Dedicated to Talia - for being the only one who suspected, guessed and confirmed.

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Swara spent the rest of the day, after meeting Tanisha, in reading the write up about Nikita that Tanisha had given her. Even from that short write up she could make out that Nikita had been a simple girl, full of life and laughter, who had simple dreams too; no career ambitions or business aspirations, all Nikita had appeared to want was to be a friend, a sister, a wife and a mother. Swara's eyes  turned misty as she read about Nikita, who with her dreams must have been a part of SNLRS only because the rest of them wanted it and she loved them enough to be a part of something in which she did not have much interest. And her heart ached for the way those simple dreams had been stolen from her.

And because she was feeling miserable after reading about Nikita, she decided to listen to the audio recordings that Tanisha had given her. It turned out to be a mistake, for listening to Nikita, who was a great storyteller, only increased Swara's despondency; there were about a dozen or so stories in the disc, but each was of a different genre and Swara found herself lost in the world of those tales with Nikita's captivating recitals. In the last story, which was humorous, she could hear the smile in Nikita's voice and the echoes of Sanskaar's laughter. Unable to bear it, she shut off the player, pulled off the earplugs and walked out into the balcony, hoping the balmy air would help calm her mind.

It did not work, for Nikita' laughter rang in her ears and more tears sprung, she was sad and angry that such a lovely life had been cut short.

・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・

Sanskaar glared at Kunal, "I think you are being vindictive today, two hundred knee flexions more to go? I though we already did around a hundred?"

Kunal, who had his usual stern face on and was counting in a steady tone, as he forced Sanskaar through his motions, answered, 'I think you could do with more physical exertion, you need it, considering the mind games you are playing with a young susceptible woman."

Sanskaar sighed, his ire dissipating at Kunal's direct admonition, "I am not playing games with Swara or anybody else. It is just something that appears to the best option, considering the circumstances. My condition is not hidden from you, though we cannot simply announce it to the world."

Kunal nodded, even as his fingers expertly kneaded the sore leg muscles, "I agree and sympathise, what I object to is being made a party to the façade you guys are putting up"

"So you have a better idea as to how we go about it? Any better way we can let the world know why Sanskaar Maheshwari has been a recluse for the past eight years? Or to brush away the theories that he is in hiding? I know that we have managed to stay under the radar for so long, but once the company is in the open, questions will arise. I hope you have some semblance of an answer."

Kunal looked up at Laksh who had asked those questions, his tone indicating that he had donned his lawyer role and was docking Kunal to take up the defence stand, "No, but..."

Laksh softened his voice, it was not correct to take out their frustration on Kunal, "We are not manipulating anyone and it would do you good to remember that Swara is here because she is helping out her father and Sahil, which can never be with good intentions. So it would be better if you stopped thinking her to be a naïve little girl, she could be her father's daughter, for all we know, which means"– 

–"she could be a cold manipulative woman pretending to be innocent. I did not know that the interviews were being done at Sahil's behest."

Sanskaar grunted as Kunal flexed his ankle joints a little too sharply, he could see the ankle being bent a little more than normal, "Careful Kunal, I do not want have a broken ankle."

Ignoring the mumbled apology, Sanskaar continued, "we do not have much concrete evidence as to the exact nature of their involvement but then the timing is too slick to be coincidental. Think about it, the moment we announce the takeover of Maheshwari Industries and more specifically the shift in the management of the same, we have Sahil go to meet Shekhar Gadodia. And a week later, we get a request from their magazine for an interview. Though that was anticipated considering the role the role you played. After all we all know who the little birdie is who planted the suggestion in the virtually empty brain of Sahil's. And how do you know Swara?"

Kunal appeared a trifle surprised at the change in topic, though was relieved that they were not going to dwell on the role he had played. It was at Sanskaar's behest that he had hinted to Sahil at SNLRS making a probable announcement regarding the takeover of the Maheshwari Group which had enabled Sahil to act as soon as the announcement was made. Intent on keeping the conversation away from that he answered, "I saw her a few times at the gym, she came over with another girl, Divya, I think that is her name, to meet Kabir Kapoor, another client of mine. They are good friends. You know him, right?"

Sanskaar kept quiet, he knew Kabir or rather, knew of him.

In the silence that followed, Kunal thought back to how he had come to be in the peculiar place that he was; an outsider and yet, a confidante to Sanskaar and his tiny circle. He had been quite young, around nineteen, when his father had died suddenly and it had almost destroyed his family, for though he had given up his studies he could not find any job that paid enough to feed his family and ensure a continuing education for his younger brother and sister. He was in despair and desperate, when he happened to meet Sanskaar.

