Sinner's Game: Karma will chase!

by Sandeep Sharma

  They were on to their second wine bottle. Tanuja gradually opened up – in a planned manner. Akshay went to the washroom and when he came back, he shifted to Tanuja’s couch. Tanuja smiled and came closer to Akshay.

  Akshay could now easily smell her perfume. And this was proving to be a big distraction for him.

  Tanuja was so far under control and though wine made her open up she was well aware of her plans. She was feeling proud of her self-control so far. There were many moments earlier where she wanted to share her feelings with Akshay.

  It was Akshay’s turn to take initiative for the next step in their relationship.

  Akshay opened up about his relationship with Garima, ‘Hmm so let me try to tell you about my side of things. Mine was a love marriage and we fell in love at IIMB campus. It worked well for the first few years. Then things changed.’

  ‘Oh love marriage! So what changed?’

  ‘Garima was not able to conceive and I am against adoption. After my entrepreneurship, I got busy and that just added to our distance. I do not speak about it. Something is lacking in my life for sure.’

  Tanuja didn’t say anything. She wanted Akshay to continue.

  ‘When I am with you Tanuja, I feel different. You know that I like you but now this liking is changing in my head.’ Clearly, the wine was talking now.

  Tanuja was obviously liking all this and teased, ‘Are you sure you are saying this for the first time to anyone?’

  ‘Are you kidding me Tanuja? Do you think I go around talking about my personal feelings with everyone? I thought you knew me better than this. When I am with you…’, exclaimed Akshay. Akshay stopped for a while; he was feeling a little embarrassed with his confession and Tanuja looked in control.

  ‘I am sorry Akshay but don’t stop now!’

  Akshay continued, ‘Well I am attracted to you and there is no point hiding this anymore from you. I don’t interact with anyone at office. My interaction at office parties is completely professional, if not formal. This is the only time for employees to let their hair down and interact with me. Therefore, I play around. In this way I am not tagged with anyone from office as far as I know’

  ‘I have seen you at office parties! You surely know how to flirt’, teased Tanuja.

  Tanuja knew about Akshay’s feelings and she wanted things to be this way but she was afraid of going too fast.

  She looked at Akshay for some time before speaking, ‘Yes recently I have been jealous; there is no harm in admitting it now. I am not possessive about you but when newbies flirt with you and you respond back, I do not like it.’

  ‘As I said, all that is strictly professional.’

  Akshay reached out for Tanuja’s hand and she held his hand back. While Akshay was slurring a bit, Tanuja was in full control and she did not want to take this further in a public place. Tanuja called the server and asked for tab. As they waited Tanuja said, ‘Let’s go to my room and I have a good bottle of wine. I bought it as a gift for you but I think the gift can wait.’

  ‘Do you want me sloshed? I am tipsy already but I don’t mind chatting with you for a little longer.’ Akshay teased.

  Tanuja took Akshay to her room. As compared to Akshay’s room, it looked better organized. She had put candles on the table and there was a nice scent in the room.

  Tanuja said, ‘Why don’t you relax on the couch, I will freshen up and come back.’

  ‘I hope you have wine that you had promised. I can drink anything right now though. But usually I don’t like to mix my drinks.’

  ‘Don’t worry I have the wine bottle with me. It is in the refrigerator.’

  When Tanuja came out, she had changed her clothes. Now she was wearing a short but loose skirt with a noodle strap top that barely covered her cleavage. As Akshay watched her, she went to the refrigerator to fetch the bottle of wine. She opened the bottle and poured it slowly in two glasses. As she moved towards Akshay she said, I am not a connoisseur of wines but this is the best I could pick.’ Tanuja sat down next to Akshay on the couch.

  Tanuja handed a glass of wine to him, broke his chain of thoughts, and said, ‘Cheers.’

  Akshay said, ‘Cheers to this beautiful night.’

  ‘I am sure that there will be more than one reason to remember this night.’

  Akshay took a sip and said, ‘Wonderful choice I must say; where did you buy this?’

