18. Dirty Secrets

That day, being in the office was surprisingly pleasant. No rude comments, no sneers, nothing. It felt good not having to stress out about dealing with Victoria. It was nice doing my job in my personal cabin, in silence. But somehow, it felt like the silence before a huge storm.

When it was time to leave, I waited for Shiv to show up. He told me about us having to meet someone.

Just then, I got a text from him

S- Hey, I am downstairs. Can you come now?

I replied a quick okay and walked towards the lift. The office was emptied by the time I left.

Beth must be still here. I thought and left. When I reached at the ground level, I saw Shiv standing there. No car other than mine was to be seen. How did he reach here?

"Where is your car?" I asked, confused.

"We don't need one. Come on." He said as he took his hand in mine and started to walk.

"Will you please tell me where we are going? And what about my car?" I asked him.

"We can walk here to get your car. Just walk."

"Okay, but why wouldn't you tell me where we are going?" I asked again.

"Fine. We are going there." He said and pointed towards the building next to the one which contained my office. "No more questions. I will tell you everything. Just walk."

"Okay." I said and started walking. As we we walked in the other building, I saw many luxurious cars and fancy sports car parked there.

"That one is mine." He said, nodding his head towards a black Jaguar.

"That is your car? Seriously? Can I drive it?" I asked, excitedly.

"Yes, that is one of my cars and no, you cannot drive it." He said and I pouted.

"That's not fair. I let you drive both of my cars."

"You wouldn't have let me even touch your Range Rover if you weren't drunk." He pointed out.

"Yeah, but I let you. Right?" I said.

"Let's get this over with and then we will see." He said.

He was a little on edge. He was getting annoyed which was really weird. We walked inside the building, the guards bowed down.

"Mr. Bahl." They greeted him.

"How do-" I started.

"I said no more questions." He said and his grip tightened on my wrist.

"You are hurting me." I said, in pain. "I just asked a question. What is wrong in that?"

"What is wrong is that you are irritating me right now. So just shut up and keep walking." He said in a slightly raised voice. He was angry, fuming even.

I said nothing and kept walking with him. We got into a lift and he pressed the button for the top-most floor. We stepped out and walked towards a large door. A desk was placed outside it and a red-headed girl, probably the receptionist, sitting behind it looked bored. She suddenly stood up as she saw us.

"Good evening, Mr. Bahl." She said. I noticed by her accent that she was an American. What she was wearing was completely inappropriate for wearing to work. It was a red, satin shirt with three buttons opened up from the top, tucked in a tight mini-skirt which reached her mid thigh.

Shiv nodded at her and I noticed his gaze drop to her body. She was taller and curvier than me. She had her red hair pulled up in a tight pony-tail. She made me feel insecure about myself. But I ignored it. I was way better than her.

I said nothing to him because I didn't want to create a scene. He thought I wouldn't notice but I did. It wasn't really subtle.

He walked straight through the door which was apparently an office. As we walked in, I noticed that this office was Victorian style with dark hardwood floors and classic mahogany furniture.

"Father." I heard Shiv say. It was then that I noticed a man standing at the window with a drink in his hand. He looked around 50 or maybe older. This man was Shiv's dad. My eyes widened as I realised that he had brought me to meet his father.

"Shiv. I didn't know you were in London." He said and then his eyes stopped on me, they scanned through my body and suddenly, I felt disgusted. I pulled my coat closer to cover myself.

"And who is this young lady? A new play thing of yours?" He asked and my eyes widened.

Play thing?

"She is not like that. She is my girlfriend." He said.

"What did I tell you not to do Shiv?" His father asked, raising his voice.

He was mad that Shiv had a girlfriend?

Shiv didn't reply.

"You shouldn't live like that. This woman can ruin your life. Women are just to play with." He said again.My feminist side woke up and I opened my mouth to say something but I was interrupted.

"Father, there was a reason I left your house." He finally said.

I didn't understand a single thing.

"You did leave, but my eyes followed you everywhere. I know who you are, son. I was very proud of you when you did those thing to the women you took home. It reminded me of your mother and me." His father said.

"I knew that you wouldn't be off my back. Please do not involve my mother in this." Shiv said, calmly.

"What the hell is going on?" I asked, finally.

"You don't know anything, doll. You don't know who my son is." his father replied.

"Then tell me."

"Naina, no. I told you I will tell everything to you." Shiv said, panicking slightly.

"You never tell me anything. I have asked a hundred times." I turned to him. He snapped at me when I asked.

"Then I will tell you, doll. Or better yet, show you." His father said with a smirk.

"Dad, don't do it." Shiv pleaded him.

"Why? Will she be mad? Will she leave you?" his father asked him but he didn't reply. Instead he turned to me.

