by MV Kasi
There was another deafening silence.
"Is it true?" Ajay asked the nurse calmly.
The nurse looked terrified. "Yes. I didn't reveal the information for the sake of money. I did it because I felt this woman must have definitely wronged an innocent man. I remember her quite well because she was so cold. Even after receiving the news that she was pregnant, she didn't look happy."
Sia cringed internally as Ajay watched her with increasing anger.
"Leave us," he said in a tone that was eerily calm.
Jyotika looked worried. "Jay—"
"Jo, please leave. Take the nurse with you. I need to speak with Sia. Alone."
It didn't help seeing Jyotika's resigned expression. As though she knew ahead of time that something like this would happen.
The two women left, closing the door behind them, and leaving Sia alone with Ajay.
"Did you plan all this?" he asked her with a cold look in his eyes.
She didn't answer, and looked at him calmly. But on the inside her mind shouted, 'He wasn't supposed to find out!'
"I'm asking you again, Sia. Did you sleep with me to fall pregnant with my child?"
She still didn't reply, and watched him as he came closer to her with a hard expression on his face.
"I don't really have to answer you," she finally replied tonelessly, not backing down.
She could hold a cool, calm and collected stare for hours. It was something she had practice with over the last few years.
He stopped suddenly, and a strange look passed on his face as though he thought of something distasteful.
"I reached out to you that night at the club. Were you just looking for any random sucker that night to fall pregnant? Have there been other men you used, around the same time?" he demanded.
She didn't reply, and continued to give him the blank look, even though he was hitting pretty close to the truth. She had actually meant to pick up someone else. Another man who had the right credentials and personality to suit the purpose.
"Why were you desperate to conceive?" he demanded. "You are not that old. Why would a twenty four year old woman want a child?"
She couldn't control the slightly panicked expression that slid through her face, before she kept it carefully blank again.
"Look Ajay, I would love to play twenty questions with you, but I'm wanted elsewhere. I have a lot of work to do today. Let's keep in touch after the results come back. Maybe like you just speculated, you are not even the baby's father—"
His eyes narrowed. "You specifically came to me, and let me know that I was your baby's father. I must have been the only possibility."
She looked at him calmly for a few seconds. "I don't really have time to listen to this. I'm leaving." She turned to leave.
"Why me? Until that night, you blew me off several times when I asked you out on a simple dinner date."
She didn't reply and was almost at the main door.
"Stay!" he barked.
Her back stiffened at his order. "You can't make me. I'm leaving—" She was about to pull the door open.
"If you leave now, I'll make sure that you will never ever see the baby after its birth," he threatened.
She turned and glared at him. She couldn't keep her cool at that outrageous statement.
"Even you, with the so called contacts and network can't make such a ridiculous thing happen."
He watched her coldly. "Believe me, my lawyer or any judge on earth can make it happen. They can award the sole custody of my child to me, once they are informed of the circumstances."
Her eyes flared. "Don't you dare threaten me," she said icily. "This baby is mine. Only mine. Do you hear me? Nothing, and no one can take it away from me."
He looked at the fierce look on her face. "That baby is mine, too. And I will do more than simply threaten," he said, looking at her with quiet menace.
Seeing him that way, shook her a little. He had always maintained an easy going exterior as though nothing ever touched him or bothered him. But now, his usual friendly persona, or even his polite facade was completely gone.
He looked ruthless. He held the same expression that he did a few months ago at a restaurant while he was dealing with a few men who were causing trouble. That similar ruthlessness look was directed at her.
She had misjudged him. How could she ever think that the man in front of her could be easily manipulated?
'Don't show emotion. Don't be vulnerable. It's not all that bad. You can till salvage this situation. You are almost there.' Her mind kept chanting that until she could think rationally.
One small push and he'll end up playing into your hands.
Ajay was watching her keenly. "I'm asking you again, Sia. Why me? Until that night, you had kept away from me, even though you were clearly attracted to me. And then, all of a sudden you decided to have my child?" he asked.
She had asked herself the same question over and over again. Why him?
"Answer me," he demanded, beginning to lose his cool again.
"I have my own personal reasons for wanting someone like you as my child's biological father," she replied coolly.
He probably could make out from her tone that it wasn't a compliment, and gritted his teeth. "What do you mean by someone like me?"
She looked him in the eye. "An orphan," she stated and saw him flinch slightly. But she continued. "Someone who doesn't know much about attachments or even cared much about the legitimacy of their child."
"You think just because I happen to be an orphan, I wouldn't care or want my own child?" he asked her in disbelief.
She shrugged. "I thought you wouldn't care that much," she said, knowing very well how desperately orphans or people who had no family, craved for any sort of attachments or bonding.
"Damn you. I care. I care a lot. IT'S MY CHILD!" he roared.
She was satisfied with his reaction.
His loss of control meant he could be led easily. Because loss of control meant loss of rational thought.
