"Where were you last night?" Vikram questioned her the next morning.
Her face was dull and puffy which indicated that she overslept and time was one in the afternoon already.
"What happened to your eyes?" he questioned her.
"Nothing that you need to care about," she retorted back. "Even I have something called privacy. Keep your nose out of my fucking business."
She went inside the bath.
"Family is weird!" Vikram muttered under his breath. The smell of dosa reached his nostril and he met his mother-in-law by the door. He stood up from the bed silently as he didn't know how to address the elder woman.
"Is she here?" Revathy asked him, checking inside the room. Vikram looked at the closed door of the bathroom and nodded.
"I need to leave before she sees me," Revathy said in a hurry.
Vikram stopped her, "I need to talk to you about something very concerning regarding Madhu. Who is your other son?"
Revathy became pale at his words, "You are talking about Madhan. Is she struggling again? What's been going on?"
Vikram looked at the photographs on the wall, "Madhu felt uncomfortable at those pictures. She doesn't share her feelings with me."
"He was Madhav's twin who died during a picnic," Revathy initiated the story. "She's been finding it incredibly difficult to cope with the loss. She loved her brother so much and his sudden death left a void in all of our lives. It's her who still carries that pain."
Vikram consoled her, "I can't imagine what she might have gone through. Has she spoken to a therapist?"
"She had panic attacks and it was cured in her teens itself," Revathy informed him. "Bit your actions would trigger her."
Vikram bowed his head in shame.
Revathy shared that family gatherings too triggered Madhu. "She seldom attends events."
Vikram could relate, "She might not want to meet nosy relatives..."
Revathy shrugged. "That photo was taken some days before his death. It might've triggered her."
"Why couldn't she share about him?" Vikram questioned the old woman.
She sighed, "She thinks herself to be the reason for his death."
"I can't understand..." he dawdled.
Revathy sighed, "Whatever it is... She cried a lot yesterday. Don't stress her."
"Ma?" Madhu came out of the bath, "What are you doing now?"
"Guest is god..." Revathy answered her and went out.
Madhu scowled at her mother and exchanged the same nasty stare with Vikram. "Should I tell you to get out?"
"Your dad is meeting the shareholders downstairs. I don't want to be there," he explained to her.
"Oh! Shit!" she cursed. "They will ask about loans!"
***********
The library was filled with a tensed hush as Praneet sat on his seat and the shareholders to his opposite. They were giving him disgruntled expressions and concerned murmurs. Praneet felt anxious to meet them.
One of the shareholders voiced out his concern, "Even though it's a personal issue, we want to know why your daughter is here. The media speculates a divorce."
"None of your concerns," said Praneet.
"It could affect your inheritance and the stability of the company. We are running a corporation, not just your family business," warned another partner. "We understand that personal lives can be complicated but we need assurance that it won't jeopardize our investments and stakes in the company."
"Also there is legal entanglement," added another investor.
Praneet maintained stern eye contact with the shareholders. His family knew that he was pissed whenever he had that expression.
"I appreciate your concerns," Madhu announced from the doorway. "I want to assure all of you that my personal life will not interfere with our dedication to the business."
Praneet was surprised by her sudden arrival.
She talked confidently, "I want to clarify that the company and its assets are entirely separate from my personal affairs. And it's none of your business."
"Why did you come here?" Praneet queried her. He would have handled the issue without disturbing her.
Shareholders laughed.
"You might say that. We need concrete guarantees to continue business," one said.
Madhu nodded, "I can understand your worries. But there are legal agreements to safeguard the company from my matters."
"Yes," said Praneet and passed a file. The shareholders examined the papers with interest and ease. Praneet made certain provisions in the business to prevent problems due to death and other unforeseen circumstances.
"Is she divorcing him?" One of them asked.
Madhu rolled her eyes.
"We are searching for a bride for my brother of forty years. As she is second-hand now, can you meet him?" another one commented.
Praneet leaned in front of his seat and hissed, "What did you say?"
Without him finishing the sentence, Vikram vaulted inside the room and started punching that man. "How dare you disrespect my wife, bastard?"
He whacked the man into rags.
Madhu, who knew his temperament, feared for the life of another guy even though she wanted him to be dead.
"Leave him!" She said after a good five-minute ruckus. Vikram pushed the guy to the floor, "I am still her husband. Mind your words to my wife and her family."
Praneet was astonished at the uproar and felt relieved by his help. Madhu dragged Vikram out of the room.
************************
The sun shined faintly outside the balcony as it was almost night. Vikram sat on the floor of the balcony and relaxed. Madhu opened a tube of ointment and gently squeezed some onto her fingertips.
