“He offered it, and I couldn’t refuse.”
“Right,” Vihaan whispered, her words twining around his fragile heart, constricting it until he couldn’t breathe.
“I needed the money and when I met your dad—”
Whatever else Vera was saying was lost to the foghorn that was blaring in his brain, his mercurial emotions subduing all logical thought. He’d given her a chance. For the sake of his love for her, he’d tried to communicate and ask questions instead of jumping to conclusions. And all he had for his efforts was irretrievable proof that he’d been played for a fool.
“I’ve got to go,” he muttered, abruptly cutting the call before she could protest.
I’ve got to go, he kept thinking, the idea of leaving India flashing to life, like flood lights above an escape hatch.
I’ve got to go.
31
The Fixer
Vihaan
Vihaan slid the paperacross the table towards his surprised cousin. The dark lighting within the private entertainment room at Velocity matched his mood and hid his anger well.
“I thought you called me to the club to hang out,” Rahul said, just barely looking at the contract in front of him.
“You thought wrong.”
It had taken every ounce of Vihaan’s control to let his cousin leave Ethos a few days ago without decapitating him. But retaliating within his office would have brought notice to Vera’s involvement. Instead, he’d invited Rahul to Velocity to. . .talk.Now that they were both face-to-face, he was struggling to remember to use his words instead of his fists. Booming bass thrummed through the thick walls, and he wondered if that would muffle any sounds of flesh hitting flesh in case his cousin only responded to an alternate method of persuasion.
“Sign the release statement.”
Rahul scoffed, sitting back with a petulant twist to his mouth. “I just got here, Cuz. I want to have a good time and this looks like work. Not in the mood for that.”
Vihaan didn’t skip a beat. “You think this is a negotiation? The only reason I’m asking in private is because I respect your father enough to give you one last chance. Take the out I’m offering you and leave.”
His cousin glanced to the side where Rian and Arjun stood before grabbing the paper in front of him. He leafed through it, his skin growing mottled. “I’m not signing this! This states that due to my negligence, the ad campaign is cancelled without penalty to Ethos or its employees!”
Vihaan tilted his head and shot him an insolent look. “So?”
“I can’t cover the penalty fees! My father, fucking miser, already holds my purse strings. I need this project.”
“You should have thought about that before you decided to behave like a lecherous pig.”
Rahul slammed both palms on the tabletop and shot to his feet, looming over Vihaan threateningly.
“You can’t make me sign. Trying to scare me with your friends as backup won’t work.”
Vihaan barked out a humourless laugh, languidly unfolding himself to stand once more.
“You think they are here to hurt you?” He guffawed, shaking his head condescendingly. “They’re here foryoursafety, asshat. So that I don’t put you in a coma.”
Confusion and alarm flickered across Rahul’s face, nervous energy causing him to launch into an attack.
Pain exploded behind his eye as Vihaan took a hit to the top of his cheek, and then another. He staggered back, throwing one hand up to stop his friends from intervening.
He couldn’t hold back a snort, his grin bloody and gruesome. He could finally drop all pretense and do what he’d been wanting tosince he’d seen finger marks on Vera’s skin. Wiping the edge of his mouth with his thumb, Vihaan turned to face Rahul once more.
“Thank you. Now I won’t feel so bad for what I’m going to do to you.”
Without waiting, he drew his fist back and swung, landing a thundering blow to his cousin’s jaw.