  ‘Well good you liked this. Don’t you have anything better to say?’

  Tanuja slowly crossed the thin line between them. She rested her head on Akshay’s shoulder and stretched her legs on the table. Akshay smelt her perfume and felt his heart beat faster. However, his mind weighed the situation. He was well aware that if he took no action now, it would be too late. At the same time, alcohol was doing its job and pushing him closer to Tanuja. Akshay knew by now that Tanuja liked him. He didn’t have to connect the dots, Tanuja’s body language was saying it all. He had always found her physically attractive and he felt stirring of desire within him. He quickly emptied his glass and put it back on the table.

  Tanuja asked ‘Should I refill it?’

  ‘I think I am done for the day. Anything more than this will knock me out.’

  Tanuja finished her glass too and got up for the refill.

  ‘I am not worried about passing out. You have nothing to worry too. I will make sure that you remember this night.’

  Akshay was right; it was too late now.

  Rob gave Joe a term sheet with very attractive terms, before they left for India. Akshay agreed on the terms offered by Rob and due diligence process started shortly.

  Whatever happened in New York stayed in New York. They never discussed this at office or even during their flight back to India.

  The Doubt

  After the New York trip ended, Akshay’s involvement with Tanuja had reached its peak. They continued to visit Mumbai but the meetings were all personal now. After the due diligence VAS Capital decided to invest in Healthy and Akshay announced the same to media though a PR firm. After Hailthy’s recent funding announcement, Akshay threw a party at his home and invited all his senior employees.

  Garima liked planning for such all such events and looked forward to them. This sudden announcement of house party came as surprise to her. She was not mentally prepared and thus annoyed with Akshay’s sudden plan. Akshay had not given her enough time to plan for the party.

  ‘What is the hurry for throwing a party just like that? You could have checked with me, Akshay.’

  ‘Garima, I don’t throw parties like this often. We have closed a major funding round with US-based investors. As a company policy, we don’t invite families to our office parties so I decided to invite some people to my home. I have already decided to outsource catering to a reputed company so you should not worry about the arrangements. They will take care of everything, including drinks.’

  ‘Well so this time I will also enjoy the party instead of worrying about food arrangements. Who are all coming to our house party?’

  Akshay was surprised, ‘Garima most people have been with us since the beginning so you would have heard their names. To name a few, we will have Veer, Neeraj, Manoj, Priya, Himanshu, Saurabh and a few more.’ It was not intentional but he forgot to mention Tanuja’s name.

  Later that evening, guests started pouring in slowly for the party. Garima was in a cheerful mood.

  Everyone appreciated the interior design of the house and excellent collection of antiques and art. The house was facing the Golf Course so the location had its own advantages and was a talking point of the party. Soon everyone got busy in drinking. As the evening went on, women started grouping together. Most of them preferred to drink wine and Akshay had an amazing collection from his frequent foreign trips.

  Akshay was in the middle of his story with his male friend when Tanuja arrive at the party.

  Garima did not recognize Tanuja. Initially she thought that Tanuja was the wife of one of Akshay’s male colleagues. Akshay h
ad never discussed her and he forgot to mention her name.

  Tanuja was looking gorgeous in her dress, not so revealing but sensual enough. Even Garima admired her dress and she became curious about her new guest.

  Tanuja introduced herself, ‘Hi Garima I am Tanuja! Good to see you in person. I have heard a lot about you from Akshay.’

  Garima was somewhat embarrassed but did not show. She replied, ‘Hi Tanuja, welcome to the party! I will inform Akshay about your arrival.’ Garima took Tanuja straight to the bar where she mingled with her colleagues.

  Akshay was with in the middle of a conversation when Garima came in and told him about Tanuja’s arrival. Akshay excused himself, took Garima’s hand, and started moving towards bar where Tanuja was standing. Garima pulled her hand out. Akshay realized his mistake. It was nothing but selective amnesia. Soon, both of them reached the bar and the time had come for Akshay to introduce Tanuja to Garima.

