Arjun and Priya have been married for eight years and live in a quiet residential area of Delhi. Arjun is a civil engineer and often travels to Rajasthan or Gujarat for several days. Priya sells goods online, takes care of her son, who is studying in Class 3, and handles household chores. For neighbors, they are a perfect couple. But for Arjun, the relationship has started to crack lately.

Whenever he comes home from a business trip, Arjun sees Priya holding a wet towel, quickly placing it in the cupboard or washing it immediately. At first, he thought his wife had just come out of the bath. But three months later, the needle of doubt began to smoulder again in his mind.

One evening, Arjun came home earlier than expected. He quietly went inside and saw Priya coming out of the bathroom, her hair wet, her pale face, and she was holding the familiar towel. His eyes sparkled with bewilderment. He smiled forcefully:

“You’re back… I’m washing the towel. ”

Arjun didn’t say anything, but he couldn’t sleep that night. The next morning, she put up a small camera pointing to the living room and bathroom.

The first three days didn’t do anything special. But on the fourth day, while in Jaipur, he heard a buzz on his phone. He turned on the camera—and his heart almost skipped a beat.

On the screen, Priya was mopping the floor and looking at the door. Fifteen minutes later, a man in a white shirt and black trousers came in with a bag. He smiled at Priya, and Priya smiled too—a smile that Arjun hadn’t seen for a long time.

He said something, and Priya took him to the bathroom. Arjun ran back to Delhi, his heart pounding, his hands holding the steering wheel.

He broke into the house. There were unfamiliar shoes in front of the bathroom door. He opened the door—Priya was in a bathrobe, her hair was wet, and the man in front of her was holding the hair dryer.

“What’s going on here?” growled Arjuna.

Priya shuddered:
“This is Raghav, massage therapist. I’ve had back pain for months…”

But when Arjun looked into Raghav’s bag, he found not only the massage oil, but also a thick envelope with red stamped papers – a copy of the land contract of Arjun’s family in Lucknow!

Arjun was stunned:
“Why are my family’s land papers here?”

Raghav stammered, Priya burst into tears:
“I didn’t want to hide this from you… But I have come to know that someone in the family is secretly selling the land. An outstanding scion or descendant of king Raghu’s dynasty… He’s your half-brother. ”

Arjuna was speechless with these words. Raghav sighed:
“My father gave me that land before he died. But my stepmother is fuming the papers to sell it. Priya came to know about this from a friend working in the land registry office. He asked me to disguise myself as a massage therapist and deliver the papers safely so that no one would follow me. ”

Just then, the doorbell rang. Arjun’s stepmother – Savitri Devi – and two strangers were men. She came in, her eyes full of accounting:
“I know you have the papers. Hand them over, or else…”

The room was getting thicker. Arjun stood in front of Priya, his eyes sharpened:
“Otherwise? It is my father’s property. Don’t forget, I can take it to court. ”

Savitri Devi pursed her lips, but stopped when she saw Raghav standing next to Arjun. Raghav stepped forward, his voice cold:
“Mother, I have been silent for a long time. Starting today, we’ll clear everything. ”

The atmosphere was tense. Arjun grabbed Priya’s hand, understanding that the wet towels were not a sign of betrayal – but a sign of a clan war that was quietly going on in this house.

Part 2 – The Dangerous Dinner That evening, at Savitri Devi’s invitation to an “emergency family meeting”, everyone gathered in the spacious dining room of Sharma Haveli in Delhi. The table was full of traditional dishes—but no one touched their chopsticks. The atmosphere was so heavy that even the rattle of spoons seemed deafen.

Savitri Devi was sitting at the head of the table, wearing a red sari, with dark make-up on her face. He looked at Arjun, Priya and Raghav like a hunter watching his prey.

“We’re here tonight to clear up any misunderstandings…” He said in a low voice, but there was a threatening twinkle in his eyes.

Arjuna patted lightly on the table:

“Misunderstanding? Do you know my father’s secret forgery of land sale documents? Are you mistaken?”

Savitri bowed her head with a sarcastic smile:
— “This is the family’s property. I just want to sort everything out before it’s too late. ”

Priya couldn’t stop herself and said:
“For whom is it too late, Mom? For your husband’s illegitimate son, or for the debts you are trying to hide?”

There was silence on the table. Relatives sitting next to him took a deep breath.

Savitri clutched the gold bracelet tightly around her wrist:
“Who are you to meddle in this matter?”

Raghav stood up, his eyes as cold as ice:
— “She is the daughter-in-law of this family, and the one who saved us from losing everything. Mother, I have known for a long time – the land in Lucknow was actually left by my father for Arjun. But you figured out a way to erase his name from the legacy records. ”

Savitri slammed her hand on the table, her voice being raised:
“Shut up! You also have half your blood, but you have never been identified, so what right do you have to interfere?”

