Chapter 29 #2
‘I have always cared, even when I shouldn’t have, even when you ignored my existence as kids!’ Dhruv snapped and looked away.
Siya froze when she caught light swelling across his cheekbone. There was a faint discolouration, yellowing at the edges. She might have missed it under the harsh light of the office floor, but the bruise was visible under the muted light of the lamp.
She recalled seeing something similar on his cheek the day the partnership was announced. She touched his jaw, and though her touch was light, he flinched and took a step back. ‘Show me your cheek, Dhruv.’
He hesitated, his eyes narrowing like he didn’t trust her intentions, but then he tilted his head to the side.
She knew what it was, and worse, she knew what it meant. She’d seen bruises like that before. Once on her mother the morning after a fight with their father, and again, once on herself before Kartik learned that she was not the kind to suffer silently.
Now, seeing it on her younger brother, made her stomach churn with disgust and rage.
‘Dad hit you?’
When he didn’t answer, she insisted, ‘Tell me, Dhruv, did Dad do this to you?’
Dhruv pulled back, stepping away from her like she’d burned him. Her body stiffened at the sound of raw pain in his voice.
‘You don’t get to ask me that.’
‘Like hell I don’t! If you don’t tell me right now, I’ll—’
‘You’ll do what? Ignore me some more? Oh no, wait, you already do that enough! If you hadn’t, you’d see that this has been going on for years.’
Siya felt the shame come over in a huge wave. He was right. If she’d looked at him before, really looked at him, she would’ve never missed the signs. If she’d been as hyper vigilant about him as she’d been about Kashvi’s safety, he wouldn’t have suffered. ‘Why didn’t you tell me?’
‘You threatened him when he slapped you once. You made it clear that you will take it public if he touched you or Kashvi but you didn’t hide me behind your shield. He never laid a hand on either of you after that. But me? He had free rein over me.’
‘I… I thought you’re the child he’d never hurt because he wanted you, he loved you. I never thought…’ she trailed off, unable to finish it.
He gave a short, bitter laugh. ‘Dad loved me? That’s got to be the joke of the century. Siya, I was the orphan he never wanted and the problem he didn’t know how to control, so he had no reason to hold back with me.’
Siya shook her head, not able to bear his accusation. ‘No, I…’
He smirked but his gaze held unshed tears. ‘But I wasn’t your problem, right? You never looked twice, not when I came home with a limp, not when I flinched when he was around, not when I disappeared for hours in the garden just to get away from him.’
Siya closed her eyes, absorbing the blast of his anger, and saw him as the lanky and quiet boy he used to be. He was the living proof of her father’s betrayal and she had resented that reminder every time she saw him at home, in the backseat of the car, sitting next to her at the dinner table.
But now, standing in front of him, she saw how the driving force of fear and abandonment and loneliness had shaped him into the angry and suspicious man he was today.
She reached out and touched his arm, hoping to bridge the distance she’d built between them over so many years.
‘I can say that I was only eleven when Dad brought you home, that I was grieving my mother, recovering from my injuries, and raising a school-aged sister who always clung to me fearing she’d lose me too.
But all of them are flimsy excuses in the face of what you had to go through alone. ’
Dhruv stood absolutely still, and his arm was tense under her touch, but he listened intently.
‘I failed you. I was angry at Dad about the affair, at the universe for stealing my mother from me and at you for reminding me that my family was never going to be whole again. But I should’ve looked past all of that and seen you, and I’m sorry that I didn’t.’
A tear slipped from the corner of his eye, but he didn’t speak.
‘But Dad,’ she added, her voice dropping, ‘he failed us all. He used us all in different ways, for as long as he’s been able to get away with it. And he’ll keep doing it until we let him.’
His jaw flexed as he held his gaze.
‘I know you love him. I love him too but I’m done pretending that man is my father in any way that still matters.
I know now just how self-serving, toxic, and manipulative he is.
His greed will never end, and he will never stop using us for his benefit.
That’s why I’ve decided to cut ties with him. ’
The thought had only been swirling around the edges of her consciousness since dinner, but she had so much to do that it didn’t register. She smiled at him, feeling liberated with that call.
‘I don’t know what that will look like yet, but I know staying is worse.
’ She placed her palm on his other cheek and said, ‘You can make that choice too. Don’t stay out of loyalty to a man who’s only ever hurt you.
And if you do decide to—now, tomorrow, ten years later—I will be with you every step of the way. ’
Siya looked down at her watch and saw that there were less than thirty minutes left. It was too late to look for the access codes. She had to find another way into that vault.
‘Thank you for suggesting Lumora for Meera’s birthday. She found happiness and I found a ray of hope for my future. I owe you, little brother,’ Siya said, and a pang of longing went through her. He was her little brother, and she hoped to be a part of his life, but not while Kartik was too.
She walked around him to the door, but turned around once to make sure he was okay. He was still rooted in the same spot. As much as she wanted to shield him, she could only offer him a way out. Now it was up to him to reach for it. And god, she hoped he did.
‘I couldn’t keep you safe before but I will now, if you choose to give us a chance. This time, Dhruv, I promise.’
With that, she walked out of the room, and turned around the corner.
The private hallway behind his office had always been off limits to everyone.
She’d only been down this path once, when Kartik had once allowed her to accompany an investor’s visit to the vault.
She quickly went down the floor through the private exit.
