Nikolai and Lilith held each other as they slept, her small body curled against his chest, his arms wrapped protectively around her. The soft hum of machines in the hospital room was the only sound.
The doors opened quietly.
Xeno stepped in.
He paused, looking at them both.
"Aww…" he said with a small smile.
"Xeno?" Galina's voice came from behind.
German, Noami, and Leon stood at the doorway.
"Hey," Xeno said casually.
"What are you doing here? Nikolai made it clear, didn't he?" Noami said.
"Yeah… but his tiny wife fixed the situation," Xeno replied, sitting down on the couch.
"We still hate you," Leon said bluntly.
"I know," Xeno said with a smile.
"They look so good together…" Noami murmured.
"Yeah," Xeno agreed.
Nikolai stirred.
He yawned.
"Morning, Nick," Leon said.
"Morning…" Nikolai replied, rubbing his eyes as he looked down at his tiny wife still asleep, the oxygen mask resting gently on her face.
The doors opened again.
Reyan, Farhan, Nihal, Karim entered along with the Bratva members and the Dominance Apex.
Doctors followed.
Anika stepped forward and checked Lilith carefully.
"She will awake soon," Anika said softly.
"Did you apologize?" Reyan asked Karim.
"She hasn't let me… I tried talking to her but she just walked away…" Karim said quietly.
"Brother in marriage, you need trust. You saw something wrong, she tried to explain, but your anger took over. Anika isn't like the other women you met. She loves you, but you're clearly blind. Is this how you want to be the leader of Obsidian Trial?" Nihal said firmly.
"Listen, just take her out. Be a man. A man, brother, please. In fact, read books—gosh," Farhan added.
Suddenly—
Lilith's fingers moved.
The tube shifted slightly in her nose.
"Who… making noisy…?" a clear voice said.
The boys froze.
"Who the fuck just spoke?" Reyan whispered.
"M…Mumma… Lily h…hungry…" she said again.
Nikolai immediately ordered food.
Her voice softened again.
"Nikki…?"
And just like that—she slipped back into her childlike state.
"Wow…" Karim muttered.
Lilith slowly opened her eyes.
Nikolai helped her sit up.
She leaned forward and kissed his nose.
His cheeks turned slightly red.
"Awww, Nick is blushing!" Leon teased.
Nikolai shot him a look.
Leon instantly stopped laughing.
The doors opened again.
"We are shifting her back home now," Leonid said.
Nikolai nodded.
At the mansion…
Anika walked into their room and placed Karim's food on the table.
She turned to leave.
Suddenly—
He grabbed her waist.
She gasped.
He pulled her onto his lap.
"Hey…" he said in a husky voice.
Her cheeks turned red.
"You are very, very mean…" she said softly.
"I'm sorry, my love. I missed you so much," Karim said, holding her close. "It will never happen again. I promise. I will never doubt you or get angry like that again. I'm very sorry."
She smiled.
Then kissed him softly.
He returned the kiss warmly.
"We will never fight again," she whispered.
"I swear we wouldn't," he replied.
The next morning…
Reyan sat outside, reading a book.
Cars pulled up to the mansion.
A tall boy stepped out.
He adjusted his glasses and walked toward Reyan.
He bent down and touched his feet.
"Good morning, Papa," the boy said.
"Bless you," Reyan replied, still reading.
Then suddenly—
Reyan grabbed his ear.
"Ouchhhhhhh!!!!!" the boy screamed.
It was Jai.
Amala's son.
"You broke that boy's leg. This is the second report I'm getting. This time from school," Reyan said.
"They insulted me… called me a motherless boy…" Jai said sadly.
"Hm…" Reyan hummed.
They walked inside.
The family was gathered.
Lilith was awake.
She sat on the table while Nikolai gossiped with her.
She got down—
Then froze.
"Bambi?" Nikolai called.
She gasped.
"R…Rey has a s…s…Lily…" she stuttered.
"A son, yes," Reyan said, kissing her forehead.
"W…where… Lily w…wants to m…m…meet him!"
"Namaste(Greetings) Jai said, touching Lilith's feet for blessings.
She gasped.
"Lily, this is my son—Jai," Reyan said.
"Huggy?" she asked, opening her arms.
"Dad…?" Jai whispered.
Reyan nodded.
Jai hugged her.
She giggled happily.
"Bad fuc—"
"Nihal!!!"
"SHHHHHHH!!!"
Everyone shouted as Ethan covered Lilith's ears.
"Sorry! Sorry!" Nihal said quickly.
