chapter 24

Chapter Twenty-ThreeThe Queen Must DieThe desert was quiet again.The birds sang.The blood was cleaned.But inside the palace—silence had never felt so loud.Rani stared at the throne she hadn’t sat on in days.Not since Veer’s death.Not since her mother’s resurrection.Rukmini hadn’t left the palace.She’d taken residence in the North Chamber—her old quarters, untouched since her supposed funeral.The staff bowed to her like she never left.The advisors had questions, but none dared speak aloud.Not yet.Dev found Rani on the terrace at dawn.She hadn’t slept.“I remember when I first stood here,” she said, not turning. “I was sixteen. My father had just named me heir. I looked out at this land and told myself I would never let it break me.”Dev stepped closer.“You haven’t.”She turned now. Her face wasn’t tired—it was carved.“Then why does it feel like I’m about to be executed by my own blood?”Downstairs, in the war chamber, Maya was not calm.“Rukmini’s holding private meetings with the council. She’s rewriting protocol. She even unsealed the foreign intelligence files.”“She’s not planning a coup,” Dev said carefully. “She already owns the system.”“She never stopped owning it,” Maya snapped. “She just wore your crown on her daughter’s head.”Rani said nothing.Because a part of her already knew.Later that night, Rukmini invited Rani for tea.Not whiskey.Not war talk.Tea. In the garden.Rani arrived, dressed in black. No jewels. No bangles. Just purpose.Rukmini, by contrast, was radiant in soft ivory, sipping from a porcelain cup as if none of it—the fake death, the treason, the murder—mattered.“You were never supposed to find me,” she said softly.“You’re very bad at hiding,” Rani replied.They sat in silence for a moment.Then Rukmini said it:“Step down.”Rani didn’t react.“You’ve built something magnificent,” Rukmini continued. “But you are not ready to lead it into the next age. You’re angry. Broken.”“And you’re… what? Enlightened?”“I’m efficient,” Rukmini said. “I don’t confuse vengeance with vision.”Rani stood slowly. “And I don’t confuse ambition with entitlement.”As she turned to leave, Rukmini said:“If you walk away now, I will let you live.”Rani stopped mid-step.Didn’t turn around.Then said:“If I walk away now, I’ll never stop looking over my shoulder.”“And I’d rather die facing forward.”That night, the death list arrived.Two names on it:– Maya Singh– Dev RaichandSigned by Rukmini herself.Sealed with the royal insignia.It was an order for quiet elimination.An old tradition. Predecessors used it to clean the palace before major power shifts.Rani stared at the letter in her hands.The guards who brought it had no idea she’d been the intended next name.“She’s clearing the board,” Maya whispered.“No,” Rani said.“She’s trying to rewrite the game.”In the west wing, Dev was already packing.“You’re not staying?” she asked.Dev looked up. “You know I will if you ask me to.”She stepped closer.“No,” she said. “I want you to stay because you want to.”“I want you safe.”“I want us free,” she said quietly.Then added:“But I don’t want to survive another war without you.”He kissed her forehead.“I’m not leaving.”Hours later, the trap was set.Rani summoned the council for an emergency address.Rukmini would be present.It would be televised—public. Controlled. Ceremonial.Except this time…It wouldn’t end with words.As the court gathered, the doors closed behind them. Locked.Rani stood on the dais.Rukmini sat across her, calm, poised, already sure she’d won.Rani looked around the room, then down at her mother.And said:“You taught me to be a queen.”“But you forgot to teach me what to do when my teacher becomes my enemy.”Then she raised her hand.The screen behind her flickered.Security footage played.Clips of Rukmini in the vault.Clips of her signing the kill orders.Clips of her saying: “She was never meant to rule.”Gasps. Movement. Guards hesitating.Rukmini’s eyes narrowed.“You think exposing me will save you?” she said. “You think the truth has power here?”“No,” Rani said.And then—“But I do.”She pulled the ceremonial dagger from her side.Walked down the steps.Face-to-face with her mother.“You told me to become a queen who never begged.”She placed the dagger between them.“Now bow to the crown you made.”The court waited.Rukmini did not move.Then Dev entered—behind her.And placed a gun gently on the table.Rukmini glanced at it.Then at Rani.And for the first time…She smiled.Just a little.Almost… proud.“I underestimated you,” she said.“I was born because of you,” Rani replied. “But I was forged by everyone you tried to break.”Rukmini was taken away quietly.No chains. No screaming.A royal exile.The public was told she had returned to spiritual retreat.Only Rani, Dev, and Maya knew the truth.That night, a raven flew over the palace.And peace returned.But Rani didn’t sit on the throne.Not yet.Not until it felt like hers.(Nxt)