Finally, at the end of the corridor, the faint steel outline of the vault room waited for her. As she moved forward, her gaze caught on the large framed portrait mounted on the wall, and she halted in her steps.
Her breath snagged in her throat. It was a shrine for Arohi Kashyap, frozen in time. The picture of her mother, snapped mid-laugh, was the most overused campaign photo from the early days when Kartik took over. Its polished glass glinted under a soft amber spotlight.
The writing under the frame commemorated her as the best wife who died too young, the original muse and the immortal face of Kashyap Luxe.
Siya hated it, because now after everything her parents-in-law told her, after everything she had begun to piece together, she could no longer look at this picture without seeing her pain.
The tension in her jaw didn’t match her laughter and the shadows under her eyes didn’t belong in a woman so full of life.
The silence of the corridor pressed against her as she stepped closer. She wondered what it was like for her to wake up next to an abusive husband, to live every day surrounded by control disguised as affection, and be isolated from her friends and family.
There was no answer and the ache it left behind felt enormous. She could only hope that she gave her a few precious moments of happiness.
A wave of regret swallowed her, and she closed her eyes.
She herself has been lucky enough to find love, and she’d messed it up.
She’d foolishly spent so much time resenting Abhay, looking at him through her father’s filtered lens of power, betrayal, and fear.
All because somewhere deep inside, she’d learned that good men were only good until they needed you to be quiet.
But Abhay had never made her feel voiceless.
He had patiently waited for her forgiveness, even with her overwhelming anger. He had stayed with her even when she had given him every reason to leave. He had chosen her, time and time again, even when she had given him every reason to give up on her.
Siya reached out, her fingertips brushing against the edge of the frame. She met her mother’s gaze with a burning resolve. ‘I’m sorry, Maa. I’ve been unfair to him, and I’m going to fix it,’ she vowed.
With one last look, she confidently walked toward the steel door that her father had guarded so possessively all these years.
She approached the lone security guard stationed at the end. He looked young, maybe in his mid-thirties but his muscular and hulking personality made up for it. His expression was stoic but his eyes were kind. With a respectful nod, he asked, ‘Good evening, ma’am. What can I do for you?’
‘I just need to step in for a moment to check the gemstones that got delivered today.’
‘Of course, ma’am. Can I have the access code, please?’
Siya pretended to look for her phone in her jean pocket and sported an apologetic smile. ‘Oh damn, I forgot my phone upstairs.’
His polite expression turned tense and hesitant. ‘I’m sorry, ma’am. I need the code. That’s protocol.’
She smiled at him even though her palms were beginning to sweat. ‘It’s fine, it won’t take long.’
His fingers twitched toward his talkie stashed at his waistband as he said, ‘I apologise but I’ll have to confirm it with Kartik sir.’
Her mind was racing through what she could say to appease him, when he relaxed and nodded to someone standing behind her. With a friendly smile, he said, ‘Oh, hello sir.’
For one sharp, disorienting moment, she thought she’d see her father standing behind her. She whirled around and let out an audible sigh of relief. It was only Dhruv.
Gone was the angry, vulnerable man she’d spoken to minutes before as he strolled casually toward them, wearing his signature carefree smirk. He looked so composed, so maddeningly at ease, she worried he’d rat her out.
‘Rajat bhai, call me Dhruv. It’s just my sister,’ Dhruv said, casually tossing an arm around her shoulder.
She stiffened, then put an effort to relax herself. The image of Rajat about to call her father was too fresh in her mind.
‘How are you? Haven’t seen you around in a while,’ he said, patting him on the back.
‘This is an exhausting time because of the exhibition, right Di?’ he asked her, lightly squeezing her shoulder.
She snorted at him. ‘You don’t have to tell me, I have a longer checklist.’
‘That’s what she said,’ Rajat quickly interjected, looking proud.
Dhruv chortled and said, ‘You’re learning, my boy. Anyway, I hope you weren’t threatening to call Dad, she would have kicked your ass. We’re planning a prank for Dad and she doesn’t want to ruin it.’
Rajat chuckled. ‘Prank, sir?’
‘Yeah,’ Dhruv said smoothly, glancing at Siya with a knowing look. ‘We’re staging an April Fool’s Day prank for dad in the vault. We just want to place the props inside before he checks it at the end of the day.’
He bounced the duffle bag in his hand to make his point.
Siya felt moved by his gesture. She hadn’t expected him to show up, not after the words they exchanged in the office. Yet, here he was, offering his help. Maybe, there was still hope for them.
Rajat gave a hesitant laugh. ‘Are you sure about messing with Kartik sir?’
Siya quickly jumped in. ‘Don’t worry, we’ll take the blame right away and tell him we snuck in by lying to you about a fire upstairs. You won’t face any problems.’
‘Besides, isn’t it about time someone did?’ Dhruv winked at her, and a genuine smile overtook her face. This is something she’d never imagined, a fun and easy relationship with him, but she found she liked it.
He turned back to Rajat and said, ‘Just keep this between us, alright?’
Relived, he nodded, ‘Of course, of course. Go on.’
As he punched in the emergency security code, Siya said under her breath, ‘You didn’t have to do that.’
‘Yeah, well,’ Dhruv murmured as the vault door unlocked with a soft mechanical click, ‘I’ve done worse things than lie to a security guard.’
She heard what he didn’t say. For you.
Dhruv gestured toward it. ‘Shall we, Di?’
She gave a firm nod, and side by side, they stepped into the vault.