Chapter 32

2 years ago

varshaoforange

@varshaoforange

—Friday, February 4, 2022, 11:30AM—

Imlie walked out of the house exhausted. She knew telling Kaki Maa and Arpita Didi was going to be difficult, but she hadn’t been ready for just how hard it would be. Kaki Maa alternated between worry over Aryan and worry over the Tripathis (she’d become such close friends with Maa and Badke Kaki over the past few weeks). Arpita Didi was just angry. She’d called her brother every name in the book, not just UNB. The moment Imlie had been worried about, in fact, dreading, never came. She knew it wouldn’t come. Neither of them blamed Aditya. They didn’t voice any support for Aditya, either, because that’s not what they were worried about. They were worried about Aryan ending up even more angry and alone if he succeeded in this. They were worried about what the guilt would do to him if anything happened to Radhika because of the story. They were worried about Radhika, the Tripathis, and Aryan.

What Kaki Maa had told her before Imlie left to talk to Shiv, that had broken Imlie, because she didn’t know if she could give Kaki Maa what she wanted, not if Aryan wouldn’t let her. The request rung in her ears: ‘Imlie, beta. I know Aru’s not right here. I know he didn’t just make one mistake, but a lot of mistakes. But, please don’t let that end your relationship. My gaddha of a son will never say it, but he needs your friendship so much. I’ll set him straight, I promise, just promise me you’ll try to forgive him too.’

Imlie rushed to the main road to catch an auto. It’s not that she didn’t want to forgive Aryan, but it was that Aryan refused to accept he’d made a mistake, that he’d hurt her. More importantly, he was sure he wasn’t hurting Kaki Maa and Arpita Didi either. But after Imlie’s conversation with them, she knew he’d hurt them, and Imlie hated herself for having to be the one to share how Aryan was disappointing them, worrying them above all. That horrible cliché ran through Imlie’s mind: “in friendship there are no sorries or thank yous.” That was complete nonsense. It was only in friendship, between two equals, between two people that trusted each other, that a thank you or an apology had the most impact. There was no use in an apology or a thank you from a stranger, if your own friends didn’t see you as an equal.

She got into an auto that stopped and tried to shake her mind clear of Aryan. Only two things had stopped her from completely destroying Aryan’s office after Dev had left, or punching Aryan to a pulp: the sadness, the hurt in his eyes and that she knew Aditya was wrong. Aryan may not consider her a friend, he may not see her as an equal, as someone he could trust. But Imlie trusted him, she considered him her friend, and she would do anything to stop this friend from getting hurt again. The high off this revenge, the so called “peace” that Aryan was so sure he was going to get, or justice as he’d called it — it would never come. Imlie knew that. She also knew that from one meeting that this Khanna was not going to let go of this easily. She’d messaged Shiv, asking him to meet him at the same café, and he’d be there by noon. Imlie had spent a lot of time with Kaki Maa and Arpita Didi, because she knew they would have questions, emotions, concerns. And before she’d gotten the up the courage to actually tell them, she’d called Rupi Didi. Aditya had already told the family what was going on, and Imlie thanked Sita Maiya that Maa and Papa had absolutely forbidden him from resigning from Bhaskar Times. Rupi Didi had promised Imlie she would take care of everything there while Imlie tried to find a lawyer. Imlie decided she’d worry about getting Aditya to cooperate later.

Shiv looked at his watch. He’d wanted to give more time to Imlie and whatever lawsuit she’d mentioned this morning, but he had been unable to get away from work all morning. Imlie had messaged him not to worry, that she was grateful he was even talking to her, which only concerned him more. Shiv doubted very much that she was the one in trouble for a piece she wrote, so it had to be someone at the paper she worked with. He looked out the window, sitting at the same table they’d sat at before, and he saw Imlie rushing inside, her brow was furrowed in concern. She opened the door, spotted Shiv, and came towards the table.

