The tires ground gently against the stone pavement as she brought it to a stop. The building loomed over her, and adrenaline coursed through her as she quickly put in the security code.
The glass doors parted with a gentle hiss, and her heels clicked sharply on the marble lobby floor as she walked in. The night staff greeted her, and she offered a polite nod but didn’t stop. There was no time for idle chitchat.
Namita was packing up for the day when Siya walked up to her desk. Her eyes widened when she caught her boss standing there.
‘You’re—hi. Um, I wasn’t feeling well so I thought of leaving early but I didn’t know you were coming today. Should I—’
Siya waved her hand and said, ‘Don’t worry about it. You can leave anytime you’re done.’ She leaned closer and asked in a hushed tone, ‘Is my father in?’
Namita quickly tapped on her screen and shook her head. ‘No ma’am. He’s out with the media team preparing for the exhibition. He should be back by eight.’
Siya glanced at her watch. She only had an hour. He’d check the vault surveillance camera the moment he sat down on his chair.
‘Should I call him or leave a message with his assistant?’
‘No!’ Siya said sharply, then composed herself. She softened her smile and said, ‘It’s fine, I’ll manage.’
Namita watched her for a moment, then picked up her bag, and rounded her desk. Before walking past her, she whispered to Siya. ‘I didn’t see you come in, ma’am. I’m feeling down so I was gone by five today.’
Siya gave her a grateful smile and turned to her father’s cabin waiting for her down the hallway. With every step closer, the air seemed to constrict. If Kartik found out what she was planning to do, he’d boot her out of the company before she uttered another word.
Her hand hovered briefly over the polished brass doorknob, looking around to make sure the hall was empty of curious eyes. She pushed open his cabin door and softly shut it behind her.
The room looked more sterile than she remembered, though the air held a faint scent of cedarwood and leather. Dimmed light spilled from the lamp, casting long shadows across the desk. The surface was entirely clean, with pens andfolders lined neatly along the edges. Her father didn’t believe in clutter. His orderliness had always felt surgical.
She moved to the desk first, pulling out one drawer, careful not to make a sound. Thick folders labelled Marketing, Legal, and Operations were lined up. She sifted through them, but found no sign of his work diary that held the codes. Only Kartik had it. Only Kartikeverused it. There was no other way to find the codes if he'd taken the diary with him.
She’d grown up in the quiet corners of this office, and she’d watched her father guard that vault like it contained the secrets of the universe. No one could enter it unless he personally authorised it, which he never did, but she had to find a way in.
She shut the drawer carefully and crouched low beside the bookcase, pulling aside leather-bound volumes and boxes, looking for anything that didn’t belong. She scanned every surface, every shelf, muttering to herself for something to be easy for once.
A soft creak echoed as the door behind her opened, the bright hallway light spilled into the dark room, and her spine went rigid.
‘Siya, what the hell are you doing here?’
Her shoulders hunched as she relaxed and turned to see Dhruv standing at the half-open door, holding a rolled-up set of graphic posters against his chest.
She straightened slowly, setting the folder in her hand on the table. ‘I’m looking for something,’ she said.
She used to think Dhruv was loyal to her father to a fault, almost akin to his shadow. But now knowing everything, shecouldn’t predict his reaction. He might run to their father, or not, but either way, she was busted.
He stepped into the office, and closed the door shut, leaning against it. Great, he was blocking her only exit and she had less than an hour now.
‘I can see that, but why are you behaving like a thief, lurking around in Dad’s office in the dark? What are you looking for exactly?’ he asked, confusion etched into his features.
Embarrassment rushed to her cheeks. For one splintering second, she almost lied but Vihaan’s words echoed in the back of her mind.There’s a lot you don’t know about Dhruv. And she wouldn’t know more about him until she let him in.
Squaring her shoulders and taking a deep breath, she played a huge gamble. She said, ‘I’m looking for Dad’s work diary.’
‘Why?’
‘I want the access code for today. I need to get into the vault.’
The crease between his brows deepened. He crossed his arms against his chest as he asked, ‘Does Dad know about this? Did he approve it?’
She let out a frustrated exhale. ‘If he had, do you think I’d be here, sneaking around like this?’
‘What exactly are you looking for in the vault?’ he asked after a moment.
