Page 41 of Born in Ruin

Ishaan snorted, some of his smoothie going down the wrong way. He coughed, while Amay used the knowledge he’d gained from his medical degree to thump him on his back.

“You guys think they’re raping these women, gangraping them?” Mayukhi kept her gaze on Virat, knowing that the answers would come from him.

Virat’s dark gaze went to the photograph but Ishaan knew he didn’t see it. His friend’s mind was stuck on a dark, windy night under a large tree in the corner of the school campus. A night on which their innocence, whatever was left of it, ended.

“That’s one theory,” Amay said, when Virat didn’t answer. “But that theory is shot to hell if we can’t prove that this is not consensual.”

“So we need to speak to the girl.” Mayukhi may not have won that damn trophy at school but there was no doubting her brain worked at lightning speed. “Do we know who she is?”

“Nisha Kohli.” Virat picked up the conversational ball again. “She’s a teller at a private bank.”

Mayukhi’s eyebrows shot up. “How did she end up tangled up with these assholes?”

“That’s what we’re going to find out.” Virat exhaled.

“I can do it,” she offered. “Talk to her?”

“No.” Ishaan was shaking his head before anybody else could jump in. “They’re tracking you just like they’re tracking us. That’s how that picture of Dhrithi and you ended up with the paparazzi.”

Mayukhi started beside him. “You guys took that down, didn’t you?”

Ishaan shook his head. “We can’t take down every article that makes the news. It’s counterproductive.”

“But, they’re saying shit about Dhrithi!” Her voice rose in outrage.

“It’s not the worst they’ve said.” Dhrithi shrugged. “I can live with it.”

Mayukhi’s head whipped towards him. “You took down the business story I planted about you. Why is this different?”

“That was a battle and one that we won,” Virat answered. “This, what we’re waging, is a war. We need to let the smaller stuff go and keep our eyes on the bigger prize.”

Mayukhi took a deep breath, outrage still simmering under her skin. “So what now? What do I need to do?”

“My team will speak with Nisha. They don’t know who works for me and it’s easier to fly under the radar this way. As for what we need you to do, they’re having a party a few weeks from now at Alibaug.”

“At Naveen’s place.” Mayukhi frowned. “Yes. They do that every few months. It’s a boy’s weekend kind of thing.”

“We want you to get Ishaan invited to it.”

Virat’s calm statement had her goggling at him. “Because you think there’s going to be another gangrape set to happen then? Why the hell would they invite him? He’s the enemy.”

“I’ll work with you to feed information to them about what we know, what we suspect, and soften them up on that front. I don’t have a concrete plan but I’m hoping we can come up with one together.”

Mayukhi exhaled, her hands going to her head, fingers threading through her hair and digging into her scalp as she thought. “They won’t buy a rift between you guys,” she mused. “Everyone knows you’re tight.”

“They might,” Ishaan said. “If they think I’m choosing you over my friends.”

Mayukhi thought about that for a second. “I’ve already told them this is a forced engagement,” she said, her brain picking at the problem.

“So,” Ishaan shrugged. “We sell them on the fact that the forced has become real.”

Mayukhi’s gaze caught and meshed with his, the memory of their kiss swarming her eyes at his comment.

“It’s worth a shot,” Amay said. “We need them to allow Ishaan in for us to figure out what’s going on in their little circle.”

“Well then.” Mayukhi took a deep breath. “I guess we’ll have to give it a shot. Let me think this through a bit more.” She got to her feet, gathering her purse. “I should get to work. I’m way behind on my launch preparation.”

Ishaan rose to his feet so he could see her out but Mayukhi didn’t move. She looked at Virat, her brows pinched together. “Take the article on Dhrithi down.”

---