Chapter 35
‘Good evening, Commissioner Singh,’ Abhay said.
‘My pleasure, sir,’ Balram replied with a nod, his gaze sweeping across the room. His eyes widened at the bruises on Kashvi’s face. ‘What’s going on here?’
Karthik went pale, a flicker of fear entering his eyes. He slid closer to Swayam and spoke in a low voice so Balram couldn’t overhear. ‘Tell Siya whatever she wants. I’ll do it.’
Swayam flashed Karthik a smug smile before giving Siya a small nod.
Siya shot her father a victorious look, then turned to the commissioner. Pointing towards Viraj, she said, ‘That man stalked, extorted, and assaulted my sister. We’ve learned he has done this to several influential families, and he also has compromising material on all of us.’
Balram’s expression hardened as he turned to glare at Viraj.
Abhay spoke evenly. ‘We’re handing him over to the law, Commissioner. But we expect justice.’
‘Of course, sir. Stalking, extortion, blackmail, laying a hand on a woman? I have no mercy for shameless boys like him,’ Balram sneered.
Viraj recoiled, then jerked his chin towards Karthik. ‘It was him. This was all his plan. He made me do it.’
Karthik let out an amused laugh. ‘Commissioner, do you really believe something that absurd is even possible?’
Balram shook his head immediately, his contempt for Viraj evident. ‘You think I’ll let you drag a respectable man like him into your mess?’
Kashvi felt sick at how quickly Balram took Karthik’s side.
If the law believed her father so easily, what chance did she ever have on her own?
Viraj snarled. ‘It’s not just him. They’re all in on it.’
Before he could say another word, Kashvi lifted her stitched palm. ‘After stalking me for weeks, Viraj broke into our home. He demanded a hundred crores in exchange for not leaking my private pictures. When I refused, he attacked me. My husband did nothing wrong.’
Viraj laughed. ‘You can’t prove it.’
Kashvi gave him a glacial smile. ‘I still have the glass shard I used to cut your face. Your dried blood is on it.’
Viraj let out a hysterical scream. ‘Then arrest Swayam too. Do it now.’
‘Don’t you dare tell me what to do,’ Balram snapped, before turning to Swayam.
Fear flashed through Kashvi as Swayam raised both hands in surrender. ‘If you want to arrest me, I won’t resist. But it was purely self-defence.’
Karthik leaned forward on his elbows. ‘Balram, come on. Swayam is my son-in-law. Surely you understand why I don’t want him punished. He was only protecting my precious daughter.’
Kashvi bit the inside of her cheek at that. She would have laughed in his face if she were not wound so tight with dread.
‘I understand. Take him out,’ Balram ordered.
His officers seized Viraj by the arms and dragged him from the room.
Viraj struggled violently. ‘They’re lying. I’ll prove it. I’ll expose—’
The door shut behind him, cutting off the rest of his words.
Siya turned back to the commissioner.
‘The lawyer handling this will bring all the documents and evidence to the police station,’ she said. ‘And if you could please do us the favour of keeping our families out of this mess?’
The commissioner nodded at once. ‘Of course, Ma’am. You have my word.’
‘Thank you,’ Siya said, dipping her chin before looking back at Kashvi with a faint smile.
Relief hit so hard and fast that Kashvi nearly sank to her knees. Only Swayam’s arm around her waist kept her upright.
Abhay added quietly, ‘I’d also appreciate discretion in your report. My sister-in-law has suffered enough because of that man’s lies and torment, so I hope his baseless accusations won’t be formally recorded.’
‘You have nothing to worry about. I’ll take his statement myself.’ Then Balram turned to Karthik with a polite smile. ‘Will we see you at the fundraiser too?’
Before her father could respond, Siya cut in. ‘Actually, he’s retiring and moving to our farmhouse in Nashik. Permanently. So maybe some other time.’
‘Oh, is he?’
Dhruv chimed in. ‘Yeah. After years of hard work, he’s earned it.’
Karthik gritted his teeth, seething with such fury that it showed in every tight line of his face. But he still managed a stiff nod.
‘I see,’ Balram said. Then he turned to Siya. ‘If you don’t mind me asking, who is handling the case?’
‘Advocate Archit Vanshraj,’ Siya replied calmly.
‘I’ve heard stories about him,’ Balram said, caught off guard.
Abhay chuckled. ‘Believe me, Commissioner, whatever you’ve heard, he’s worse.’
‘Seems Viraj messed with the wrong man,’ Balram chuckled.
‘No, he messed with the wrong woman,’ Siya corrected, her eyes bright as she looked at Kashvi. ‘It takes guts to stand up to a bully, and my sister did exactly that.’
Swayam rubbed a hand over her back. ‘Yeah. I’m proud of my wife. She’s a fighter.’
Kashvi lowered her gaze, unable to meet his eyes.
Balram smiled at her, his expression warm and approving. ‘You did a brave thing.’
