20
Chapter 20
The Truth Can No Longer Wait
The next few days were chaotic.
The charity gala was less than a week away, and everyone seemed to be running on coffee and stress.
Anaya welcomed the distraction.
Work was easier than thinking.
Easier than worrying about Rhea.
Easier than wondering how much longer she could keep her secret hidden.
Because deep down, she knew the truth.
The walls were closing in.
And sooner or later, everything would come crashing down.
---
That evening, Anaya was reviewing final event reports when her phone rang.
An unknown number.
Again.
Her stomach tightened.
She answered anyway.
"Hello?"
"Meet me."
Rhea.
Anaya immediately recognized the voice.
"I have nothing to say to you."
"You will after you see what I have."
The line went silent.
Then Rhea spoke again.
"Tomorrow. Seven o'clock. Come alone."
The call ended.
Anaya stared at the screen.
A terrible feeling settled in her chest.
---
The next evening, she arrived at the location Rhea had sent.
A quiet café on the outskirts of the city.
Rhea was already waiting.
The moment Anaya sat down, a file was pushed across the table.
"What is this?"
"Open it."
Anaya hesitated.
Then opened the file.
The color drained from her face.
Medical records.
Her medical records.
Pregnancy reports from five years ago.
Documents she hadn't seen in years.
Documents she thought were long gone.
Her hands started shaking.
"Where did you get these?"
Rhea's expression remained calm.
"That's not important."
"It is to me."
"No."
Rhea leaned forward slightly.
"The important question is how long you plan to keep lying."
Anaya's chest tightened.
"I'm not lying."
"Really?"
Rhea's eyes hardened.
"Because from where I'm sitting, you've spent five years hiding a father from his child."
The words felt like a slap.
For several seconds, neither woman spoke.
Then Anaya looked down at the reports.
At the dates.
At the truth she'd been carrying alone for years.
"You don't understand."
"Then explain it to me."
Anaya laughed bitterly.
"There isn't enough time."
"No."
Rhea sat back in her chair.
"There was five years."
The silence that followed was painful.
Because part of Anaya knew she was right.
Not entirely.
But enough.
---
Unfortunately, neither woman noticed the person standing outside the café.
A person who had arrived only minutes earlier.
A person who had followed Anaya after noticing how nervous she'd been all day.
Aarav.
He hadn't intended to spy on her.
At least, that was what he kept telling himself.
But the moment he saw Rhea inside, every instinct had told him something was wrong.
Now he stood near the window.
Watching.
Listening.
Unable to hear everything.
But hearing enough.
Enough to catch certain words.
Father.
Child.
Five years.
The unease in his chest grew stronger.
Then he saw the file.
And everything changed.
---
Inside the café, Anaya finally stood.
"I'm leaving."
Rhea didn't stop her.
Instead, she said something that made Anaya freeze.
"If you don't tell him, I will."
The threat hung in the air.
Real.
Final.
Anaya slowly turned around.
"You wouldn't."
Rhea met her gaze.
"Try me."
For the first time, Anaya realized she meant it.
Completely.
---
Outside, Aarav stepped away from the window.
His thoughts were a mess.
Nothing made sense.
Yet somehow everything did.
The pieces he'd been collecting for weeks suddenly felt connected.
The dates.
The records.
The resemblance.
The missing father.
The secrecy.
His pulse hammered in his ears.
Before he could stop himself, he called Vikram.
"I need every document connected to Anaya's pregnancy."
There was a pause.
Then-
"Sir?"
"Tonight."
His voice left no room for argument.
"I want everything."
---
Three hours later, Aarav sat alone in his penthouse.
A file rested on the table in front of him.
The final piece.
The one he'd been avoiding.
Slowly, he opened it.
His eyes moved across the page.
Then stopped.
The date.
The conception estimate.
The timeline.
Every number matched.
Perfectly.
Painfully.
Undeniably.
Aarav stared at the document for what felt like forever.
Then he closed his eyes.
Because for the first time, there was no room left for doubt.
No room left for excuses.
No room left for coincidence.
The truth was staring him in the face.
And it shattered something inside him.
Five years.
Five years of missed birthdays.
Missed first words.
Missed first steps.
Five years he could never get back.
His phone slipped from his hand onto the desk.
For the first time in a very long time, Aarav Rathore looked completely lost.
Then anger followed.
Not toward Kabir.
Never toward Kabir.
Toward the woman he had loved.
The woman who had hidden this from him.
The woman who had let him spend five years believing she simply walked away.
Without another thought, he grabbed his car keys.
---
Half an hour later, Anaya opened her apartment door.
And froze.
Aarav stood outside.
His eyes were red.
Not from tears.
From emotion.
Raw emotion.
The kind she had never seen him fail to control.
"Aarav..."
He stepped inside before she could stop him.
The apartment felt too small.
Too quiet.
Too tense.
For several seconds, neither spoke.
Then Aarav looked directly at her.
The hurt in his eyes was impossible to miss.
"So it's true."
Anaya's heart stopped.
Because she knew immediately.
He knew.
Somehow, he knew.
"Aarav-"
His voice broke for the first time.
Just slightly.
But enough.
"Is Kabir my son?"
The question hung between them.
Heavy.
Painful.
Unavoidable.
And for the first time in five years...
Anaya had no place left to run.
To be continued...
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