Chapter 4: The Mistress Moves In.

The house that once belonged to Sonali now belonged to the enemy.

With her soft footsteps replaced by Neha's clacking heels, and her kindness replaced by cruel commands, the home turned from a haven… into a prison.

Every room whispered, she's gone.

Every corner echoed, she was replaced.

And the woman responsible?

She now ruled the house like a queen who had won the war.

👑 The Queen of Cruelty Arrives

"Bring me tea!" Neha's voice rang from the master bedroom — Sonali's room.

Khushi, wearing a faded kurti and anger like armor, walked in with a tray.

"Too much sugar," Neha said without tasting it.

Khushi stared. "I made it exactly how Baba likes it."

Neha's eyes narrowed. "But I'm not your Baba's old wife."

She took the cup… and poured it onto the floor.

"Clean it."

Khushi bent down, silent, picking up the broken pieces of her dignity.

🎭 A Family Torn in Half

At dinner, Neha sat where Sonali once did — beside Sanjay, serving him roti with fake affection.

Pandurang didn't eat.

Namrata picked at her food, lips trembling with unshed rage.

Ron sat beside Khushi, silent, staring at his plate.

Nisha smirked. "You two should eat in the kitchen from now on. That's where servants eat."

Khushi replied without looking up. "I'll eat wherever I want. I'm still Patil blood."

Kunjal leaned forward. "Not anymore. You're leftovers."

Sanjay said nothing.

He just chewed.

As if the shattering of his children's souls was a mild inconvenience.

🔒 The Lockdown Begins

Three days later, Neha made a decision.

"From now on," she declared, "the girl will not leave the house unless I say so."

Khushi narrowed her eyes. "I have exams."

Neha smiled. "You're not going anywhere. Education is wasted on a mouthy maid."

"I'm not a maid," Khushi snapped. "You are."

"What did you say?" Sanjay barked, standing.

"I said she's wearing Aai's bangles, Aai's saree, Aai's lipstick — what else is she going to steal?

 Aai's soul?"

Sanjay slapped her.

Hard.

Pandurang stood. "Enough! You've gone mad, Sanjay!"

"Then leave the house," Sanjay hissed. "You and Aai are welcome to go to the village if you're so bothered."

Namrata broke down.

"Tu mulga aahes ka rakshas?" she cried.

(Are you a son or a demon?)

But Sanjay didn't flinch.

Neha had won.

⛓️ The Basement Prison

That night, Khushi was locked in the basement.

A cement box.

No fan.

No light.

No bed.

Just dust, silence, and Sonali's diary, hidden in the wall crack — left there years ago by accident.

Khushi opened it with shaking fingers.

The pages smelled like her mother — sandalwood and strength.

"I miss my old self. 

The one who laughed for no reason. 

The one who danced while cooking. But I still believe in my children.

 One day, they will become more than I ever was."

Khushi clutched the diary to her chest.

"I will make you proud, Aai. Even from a dungeon, I'll rise."

🩸 The Beating

The next morning, Neha's daughter, Nisha, opened the basement door.

Khushi squinted as light poured in.

"You done sulking?" Nisha asked, arms crossed.

Khushi stood up.

Nisha threw a plate on the floor. "Eat from there. That's all you deserve."

Khushi kicked the plate back toward her.

"You're scared of me."

Nisha froze.

"What?"

"You're scared," Khushi repeated. 

"Because even after everything — the beatings, the insults — I haven't bowed. That's what terrifies you. That I'm still standing."

Nisha slapped her.

Khushi grabbed her wrist mid-air.

Ron's voice echoed from the top of the stairs. "Tai!"

She let go.

Because she wasn't done yet.

She was just getting started.

📚 The Secret Weapon

Locked in the basement each night, Khushi began building her future.

She used broken chalk to write on the wall.

Biology. Chemistry. Formulas. Essays.

She tore her notebook into small pieces and hid them in a tin box behind an old pipe.

Each page? A rebellion.

Each word? A war cry.

💥 Ron Begins to Change

"Tai," Ron whispered one night, slipping through the basement grate.

"I stole two laddoos from Neha aunty."

Khushi laughed softly.

"You're turning into a rebel."

"I want to protect you too," he said proudly.

She kissed his forehead.

"You already are."

🔥 A Spark Ignites

One night, when the power went out, Khushi heard Neha shouting from the ground floor.

"The fuse! Where is it? Someone go check!"

No one moved.

Khushi smiled in the dark.

She had memorized the fuse box layout.

The storm had caused a short-circuit.

She whispered to herself:

"You control the house.

I'll control the silence.

And then… I'll burn you with it."

End of Chapter 4