Chapter 4

Soon, Chandni's car pulled over in the driveway of their newly built bungalow and just as she was about to get down, Rashid Chacha stopped her.

"Bitiya ! Looks like Damad ji (Son in law) I mean Vikram Sahib is back home earlier than expected. Don't show your frustrations on him right now, but talk to him later, when you have calmed down. He is a good man and his intentions are always for your best. Don’t you think? Please listen to me." He spoke soothingly.

"Yes Chacha, I will keep it in my mind. Come inside, I will make some tea." Chandni requested.

"No Bitiya, some other day. I promised my wife that I will be home early today, because I have to take her to the Dargah. She has some Mannat to fulfil." Rashid Chacha replied with a smile as Chandni slowly climbed the steps to go inside.

Workmen were still finishing the last-minute jobs in the new house and it was still chaotic.

She found her husband talking to their manager, giving him precise and slow instructions as to what would be the items required for the upcoming housewarming party.

The moment he saw her, he greeted her warmly.

"Welcome to our humble abode Madam CEO!! So how was your first day in your company?" He asked enthusiastically, his eyes boring into hers.

For a few moments, Chandni was tongue tied. She didn't want to lie to Vikram, but at the same time, she was determined to show that she can handle the job, and not come across as a weak woman.

"It was really good, I got so many things to tell you and I will do that in detail later. But first tell me, how was our trip? You left so suddenly yesterday, I didn't even pack anything properly for you. I was so worried." She replied, in a concerned tone.

Vikram walked slowly towards her, smiling, and made sure that her sharp eyes didn't catch the butt of the Cigar he smoked earlier.

"Chandni, I have told you so many times. You don't have to pack anything for me. We military men are accustomed to pack everything within two minutes and be ready for anything. I was absolutely fine. Stop worrying about these small things. Concentrate on the big picture. You are now an owner of a small organisation and are responsible for the livelihood of so many employees. Leave your poor husband alone," He laughed aloud.

"If by that statement you are hinting that I shouldn't ask you about how many cigars you smoked and how many drinks you had, you are sorely mistaken." Chandni's face looked as if she was ready for an argument.

She couldn't help but notice that their manager, twenty eight year old Pramod was observing their exchange with amusement. He was still new and not quite used to their banter.

Vikram looked helplessly at him.

"Pramod, are you married?"

"Er... No Sir" He replied shyly.

"Good!! Don't ever make that mistake my man. This is not just for you, but it is my advice to all the bachelors."

"I tried to avoid it for a long time but felt compelled to get married. But since then, my life has been hell. Where do I even begin? Everything begins slowly, you know. And they mask it as love towards us, they say it's purely out of concern for us, and then they start the real drama. Don't smoke, don't drink, don't go to clubs, don't stay up late and so on and so forth." Vikram poured out his sorrows.

"Why are you scaring that poor guy out of his wits? Pramod, don't worry about your Vikram Sir. As much as he loves to exaggerate about how we try to control his bad habits, he knows and even the entire staff knows, that it is completely untrue." She smiled slightly at Vikram before making her way towards the kitchen to prepare some tea.

"By the way Chandni, I have a surprise for you." Vikram called from behind.

As she turned around, someone rushed towards her and hugged her tightly around her waist with their tiny hands, calling out loudly "Mummy!!!"

"Atharv!!" Chandni's face broke into a bright smile as she looked at her bundle of joy.

***

Sometime later in the night, once she had put Atharv to bed after reading his favourite story, Chandni finally managed to sit with Vikram and explain what happened at Synergy Inc. that morning.

She tried very hard not to sound accusatory but she couldn't stop herself from asking.

"Did you...Did you know that Aryan was part of this company before? " Her face was full of anguish.

Vikram looked at her sharply.

Chandni became flustered. “How stupid of me? I know you would have never sent me there if you knew.... It's just that..."

Vikram cut her short.

"Chandni, thanks for your confidence in me, But I am really sorry for all the hurt and anguish you had to go through today. Was he rude to you or misbehaved with you?" There was a hint of anger in Vikram's eyes. His keen gaze was locked on her face, as if he wanted to observe every subtle reaction on it.

"He tried to be rude initially, but I gave it back to him fair and square." Chandni hissed.

Vikram's face relaxed and he laughed gently.