Kunal had decided to put aside ego and pride and take up the offer that Sanskaar put on the table, no questions asked as long as he felt it was fair business. And it was a fair business, for Kunal could be independent turning his obsession for fitness into a paying venture, an upscale private gymnasium that catered to the wealthy, those who were obsessed with fitness and sought absolute discretion. To ensure that there would be no untoward obligation on Kunal, the entire cost was funded as an investment and a part of the profits went towards settlement of the same, which still left Kunal with a generous payout.

As the reputation of his gym grew, so did the requirement of his services as a personal trainer, till he could pick and choose whom he wanted to work with. He doubled as Sanskaar's personal trainer as well as the personal trainer for Sahil, which was at Sanskaar's request, for Kunal was not keen on having Sahil as a client. Sanskaar's reasons for insisting on the same soon came to light when Kunal was to let out a few tidbits of gossip which he was sure that Sahil would grab. The hint that SNLRS could have Sanskaar behind that name had been one such morsel which had Sahil planning before even the press release from SNLRS. Sanskaar had gambled that the Senguptas would be interested in him, considered the past. 

It had been a gamble more than manipulation; to have Sahil take the bait, to reach out to Shekhar and finally the interview requests. They would have preferred Ragini, but then Swara was perfect, naïve and just innocent enough to be used as a pawn, though they were worried about how Ragini would react once she found out, a confrontation with her was not going to be pretty.

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Over the past one week, Swara read and re-read the transcripts, making extensive notes for which she took feedback from Udayan. She wanted to incorporate her own thoughts about them along with the insights she had gained from Tanisha and the feedback from Udayan but somehow she could not quell the niggling voice that there was something else that was missing,  apart from whom that 'R' signified.

She had been worried that slipping up on the names might have repercussions but when a week passed by with none in her family referring to the disastrous breakfast, especially her sister, she relaxed and focused on writing out a profile article rather than a cold question and answer interview. So she created sub-titles, pulled out the quotes, heard the interviews over and over again in the hope of getting the little nuances, which she could factor into the profile she was building up. A week later, no closer to identifying who 'R' could, not that she had bothered much on that, she was exhausted from reading and hearing the transcripts. Nikita's story recitals had also overwhelmed her and feeling exhausted and overworked, she decided she needed a break; which was fortuitous for it was a few minutes later that Divya called, insisting that they meet up.

・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・

Swara's fatigue did not escape her friends who were persistent in their inquiries and getting no response from her, had presumed that her tiredness stemmed from a writers' block and were discussing her draft novels. She looked at Kabir who was giving an animated performance of how the romantic hero in her novels behaved, and though he appeared to have got the cheesiness right, which had Divya in splits, Swara was not too pleased about it. Deep down she knew that Kabir was quite realistic, her writing was cringe worthy, yet she was reluctant to admit the same. She wanted to divert their attention from her novels and decided that if she shared a bit of her project, hoping to also get a new objective take at the same time.

She glared and fumed at her friends, "I did not know that my romantic novels could be so hilarious, maybe I should simply switch the genre to humour."

Divya immediately stopped laughing and Kabir appeared abashed; in a bid to mollify her, he caught her hands and admitted, "I think we were quite out of line and it is not that you are not a good writer, it is just that your idea of romance is not realistic..," and when he saw her raise an inquiring eyebrow, he realised he was making matters worse, so he decided to apologise, "...but then I guess you have to take some liberties when writing a story. After all if the story is not larger than life and the romance was not exaggerated, people would not read would they? Most of us read stories to escape reality and find hope so you should keep writing the way you do. However, that is not what is ailing you, right?"

When Swara did not say anything, he squeezed her hands and chided, "Do not try to evade it, just tell us what is troubling you? Maybe we could help you?"

Swara sighed, she wanted to share but then recalled how upset Ragini had been and knew that it would not be proper to tell her friends what exactly she was busy with. However a part of her needed to discuss what she had been doing for she felt that she could do with an unbiased view of what she had learnt. She mulled over her options and finally decided that she could share what was public knowledge; at least that would get her out of the teasing bout she was undergoing regarding her romantic novels' progress.

It was in silence that they heard her out; how the press release from SNLRS taking over the Maheshwari Group had gotten both Sahil and her father in a tizzy; how she had volunteered to do the interviews in a bid to diffuse the growing tension between her sister and her father; how she had met three of them, learnt about the fourth though the fifth person was still a sort of a mystery. She ended saying the she was now stuck with what she could do with what she had learnt for though it seemed sufficient it appeared to be incomplete.