  ‘Garima this is Tanuja, she is part of my strategy team.’ Tanuja was quick to realize the dynamics between the couple and kept quiet. Garima politely said, ‘Hailthy has now grown so big that it is difficult for me to keep track of names. Good to meet you, Tanuja!’

  ‘Likewise, Garima!’ Tanuja said as she continued chatting with her colleagues. Akshay also spoke to her and the bigger group. Garima was watching them from a distance. The whole time.

  Garima tried her best to ignore Tanuja but it was impossible. Tanuja became center of attraction for most party guests. She was single, attractive, and ready to mingle. No single office employee wanted to miss opportunity to interact and flirt with her.

  Garima started focusing on the catering arrangements but her mind was racing. She tried to remain calm but was clearly distracted. Akshay could read her from a distance. He wanted to talk to her but did not with so many guests around.

  The rest of the party passed without any event.

  After the party, Akshay tried to communicate with Garima, who did not say anything and instead was unwinding while watching a show. Akshay said, ‘I think it went quite well. Everyone was quite happy and relaxed. They praised you a lot for your art collection and house décor.’

  Akshay expected a barrage of questions but Garima had a different way to deal with him. She did not ask any. She just said, ‘Good to know. I am tired now so let’s talk in the morning. Goodnight.’

  Next day, Garima had already left for her office by the time Akshay woke up. She had left a note for Akshay. ‘I do have questions about Tanuja but I think we need a frank discussion about her. Let’s be open on this one just like we were during our IIM days.’ Akshay wanted to call her but did not. He was not sure how he would respond to her queries.

  Garima was understanding but possessive about Akshay. She always gave him all the freedom and never asked any questions. The current sequence of current events was not in Akshay’s favor.

  Garima had not forgotten about the party and she kept thinking about Tanuja during her office hours. In general, Akshay had no interest in girls and he kept himself occupied with work. His passion for Hailthy had left him no time to interact with anyone even during outside parties. He was busy networking with likeminded people and always focused on selling his new set of ideas to new acquaintances. Still, she found something odd about this Tanuja episode. Tanuja was glamorous, intelligent and working directly with Akshay. Not mentioning her at all was rather strange.

  Akshay had also become aloof lately and was no longer the doting husband he once used to be. This was acceptable to her as with time her responsibilities had also changed and she struggled in managing work life balance. She hardly cooked as they had full time house cleaner and cook. Akshay had always traveled frequently since the beginning of his career. Therefore, his frequent travel never bothered her. However, suddenly she got interested with Akshay’s travel plans. She wanted to find out who all were traveling with him.

  That evening when Akshay returned from work, Garima sat next to him on the couch. Akshay told her about his upcoming travel plans to Mumbai. This time it was for a longer duration. He expected Garima to ask him about the trip but Garima remained quiet.

  When Akshay was packing his suitcase, she finally asked him.

  ‘Akshay, during your trips to Mumbai, when you meet investors, who all attend your meetings.’ Akshay was not completely ready for this straight question though the Tanuja episode had put him on guard.

  Akshay’s expression radiated guilt and he sensed the direction Garima was driving this discussion to. He said, ‘It depends on agenda of our meeting. Typically, investors meetings are restricted to a few. But pretty much anyone can join my business meetings.’ ‘Happy to see you taking interest in my work finally!’

  Garima asked casually, ‘Who all attend these investor meetings?’

  Akshay knew this was a loaded question but could not escape this discussion. ‘Well investor meetings are attended only by Tanuja and me. Besides me, she is only person with excellent credentials. Why are you so curious now?’

  Garima replied, ‘It is never late for a wife to know what her husband is doing at work. Better late than never.’ She winked at Akshay and started helping him in packing his suitcase. They had a quick dinner after which Akshay went to bed.

  Garima watched some TV for a while. However, her mind was wandering and she could not concentrate on any program. Akshay’s phone was next to her and she desperately wanted to check his messages. She wanted to check his interactions with Tanuja. But she decided not to do this and tried hard to sleep instead.