Pulling out the chair, Imlie started, “I’m sorry I’m a little late, today’s been hectic. It’s…it’s been a lot. But thank you. I know you’re busy, you must have so much other work you have to do, and here I am, asking you for advice when I don’t even know you that well, but I just…I didn’t know what else to do—“

Shiv interrupted her, “Imlie, what’s wrong? Wait—first, calm down. I’m getting some water, and some chai. You need to catch your breath.”

Imlie started, “No I don’t—“

Shiv smiled, trying to bring some levity to the situation, “It can’t be a proper meeting between the two of us if we don’t have chai, can it?”

Imlie smiled weakly, “Okay, but only because I don’t think I’ve had anything to drink all day since breakfast.”

Shiv chuckled, “That’s the spirit.”

He stood up and went to place the order, and came back with two glasses of water. As he sat down, he noticed an expression on Imlie he’d never seen before, granted he didn’t know her that well. She looked…tired. Now Shiv wasn’t an imbecile, he knew enough to never tell a woman out loud that she looked tired, but his concern grew when he realized she’d been crying.

He handed her the glass of water and sat down, “Ok, now, calmly, tell me what’s going on.”

Imlie looked at the glass, picked it up, and downed it all in one go. She looked at Shiv. This new friend she’d made, practically a stranger. What if he was hiding the same kinds of secrets Aryan had hidden? What if she was making a mistake trusting him too? Turning to him for help? She took a deep breath.

Shiv smiled, he could tell she had no idea what to say, “Let’s go with a simpler question: Who is being sued?”

Imlie replied, “Aditya. And the paper. But I think it’s mainly Aditya.”

Shiv considered this, based on what she’d just told him yesterday about her ex-husband, he knew why she looked so concerned. She hadn’t let him go yet, and even if she told herself she had, she definitely hadn’t let go of his family. She’d said she saw them as her own family first, before she considered Aditya as anything.

“Okay, he’s being sued, as is the paper. Now for a tougher question: Why? You mentioned a mistake in reporting?”

Imlie took another break, she had considered not telling Shiv about anything except the suit, but it didn’t make sense now. If she didn’t tell him, it would just make it harder for him or the lawyer he recommended, they’d figure it out eventually that the paper, in other words Aryan, wouldn’t be offering any support to Aditya. So she launched into the whole story:

“I can’t share why, at least I don’t think I should, but Aryan…he doesn’t like Aditya. He doesn’t trust his reporting, at least. And when Aditya brought this piece on Sunil Khanna to him, Aryan let him run with it…but he knew Aditya would end up mistaking grey behavior for corruption…”

Imlie spent the next fifteen minutes detailing everything. From what was in the piece, what mistakes she thought Aditya had made, what threats Sunil Khanna had made, and what she knew about the lawsuit so far. She included Aditya’s outburst in front of Khanna and the office, but not what he’d said to her and Aryan later.

After she finished, she took another deep breath. The waiter showed up with their chais, and Shiv thanked him. He gestured to Imlie to drink, and she did. She didn’t take her eyes off Shiv though, trying to figure out whether he thought something could be done. Shiv took a sip of his chai.

Imlie broke the silence, “I know it’s a lot, I don’t even know if you handle cases like this, or if you know of any other lawyers who do. But..” Imlie trailed off. She didn’t know how to ask Shiv for help without outright begging, though she would do it if it came to it.

“I have another question, you mentioned there was a case against Khanna, one that hadn’t been filed yet. Chitra, she’s my senior at the firm, she mentioned a domestic violence case. Of course she didn’t mention the woman’s name, but is it the woman we met at the firm, with Chitra? And the other guy, what was his name…Dev? Is that why Aryan was there too?”

Imlie nodded, “I don’t know anything about her case, and I don’t want to bother her or bring her into this. She didn’t ask for this. But I think if we don’t handle this suit quickly, it might hurt her chances of seeking legal recourse against Khanna herself. At least that’s what Dev said—” Imlie stopped again, “Oh, I didn’t tell you that part.”

