Page 125 of Since the Night We Met
His boyish grin was infectious, making her smile. ‘Yeah, I guess we are. You know, you could’ve walked away. God knows I gave you enough reasons to. Besides, this is risky,’ she told him as she quickly perused over the contents.
He smirked. ‘You walked out of the office with a mad spark in your eyes. I figured you’d either get caught, or blow the vault up trying to find whatever you’re looking for. Someone had to supervise, so I came.’
Siya chuckled at his attempt to feign nonchalance.
Then, Dhruv hesitated before speaking up again. ‘Siya, if you’re not happy with Abhay, if he doesn’t treat you well, we can… we can work together to find a way to get you out of it.’
Siya chuckled. ‘Don’t worry. That’s the only thing that worked out well for me.’
‘You know, I wasn’t fair to you earlier. I should’ve told you about what Dad did, but I didn’t think you’d care. Or maybe I didn’t want you to, because it was easier to believe you hate me than hope you’d protect me,’ he confessed, still facing away from her, perusing through files.
She went up to him, and lightly caressed his back as she said, ‘I hope we can figure it out with time.’
He gave her an assuring smile. ‘That makes two of us.’
She gave him a nod, then turned back to the shelf. Her fingers dragged along rusted metal handles as she moved past shelf after shelf until she found a section labelled asHR - Employment Archive, 1990-2000.
‘Dhruv, here!’
He quickly helped her pull out the heavy cardboard box, and they split the pile in half as they sorted through the worn folders until she found the name that made her breath catch.
Mehta, Naksh (Senior Management Personnel - CLO)
She opened it, and a flurry of yellow papers slipped out, ranging from acquisition lists, employment records, and audit records. Tucked under them was a leather-bound diary.
Dhruv leaned over her shoulder as she flipped through its pages. Most were routine reminders with some meeting memos and client initials with future merger plans. And on the last page, dated the day of her mother’s accident, were three words followed by a folder number. Her mouth went dry.
Arohi Kashyap. Locker box 28. Personal items.
Dhruv whistled low under his breath. ‘That’s it. You were right to come looking.’
They quickly found locker box 28 amongst the little lockers lined up toward the back wall. It required a passcode, though, and there were no other scribbled notes in the diary to guide her.
‘Think, Siya. She must’ve decided a passcode you’d know,’ Dhruv urged, placing a hand on her shoulder.
Something she might know? Her mind scrambled with several options but nothing that fit a six-pin code. She wouldn’t have gone for an obvious one like birthdays to make sure it was safeguarded against Kartik. Maybe it was something her father wouldn’t know.
Could it be… something he never found out?
Her eyes widened. Siya quickly punched her mother’s accident date and she held her breath. She almost wept in relief when the small steel door pushed open.
She exchanged a glance with Dhruv, then pulled out a sealed file and an envelope. The weight of it felt heavier than paper should, and she broke the monogrammed wax seal. There it was written in ink. She held the second copy of her mother’s updated will on the same date as the passcode.
Siya stared at it, dumbstruck. ‘Oh my God, it’s real,’ Siya whispered.
It was the date her mother had decided to leave her father, but he might have never found out the real reason she’d been out on the road in the first place.
‘Is that it?’ Dhruv asked, noticing her stillness.
‘I think so.’ She clutched the folder against her chest, nearly crumbling the envelope in her tight grip.
‘Do you want to open it right now?’ he asked, holding her gaze.
She nodded, not trusting herself to speak.
His eyes flicked toward the door, and he said, ‘Okay. I’ll keep watch. Just… don’t take too long.’
She managed a quick nod.