  Next day when Akshay reached office, Tanuja was already waiting for him in the room with her laptop. Akshay was not very surprised. He waited for her questions.

  Tanuja said, ‘So how did it go yesterday. Was she angry about me? It was a little embarrassing for both me and Garima. But I must say, she handled it quite well. Obviously, she has no clue about us. Right?’

  Akshay was little hesitant to face this question directly but said, ‘I just do not discuss my employees with Garima.’

  Tanuja said, ‘Am I just another employee for you? ’

  ‘What? Where are you going?’

  She could not afford to show her anger towards him, so decided to leave the room.

  Akshay started thinking about the situation after Tanuja left. He did not know what to tell her. In any case, the timing was not right at all. He focused on work instead.

  The Investigation

  Priya’s accident, which resulted in her sudden death, affected everyone at Hailthy. They spoke about it continuously for days. Himanshu could not overcome it. He was devastated.

  A week after the accident, the police had started their investigation. Pradeep, the Investigating officer (IO) interviewed all employees of Hailthy that were present in the party to establish any motive and rule out any foul play. Himanshu was scared but remained calm when he was interviewed. No one at work knew about his affair. Himanshu gave his statement in which he mentioned his interaction with Manoj to Pradeep. Pradeep immediately called Manoj for his statement.

  ‘Manoj, it seems you were threatening Himanshu during the party?’

  ‘No sir, I was just worried about Priya as Himanshu was forcing her to drink more.’

  ‘Manoj, why were you so bothered about her?’

  ‘As Priya’s colleague I wanted her to be safe,’

  ‘Did you follow her after she left the party?’

  ‘No, I left early and she was still with Himanshu.’

  ‘Where did you go after the party?’

  ‘I left straight to my home sir. You can check with my family.’

  ‘Manoj I want to believe your story but it is not looking convincing to me. You need to give a written statement and cooperate with us during the investigation.’

  ‘Sure Sir, I can give you a written statement because I have nothing to do with this accident.’

  ‘Come to the police station tomorrow and we can finish this conversation.’

  Pradeep had nothing against
Manoj and he was just shooting in the dark. It was a clear case of accident but Hailthy was a big company so he wanted to be sure. Also no one had seen the truck driver. With no motive established, after sometime, Pradeep decided to write the closure report.

  Vibhor on the other hand believed that there was more to Priya’s death. He decided to meet Pradeep at the Sushant Lok police station. The police station was in a new building but the upkeep was quite poor. There were files all around and some were even lying on the floor. The overall condition was quite pathetic as there were not enough bathroom, even for the police force. Some police officers were openly taking bath, without inhibitions. Many house cleaners and drivers were queuing for submitting police verification application.

  Pradeep was sitting at his desk and sipping his tea. He saw Vibhor and recognized him but kept him waiting for more than an hour.

  ‘Good Morning sir! I am Priya’s brother, Vibhor. I have to come to find about the progress of your investigation.’

  ‘Look, Vibhor, there was no eye witness and no one saw the driver. We are not able to track the vehicle. It probably had a fake number plate. With no murder motive established, this file will be closed soon,’

  Vibhor got agitated, ‘How can you say that so conveniently?’

  ‘Oye who are you? Don’t shout here. Do you have some conspiracy theory? A murder suspect? Is there any motive. Was Priya doing something illegal?’

  ‘No sir. You are getting me wrong. May be it is just an unfortunate accident; I can’t believe that she would be gone so soon. Please see her phone. There must be some clue there.’

  Pradeep shouted, ‘I know how to do my job. Don’t disturb me here; if we need you we will call you. Now please go.’

  For the next few weeks, Vibhor waited patiently but nothing happened and Pradeep closed the case as a random hit and run accident. The police finally handed Priya’s belongings to Vibhor, including her mobile phone.

  Vibhor knew password of Priya’s mobile phone.

  He wanted to find out the person responsible for Priya’s death. He started looking at pictures stored in her camera and started reviewing her SMS and WhatsApp messages.