious.

"I, uh, was just… looking for… a pen!" Jasmine stammered, holding up a random pen she found in the purse.

The brother looked at her suspiciously. "In Vidisha's purse?"

Jasmine gulped. "Yes, well, you see, I really needed one, and she has so many, so I thought… why not?"

He raised an eyebrow but didn't press further. "You're very… resourceful, Jasmine."

Jasmine forced a smile. "Thanks! I try."

As he walked away, Jasmine let out a long breath. She was really pushing her luck. But one thing was clear: if she was going to survive, she needed to up her spy game. No more falling over plants, tearing down curtains, or getting caught with suspicious items. From now on, she was going to be the best, most stealthy servant-spy this family had ever seen.