Shiv waved her off, “No, that’s okay, I am seeing the big picture now. At least, the big picture that your boss, Aryan, saw. It’s clear the issue Aryan has with Aditya is bigger than you’re telling me, but I won’t ask. What I can say is, yes, I have dealt with cases like this. Not on my own, but I have. And usually, they settle quickly, or they drag on in court for months, sometimes years. Aryan has trapped Aditya in it good. Well, actually, based on what you said about how fast Aditya must have written this report, Aditya has trapped himself. I can see that Aryan’s probably planning to settle with Khanna on behalf of the paper quickly, and either the whole thing goes away after that, but Aryan ends up pushing for Aditya to be fired…or worse. Or, Aryan settles on behalf of the paper, and Khanna goes after Aditya alone, in court. So the only option now, is to get Aditya a lawyer, and to wait until the Khanna’s lawyers take the next step. Assuming Aryan’s already pushed for a backdoor settlement with Khanna, Aditya’s lawyer, just needs to respond to the lawsuit, and plan for all the upcoming scenarios. And when it comes to the other case, of the woman, I think Aryan assumed she’d never actually end up coming forward with a suit or in the press…and perhaps Aryan had considered her story as leverage against Khanna if he wouldn’t let the paper out of their liability.”

Imlie just stared at Shiv, because all she could think about was how carefully Aryan had planned this. He had been meticulous, and it revealed the calculating pragmatism that she’d recognized in him from day one. Then she thought back to Aryan trying to reason with Dev about Radhika. Aryan had said he would fix it, that Radhika wasn’t going to be affected. Imlie didn’t know what Aryan had thought about Radhika or her story when he’d met her, or heard about her, but in that office she realized Shiv’s theory was no longer the case.

“So, we should just keep her out of this for as long as possible, right? And maybe…I think you’ll probably have to tell Chitra. Maybe not everything, but Dev mentioned that…that Radhika was…well she was scared about retaliation, not about her potential case falling through.”

Shiv nodded, “Yea, I can’t talk to her, but I’ll talk to Chitra when I get back to the office. From what I gather she knows that Dev guy pretty well, so even if Radhika isn’t planning on keeping Chitra as a lawyer, Chitra will get the message to her that everything can still turn out okay.”

Shiv met Imlie’s gaze, and at his last words she seemed to wither at the possibility that it might not turn out okay, he rephrased, “No. Everything will be okay. This is not the end of the world, Imlie.”

Imlie finished her chai. She desperately wanted another one. She wanted a whole plate of samosas. She wanted to keep eating until she no longer felt uneasy because of the pit in her stomach.

Shiv watched Imlie stare at her empty chai cup, he fought back a laugh, it wouldn’t be appropriate, “I’d order another round, but I don’t have much more time, can’t get samosas today either, I’m afraid.”

She looked up, “No no, you should get back to work, just can you tell me the names of a few lawyers? Someone who’d be willing to take the case? I can call them, or go to their offices—“

Shiv chuckled, he couldn’t hold it back now.

“Why are you laughing?” Imlie asked, lifted by it for a moment, but at the same time confused.

“I thought it was obvious when I said I’d handled cases like this before. I’ll take the case, if your family, and Aditya, want me, of course. Tell me when and where to meet them, as long as it’s after five today, does that work?”

Shiv stood up, and Imlie nodded fervently, “Thank you so much, Shiv. You’re honestly…you’re a life saver.”

Shiv paused for a moment, he didn’t know why it had happened, but seeing the relief on Imlie’s face calmed him down. He’d spent the past half-hour more stressed than he’d been when he argued his first case, because Imlie’s brow just continued to furrow, and she hadn’t smiled, like actually smiled the whole time. Her face didn’t look the same when it wasn’t smiling. His mind traveled to those horrible lines he saw in Priya’s movies, where the man would tell the woman, ‘You look so beautiful when you cry,’ that was complete bullshit.

“Imlie, I know I promised it was going to be okay, and I really think it will be, but even if it isn’t, it’s not the end of the world.”

