The summer heat hung heavy in the air of their family home in Lahore, where the scent of jasmine mingled with the distant call to prayer from the nearby mosque. Haider, a tall and broad-shouldered man of 32, paced the narrow corridor of the old haveli. His dark eyes burned with a fire that had nothing to do with the sweltering afternoon. He had just overheard his aunt whispering to a neighbor about Sana's impending marriage—a union arranged to some distant relative in Karachi. Sana, his 19-year-old cousin, the girl he had watched grow from a playful child into a stunning young woman with curves that haunted his dreams. The thought of her in another man's arms ignited a rage deep in his chest, twisting with an insatiable lust that he could no longer contain.

Haider burst into the small room where Sana was folding her dupatta, her long black hair cascading down her back like a silken veil. She wore a simple salwar kameez that clung to her full breasts and rounded hips, the fabric sheer enough in the heat to hint at the milky skin beneath. Her almond-shaped eyes widened in surprise as she turned to face him.