Chapter Sixteen #2
“An ex. He . . . he’s who I was running from when I came to see you in college.”
Mira’s mouth turned down at the corners. Sejal assumed it was at the reminder of that past annoyance. “That was ages ago.
What does he want now?”
As she rubbed her nose, Sejal realized she was still holding the mini-bottle of whiskey. One sip had steadied her nerves,
any more and she’d be asleep. She set it down. “From what I can understand, Alexei believes I stole some money from him.”
Sunil frowned. “Can you pay him back?”
“I didn’t steal anything.”
“Pah. I’ve thrown money at more problems than I can count, simply to make them disappear. Give it to him.”
“First of all, I don’t know how much it is, and second, I don’t have the kind of money that would make a guy like Alexei send someone to chase me across the country.”
“You don’t, huh?” There was an odd tone in Sunil’s voice, and he had a watchful expression she hadn’t caught until now.
“I don’t.”
“So you didn’t come into a windfall recently?”
Oh, he must be talking about the inheritance from her aunt. “Yeah, Rhea Auntie left us some jewels. I can’t use them for this.”
Krish turned to face her. “Your aunt left you jewels?”
“Yes.”
“A buttload of them,” Mira interjected. “For both of us. We liquidated ours and put the money away in a fund for Ananya. I
agree with Sunil, Sejal. Maybe you should lob a few rubies at this Alexei guy and get rid of him.”
“I can’t,” she repeated. Sejal grimaced, hating that she had to reveal something so personal. “I sold most of them to pay
off some steep debts for a friend of mine, and the rest is earmarked for his long-term care.”
Krish’s eyes warmed into a dark green. She hated it. Not the warming part, the part where he saw something real about her.
Where they all could see it! “Ken?” he asked quietly.
“Yeah.”
Mira rested her hand on Naveen’s shoulder. “That’s kind of you.”
Sejal squirmed. “Anyway, this came out of nowhere. I haven’t even thought about Alexei since I got him off my back the last
time.”
“You mean when your father got him off your back for you,” Sunil corrected her.
Sejal nodded reluctantly. God, she hated to be reminded that her father had actually helped her.
“You went to Dad for help with this guy?” Mira asked slowly.
“Yes. After I came to you.”
Mira’s knuckles went white on her husband’s shoulder. Naveen reached up to pat her hand.
“And Vassar helped her,” Sunil said pointedly. “Because he was a good man.”
Sure, every good dad gloats first when his daughter comes to him for help.
Sejal wasn’t entirely surprised that Mira’s lips twisted. In this, at least, they were still united.
“Please stop, Sunil Uncle. Sorry, he’s been insufferable about our father since Ananya was born.”
“All I’m saying—”
Krish cleared his throat, interrupting Sunil. “I didn’t know the man, but it sounds as though he terribly mistreated his daughters.
You may have known a different side of him, sir, but it’s quite fair for Sejal to feel angry toward him.”
Damn it. Defending her now? Stop making me like you.
Sunil looked down at his hands. “I know Vassar didn’t always show it, but he did love you.”
Irritation rose up in Sejal’s throat like bile. All her father’s buds had thought he was the best thing since sliced bread,
and if that was the kind of judgment they had, then how could she trust them?
Sejal had grown up listening to Rhea make one excuse after another for her brother. He’d be here if he could. He loves you so much. He doesn’t know how to be a father. He misses your mom.
Blah, blah, blah. “I’d rather not argue over this.”
“Why would your mom have kidnapped you if she didn’t think your dad loved and trusted you enough to give you that necklace?”
Sunil clamped his lips shut and cast Krish a guilty look.
Krish nodded. “I am aware of the kidnapping.”
Because I have a big mouth. “Our mother kidnapped me because she was also a deadbeat parent.”
“No. It was because she found that email he sent me.”
“Not this again,” Mira muttered.
Sejal narrowed her eyes. “What email?”
“You left before we could have a proper debrief after that unfortunate abduction incident.” Sunil pulled his phone out of
his pocket and tapped on the screen. “Here.”
Curiosity had her taking the phone from Sunil. Krish leaned over slightly to read the screen over her shoulder, and she didn’t
block him. Because why start shielding him from her dysfunctional family now?
Sunil,
No complications with the transaction, but in the hospital. If you see them, tell them I’m sorry. I don’t blame Mira or Sejal
for leaving home. I was a shitty father. Hope they do better. Left them something, they’ll know where it is. Talked to Rhea,
she says Mira’s getting married soon. I wish I could make it to her wedding. Feels like something’s missing.
