To Love or Not To Love

Chapter 5

The Sheesh Mahal was getting ready for the biggest fashion show that Lucknow had ever seen. All of AR's designers, stylists, event managers, and publicists were working round the clock to ensure the show went off without a glitch. Their careers couldn't afford a repeat of what happened two weeks ago. 

ASR, on the other hand, was bored. Perched on the edge of the huge mahogany desk in his office at the Sheesh Mahal, ASR was toying with his Bluetooth headset. He had just acquired a fledgling organization. The organization had some patents he was interested in. There was stiff competition, but his ruthlessness had won the day, again. He opened his cupboard to reach out for his MacCallan Estate Single Malt scotch to celebrate, and then hastily closed it. The win had no meaning for him. It evoked no joy. Honestly, he was tired of winning all the time. He craved a challenge, that would get his adrenaline flowing. 

When he had started his business, his competitors had scoffed at his audacity. They soon learned that ASR never took "no" for an answer. And he had a unique ability to think in a logical and calculative manner in the most stressful of circumstances. ASR thrived in a challenging environment. Every time someone challenged him to something seemingly impossible, ASR would make it possible. And then he would go after the competitor and destroy him. 

Players soon figured out that ASR liked to win, and would do whatever it took to make that happen. He didn't have morals and scruples and he really didn't care about what needed to be done to achieve his goal. Things started coming easily to him. If a competitor knew ASR was interested in a deal, he would gracefully bow out. Nobody was willing to risk total elimination. 

ASR was tired. Tired of getting things in life very easily. He wanted a challenge. He loved the thrill of a fight. Crushing his opponent after a fight gave him a high like nothing else could. Now that he was bored of playing business, he had to find another sport.

******

Lavanya Kashyap was ASR's current mistress. And at this juncture, both of them knew her days in his proximity were numbered. ASR didn't believe in marriage. He had a string of mistresses and treated them very well. He provided for them and their family and in return expected their presence whenever he required it. For him, it was simply about satisfying his physical needs. The beast didn't have any emotions. He owned two corporate apartments, one in which he lived, and the other he loaned to his mistress rent-free while she was with him. She was also given a position at AR -  Business Developer, and her job profile required her to travel with ASR, wherever he went. 

His Business Developer knew a few details about AR but beyond that, her job was to look pretty and please him. He took his work very seriously and expected his employees to take their work seriously too. Over the years, ASR had tried different types of Business Developers. Some were feisty, some were meek. ASR made no bones about it. He liked the variety. He, however, never hired anyone without experience. 

*****

Lavanya Kashyap had an A+ on her employee record. Not only was she great in bed, but ASR also managed to have a halfway decent conversation with her. His previous partners usually turned out to be dolls who couldn't string five sensible words together. Lavanya was different. She anticipated his needs before he said anything. He liked that. But Lavanya was predictable. He didn't like that. He knew her moves. There was no variety as far as Lavanya Kashyap was concerned. Initially, he had found her small qualities interesting but as time went by, the very same qualities were beginning to bore him. He needed to find someone else. 

Toying with this Bluetooth, his thoughts were wandering in a reckless direction. He had tried many willing partners. He now wanted a challenge, someone unwilling, who would only bend to his will because of the sheer force of his persona. He needed...and unknown to him flashes of the tear-stained face of Khushi Kumari Gupta crept to his mind. 

It had been two weeks, and yet the girl seemed to haunt his dreams. He knew she was a middle-class girl who wore her virtue like a tiara. And suddenly ASR had a challenge, albeit inconsequential as far as his business success was concerned. He would make Khushi Kumari Gupta his mistress. The girl haunted his dreams. He would haunt her reality.  

*****

Khushi Gupta woke up with a start, beads of sweat decorating her brow. Another nightmare. The nightmares had become a common recurrence, ever since she had encountered the Beast. Her hand involuntarily reached for the glass of water on her bedstand. She gulped all of the cool liquid in one go and waited for it to soothe her parched throat. Within a few moments, the liquid worked its magic and she felt more in control. She tried to remember her nightmare. What had she seen this time? She didn't remember. But the feeling was one she woke up to every night since that fateful day - suffocation - as if someone was forcing her to breathe through a giant plastic bag and try as she might scream, no sound came out.

She got off her bed to make her way to the kitchen. She was still parched. Sitting at the edge of her bed, for a moment she looked up towards her glow-in-the-dark stars. She felt weak. But seeing the stars made her feel safe. She was home,  in Gomti Nagar with her Ma and Babuji. They would take care of her just as they had done before. She had nothing to worry about.

More water, back to her room and another attempt to close her eyes and fall asleep. Try as she might, she couldn't. So she began to chant Devi Maiyya's name. ASR was no less than the devil and only God could now protect her.