Imlie nodded, trying to reassure herself, “Right…right. I’ll message you the address, I’ll tell the family when you’re coming. And I’ll be there too. And you’ll talk to Chitra?”

“Yes, I will talk to her as soon as I get back to the office. Okay?” He smiled in hopes Imlie would magically mimic it, she didn’t.

Imlie nodded again, “Okay.”

Shiv looked outside the window, “Are you going back to your office, should I walk you? Or are you going somewhere else, I brought my car…” Even though he had to finish up his backlog of work or he wouldn’t be able to leave the office at five at all, he didn’t want to leave her alone.

Imlie finally smiled, a weak smile, it didn’t reach her eyes. She reassured him, “No, no, that’s fine. I can go by myself.” She picked up her bag, and started to walk to the door, Shiv followed her, one step behind.

Imlie suddenly turned back and looked at Shiv, “Thank you. So much. Just…thank you.”

Shiv smiled, “You know how they say, dosti mein no sorry aur no thank you?”

Imlie thought back to this morning, she really hated that idiom, “Yea…but—“

“I think it’s the worst idiom Indians have, you know? Why would I want to hear a thank you from a stranger? Why would an apology from someone I don’t know matter? So, I acknowledge your thanks, and you’re welcome. Yeh koi ehsaan nahin hai, yeh sirf mera kaam hai, aur mujhe madat karna aur kaam karna, dono aata hai. Theek?” (This isn’t a favor, this is just my job, and I know how to both help and do my job. Okay?)

Imlie smiled wider, Shiv could see a glimmer of her original smile there, “I think we might have been twins or something in a past life.”

Shiv laughed, leading her out of the café, “Maybe something like that, yea.”

She waved to him and headed in the direction of her office. Shiv watched her walk away for a minute until he decided to get in his car and finish his work fast enough so he’d have time to do some background research on this Khanna character.

—Friday, February 4, 2022, 1:00PM—

Imlie stood in front of the Bhaskar Times building, she didn’t want to go inside. There wasn’t that much time until she could leave anyway. She texted her editor letting him know she had an emergency and had to leave, but that she’d already sent in the interview and article she had to do for the day. She tapped her foot, hoping he’d see the text so she could leave right now, if not she’d have to call, or worse, go inside. She couldn’t see Aryan’s face right now.

What bothered her most about today, besides the horrible situation Aryan had put her family in, was that she had tried, she really had tried, to be mad at Aryan. But the anger fizzled out as soon as it came, and it replaced itself with worry and sympathy. As she waited for her editor’s text she found herself wondering whether Aryan was okay, whether Arpita Didi had called him and if that conversation left him in worse shape than this morning. Hell, she almost considered going upstairs to peek and see if he ate his stupid lunch, because she knew his mood worsened at least 200% if he was hungry.

She shook her head and looked at her phone again. What was she doing, she was worrying about a man who hadn’t considered her important enough, deserving enough, to know, if not what he was planning, but why he was hurting. This was a man who didn’t breathe if it meant he could give her a lecture on expressing her emotions correctly, and here he was expressing his pain and anger and grief in such a way that put a whole family at risk and another innocent woman.

She heard the ping on her phone, her editor had given her the go ahead to leave and hadn’t asked any questions. She thanked Sita Maiya and headed back to the Rathore’s. She called Rupi Didi as she held out her hand for an auto, and she picked up on the third ring.

“Imlie, any update? Nishu Bhai and I have been trying all our friends who might know a lawyer, but we’ve had no luck. Papa also can’t find anyone, and Adi Bhai won’t tell Chaachi anything.”

Imlie interrupted her, “Rupi Didi, tell Maa not to get too stressed, to relax. I found a lawyer, I’m bringing him to the house today, at around 5:30, okay?”

Rupi sighed in relief, and yelled to someone probably in another room, “Imlie found a lawyer, she’s coming with him today! Imlie, thank you, thank you, thank you. What did the lawyer say, did you tell him about the lawsuit?”

