Dil Ke Karib (CH 48 Early Access)

🎉 How was the last chapter? Comment down your thoughts.

🛎️ New to Nandini and Rajeev’s world? No worries! Catch up on Dil ke Karib (Chapters 1–47) on my website before diving in. Her story is just getting started… 💔✨

🔥 Don’t miss:
📖 Read: “Married to My Brother-in-Law, In Love with His Brother” — a forbidden 1950s romance filled with duty, desire, and defiance.

✨ Two stories. One unforgettable journey.

Now, let’s dive back into the latest chapter… 👇

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Chapter 48: The Shadows in the Fields

Rajeev moved like a ghost in the night, his footsteps muffled by the dust-covered street. The moon hung low, spilling silver across the rooftops, and in its pale glow he caught sight of Sobha ahead—her figure tense, sharp with purpose, every movement screaming determination.

Nandini’s voice still echoed in his mind: “Don’t let her go alone. Whatever she’s planning, Vikrant is dangerous.”

Dangerous. That word clung to his thoughts like a burr. He had always known Vikrant was a man who thrived on power and fear, but tonight, watching Sobha chase after him like prey chasing the predator, Rajeev felt a knot twist in his gut. He didn’t know which of the two was more reckless—Sobha for following or himself for not stopping her.

But how could he? Sobha wasn’t someone who could be held back once she had chosen a path.

So here he was, trailing Sobha, while she trailed Vikrant. A chain of shadows in the quiet maize fields.

The air carried the chill of impending danger, making Rajeev shiver as he quickened his pace to catch up with them. The moonlight cast eerie shadows, heightening the tension of the chase unfolding before him. The tension in the air was palpable as they neared the edge of the field.

The village had long gone to sleep. Only the whisper of the wind stirred the silence, carrying with it the faint rustle of palm leaves and the smell of distant smoke from dying hearth fires. Somewhere, a dog barked once, then fell silent, as if even the animals sensed the weight of this night.

Vikrant walked ahead, his gait casual but heavy with authority, as if the darkness itself obeyed him. His shoulders were broad, his steps confident, and the way he carried himself made Rajeev’s skin crawl. Vikrant didn’t glance back once. That was what unnerved him most—because men like Vikrant always knew. He didn’t need to see behind him to feel eyes on his back.

Sobha’s movements were sharper now. She crouched down, hiding her presence in fields full of crops. Her hands were clenched at her sides, so tight that Rajeev imagined her nails digging crescents into her palms. She was fire wrapped in silence, a storm waiting for the first crack of lightning to strike.

Rajeev’s breath quickened. He could almost feel the thoughts burning inside her: This man destroyed everything. This man will not walk free.

But her silence was louder than any vow she could have spoken.

The deeper they went, the more the village faded. The huts and courtyards fell behind, swallowed by shadows. The fields ended, and the path narrowed into a forgotten alley lined with bamboo fencing and uneven stone. Rajeev felt the weight of isolation pressing down. It was as though they were walking straight into another world, one where the rules of the village no longer mattered—where only Vikrant’s rules would apply.

Rajeev swallowed hard. He wanted to call out, to pull Sobha back, to remind her that revenge, no matter how righteous, was dangerous in the hands of a man like Vikrant. But he knew better. Sobha wasn’t following blindly. She had chosen this. And once Sobha chose, no one could turn her aside.

Suddenly, Vikrant stopped.

The sound of his chapals scraping against stone was sharp enough to slice the silence. Sobha froze, her entire body going rigid. Rajeev, a few steps behind, instinctively melted into the shadows, holding his breath.

The air shifted. Even the night seemed to pause, listening.

Vikrant didn’t turn fully. He angled his head just enough, his profile cutting sharp against the pale moonlight. His voice came low, deep, and cruel—each word dripping like venom into the air.

“So…” he drawled, stretching the word until it seemed to coil around them. “Are we all going to pretend I don’t have an audience tonight?”

Rajeev’s blood ran cold. His fingers dug into the wall beside him, steadying his breath. He prayed Sobha would retreat, would play it safe, would—

But Sobha didn’t move.

Her chin lifted, stubborn and unafraid. In the pale light, her eyes burned with something fierce, something unshaken. She wasn’t here to cower.

Vikrant chuckled—a low, humorless sound that made Rajeev’s stomach twist.

“You’ve always been braver than you should be,” he said, still not turning to face her. “But bravery doesn’t keep you alive, Sobha.”

Her silence cut sharper than any reply. Rajeev could almost hear her heartbeat, steady and resolute.

Vikrant shifted slightly, the glint of a ring catching in the lantern he held. His head tilted further, and Rajeev felt the weight of his gaze sliding across the darkness. Slowly, deliberately, it landed—not on Sobha—but toward the shadows where Rajeev stood.

Rajeev’s throat tightened.

The game was up.

Vikrant’s lips curved into something that wasn’t quite a smile. It was sharper than that—mocking, dangerous.

“Well,” he said softly, as though savoring the moment. “It seems my audience is larger than expected.”

The silence that followed was suffocating. The moon dipped behind a cloud, throwing the alley into deeper darkness. The only sound was Rajeev’s heartbeat, pounding in his ears.

He could see Sobha’s shoulders stiffen, her fists tightening once more. She was ready—for what, Rajeev didn’t know. To fight? To speak? To finally unleash the storm she had carried so long?

What was the plan that she mentioned in the letter?

Vikrant took one slow step forward, the scrape of his chapals echoing unnaturally loud.

Then another.

And another.

Rajeev felt every muscle in his body coil with dread. He couldn’t see Vikrant’s face fully now, but he could feel his eyes. Cold, sharp, unblinking—like a predator locking onto prey.

Finally, Vikrant’s voice slipped through the dark, quieter than before, almost intimate.

“Come out, Rajeev.”

Rajeev’s breath caught. He hadn’t moved. He hadn’t made a sound. And yet—Vikrant knew. He had known all along.

The air pressed heavy around him, thick with the promise of violence. Rajeev’s instincts screamed at him to run, but his feet stayed rooted. Sobha hadn’t moved either, her entire body rigid in defiance.

Vikrant’s final words of the night fell like a blade.

“Let’s see who bleeds first.”

💌 Author’s Note

My dearest readers… 🌙💔

Are you breathing? Because I swear I wasn’t while writing this one 😭🔥 The shadows, the silence, the maize fields holding their breath — and then that voice cutting through the dark: “Come out, Rajeev.” 🥶 Every word Vikrant spoke felt like poison dripping into the night.

Sobha though… oh Sobha! 🔥 The way she stood there, chin lifted, refusing to flinch even when the predator knew he wasn’t alone. She’s carrying fire in her veins, and Rajeev — caught between fear and duty — is now right in the lion’s den with her. And Vikrant? He’s not a shadow anymore. He’s here. Watching. Waiting. Hunting. 🖤

This chapter was never meant to give you comfort — it was meant to tighten the noose of tension, to make you feel how close danger really is. Every step, every scrape of his chapals, every flicker of moonlight… was leading us to this moment.

So tell me, moonlight souls 🌌✨ — what would you do if you were Rajeev? Step out and face him? Or hide in the shadows and pray Sobha’s fire is enough? 💔🔥

And here’s the question that’s haunting me even as I type this: Who do you think Vikrant will strike first? 👀

The night is long, my loves, but oh, it’s about to get blood-red before dawn… 🌑🩸

With shaking hands and too many emotions,
💖 Shaar Shree