Kashvi shook it off. ‘Please don’t mention it.’
With a final nod and a promise to keep them posted, Balram signalled to his team, and they filed out quietly.
The moment they were alone, Siya strode to the desk and slapped a document down in front of Karthik. ‘Sign it.’
Karthik looked at her in disbelief before snapping, ‘How do you expect me to survive with no money?’
Siya shot back, ‘I’m allowing you to stay at the farmhouse. That’s the most you get from me. Try getting a job. Though in this market, you’ll probably be ninety before anyone gives you an interview.’
Karthik narrowed his eyes. ‘You’re serious?’
Siya nodded. ‘I wanted to watch the trustees spit in your face, but I’m done wasting any more time on you. Sign the resignation, or I’ll call for a board vote.’
His jaw ticked. ‘And if I don’t?’
‘This house is huge. The commissioner is probably still in the driveway. I can call him back and have your name added to the chargesheet.’
‘Do it, Di,’ Kashvi pleaded, stepping forward. ‘The only way to stop him from terrorising us is to send him to jail.’
Siya shook her head. ‘No. This is a better punishment. I want the great Karthik Kashyap living with the fear that I might change my mind one day. I want him to wake up every morning wondering if the police are coming for him.’ Her expression hardened with pure hate. ‘I want fear to rule his life.’
Karthik exhaled sharply and grabbed a pen from the holder. ‘You’ll regret pushing me this far,’ he warned, and signed.
Siya snatched the paper back at once, her stare turning glacial. ‘Keep your threats to yourself and get out. Don’t ever come near us again, or set foot in this city.’
Karthik shoved his chair back and kicked it behind him. The violent thud spiked Kashvi’s anger.
‘Di, I don’t trust him. You know he’ll pull strings to come after us later. We have to put him behind bars and end this once and for all.’
Karthik stalked towards the door. ‘Not in this life, you insolent child.’
He had barely taken two steps before Swayam caught him by the collar and yanked him back. Their faces were inches apart as Swayam fixed him with a hard stare. ‘You may not be scared of Siya, but you should be scared of me.’
Kashvi hurried to his side and rubbed a hand over his back, but nothing could rein him in.
Swayam’s voice turned cold. ‘You saw what I did to my cousin, and I once cared about him. So just imagine what I’ll do to you if you ever go near her again?’ Swayam bit out.
A vein pulsed at Karthik’s temple as he snapped, ‘I get it, okay? Let me go.’
He staggered back the moment Swayam released him.
Karthik reached for the door, then looked over his shoulder one last time. ‘Fuck all of you, you ungrateful brats.’
The door slammed shut behind him, the sound leaving a dull echo in her ears.
Just like that, her father walked out of their lives, leaving a hot, ugly rage lodged inside Kashvi. She spun to Siya, the question tearing out of her. ‘Why did you let him go?’
Siya met Kashvi’s gaze, her expression unreadable. ‘Because I had to.’
The old wound inside Kashvi tore open all over again as she said fiercely, ‘Di, if you’re worried about me, I’ll do what you said. I’ll give a statement against him and hope for mercy.’
Siya let out a breath. ‘I was bluffing, Kashu. Even if you get only a few years, prison will scar you for life. The tag of a killer will never leave you.’
‘We have to do something. We can’t just let him walk free.’
Siya smiled ruefully. ‘I had to let him go, Kashu. It’s the only way to protect you.’
‘But why are you protecting me?’ The words broke out of Kashvi with such force that her vision blurred with tears. ‘I should suffer for what I did. It’s the only way I can help you heal.’
Siya shook her head and placed her hands gently on Kashvi’s shoulders. Her voice quivered as she asked, ‘How could you even think watching my sister suffer would heal me?’
Guilt cut deep, regret cut deeper. But beneath both, fragile hope flickered to life. ‘Am I… still your sister?’
Her eyes shone as Siya gently cupped her cheek and said firmly, ‘Even when I’m angry, even when I’m hurt, you are my sister.’
A sob tore free from Kashvi, and she stepped forward, throwing her arms around Siya. All these years, her sister had been the one person she had feared losing most.
‘Please don’t hate me, Di. Please don’t hate me.’
‘I could never hate you, pagal. You’re my baby sister, and nothing will ever change that. I’ll always love you,’ Siya said, gently cradling the back of her head.
Kashvi let out a broken sob and held on tighter. ‘I fucked up, Di. I just… I couldn’t…’
Siya stroked her hair. ‘Shh, bas. You’ll make yourself sick.’
Kashvi’s tears seeped into her sister’s kurti as she choked out, ‘I fucked up, Di.’
‘Yes, you did. And so did I, in many ways.’
Siya drew back just enough to look at her, then flicked a glance at Dhruv. ‘Look at us, Kashu. We’re all fucked up because of what he did to us.’
Dhruv slipped his hands into his pockets with a sigh. ‘She’s right. We spent our lives craving his love, and he used that against us. We were all just pawns in his game.’