His gaze was roaming the shelves as he answered, ‘What do you mean?’
‘Rajat works directly under Dad, and only answers to him. Why would he risk going against him?’
Dhruv shrugged. ‘People do a lot in the name of loyalty.’
Siya crossed her arms. ‘Loyalty toyou?’
He exhaled and leaned back slightly against one of the steel shelves. ‘I cover his kids’ school fees.’
It took her by surprise and she asked, ‘You’re paying for their education?’
‘Yeah,’ he said, shrugging it off.
‘For how long?’
‘A couple of years. Rajat and his wife Lata weren’t expecting triplets, so she had to quit her job and only his salary couldn’t stretch enough to cover for five people in Mumbai. They were struggling so I helped in any way I could.’
‘That’s very thoughtful of you,’ she said, touching his arm.
‘Careful there, that sounded dangerously close to a compliment,’ he teased her, then rubbed the back of his neck, betraying his awkwardness. ‘They are good kids. His daughter, Hetal, wants to be a marine biologist. I didn’t even know what that was when I was her age.’
His self-placating gesture was so similar to Vihaan that she chuckled. ‘I see why you and Vihaan are friends. You made Meera’s day, by the way. She’s a hardcore fan of his paintings.’
‘That’s great. I’m glad she had a memorable day.’
‘There’s a lot I missed, didn’t I?’ Siya murmured, guilt pricking her when she saw the fading bruise again.
His answer was a small, reluctant smile. ‘There’s a lot we both missed.’
‘What else don’t I know about you?’ she asked, wondering out loud.
A corner of his mouth twitched as Dhruv reminded her, ‘A lot, and you’ll find out in time, but we’re kind of on a schedule here.’
‘Right,’ she scolded herself. There will be plenty of time to make up for past mistakes,ifthey got out of here without getting caught.
‘You have a clue what we’re even looking for?’ Dhruv asked, his voice bouncing lightly off the chamber vault.
She was already walking toward the computer system that had all the information. ‘I know it’s risky but I think her updated will is in here. She left it with her lawyer, Naksh Mehta.’
He looked lost in thought. ‘When I joined the company, there were whispers about how Dad cleaned house by letting go of all senior executives after your mother was gone.’
‘Why?’ Siya asked, tapping the keyboard to find the filing system codes, but found no sign of any will stored under her mother’s name.
‘My guess? He’d been worried that the ones who’d been loyal to her would sabotage his plans for the company or undermine his control. Her lawyer must have been among them too. They were let go at the end of the day without warning.’
‘How could he justify it?’
‘He gave some bullshit about streamlining the workspace, but my theory has always been that he didn’t want reminders that she had the true power.’
‘Maybe that’s why I can’t find anything on the system. Dad never gave me the will when I turned eighteen, and I’ve seen mom’s personal vault. There were no legal documents in there. What do I do now?’ she wondered out loud.
‘I think if we look at his employment records, we might find a clue as to where he stored it,’ Dhruv suggested.
Siya agreed with a nod and they quickly rushed to the shelves lined with folders. She searched through the labels lined below the rows of sealed drawers and lockboxes.
‘God, I hope we find it in time. If Dad catches us here, we’re dead,’ Siya said, concerned.
Dhruv let out a sudden laugh, ‘Ah, I see. So, we’re basically committing corporate espionage.’