"That's my girl. I am so proud of you."

Chandni smiled back at him.

"I bombarded him with every question I could think of about their products, but he answered them all faithfully." She paused, and looked down at her hands, as she played with her wedding ring, out of habit.

"But then I caught him crying in the car." Chandni blurted out, as if talking to herself.

Vikram's sharp intake of breath brought her back to her senses.

"It... It was an accident." She gulped nervously.

"He has got exactly same car as mine, I never expected him to still remember our stupid...... Anyway, I was in a rush, and I mistakenly went and sat inside his car and there he was... crying. I was stunned, didn't know what to do. But then he began to blame me and my family for torturing or punishing him. As if..." Chandni's face slowly turned red with suppressed anger and hurt.

Vikram could understand that meeting Aryan after so long, invoked some bitter sweet memories in Chandni, but he wasn't keen to know about any of those. Much as his heart went out to her, he decided that it was better to make her see the bigger picture, instead of just offering his sympathy and support.

"Chandni, I have been asking you to take more active part in looking after the family business for a long time now, but you kept putting it off, as you said you were not ready. And I understood your point of view, because Atharv was still very young and he needed mother's care more than anything. I completely respected your decision. When you were finally ready, I gave you a choice between the two companies we bought around the same time, Synergy and Mohit Enterprises. And you chose Synergy because you were more interested in the kind of niche products they were making."

Chandni nodded her head slowly, as she tried to compose herself.

"I can easily arrange for you to go to Mohit enterprises, but there's already an existing CEO there, who was chosen after an extensive talent hunt. But that's the least part of the problem. If you run away from your job, wouldn't Aryan think you are the guilty party here, and take it as a moral victory for him?" Vikram's baritone voice echoed in that silent room.

Chandni looked away, unable to face his piercing gaze. She knew that every word Vikram spoke was nothing but simple truth, but still...

"I would be insulting you by asking questions like, do you still have any tender feelings towards Aryan etc. because I know you don't. And how do I know this? You assured me long time ago that he had no place in your heart and I completely trust you. I don't understand what is the problem here? He is just another employee for you, to take care of in the company. Actually, I am wrong. He is not just an employee there but he is also kind of a Protégé of the previous owner and is a shareholder in the company. So, we can't sack him either. I can totally understand that, initially there will be a lot of awkwardness and the whole scenario probably be even painful. But even if you are not working there, there might be times you might meet him. Like when I invite them over to our home for any meetings or I take you along for any major events there.

As you know, I am planning to invite employees of both the new companies for the upcoming housewarming party. I know it would be less torturous than seeing him daily at work, but it is entirely up to you how you want to deal with this. And whatever your decision is, I will support you completely." Vikram assured her.

Chandni couldn't help but thank her husband inwardly, as his complete trust in her and the respect he had for her decisions soothed her nervous heart, and even emboldened her self-belief.

"Let me sleep on it and I will tell you my decision tomorrow." She finally declared after a long pause.

"Great! Take as much time as you need." He sighed in relief. He knew that once Chandni gets over the initial indecisiveness, she can be as tough as necessary.

"By the way, you still haven't told me what such an urgent business was, that you had to go away so suddenly?" She asked him accusingly.

"Now it is your turn to take leap of faith and trust me whenever I go away on these trips. I don't have a hidden wife or girlfriend." He mocked at her.

"Ha-ha!! very funny!!" She rolled her eyes at him.

"That's why I always say. We husbands can never win. You don't trust us whether we tell the truth or lies. I give up." He raised his hands in mock surrender and started making himself a drink.

"Listen! Please don't drink too much. Have you taken your medicines?" She asked him, her eyes full of concern.

"Yes Chandni, I got so used to your punctual reminders that I take them the first thing, right after dinner. But why don't you go and sleep now? You must have had a hectic day, travelling all the way to the office in the heavy traffic. I am afraid, this is something you have to get used to. I still have some files to sign that Pramod gave me." He pointed at the bundle of documents on his desk with a sad face.

"Yes, I am feeling rather tired. But please don't stay up too late. You too have travelled a lot today, remember? Good night." She turned to look at him one last time, before retiring to bed.

Vikram sat down and drew the bundle of files towards him with a heavy sigh. He pulled out the drawer, took some capsules and gulped them down as he began to read the first file.