She decided to stick to the truth as much as possible.
"Ajay, I'm sorry for this. But I wanted to have a baby of my own. I had no choice—"
"You had other choices. But you deliberately chose to use me," he said.
"I knew it was wrong. But as I said, I wanted a baby very badly. I felt lonely—"
His jaw was clenched as though he was fighting for control.
"There are other ways. A sperm donor or—"
"I thought about it. But I don't trust the people involved to keep the information confidential. My own nurse let it out that I was planning for a child. And I didn't want anyone claiming the rights of my baby later on," she said.
Ajay didn't look like he was buying her reasoning or even cared about them at this point. "How sad that this method is backfiring as well. I give a damn about your reasons, but I care about my child."
She knew she almost had him where she wanted him.
She took a deep breath. "I'm repeating this again, I know what I did wasn't right. But at this point, all I can say is sorry. Maybe we can work out a custody plan if you—."
His eyes narrowed at her. "A custody plan is not required. I want to be the legal father, and have all the rights and access to my child," he said.
She gave him a questioning look.
"I would like us to get married," he declared.
Bingo.
She watched him calmly. "I know that you feel strongly about it—"
"I do. I want my child. And I also want my child to be born legitimately," he gritted.
She nodded. "Okay. Maybe we can have some sort of an arranged, temporary marriage of convenience. We can get married a few days before our child is born. Until then, maybe we can work out the details—"
"No. I want us to get married much earlier on."
She felt a small amount of alarm creep up on her, but she forged ahead in a calm tone.
"Okay. If you insist on—"
"I want us to get marri
ed as soon as possible. And move in together."
There was a stunned silence. Sia thought she must have misheard him.
"What? What did you just say?" she asked him with a puzzled look.
"I want us to get married and live together before even the baby is born. We can work out something after that" he said.
"What? We c-can't live together," The statement came out as a whisper rather than in an outraged tone.
Live together! Where the hell did he get the idea from? How did the conversation shift all of a sudden from getting married for the baby's sake to living together before even the baby was born!
"Oh, we definitely can. I want to be close to my child even before he or she is born," he stated.
She stared back at him to see if he was joking. But what she saw in his face shook her a little.
"Are you crazy? That doesn't even make any sense. And I will never ever live with you or with anyone to that matter," she said, even as she felt like she was slowly suffocating.
"Then be prepared for the longest and the most traumatic custody battle starting very soon. Even before our child is born."
She was shocked. "You are crazy," she whispered.
He shrugged. "You are not from around here. And I don't want to take chances with you escaping to the States or somewhere else with my child. And as I said, I doubt any judge in the world will award custody to a manipulative woman who trapped an innocent man."
She sucked in air as panic raced through her at his statement.
He's only bluffing. He's just trying to scare you, and get back to you because his ego was hurt for being used.
But even though his body language indicated his anger, he had delivered those threats in a calm matter-of-fact tone. If only she could feel half of that calm herself.
She felt cornered. She fought to calm herself, hoping against hope that she would convince or at least threaten him with enough confidence. Until she could get him to withdraw his ridiculous proposal.
"I really c-cant live with anyone." Shit her voice was shaky.
Taking a deep breath, she calmed down. "All I can offer is a temporary marriage before the birth, for making our child legitimate. After a decent period of time, we can get divorced."
He paused and gave her a shrewd level stare. "Okay fine. But then, after our divorce, will you let Jo bring up my child when I get married to her?" he asked.
Her heart almost stopped. All her protective instincts along with a healthy dose of outrage overshadowed her panic. "Are you insane? Never! This child is mine!" she hissed.
"Well, thanks to your scheming, your child happens to be mine too. And if you want to be with our child, then there is no other choice, you will have to marry me, and live with me. Indefinitely," he stated.
"Like hell, I will," she hissed, still outraged at him for asking her to give up her baby to another woman.
She needed a quick change in tactic. Taking another deep calming breath, she watched him with a level stare.
"Do you know that I'm an heiress, Ajay?" she asked him quietly.
He raised an eyebrow, but didn't answer her.
"An heiress with an extremely large fortune. But you already know that. Don't you? You already know how big Blush Enterprises is..." she said suggestively.
His eyes flared. "I have enough money on my own and I don't need anyone else's," he growled out.
Now he looked outraged.
Good. It made her feel slightly in control.
"No one ever has enough money," she stated calmly. "Not even the filthy rich. And I'm richer than you. Way richer than you. And you will receive a part of my fortune if you agree to drop this conversation right now, and listen to my terms—"
Her voice broke off as he came much closer, and loomed on top of her with barely a few inches between them with a furious expression.
"I don't give a shit about how rich you are. I have my own money, and I can earn more on my own damn terms," he said angrily.
Dammit! He wasn't budging. So, she had no other option, but to use the last resort.