Arjuna narrowed his eyes:
“So… Is Raghav really my half-brother?”

Raghav nodded, his eyes red:
— “Dad told my biological mother before he died. But for the sake of honour, Savitri’s mother hid this fact and expelled us from Delhi. Dad still kept sending money until… He did not die suddenly. ”

Priya opened her bag, pulled out a pile of papers:
— “This is proof that Savitri’s mother had borrowed money from a businessman in Jaipur and was repaying loans from Arjun’s land. If we hadn’t stopped it, it would have been all over. ”

One of the uncles of the family sighed:
“Savitri, is this true?”

Savitri turned around, her voice full of indignation:
“I did all this to protect this family! Do you think I wanted to sell the land? I wanted to keep this house with that money, so that none of you would be thrown out into the street!”

Arjuna turned to his stepmother:
— “Protecting the family… By deceiving the Father, hiding His Son, and cheating on Me? Don’t you find it ironic?”

Savitri was silent, her hands trembling. Nobody said anything. I could only hear the sound of the fan.

Raghav put his hand on Arjuna’s shoulder:
“Little brother, father gave that land to you because he believed that you would protect it. But now, we have to protect the truth together. ”

Priya looked directly at Savitri, her voice firm:
“Tomorrow, we will submit all the papers to the court. And if you still want to save the honour of the Sharma family, then you should stop here. ”

Savitri smiled faintly, stood up and put her pallu on her shoulders.

“Respect? Do you think you’ve won? This war is not over yet. ”

She left, and left behind an atmosphere filled with the smell of conspiracy that hadn’t yet gone. Arjuna knew that this was just the beginning of the war.

Three days after
that fateful meal, Arjun, Priya and Raghav received a letter inviting them for a “reconciliation session” at the Sharma family’s legal office. The letter had an official stamp, the words were gentle but there was an urgency in them.

Priya grabbed the letter and raised her eyebrows and said:
“I don’t think Savitri’s mother wants to reconcile. It’s happening very quickly, very unusual. ”

Raghav wondered:
— “But if we ignore it, she can use it to accuse us of evading the law.” We must go, but we have to be careful. ”

On that day, they entered a luxurious building in the heart of Delhi. The legal office was on the tenth floor, with transparent glass windows overlooking the city. Savitri Devi was already wearing a green saree, her eyes sharp but a faint smile on her face:

“You’re here. Well done. Today, I want to end everything in peace. ”

Arjuna crossed his arms, averting his eyes:
— “Peace? Just if you return the land papers. ”

Savitri bowed her head, her voice sweet:
“Sure. I brought them here…”

He opened his bag, took out a file. But before Arjun could pick him up, two men in black suits suddenly closed the door and shut it.

Priya panicked:
— “What’s going on?”

Savitri stood up, her eyes cold:
— “Do you think I am a fool? Ever since Raghav has come back, I know you have been peeping into my past. Today, I will eliminate all those who threaten me. ”

Raghav went a step further:
— “You wouldn’t dare to do anything in broad daylight!”

Savitri laughed, her laughter echoing throughout the room:
“During the day, everyone is busiest. No one will hear anything. And when the police find you, it’s just a… There will be an unfortunate accident. ”

Just then, one of the two bodyguards pulled out a strange liquid bottle and placed it on the table. Its pungent smell was very strong.

Arjuna immediately pulled Priya back and shouted:
“Are you mad? It’s murder!”

Savitri looked straight at Arjuna:
“I have done everything to protect this family – and I will not let you ruin it. ”

As the bodyguard approached, Raghav suddenly threw a chair at him, creating a path. Priya quickly picked up the phone, turned on the video recording mode and shouted:
“Maa Savitri, everything you have just said is being recorded!”

Savitri paused for a moment, but immediately said sarcastically:
“Do you think I don’t know how to delete videos?”

Suddenly, the door opened. A group of police officers came in, led by ACP Vikram Singh – an old friend of Arjun’s from college.

“Savitri Devi, you have been arrested on charges of conspiracy to commit murder and cheating. ”

Savitri’s eyes widened:
— “You guys have trapped me?!”

Raghav looked at her, his eyes cold:
“No, mother. It’s a trap inside the trap. You had crept in on your own, thinking you were in control. ”

Priya picked up her phone, a video call was visible on the screen which was directly connected to ACP Vikram since she entered the building. The entire story had been recorded and aired outside.

Savitri faltered, her eyes still full of indignation:

“Do you think this is the end? I still have more cards…”

The police handcuffed him, but Arjun, Priya and Raghav understood from that sentence – this family war is not over yet.