"This might sting a bit, but it will help with the healing," she commented at his bruised knuckles, "You are a maniac!"
Vikram winced as her tender fingertips massaged the wounded area in gentle circular motions. She looked at him and he quickly relaxed as the ointment made a cooling effect immediately
"Who asked you to involve, Vikram?" she questioned him.
"It got escalated," Vikram said. "How cheap he spoke of you!"
Once the effect of ointment was subsidised, Madhu picked up a clean bandage and wrapped it on his knuckles.
Madhu told in a composed manner, "Violence won't solve anything. You might have made things worse."
Vikram pulled his arm away, " You know that I don't mind those things. You should become a nurse."
Madhu rolled her eyes. He bit his tongue, "Sorry. Don't be soft on him."
"Violence is the path of idiots," she said. He coughed and looked the other way.
"Thanks!" she broke her words. "For supporting me."
He gave a faint smile, "Nobody should be commented like that. And I will stand up for my wife."
Madhu stood up, "Don't wait for a second chance. I am done with you."
Vikram held her hand, "Wait!"
She looked at him with a questioning stare.
He blinked, "Karishma."
"What?" she demanded in confusion. He hesitated, "She was my ex."
********************
"Humans are designed to commit errors, I agree," he said. "I made something terrible."
Madhu and he were strolling her garden under a cool, dark sky. Vikram sat on the grass and heaved a deep breath, "It's been eating me up for a while."
Madhu sat beside him, "You can tell me anything."
Vikram built the courage to come clear, "I need to tell you my past. My ex-girlfriend, Karishma was my college mate. When I met her first there wasn't any spark inside me. But she created circumstances to be closer to me."
Madhu paid attention without showing any reaction.
"She looked for opportunities to sit with me in our common subjects. She used to text me in the context of doubts... Slowly, our conversations changed into flirting and romantic," he said.
"She used to complain about our diminishing interaction after college days. I thought she missed me and got her a job in our hospital. It all seemed wonderful and settled at first. It took one month to see her true colours," he added. Madhu nodded at his words as she knew those from Niyati. She waited for the rest of the details from him.
"Our accounts crashed one day and there were threads of malicious activities in our server," he started the part that she wanted to hear. "The accounts were added with false values and made to look bribed for treatment. We never did that!"
Madhu pouted her lips round, "Oh!"
"Our IT expert tracked down the main system that uploaded those stuff..." he said. "Which happened to be mine!"
Madhu was shocked to hear that, "What?"
"I would never do something like that, Madhu. She knew my credentials and used it against our business," he tried to prove his innocence again and again. Madhu patted his back, "Shush... It's okay. I believe you!"
"My parents didn't!" he scoffed, "When the IT guy pointed at me, my dad slapped me in front of other workers. How embarrassing it was!"
Madhu could understand his shame.
"That witch also sold our bid details to our competitors. We couldn't participate in any auctions for two years!" he said with tears.
"Why did she do that?" she asked him in confusion.
"Our parents were partners some time ago. When his father stole money from a shareholder's fund, my dad caught him red-handed. Our fellow shareholders withdrew their shares and their company became a public shame. Out of revenge, she decided to target my company and I didn't know who she was," he bit his lips. "I wouldn't have let her near otherwise."
Madhu patted him again and he drooped his head on her shoulder.
"The betrayal was devastating to our company. It almost destroyed everything my parents had worked. My mom committed suicide when the hospital was shut down," he shared. "I couldn't save anything...."
He felt helpless and miserable. Madhu tried to calm him down.
"I did drugs to let out the pain. It didn't work. My dad kicked me out of the house and Krish gave me a decent place to live," he concluded. Madhu embraced Vikram, understanding the weight of his pain, "I'm so sorry that you have been through so much. I can't imagine how difficult it must have been for you."
"It was a dark time in my life, to be honest. Eventually, we won the case against the corruption charges and Dad wanted me back because he became too old and Niyati was just a student," he described the happenings.
Madhu shook her head. She was curious about his sudden clarity of the past.
"I don't have any other secrets, unlike you," he got to his point. "Why couldn't you share about your dead brother with me?"
"Who told you these? How did you know?" she questioned him with wide eyes. Her colour became pale.
"Your mother told me as I wanted to know why you cried last night," he declared. Madhu stood up in anguish, "What are we? What were we? A couple? Friends? Or even acquaintances? How will I confess my pain to a rude person like you?"
Vikram was at a loss for words. Yes! He was rude and anything human. But he wanted to change everything in a week and Madhu still, lived in the past. He couldn't understand how to undo everything.
"Fine. I understand that you won't forgive me, Madhu," he declared. "I don't need a week anymore. I will leave tomorrow itself."