She looked into his eyes calmly, and then slowly asked, "Will you still insist on living together, and being married indefinitely...even if your baby's life depends on it?" she asked.
She caught her breath at the unadulterated rage in his expression. He looked like he would like to rip her apart with his bare hands. No other human on the planet had looked at her with such obvious anger and hatred in their eyes. His hands were clenched into fists and his body was vibrating with unleashed anger.
If it had been anyone else, she would have gone into a combat mode, or screamed bloody murder. But since she knew he wouldn't risk hurting his child, she remained steady.
But only barely.
"You will kill my baby—your baby— just to get out of living with me?" he asked.
"Yes," she replied tonelessly.
He watched her face keenly and took a deep breath. "I don't believe you," he said.
She shrugged. "Do you want to take chances?" she asked.
He looked at her for several seconds. "You are bluffing. I know when someone is being manipulative," he stated flatly.
She didn't budge, and they continued having a stare down, until a determined look took over his face.
"You just threatened the life of my child," he said quietly. "Nothing short of a natural disaster would stop me from claiming my child. Especially after knowing what you can be capable of. I thought of giving you a month's time, but I can't afford to do that anymore."
"Look Ajay, I just don't want to live with you. But we can definitely get married—"
"I don't care about what you want. All I want is to protect and be around my child while he or she is defenseless. And when you are ready to hand over exclusive custody to me, we can get divorced."
She was frustrated. "I will never ever give up my rights and hand you over exclusive custody," she stated.
But he continued as though she hadn't spoken. "I will have my lawyer draw out papers stating those conditions for a divorce. And also add that you won't be allowed to get rid of the baby. Or go anywhere out of the city until we get married."
"What if you want to divorce me first? Then will you give up the custody?" she asked.
"Highly unlikely."
"But it is possible. You might feel trapped with an unwanted wife and a baby." And not to mention the hell he would be a part of when her life plays out in public after her revelations.
"No baby of mine will be unwanted," he replied firmly.
"But—"
"We are getting married in a week and moving in together," he said with a finality.
She could have argued and put her foot down. But she needed him more than he needed her. And she had accomplished a part of what she had wanted.
The only good thing was that her mission was not impacted. But she felt trapped and almost faint. And she had never once fainted in her miserable life. Passed out. Or almost died even. But fainted, no. She had to get away from there.
"I need to leave," she said and walked out from there, before he could stop her again.
She took the stairs and arrived to the ground floor, and promptly threw up near the bushes outside the gate. Both, the stairs, and then, the ultimatums had made her nauseous.
When she thought she couldn't feel more miserable, she heard Jyotika.
"How could you do this?" the other woman exclaimed.
She straightened and wiped her mouth with a tissue before facing the obviously traumatized woman. Ajay was already there. He must have taken the elevator, and he was watching her with a curious look. Probably wondering why she had reached downstairs after him, when she had stormed out before him.
"Answer me. How could you!" Jyotika shouted in anguish.
"Jo..." Ajay placed a gentle hand on her trying to placate her.
But Jyotika kept looking at her. "The nurse was right. You are cold and manipulative. Only a person with no soul would use someone like this and destro
y their happiness."
Meantime Sia saw Anjali's car approaching her, and was relieved.
"Why did you do this?" Jyotika demanded with tears streaming down.
Sia supposed most people would not be able to look at themselves in the eye after doing what she did to Ajay, and indirectly to Jyotika. She kept telling herself that she had no choice.
But it was a lie.
Each and every person living on the earth always had a choice. The choices could be shitty, but were nevertheless choices.
"Tell me why you did this to us!" shouted Jyotika even as Ajay held her close, and tried to calm her.
But Jyotika struggled out of his arms and followed after her to the car. "Just tell me why! I need to know why! How could you be so soulless!"
Sia sat in the car and looked at Ajay and his distraught fiancée.
If only she could reply to them that she had no soul because her soul was ripped from her a long time ago. And if she were forced to choose between her soul and her survival, her soul and her peace of mind, her soul and her vengeance—she'd damn her useless soul.
CHAPTER NINE
THAT EVENING, AJAY had announced to Jo's family that he would be marrying Sia the following week. They were shocked, but didn't accuse him of leading Jo on.
"We are very disappointed that you won't be Jo's husband, Ajay. But an innocent child's welfare is more important. A child needs both mother and father," said Jo's mother.
He hated causing any kind of hurt to Jo or her family. Right from the age of fifteen, Jo had told him that she would make him her husband, so he could officially be a part of her family. He had laughed. He had told her that she was his best friend, and that she shouldn't entertain such silly ideas.
But a couple of months ago, Jo had given him a very good reason on why they should end up with each other.
Jo's parents had arranged for a match for her with a well educated man whose family came from a very good lineage. During the background check, which was done by his security firm, they found out that the groom's family was actually bankrupt. Not only that, but also the groom and his father had scammed multiple people and were wanted by the law.