Thanks for everything. Talk soon. Vassar
Tell them I’m sorry.
This email from her dead father should have stirred something inside her, but it didn’t. Not even a little bit. She handed
the phone back to Sunil.
“See? He loved you.”
“I don’t see a single word about love in there.” Rhea had been the only one to talk about love in their household. Their aunt was the reason Sejal had tried to say it to Mira when they were young. She hadn’t wanted Mira to grow up like she did, with barely anyone telling her she was loved.
“He apologized,” Sunil insisted.
“To you. Not us. Not me.” Sejal crossed her arms. “An apology is like a tree falling in the woods when no one’s around. If
it doesn’t make a sound like I’m sorry, it doesn’t count.”
Sunil shook his head. “You’re both as stubborn as he was. That’s not a compliment.”
“This is a place where we both have to agree to disagree, Sunil Uncle,” Mira said crisply, crossing her legs. “Sejal, is there
anything we can do to help you with this Alexei guy?”
Yeah, time to get back to business. “All those years ago, Dad tracked down some incriminating evidence about Alexei’s embezzlement.
He threatened Alexei with it, to get him to back off, and it must have been bad enough that the man listened.”
“Your father didn’t give it to you?” Naveen asked.
“I asked him for it, but he refused.”
The phone in Krish’s pocket buzzed, then buzzed again. They sat so close together she could feel it against her side. He pulled
it out and looked at it. A grim expression crossed his face, but he silenced the phone and put it back in his pocket.
“Dad liked to hold things over people’s heads,” Mira said, and a barely banked spark of anger simmered under the surface of
the words.
Truer words were never spoken. Mira got it. “I didn’t really need it then, so I didn’t care enough to fight him for it. He
left it in the storage unit, I’m sure. But the unit is empty.”
“Mira cleaned it out after all that unpleasantness a couple years ago, in case the authorities found it,” Sunil said, subdued now.
“Yes. It’s actually where Rhea Auntie left us the jewels.”
Of course. For some reason, it hadn’t occurred to Sejal to ask her sister where she’d found Rhea’s inheritance.
For the first time, Sejal kind of regretted not doing a proper postmortem with her sister after Mira had freed her from Rushali’s
grasp. She’d been so eager to get out of there, and away from her family, that she’d run without knowing exactly what Mira
had gone through to get to that hotel room.
“So the contents of the storage locker are in LA?” Krish asked.
Naveen narrowed his eyes at the other man. “You know where we live?”
“I mentioned it to him,” Sejal cut in. She hadn’t, but there was still no need to explore the FBI agent land mine when they
had others to blow up.
Mira shook her head. “No. I didn’t have the energy to go through it, so I just moved what was left to another facility here.”
Krish’s sigh of relief echoed hers.
“Great,” Sejal said. “We can go there now, then. What’s the address?”
“I’ll come with you and show you. I know where everything is, we could find it quicker.”
Sejal hesitated. “Uh, it could be dangerous.”
Mira raised an eyebrow. “How so? I very much doubt your Alexei knows where the new unit is.”
“I’ll call my guards and driver. They’ll take you so you’ll be well protected.” Sunil pulled out his phone.
“Maybe you should stay with your baby,” Sejal persisted.
Naveen shook his head. “I’ll stay with the baby.”
Damn it. She didn’t want to be alone with Mira. Sejal licked her lips. At least Krish would—
“I’ll stay here as well. I have some calls to make.”
What? He was going to leave her side? Did he . . . trust her? Her?
No, her brain’s cynical side said. He just knows you won’t Thelma and Louise away with the sister you’re clearly not comfortable with.
But maybe he would. What if she came back and he was gone?
Why do you care? “Who are you calling?” Her tone was sharper than she intended.
Krish’s gaze met Sejal’s. “Plans have changed. I need to work some things out.”
What did that cryptic shit mean? Was he still planning on going to see her aunt, only without her?
She’d spent days thinking about running away from him. Funny, how she hated to be separated now. “We’ll be quick.”
“Take your time.”
Sunil typed into his phone. “The driver’s downstairs.”
Mira stood. Even though Sejal was taller than her sister, she’d felt smaller for most of their adult lives.
Krish slipped his hand in Sejal’s and gave it a squeeze. That single squeeze brought Sejal to her feet, eager to get away
from this particular vulnerability, even if it meant she had to cozy up with an even bigger one.
It’s not like you have to have a heart-to-heart with your sister the second you’re alone.
“Let’s go,” Mira said quietly, her expression serene. Poker face indeed.
Sejal pasted on a smile. “Great.”