Everyone was frantically moving here and there like total lunatics. Their heart was thumping in their chest. Only one thing was in their mind, 'there should be no mistake.' The people sitting in the grey and blueish glass cabins of the office were filled with utter terror. They all knew their single mistake would humiliate to a level they never knew ever existed. So all of them were trying their best to control the hysteric nerves and survive the most havocal 5 minutes of their life as they were informed this morning there CEO, Irtaza Haider Syed will be on his rounds. It was to tell the news here and there, their eyes came out of the sockets. His name alone erupted the fire of fear in them because all of them knew who their boss was and what power he actually had.

The rounds started after five minutes and all of the workers were trying hard to compose themselves. The hearts were beating wildly. All of them were well aware of how much a calculative and short-tempered man the CEO was and they can't afford, him losing his temper. They all remembered that incident carved in their memory when a co-worker countered the CEO and barked shit to him, he was badly beaten then fired immediately and after two days they all were informed of his death. He was shot between his eyes and most of his bones were badly broken.

Lack of discipline, unprofessional work, slacking, disrespecting him, and disobedience was not tolerated in his office. And one won't do that unless you have a death wish. He demanded complete devotion and extra hard work from his subordinates without even a single mistake.

Within 2 to 3 minutes the rounds were over and the office filled with sighs of relief. They all can feel their heartbeat going back to normal. They were utterly terrified of this man but the huge amount of the salary they get at the end of the month forced them to survive him.

"Boss, Khurram Osmani is not stopping installing spies among us," Yawar informed as soon as they both entered his office.

"He wants to cease the consignment shipping at any cost."

"Let him. When is Moosa coming back?" he asked whilst sitting on his black swivel chair.

"The first installment will be shipped within next two to three days then he will be back."

"What about the second and third one?"

"Second is at the end of this month and third in the middle of next month."

"Hmm... this work should be winded up as soon as possible then I will personally deal with that Osmani."

"Let him install spies as much as he can at the end he will be fucking begging for mercy." he chuckled thinking of the shit he will do to him when finally his enemy will be in his claws.

"He is keeping tabs on us. He has hired people which are monitoring our every activity." Yawar informed

"Let him do whatever the shit he is doing Yawar. He does not know what plans I've for him,"

"Inform me when Moosa comes back. You may leave," he ordered and Yawar left the office.

He wanted to say something more to his boss but he didn't find it important. The matter at the hands, for now, was the shipping of drugs consignment, not Asim. Yawar was keeping tabs on Asim and after monitoring his activities of the recent years he came to know that from the last 5 years he suddenly had grown rich. He and his friend Waqas were involved in raping girls but Waqas being in the police department covered up the case thus saving them both. Moreover, both of them started a business 5 years back and there is no single clue where the money to initiate the business came from.

Yawar found that Asim guy too shady. But he did not want to inform his boss about him. This matter could be handled after the completion of the project at hand.

Irtaza was sitting in his office engrossed in his work. He was going to get immense power in the whole Mafia world with the Russian and Irish mafia behind his back after the shipping of drug consignment. Even without both these mafias holding his back, his mafia was practically untouchable in the whole of Asia. But the Irish and Russians wanted to have access to Asia which they cannot get without his permission. To increase their ties they allowed him to have access in their countries and he allowed them both to have access in Asia. His power will increase by leaps and bounds if he will have access to Russia and Ireland.

He closed the lid of his laptop and rested his head on the headrest of the chair relaxing his muscles. He indeed was a hardworking and devoted man but with a completely cold and ruthless personality. Dominance ran in his blood.

He closed his grey eyes and took a deep breath. Those luscious pink bruised quivering lips came in front of his vision. He knew he was being extra harsh on her petite frame but what he could do this was him, he did not know what is being nice and soft. And that is why every single person is scared of this man sitting on that black swivel chair.