Imlie, sensing that Rupi Didi’s stress was an indicator of the whole house’s stress levels, “Yes, I told him about the case. At least what I knew about it. He asked for the main documents from Khanna’s lawyers, the actual notice. I think that man already served the newspaper, so if he’s going to sue Aditya separately, he’ll probably have it sent to the house. Wait for it, and don’t let Aditya do anything stupid with it…” she hesitated, “Don’t let him do anything stupid, in general.”

Rupi smiled, “I know it’s hard to show, but it feels good knowing you still care—“

Imlie didn’t want to have this conversation, and she didn’t want Rupi Didi to have her hopes up, “Didi, I said that because Maa and Papa need their son. All of you need Aditya. I don’t. I have to go, I’ll see you soon, okay?”

Rupi didn’t push Imlie, she knew it would be hard for Imlie to forgive Adi Bhai, but hopefully not impossible, “Ok, Imlie. Bye.”

Rupi hung up the phone and Aparna came to her and asked, “Was that Imlie, you said she found a lawyer, is she still on the phone, can I talk to her?”

Rupi tried to calm Aparna down, “Chaachi, relax. Sab theek hoga. And sorry, Imlie had to go, but she’s coming later today, with the lawyer. I tried to talk to her about Adi Bhai and—“

Aparna interrupted her, “Don’t do that again Rupi. That relationship is over, and we have no right to keep pestering her about it. All you’re doing is holding her back and trying to put her in chains she should never have to wear.”

“But, Chaachi, if Imlie didn’t care about Bhai why would she be helping him with this?”

Aparna smiled, “Yeh ehsaan hai, aur kuch nahin. She is doing a favor for Adi, preventing him from losing everything. But for us, Rupi, she’s doing this as the daughter of this house. That’s it. I’m warning you, and tell Nishu too, don’t try to pull her back here. I’m going to go make some of her favorite food, she hasn’t eaten with us in so long…” Aparna trailed off and went to the kitchen.

Rupi knew that Chaachi meant what she said, but that didn’t mean she was happy in saying it.

Imlie walked inside the house, hoping neither Kaki Maa nor Arpita Didi would notice her. But luck wasn’t on her side today.

“Imlie, you’re back?” Arpita Didi asked, walking towards her from the living room. “Why did you leave work?”

Imlie hesitated, she’d already complained so much about Aryan today, she didn’t need to add another reason for Arpita Didi to be mad at him right now. “I just…I already finished my work, so I came back.”

Narmada joined them from upstairs, “Imlie, you’re back? So early?”

Imlie tried to put on a smile, “I was just telling Arpita Didi that I finished my work, so—“

Narmada interrupted her, “You didn’t quit right? Because of Aru? Don’t tell me you resigned. I’m going to scold some sense into my son today, Imlie. You just can’t quit—“

Imlie took Kaki Maa’s hands, “Kaki Maa, relax, relax. I didn’t quit, I just left early. I have some things to handle later…so”

Arpita and Narmada fell silent for a minute. Then Arpita put her hands on Imlie’s cheeks and squeezed them, “I’m happy. I’m very happy you came back early. You work too hard anyway. And don’t worry about Aryan, we will fix this Imlie. I promise.”

Imlie smiled and laughed, willing away the tears, “Je fire! ABP abhi tak aap dono ka peet mein koni waala shot nahi dekha hai. Mujhe pura vishwas hai, aap dono usko seedha nahin kiya toh mera bhi naam badal do.” (ABP hasn’t seen your elbow in the back type shot yet. I have complete faith, if you two don’t straighten him out, then change my name too)

Arpita and Narmada laughed, though they were both just as worried as Imlie, afraid that they wouldn’t be able to stop Aryan from going down the path he was taking.

Imlie noticed the worry on their faces, “I told ABP today, that his other mistake was underestimating his family. He’s underestimating your strength and your love. I am not worried, honestly.” Imlie smiled and went up to her room, planning to spend the next few hours researching and trying to find out whatever she could about libel lawsuits. She had faith in Kaki Maa and Arpita, they’d be able to convince him, but if they couldn’t…she had to be ready too.