Swara soon realised that they were not much of a help either; though they did sympathise with her, the common suggestion was to make do with what she had learnt. Swara, a bit disappointed and reluctant, agreed with Divya who was insistent that if the conditions of the interviews prevented her from digging deep, Swara should just use that material and was confident that Swara would do a great job with whatever she had. She would have done as Divya had suggested if Kabir had not scrawled something on a paper napkin and passed it to her, without Divya noticing it. Sensing that it was for her eyes only, she excused herself to the restroom to read what Kabir had written. It was a line, rather it was three words, one that shocked and thrilled her at the same time,

'SNLRS – Sanskaar Maheshwari?'

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Swara was so intent that they did not get into trouble, she did not pause to think as to how Kabir knew Sanskaar and more importantly, how he was known to them; in fact she did not bother to think at all. When she had read those words she had been initially shocked but then relief took over, if Kabir guessed the connection between Sanskaar and SNLRS, then she could talk about it without being guilty of divulging information. However, she understood that Kabir wanted to keep it a secret which was the reason for the surreptitious message so when she came out of the restroom to join them it was with excitement and barely suppressed glee, wondering how she could get a chance to talk to Kabir without Divya being around. She also felt a little guilty that she could take what Kabir gave with volunteering much, as she was constrained by the conditions laid down by SNLRS.

She believed luck was on her side when Divya left early, citing classes and insisting that they continue chatting up. And when Kabir had floated the idea of meeting Sanskaar and pointed out that catching him unaware could help her gain answers, she agreed to it enthusiastically, only thinking about how it could give her another perspective and that she could use this chance to learn more about Nikita and maybe could get a couple of clues about who 'R' was.

She did not even question the apparent stealth that Kabir employed nor did she bother to pay much attention to the fact that they were using the back door of the house to gain entrance. Or maybe she did but was caught up in the excitement of moment and chose to ignore the rest. She had not even thought about how she would explain her presence in his house, instead she simply followed Kabir as he made his way through the house with a certain familiarity. And while he stopped for a fraction  a second in front of a room, she barged ahead, barely breaking her stride, with Kabir following her. 

She realised the gravity of their situation when she found herself in the bedroom, face to face with Sanskaar Maheshwari, who was sitting on the bed with his legs stretched out and leaning against the bed rest. As their presence registered, she saw his face set and his eyes blazed with indignation and hurt. Wondering what she could say or do, she turned back to look at Kabir who stood at the doorway, with his arms crossed; she barely registered the way the men faced off each other, both with a  similar built and identical expressions. However, before she could think of anything to say, they heard Sanskaar, "Your presence is uninvited and unwelcome yet intriguing. I am undecided whether I should have you thrown out as intruders or treat you as unwanted guests."

The sternness in his voice chilled her, and rather than look back at him, Swara kept looking at Kabir, who though slightly hesitant to step in, did not seem inclined to say anything. She turned back to Sanskaar, wanting to apologise, when she froze in her place. She had not paid much attention to her surroundings but could see that the room was different from what would be a normal room, not that she had much experience in being in others' bedrooms, especially men. Sanskaar's room was larger than what one could expect and the unusual thing was the amount of space around the furniture.

She heard the whir first and saw the bed slowly sink down till it was only around fifteen inches off the floor and then watched Sanskaar shift himself, using his upper body to move, from the bed to the clearly visible wheelchair. He adjusted himself in the chair before asking her, "So how does it feel to have discovered my secret?"

There was a silence, one that pervaded through the air, and seeing that neither of them were going to say a word, Sanskaar continued, "Well, since you seem to have decided that silence is your approach to this stealthy and irregular interview, I should ask your friend here; his presence surely indicates that he is the one who has brought you around. Did he not tell you about me?"

Swara shook her head, unable to make out anything from his words. Sanskaar looked at Kabir, his face was unreadable but his polite tone made it worse for them, "That is not what I expected of you, Dr Kabir Kapoor, though I am still a little confounded as to why you have set up this pseudo sting operation. If it was to show Swara what I am then it was not your secret to share. And I cannot but ask you, does your mother know?"

Swara did not have to look back, she knew her friend very well and could almost feel the burning shame that crept on Kabir's face at Sanskaar's question, she felt the same too. However before she utter a word, Sanskaar continued, "Guess not, but since the two of you are here, I  might as well speak it out aloud."

He swirled his chair so as to face Swara and grinned, "I am a paraplegic, my dear; I suppose you know what that means?"

"You...you cannot walk?"

He gave her a wolfish grin, one that chilled her to the bone, "Ah! Your detective brain seems to have hit on the correct answer, I will give you credit for it though it is only partly correct. I cannot walk, but that is on the good days."

And here ends the chapter - I am not too sure of it but I hope it gives you some answers though it might raise new questions. Do let me know your views, I love all feedback, good or bad. We shall learn more about all the three players in the next chapter - Speciousness.

Wishing all of you a Merry Christmas.

love,
Nyna