He wanted to kiss those lips again. He wanted to fuck her so hard that she can't walk for days. A feeling of burying deep inside her and thrusting harshly in and out of her made his member hard. He wanted her complete submission but whenever he kissed her she didn't kiss him back rather resist him and fight him. Her resistance against him was not sitting well with him. But he knew he had to give her some time to progress their relationship.

...

Zahra's eyes were swollen red due to the crying. She keep sitting in his room for fifteen minutes and after crying her heart out she washed her face in his immaculately vast and perfect washroom and headed towards her room. Her mother was still waiting for her there. As soon as she entered she announced that she had convinced Irtaza for the marriage and she need some time alone. Her mother was not happy with the way he rejected her daughter in front of everyone but she didn't say anything and left the room. Zahra immediately called Daniyal and informed him of everything that happened with her. Daniyal was gobsmacked after listening to her. He ran out of his words nonetheless he tried his best to console her. She kept telling him how much she was scared of Irtaza but what could he do other than comfort her with his words. He felt so helpless that Zahra has to face all of this alone. He was not there to help her and Zahra felt more helpless and restrained than him because she was scared of the fact that what if Irtaza came to know about Daniyal but she kept pushing this thought away. She didn't want to ponder over it. Her love was only Daniyal. Her complete trust was only Daniyal and she couldn't let Irtaza snatch her love away from her. She knew she was his wife but she cared less, this marriage was forced upon her. She didn't believe in this marriage.

She felt her heart lightened after crying her heart out in front of Daniyal. Someone knocked on the door and she composed herself immediately before saying a 'come in'.

A very handsome man of about his age or older than her entered the room. Zahra's nerves were now on high alert. She always got tense and apprehensive when any man was around her. She didn't trust men except Daniyal. This mistrust grew more after meeting Irtaza. She was now afraid of mankind.

"Hi" he cleared his throat, "Assalam Alaikum, (Greetings) I'm haseeb," he said and sat on the sofa.

"Wa salam, (To you too)" she shortly replied.

"I saw you crying when you came out of Irtaza bhai's (Bhai means brother and is used to address for an elder person) room. So I came here to check out whether you are fine."

"Yes I'm fine." she shortly answered.

"I know he is a bit harsh and cold. His nature is like that because you know he deals with all the mafia business and if you've emotions in this business you cannot survive in the mafia world. But let me tell you here he is good at heart and so good with his family. I know he might have scared the shit out of you but you will soon be habitual to it. We all are also too afraid of him and no one dares to question his direct order but he is also kind to us. He is like an elder brother to all of us. So you need not worry you will soon be acquainted with his scary nature." he rambled on. He was trying to comfort her scared heart but actually, he scared her more.

Zahra found him a lively person but when he said that 'he is a bit harsh' she resisted the urge to scoff and spill out all the heinous deeds Irtaza did to her. What shocked her the most was that he deals with all the mafia business and this point was scaring her more about him. She knew how the mafia peoples deal with their enemies. They don't wait for a moment and the person is dead the next second. She already knew that his father's family was in Mafia but she had no idea who was dealing with all the mafia business. He seemed dangerous to her but now he was seeming much more livid and menacing to her. She now would have to practice how to act in front of him. She didn't want to die so soon.

"As one day what happened to my sister Haya, a boy was bothering her, he kept messaging her and calling her late night. He was in her university. My elder brother Saif had the responsibility of looking after her. Being in a mafia, family is your weakest point and Irtaza Bhai did not want anyone to trigger his family at any cost so he ordered Shehryaar his younger brother to look after Dua, their only sister, and my elder brother Saif to look after Haya my younger sister. Look after, as in a way to monitor their activities if someone is bothering them, etc etc. Haya was being quiet and odd in those days and then she told everything from start to my cousin, Dua that how that boy is bothering her. And dua told Irtaza Bhai and then he called saif in the garden and beat the hell out of him. His face was literally bleeding with big blue marks and his shirt was torn out at different places. After seeing his condition I thanked God for thousand and thousand times that I do not have the responsibility to look after Haya,"

"What?" Zahra whispered in disbelief.

