Being the heiress of one of the richest businesses in India was not something Annika Vardhan Kabeer felt proud of. Having lost her mother at childbirth, she is raised single-handedly by her father, who means the world to her. Her outlook of life is...
She left. Shivaay could not say a thing. Her words amplified the rising guilt in his heart. Somewhere he did cheat Annika by marrying her for solely business purposes. He could say it no longer mattered yet couldn't change how it started.
***
An angry Annika entered Harsh's cabin in search of peace. The hunger grumbling inside her stomach exacerbated her stress, frustration, and annoyance. She could have asked him one last time but she didn't. He needed to tell her by himself now. She looked around for nothing specific. Deranging a few files and throwing articles around actually helped. She couldn't believe she was doing everything she asked Shivaay not to at times when he got angry.
"Something has to be here," she murmured to herself. Despite not knowing what she looked for, she went through each page of the file in her hand. Her phone rang. She did not pick up as she knew it was Shivaay. Scanning the last page of the file in her hand, she threw it away. She marched her way towards the door and locked it. She knew Shivaay was searching for her around the office and would end up here at any time but she couldn't be seen at the moment. She couldn't let him assure her and left the matter at hand. Not this time.
She opened the drawer to grab some more files. She didn't care that they were important and she created a mess. It was about her marriage. Something she didn't know about her marriage. It wasn't fair to her.
"Annika," there was a knock on the door. She tried to ignore it while continuing to check the files. She had to finish her work before he brings help and breaks the lock.
"Annika, I am worried for you," he said. His tone was enough to let anyone know how worried he was. He cursed himself for making the sixth mistake in half a day. He blamed himself for the state Annika was in. Somewhere rightfully so. They were separated by a simple wooden door yet the distance was hard to cover. "I am calling a locksmith." Shivaay took out his phone to call Khanna.
"Yeah, bring a locksmith. Any locksmith you know," he was shouting over the phone, "ASAP"
Annika increased her speed. She needed to get this done. The only files left were the ones inside the locker. "Why do people keep files in the locker?" she expressed disappointment to herself. She didn't know the password. She tried her birth year followed by Harsh's and then her mother's. It opened the last time when she keyed her parents' anniversary date.
"Thank you, god," she pulled just the files keeping the remaining cash inside.
"Annika, don't be scared. I am here. Khanna is bringing the locksmith," she didn't know why he thought she was scared. He pampered her too much. So much that she currently had doubts if he possessed any ulterior motive.
"Listen, talk to me yaar" he pled from the other side. She ignored him just like he ignored her when she asked the answer to the question.
She saw Shivaay's signatures on a stamp paper amidst the pile she just took out from the locker.
"Annika if you are ignoring me for any reason, I won't tolerate it," she was very angry now. He wasn't the only one who could get angry. The fault was his, not hers. He had no right to be angry. He didn't deserve to demand her attention at the moment.
She read through the stamp paper in her hand. Immediately knowing it was regarding a stupid partnership between the two companies, she sat down in a chair to support herself. What was so important about the deal that he couldn't tell her about it. She read the first page again. Turning the paper, she read the first clause.
"Papa can't do this," it read that he gave the deal to his son-in-law. Whomsoever married Annika would have got this. "He sold me?" Annika whispered, fresh tears forming in her eyes. "And he bought me?" the tears trickled down.
"Annika, I won't mind if you scold me but you have to talk to me," came his voice from the other side. How she wished the room had a soundproof system activated. Ignoring his voice, she continued to read.
Page five clause 134 read the son-in-law i.e. Shivaay can't divorce Annika. If he does so, the deal will be canceled and he won't receive any alimony.
"At least tell me you are safe," his voice came again, "Da*n it, this Khanna is taking a long time."
Annika glanced at the wall clock. It had been all but fifteen minutes. No locksmith would be readily available in the town of Mumbai for Shivaay's instant gratification.
"I love you" she whispered. Her shaking hand reached her bag looking for a pen. She bit her lips to control her sobs. With blurry eyes, she crossed clause 134 on page five.
Rất tiếc! Hình ảnh này không tuân theo hướng dẫn nội dung. Để tiếp tục đăng tải, vui lòng xóa hoặc tải lên một hình ảnh khác.
Precap: "You know, what? I am so done with you," he stared at the papers she got him in disbelief. "Do whatever you want to do," he enunciated, "but don't blame me for what I do next."
