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“I knew you would not let me down this time,” he screamed. “Welcome to the team, Maya.”
Maya’s heart fluttered.
“What team?” she asked. “I didn’t know there is a special team for Ranveer haters?”
Kunal laughed heartily.
“That’s a nice name. But don’t worry. You will know what I am talking about when we meet next.”
“Meet? Why? I mean, can’t you just tell me what you plan to do, and I will implement?”
Kunal inhaled sharply.
“That won’t be so easy. Ranveer’s men are everywhere, always keeping eyes on us so that he would get to know about our moves against him. Poor guy. This time, he wouldn’t know we have an inside rat,” he laughed again.
Maya felt terrible for being part of all these talks. According to Kunal, she was that inside rat.
“I have work now; you text me when we should meet, and we will then take it forward.”
“I will soon text you.”
“Okay, bye.”
She disconnected the call and pushed her phone away. The act required a significant display of confidence, and she wished to sustain that strength until her part concluded. However, uncertainties loomed over the entire situation. Was there a definitive end to all of this? Who would win? And what fate awaited the defeated? As for Maya, she played the role of both bait for one person and pawn for the other. The prospect of emerging unscathed and secure after this deal with Ranveer was impossible. The myriad questions lingered, and she hoped that with time, she would find clarity to these questions that haunted her mind.
************
Maya's phone rang within 10 minutes of her conversation with Kunal. It was Ranveer Malhotra calling on her cell phone, and she answered promptly.
“I called,” she cut to the chase.
“Of course, you did. Your first duty was to report to me. Why didn’t you?” Ranveer's voice carried a stern tone.
Maya bit her tongue. “I was busy.”
“Hell, you were busy. Don’t you dare lie to me, Maya,” he scowled at the other end. “When I offer someone a deal, I ensure both parties stick to it, maintaining the deadlines, and have transparency between them. I don’t see that coming from you.”
Maya was taken aback. How could he expect her to understand all of his terms? This was her first time working on something like this. Instead of arguing, she decided to be honest.
“I had to use the bathroom,” she replied. “I couldn’t resist, and I was going to call you now, but I lost that chance.”
There was complete silence for half a minute. Ranveer shut his eyes, realizing that this was the least he expected her to share with him. He couldn’t ask her not to repeat that again because it was a genuine reason.
“Fine. Come to Paradise.”
“What?” she snapped.
“You heard me, Maya Bajaj. Come here; I need to talk.”
“But—”
“No ifs, no buts,” he shouted. “Come before I send my people to bring you here.”
He abruptly disconnected the call. Maya looked at her phone in frustration. What did he think of himself? He was behaving as if he owned her. Despite her reservations, she knew she had to clarify that such things should not happen in the future. For that, she had to obey his orders for now. She quickly packed her stuff and headed for her car.
************
It was a long drive. He lived almost forty-five minutes away from her office location, but today, reaching him seemed to take ages due to heavy traffic on the roads. Trying to navigate the congestion, she took another free lane that appeared to be a long cut, offering less traffic for the moment. However, as she made a turn, another vehicle followed suit. It could be a coincidence, she thought. Perhaps someone else had a similar idea—take the longer route to reach the destination instead of wasting time in busy traffic.