"Yes, then he locked saif in his room for two days and didn't allow anyone not even any doctor to see him. He was restrained in his room for two days without any food. Mama requested him a lot to at least let her give some food to saif but he didn't allow it"

"Who is he not to allow anyone?" she almost mocked.

"He is the head of this haveli and without his consent, nothing can happen in this haveli. And you can't go against his direct order unless you don't love your bones anymore. Ok, listen then after two days he allowed the doctor to see him and let mama give him some food."

"What happened to that boy?" Zahra asked.

"Yaar listen na. Irtaza bhai didn't deal with that boy personally he ordered Saif to deal with the boy himself. And Saif directed his men to kill that boy. He scolded Saif for not breaking that boy's few bones before killing him."

She gasped with horror. Her breath got stuck in her throat.

"Don't you think that taking one's life for such a small reason is a bit too much? I know what he did was not right but killing him..."

"Irtaza bhai then would have killed saif if he hadn't killed that boy. This is Mafia, Zahra. There is no remorse in it. But the whole point of this story is that he might seem very much cold, cruel and ruthless to you but he is actually good at heart. I hope my lecture comforted you." he asked after finishing his scary story.

To say the least, it didn't comfort her at all.

"Can I ask who you are to me? I mean how you are related to me?"

"I'm, Haseeb. Your father is my uncle so you are my cousin."

She gave him a tight-lipped smile and nodded. Before that boy, Haseeb could say anything, a girl entered in the room.

"Oh my God, I know he almost has eaten half of your head like an apple with his stupid stories. I'm so sorry for that" she dramatically said.

"Dua go away shoo. She was enjoying my company. Right, Zahra?" Haseeb looked expectantly towards Zahra and she slightly nodded.

"Boy as you have eaten half of her head she is not in her right mental state to give a logical answer so you go away from here shoo," she said sitting on the bed beside Zahra.

"Dua what happened to your nose?" Haseeb asked whilst pointing towards her nose.

"What? why? What happened?" the girl, Dua, tapped at her nose.

"Your nose is getting bigger day by day. I wonder by next year there will be only nose left on your face" he grinned.

"Achh.. what about your girlfriend's nose? Should I tell Chacha Jaan (Uncle) about how big her nose is?" His smile swept away in a millisecond from his face and both Zahra and Dua laughed heartily.

"How do you know?!" he half screamed.

"We and Haya saw you dating her in the cafe. How you were looking at her with full love and affection. We both clicked a picture of that beautiful scene." she opened her gallery and showed the picture to him.

"I think so I should WhatsApp it to chacha jaan (Uncle). He will be really happy to see his future daughter-in-law." All color drained from his face.

"What do you want?" he asked.

"Take back your words."

"Ok, I am sorry."

"Sorry for what?" she feigned ignorance.

"Your nose is the most perfect in the world. Now happy. Delete that picture."

"Nah nah nah I'm not gonna do that."

And that's when the pillow fight started. The whole room filled with laughs and screams. They jumped on the bed, sofa, floor everywhere. There was cotton and cotton everywhere. Haya after following the source of the screams also joined at them while Zahra kept sitting there watching them, laughing heartily. She forgot about everything for a moment and enjoyed the little happy moment. Soon, the fight was over and all four of them sat and talked for hours. They also gave their condolences to Zahra. While telling her father's stories, Tears welled up in Zahra's eyes. Dua and Haya consoled her and Haseeb sprinkled his stupid jokes to make the thick atmosphere light. They kept on talking and playing for hours. Zahra was happy that her cousins were nothing like Nayab. She already felt attached to them. She enjoyed her time with all of them and neither did she feel insecure with Haseeb.