"Naina, please don't let him. I swear I will tell you everything."

"Why don't you want him to tell me? What is this about?" I asked with suspicion.

"I-I don't-" He said but didn't finish the sentence.

"What?" I asked.

"Just please don't. This was a bad idea to bring you here. Let's just go." He asked and grabbed my wrist.

"No, I want to know." I said and pulled my hand hard enough for him to loosen his grip on my wrist.

"Naina, please." He said once again. Just for a split second I felt like leaving with him. But I wanted to know whatever it was. If he was opposing his father telling me, it made me feel like he would lie later. I needed the truth.

"Tell me." I turned to his father. He nodded and opened up a cabinet behind his chair at the desk. He took out a file from the back of the cabinet.

"Sit down." He said to me and I did. He slid the file across the desk, towards me.

I picked it up and opened it. The first page was a list. Names of women with a date written in front of their names.

"Who are all these women?" I asked.

"Turn the pages and you will know."  He said and I did.

There were polaroids sticked on each page with the name of the respective woman on the top of the page.

There were two pictures on each page. They were all similar for each woman. One of the pictures was a normal head shot. When I looked at the second picture, I gasped. It was clicked from the top of a room, maybe from a window or with a CCTV camera.

Shiv was seen in all of them, with a belt in his hand.

The woman in the first picture was sitting in a corner, naked. She looked really scared. I looked closely and saw red marks on her body.

My breathing became rapid. I turned the pages and all of the pictures were of similar manner.

I couldn't handle it. Tears escaped my eyes and I made no attempt to stop them. I closed the file and threw it away towards his father.

I stood up and started walking towards the door. I didn't want anything to do with a monster like that. I didn't want him even near me or my baby after what I saw.

I felt a hand enclose around my wrist. The same hand which managed to relax me, made me flinch at touch.

"Naina, please stop. Don't leave me." He said as I pulled my hand away.

I saw a glimpse of what he was on our way here. The rough way he pulled my hand, the way he got angry at my questions, the way he checked out the almost naked receptionist.

"And stay for what? For you to torture me like that? For my pictures to be in that file? Why the fuck should I stay?" I yelled while the tears streamed down my face.

"I am not that person anymore. Please let me explain." He said.

"Even if you are changed, what guarantees that you cannot go back to being that person again? Can you say that you would never become that person again?" I asked.

No reply.

"I do not want you anywhere near me or my baby. I don't care if you are the father. Don't you dare ever talk to me again." I said in a stern voice.

"Naina, please don't do this." He said and a tear dropped from his eye. "I am fall-"

"Don't." I stopped him.

"Wait a minute. Did I heard that right?" His father interrupted. "Are you having a baby?"

"Yeah, congratulations. You are going to become a grandfather." I said, sarcastically with an added eye roll.

"You! You fucking did this. You have already ruined my life. Why can you not let me be happy?" Shiv yelled at his father while grabbing his shirt collar.

"Stop it!" I yelled. "He is your father."

"No, he isn't." He turned to me. "He is a monster."

"You are wrong, I think you are the monster here." I simply replied and ran out of the office and out of the building, towards my car.

.

I rushed out of the parking, speeding through the exit. I saw Shiv standing outside the building with tears in his eyes. I rushed past him and didn't look back. There was no way I was going back to him.

A man who did this to women for pleasure, was messed up in the head. He said he had changed but what if something makes him angry at me and what if he goes back to being that disgusting man?

It was totally possible for him to snap like that. I never expected him to be this person. He appeared as such a nice person who cared for everyone. I wouldn't have thought he was this horrible person inside.

.

That night, I cried all of the drive home and most of the night. I told everything to Sanjana when I reached home. I cried on her shoulder as she comforted me. She was the only person who truly was by my side through everything.

"I wouldn't let that bastard put even a finger on you. I promise." She said and wiped my tears away.

"Thank you so much Sanj." I told her. "I love you."

"I love you too. Now eat something and go to sleep. You need to rest." She said.

"I don't feel like eating." I said and went in my room.

I took a very long shower. I stood under the running water till it went cold. I dried myself up and changed into my pyjamas and got under the blankets. Just then, I heard the door bell ring. Sanjana was there and I thought she would open the door.

She did. After a minute, I heard her yelling. I ran out of my room to see what had happened but I saw a familiar face that I never wanted to see again.

"Get out." I said in a very low voice. I was exhausted, I didn't have the energy to talk.

'Naina, baby, please just let me explain once. I swear I-" He started but I didn't let him finish.

"I said get out!" I yelled.

"Naina, please." He pleaded again but I just pushed him out of the door.

I slammed the door shut on his face. It was a message, that I had shut him out of my home and my life.