Ananya’s face resurfaced in my mind. ‘We broke up,’ I forced out, each word burning like salt rubbed onto a bleeding gash.
Why couldn’t I hate her? Why couldn’t I think about something else for one fucking second? At best, I distracted myself for brief moments before her memory returned and tore through me again. It was as if she had branded herself in my thoughts.
‘Last week, you said things were great. What happened?’
My voice faltered. ‘She … she didn’t love me. Not enough to be honest with me. It’s not her fault. Maybe it’s me. It’s me who’s unlovable. Not a good enough boyfriend. Not a good enough son.’
‘That’s not true, Jai,’ he said vehemently. ‘You cannot—’
‘Dad kicked me out.’
Harish uncle froze.
‘Said I was disrespectful, accusing his wife of ...’ My voice broke.
‘Of what?’ His voice was tight. Controlled.
‘Sabotage.’ I swallowed hard. ‘She was behind what Lehenga Bazaar did.’
‘Rekha.’ Colour drained from his face. ‘You’re sayingRekhadid this?’
‘Yes.’
He sounded half unconvinced. ‘How do you know?’
‘She hired Ananya as my assistant to spy on me.’
I spat out.
‘That is why you broke up,’ he murmured.
I reached for the bottle and poured myself another glass. This time, he didn’t stop me.
‘It’s her word against Rekha’s,’ Harish uncle said. ‘You need proof.’
‘There is no proof.’ I took a swig.
‘Did you talk to IT? Check the access logs to the cloud system—’
‘Access was given on a need-to-know basis. The investigation is underway, but it’s useless.’ I shook my head. ‘For LB to be able to release the collection in a month, they would have to be working on it for at least two months. Add another week for planning. Only the board members knew about the plans then. And all they had was the strategy and the numbers, not the whole business plan.’
It couldn’t be them.
‘With some time leeway, Dad, the CFO and the CPO had the full proposal, but I know those men. I trust them. They wouldn’t—’
I thought I knew Ananya. That she was trustworthy. Where did that get me?
‘I agree. Mohit is honest to a fault, and Patil … well, he’s not a fan of Rekha. Even if he did do it, he wouldn’t have done it for her,’ Harish uncle said. ‘Who else had the full plan, Jai? Think.’
My eyes squeezed shut.
Ananya had worked on pieces of it for me, but she didn’t have the numbers – the most important part. Other than her … My eyes snapped open and landed on Harish uncle.
‘You.’
He grew serious. ‘Jai, I would never …’
I knew he wouldn’t.