She came to know about the whole family structure. Irtaza's mother died when he was seven. He has one younger brother, Shehryaar, and one sister, Dua, and Haseeb had one elder brother, Saif, and two sisters, Haya and Alizey. Alizey was only 6 years old. Haya was 19 and Dua was of the same age as Zahra, 22. It was a quite big family for her nonetheless, her cousins were really good.

It was evening time when all of them were called for dinner. Everyone took their respective seats. Irtaza was already sitting there and that made Zahra uncomfortable. After knowing that he kills people like insects she got more scared of him. She did not want to face him alone. Neither did she want to be near to him.

All the while Zahra could feel his intense gaze on her and lost her appetite with nervousness. The dinner was over soon and before anyone could retire to the rooms Irtaza announced that he was convinced for the marriage. The dining room bloomed with waves of laughter and screams of joy that came from Dua and Haya. All of them were happy. Their grandfather announced that engagement will be held now and nikkah would be done after the 40th of Mujtaba.

All the family moved to the TV lounge and their grandmother ordered a maid to bring the engagement rings from her room. All of them were seated on the sofa. Ammara next to Zahra and Zahra next to Irtaza. Zahra's heart was beating in her ears and she was trying her best to smile but her face was pale yellow. Her hands were slightly shivering and she curled her toes to stop her legs from shaking. Her hands and feet were cold and sweaty. She was feeling nervous.

Irtaza placed his warm hand on her cold one and squeezed them gently to calm her. Zahra's senses got more out of control when he placed his hand on hers. Dua, Haya , Saif, and Haseeb all were photo shooting the couple. Soon, the maid came and gave the rings to Zahra and Irtaza. With shivering hands and a tight-lipped smile, Zahra abruptly slipped the ring on his ring finger.

Now it was his turn and she noticed Irtaza softly holding her small shivering hand and smoothly slipped the ring on her slender finger.

Everyone began to clap and hoot and captured the scene in the cameras.

Irtaza neared her ear and softly inhaled her scent making her heart go wild.

"You are mine, Zahra. Only mine. I'll do everything in my authority to make you sure just that. And I promise I'll never let you go. Even if you beg to let you go I'll never do that." he whispered and gave a soft chaste kiss on her earlobe. He pulled away and gave her a smile indicating her to smile back which she hesitantly did.

"Aww, you guys are too cute." Dua, Irtaza's sister, exclaimed.

Zahra's face paled more after listening to what he said. She wanted to run away. She would run away at the first opportunity she gets. She can't cage herself with him all her life. She determined it in her heart that she will run away.

But how wrong she was.

Everyone gave their best wishes to both of them. Haseeb's mother, Aunt Asma, came and congratulated Zahra on the engagement. Ammara hugged her daughter after the engagement and kissed her forehead. Everyone was happy except the bride herself.

After the small engagement with a big photoshoot was over everyone went back to their rooms with a happy heart.

Zahra was sitting alone in the room. She kept staring at the engagement ring which he made her wear. Her heart was wrenching painfully and slowly tears made their way down her. She was meant to wear the ring of Daniyal's name, not Irtaza. He forced this ring, this marriage everything on her and at last made her accept that she acknowledged this marriage without any pressure.

She was feeling so angry and helpless at the moment. In a fit of fury, she forcefully took out the ring from her finger and threw it on the door. She wanted to smash it on Irtaza's face but she had not enough courage to face him after the morning episode.

The door of her room opened and he walked in. Her eyes widened and she immediately draped the dupatta on her chest. Her gaze lingered to her ring which was on the floor just a step away from his sleek black boots. She instantly hid her hands behind her back not wanting him to show that her ring was not there where he placed it.

Irtaza followed her gaze which was fixed on the ring lying on the floor. He took a deep breath to quell his anger when he saw the ring thrown on the floor. He squatted down and picked the ring before closing the door of the room and locking it making her breath hitch and her footing weak.

She was once again alone with the devil.