Silent Whispers

Chapter 42: A Promise

They say Shyam Manohar Gupta was the greatest lawyer this city has ever seen; that he was born to make –or for that matter, break– history; that despite his ordinary background, he was a force to reckon with and not to mention a source of inspiration for both the young and old alike.

In short, he was just downright brilliant.

But sitting across from him in the cozy living room of the Gupta House, Arnav couldn't remember any of that, for what he saw was not Advocate Shyam Manohar Gupta, but the brother of the girl he had unthinkingly fallen in love with.

He was a good-looking man, Shyam. Arnav could see that as soon as he had entered the room, where the former was sipping his morning tea. It was almost a no brainer why his sister fell for him, perhaps in their very first meeting itself.

But what she probably didn't notice –and even the rest of the world for that matter– were the nearly invisible lines beneath his eyes. It was a look that only someone who had been to hell and back would have and it was a look that Arnav understood instantly.

Because it was the same look he saw every time he glanced at a mirror.

"So, Mr. Raizada," Shyam finally said, breaking the icy silence in between them for the last twenty minutes. "What can I do for you today?"

Arnav didn't miss the unnecessary formality in his tone. "Please," he replied. "Call me Arnav."

He simply shrugged in answer.

Arnav felt his heart sink – this wasn't going to be easy or rather, Shyam was going to make sure it wasn't. It seemed the only way they were going to converse was with bitter honesty.

"Okay then, I will get straight to the point," he said abandoning all pretenses. "I'm assuming you know why I am here."

"I am not sure what you mean since this is our very first meeting."

Arnav smiled knowingly. "You don't really expect me to believe that a lawyer of your stature wouldn't know about the man his sister is seeing for the past year, do you?"

Shyam maintained a stony face. "I see what everyone says about you."

"I am sure most of them are rumors. You see people just like to talk."

"Apparently about you."

Arnav didn't know how to respond to that simply because he couldn't grasp if Shyam was being sarcastic, or frank.

"The most eligible bachelor of Delhi," Shyam continued with a wave of his arms. "The man who single handedly brought up the Raizada Empire; the biggest business tycoon the city has seen in years – your achievements are quite impressive."

Arnav nodded in acknowledgement. "Coming from you, I would take that as one of the biggest compliments I have ever received."

Shyam half-smiled. "You don't have to warm me up Mr. Raizada. I assure you, if I was the type to fall for praise, you would have saved yourself the trouble of coming here today."

"So it runs in the family then?"

Shyam stared him, no doubt trying to understand the unexpected satirical comment. "Sounds like my sister has given you a difficult time."

"You have no idea."

To Arnav's relief, Shyam chuckled out aloud, throwing the strange reluctance pulsing in the air out the window. They somewhat progressed from being absolute strangers.

"Well if it's any consolation, Meeti has always been like that," he said, his tone considerably lighter. "It's hard to change her mind once she makes it up. But of course, you must know that already because you figured out ways to get around it."