"Bad news," Nihal continued. "The wedding ceremonies have been moved to Kolkata, and the main will be in Mumbai. Grand aunt wants to see Lilith… and she wants her to perform the Garba dance alone."
"Garba!?" Urlima, Vishal, and Rohan said in shock.
"Oh no…" Karim muttered.
"Lily doesn't know Garba. Her feet could get twisted or broken," Anika said.
"Heck no. She's not dancing," Nikolai said, pulling Lilith closer.
"Sorry, Nikolai. It's family. We don't want this either… but you know how it is," Nihal said.
"And she has to wear traditional Indian clothes. No jumpsuits," Reyan added.
"Okie!" Lilith said happily.
"Lily—no crying, no running around. Stay with Mumma. Nikolai won't see you for a few days," Nihal said.
"That's a joke I don't like," Nikolai said coldly.
"Sorry, boss… but those are the rules. You won't see her until the main wedding," Rohan said.
"That's going to be hard," Meghna said.
"And us too," Yulian added.
"And Capo…" Vishal said carefully, "you cannot wear suits or casuals. Only Indian attire. There will be teasing and gossip about Lilith—it's the Muard Gem's grand wedding."
"Mihu dance?" Lilith asked, looking at Nikolai.
He sighed.
"Yes, Mihu… dance."
"Come here, baby. Let me show you," Farhan said, holding an iPad and headphones.
"Wait—will she be able to learn?" Hammad asked.
"Actually, based on our research, Lilith is a fast learner," Leonid said.
Dr. Maria handed Lilith a ball.
"Love, spin the ball with one hand like last time."
"Mkay!"
"You've been teaching her?" Taran (Massimo) asked in surprise.
Dr. Raphael gave her a basketball.
"B…B…Bouncing ball!" Lilith squeaked.
"Ready… go," Dr. Mason said.
Lilith placed the ball on her finger.
It fell.
She picked it up again.
Spun it faster.
This time—
Perfect balance.
Nikolai watched in amazement.
"Nikki, see!" she said proudly.
He patted her head.
"She's a fast learner," Anika said.
"She's very smart. If we match things to her mental state after surgery, she'll improve successfully," Dr. Clara added.
"We must be careful. One mistake could damage her brain," Dr. Liv warned.
"We'll do our best," Dr. Kelvin said.
Nikolai nodded.
"Everyone will wear Indian clothes throughout the wedding," Karim added.
"Of course! I want to see how I look," Olivia said.
"Me too," Caspian added.
"Us too!" Alexio, Valerio, Kenan, Darya, Addison said.
"Hey Nick!"
Logan walked in with gifts.
"Sorry I missed the ball wedding. My apologies… but I'm joining for the grand Indian wedding."
He shook Nikolai's hand.
He glanced at Addison.
She rolled her eyes.
He smirked—he liked that about her.
"Good, Lily!!!"
Two voices rang out.
Valen and Valena rushed in.
They hugged her tightly.
"We missed you!"
"L…Lily m…miss you too!" she said happily.
"Come on, Mihu. Let's teach you Garba and your songs," Farhan said, handing her the iPad and headphones.
"Nikolai, pack your things. We leave tomorrow night," Karim said.
"I'm packing weapons too," Nikolai replied.
"Of course, Capo. It's dangerous in India," Rohan said.
Nikolai turned—
Lilith was watching dance steps, copying small movements.
"Oh—and one more thing," Farhan added. "Grand aunt had promised Lilith to another man years ago. He'll be there. He's angry about this wedding."
"I'll kill him and feed him to the tigers," Nikolai said calmly.
"Nikki… can L…Lily have a d…doggy?" she asked.
"Lily gave you m…money!" she said, opening her teddy.
Bundles of rupees fell out.
"Baby, who gave you all this money?" Nimra asked.
"Baba did… he p…put it in my teddy…"
"Of course, love. I'll get you a dog."
"A big one?"
"Yes."
She blew him a kiss and went back to watching.
The next day…
Bags packed.
Six private jets ready.
Sohan and his family had already landed in India.
Bratva and Dominance Apex boarded the third plane.
Nikolai bought three mansions—two in India, one in Bangladesh.
He sat with Lilith wrapped around him.
It was a night flight.
"Kissy?" she asked softly.
"Of course, my love," Nikolai said.
He pulled her closer.
And kissed her.
Slowly.
Pushing his tongue deeper into her little mouth making her whimpering her hands around his neck and their noses touched.
For six minutes.
She giggled against his lips.
They pulled away—
And fell asleep together.
Only seven hours left—
Until they landed in India.