Chapter 2
“It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.”
Aisha Solanki smiled. “Really, Neha, you are quoting Pride there was no denying the fact.
The picture showed him standing in front of a silver Rolls Royce in his signature dark suit, head tilted at an angle, arms crossed in front of him and that devastatingly sinful smile hovering on his lips.
His dark eyes glinted mysteriously, daring one to find out what he was hiding behind them. Everything about him screamed trouble with a capital T and everything that she had learnt of him corroborated that fact. He was a known heartbreaker, a rogue and a ruthless businessman.
Aisha had read this particular article in the Lifestyle magazine several times before and after it was printed.
After all, it was her job to ensure that the magazine covered the interview precisely.
The magazine had wanted a day in the life of Rithwik Bali and Aisha had worked carefully and closely with her boss via email and phone, to ensure that the magazine captured only a brief glimpse of her boss’s life, just like he had wanted.
The interview had ended up being glamorous with vivid details of his home and travels, with hardly any personal facts given out.
Not that all personal details of his life were a secret.
Everyone knew that his mother was Tara Sharma, a famous Bollywood actress who had married the business tycoon, Varun Bali while at the epitome of her career.
Their love affair and subsequent marriage was still spoken of, even today.
Tara Sharma had eventually quit the limelight and settled down to become an author, having written two books on motherhood.
Rithwik had insisted, rather demanded that no pictures or details of his parents be shared in this article. It was clear to Aisha that his parents were extremely private and Rithwik had been firm about not wanting any attention drawn to them.
She subconsciously traced his face with her finger.
It was indeed true that he had no dearth of female companions seeking his attention.
She ought to know. She answered several of his calls from his various female admirers, arranged his dates even when he was traveling, which was practically all the time.
She sent the ladies he dated, flowers and gifts and cleared his hotel bills.
She knew he dated a different woman almost every night and mostly never the same one twice.
But what he did in his private life wasn’t any of her concern.
She laid the magazine aside and resumed her work while Neha continued to rave about their boss.
Having heard her admiring comments so many times already, Aisha tuned her out.
Mr. Bali had been away for most of the three months since Neha and she had joined the company and he communicated with them mainly through phone and email.
He had requested for a report to be mailed to him by this evening, Aisha thus concentrated on the screen in front of her.
But Neha was extra persistent today. She picked up the magazine again and tossed it on Aisha’s keyboard still waiting for her reaction. “Well, come on, what do you think? Isn’t he handsome?”
Aisha spread her hands in exasperation. “Of course, he’s good looking. I can’t deny that.”
“See, that wasn’t so hard,” Neha leaned on Aisha’s desk. “The last three months were so easy since he wasn’t around. But imagine how it will be when we have to work directly with him every day!” Neha took a deep exaggerated breath. “I swear I’m going to swoon as soon as he walks in.”
Aisha chuckled. “Well, can you go swoon on your own desk? I have work to do.”
Neha disregarded her words as usual. “By the way, I heard he’s returning to Mumbai soon.”
Aisha knotted her hands under her chin. “Where did you hear that?”
“Oh! It’s all over the office grapevine. He spoke to someone from HR who told someone from accounts and now everyone is expecting him to arrive sometime this week. You should keep up with the buzz in office.”
Aisha exhaled a breath. “I don’t need to. I have you, don’t I?”
Neha smiled brightly in response.
“Can I get back to work now, Neha?” Aisha arched her eyebrows. “I have to complete this report for the boss.”
Neha returned to her own workspace, next to Aisha. “Fine, I might as well finish all my pending work.”
Both of them worked as Rithwik Bali’s personal assistants, but each had their own well-defined job profiles and though it had taken some time, they had become comfortable with one another.
In spite of Neha being extremely competitive, Aisha got along with her just fine.
They each had their own well-defined scope of work.
There was a reason why her boss needed two personal assistants.
His previous assistant had barely managed the multitude of jobs that needed to be diligently taken care of to keep his business and personal life sailing smoothly.
And then when she quit suddenly, there was chaos everywhere. So yes, hiring Neha and her made sense.
“Hey, Aisha,” Neha interrupted a few moments later. “Do you have the number for the network service provider? The internet connection is down on my cell.”
“Mmm...It’s on my cell phone. One minute, let me just finish this and I’ll give it to you.”
Aisha typed a few more sentences in her report and her hand automatically searched the shelf under her desk where she usually kept her mobile, but her hand came up empty. She checked her purse next and it wasn’t there too.
“Oh! I think I forgot my cell phone in the car,” Aisha remarked, suddenly remembering that she had placed her phone in the cup holder in her car. “I’ll just go and get it.”
Aisha took the elevator down, thinking about the tasks pending on her to-do list and how quickly she could finish them. Just as the elevator doors were about to open on the ground floor, the lift came to a sudden halt. Darkness enveloped her as the lights went out.
Her heart rate accelerated as the all too familiar sense of claustrophobia hit her.
No, no! She had to deal with this. Any moment now the back-up generator would kick in and the power would be back on.
She just needed to hold on for a few seconds.
She shut her eyes, taking deep breaths like her therapist had taught her.
But it didn’t help and she began to panic.
She opened her eyes and banged against the elevator doors, darkness still enveloping her. “Help! Help!” she screamed.
Trapped. She was trapped! She blindly fumbled the elevator buttons, but no alarm sounded no matter what she pressed. The walls started closing in on her. Her hands flew to her head as reality lost its hold on her and all the hauntingly familiar sights and sounds from her past assaulted her senses.
The scrunching of metal reverberated in her ears – the smell of rubber and fumes assailed her nose.
Heat! She could feel the heat burning her.
Her past and present collided, swirling into one another making her forget where she was.
All she knew was that she was trapped. Here, there, now, then, everything twisted inside her mind as she rested her head against the elevator door, struggling to breathe.
Rithwik crossed into the lobby of his office building and hit the button of the private elevator that would take him straight to his office on the top floor of the building.
He waited, scrolling through the emails on his phone.
Just as the elevator dinged, the lights went out.
Within seconds, however, they were back on again.
He frowned looking at the display on the elevator panel.
It had blacked out and the elevator was stationary, the doors shut.
He checked the time on his watch. It was past one in the afternoon.
This area of the lobby where his private elevator was located was usually silent, especially at this time of the day.
Just as he contemplated what to do next, he heard a soft plea for help. Someone was stuck inside!
Aisha shook her head frantically as her mind played games with her subconscious. No! That was over. She had lived through it. It wasn’t happening again. She had to get out. She banged on the doors once again screaming for help. But her mind rebelled against her as agonizing memories swamped her.
The car was burning; everything was locked tight. She needed to get help. She couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t breathe!
And then suddenly, without warning the elevator doors opened!