ROSID FF ~THE GREEK GOD~ Chap 64 Pg 53 - Page 18

~ CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX ~

It was close to afternoon when the meeting finally wrapped up. A rather uneventful one. Though Mukherjee looked and sounded a bit strict, Roli was liking him already. He had the kindest pair of eyes she had ever seen. Not to mention, he always looked pleasant unlike some people she knew.

Some people! That reminded her. Mr. Siddhant Bhardwaj. The devil's incarnation! And there he was! Standing around with Cabir and Mukherjee. Chatting away to glory as if he was the most dependable guy in the world. I wonder if Mukherjee has ever seen this guy's true colours! If he hasn't I wish that he does! I'm just dying to see what would happen when that day finally comes!

Roli had an uneasy feeling in her guts. This was a day she never wanted to be reminded of. Twelve years back on this day, the car which Roli, her parents and sister was travelling in met with a terrible accident. Fortunately or unfortunately, she was the only one who survived after suffering a serious concussion to the head. Ever since, she had made sure to hold special prayers every year in their memory.

Roli glanced at her watch. The Puja's this afternoon. I need to leave soon, like now. But how am I even going to ask this guy to leave me? Hope he doesn't come up with any of his nonsense.

Her heart skipped a beat when all of a sudden Siddhant was no longer accompanied by Cabir or Mukherjee and he now had his full attention on her. Oh shit. He's coming. Whew! Just calm down. It's going to be okay. I'm sure he will understand. He will let you go. She took a deep breath as he closed in on her.

"Roli Dwivedi!" From the way he called her name, she had this ill feeling that he's not going to make it easy for her. Surely, he had devised some of his evil twisted plans to screw up her life. Roli found herself searching eagerly for Cabir and Mukherjee. She so wished that they were around. At least she could take Mukherjee's permission and leave. But of course, he had already left. Why else would this guy raise his hood?

"So!" Siddhant stood tall with his hands jammed into his pockets. "How far has the filing reached?"

"Actually... it's done," replied Roli meekly.

"Done!!!?" Siddhant expressed fake surprise. "Good job! You know what? I didn't think that you..." he gave her a quick sarcastic glare from head to toe "...could finish it. I'm sure that you had help. Isn't it?"

Roli's mind raced back to the time where she was stuck in the filing room and struggling to execute a simple task such as segregating the documents and pinning them together. Dhruv had managed to slither in without getting spotted by Siddhant. "It's fun when we do it together," he had told her. "Two is better than one."

Siddhant's voice snapped Roli out of her pleasant flashback. "Dhruv!" From the way he beckoned his subordinates, this guy should have been in the army. He was not at all soft. Not at all!

In Dhruv's case, Siddhant's voice had this special something in it to instantly dissolve his muscles into liquid protein. "You called, Siddhant?" he asked nervously.

"Did you help her with the filing?" A simple and straight but stern question from Siddhant. Enough to give Dhruv that impending sense of doom. The poor, frightened lad gulped down the huge ball that had begun to form in his throat. "Well... Siddhant... I... erm..."

"Did you or didn't you?" Siddhant snapped firmly with his eyebrows raised in question.

"Y-Yes," came Dhruv's quaking reply after a brief moment of hesitation.

"Why?"

"That... Siddhant... I... erm..."

"Why?" Siddhant repeated. Dhruv flinched at this.

Mukti, who had sensed that trouble was on the way, looked up from her work and observed Siddhant's victims. Roli felt helpless as she watched Dhruv fidgeting before the monster. The poor guy! He had been so warm and friendly to her all these days, even taking the risk of helping her out when he very well knew that he could land in serious trouble should Siddhant find out. I so wish that Cabir was here! Where did he disappear to? If he was here then he would have stopped this monster!

"I was just... wanting to... help..." Dhruv was so nervous that one could easily notice the shining sheet of sweat that was glistening all over his face.

"Did I ask you to do it?" Siddhant questioned.

Complete silence.

"Dhruv. Answer my question"

"No," Dhruv replied feebly.

"Then?"

"I'm... I'm sorry Siddhant," he mumbled.

"That doesn't answer my question," snapped Siddhant.

"Siddhant." Mukti finally spoke up. She couldn't take this shit any longer. "Dhruv was just trying to help her out. She couldn't do it alone in such a short time. No one can. After all, the entire point is to get the job done with or without help. So what's the..."

"Mukti. You stay out of this." Siddhant warned her with a wave of his finger. "Did I ask for your opinion?"

"Siddhant. I was just..." Mukti was so pissed off now that she was in the right mood to pick up a full-fledged argument.

"Shhh. That's enough!" He ordered in a stern voice with a quick wave of his hand.

Mukti was seething with rage. She clenched her teeth as she struggled to swallow up the ton of F-words which were itching at the tip of her tongue. Idiot! This son of a b...

"Dhruv. What's the current state of the HR information system?" It seemed like Siddhant wasn't ready to let go of Dhruv that easily. He was like an evil spirit that clung to its host and wouldn't let go.

"That... is up to date," he replied in an uncertain tone.

"Oh really?" Siddhant let out a soft sarcastic chuckle. "I was just checking it out this morning and I couldn't find any information on the last twenty employees who had joined including Roli. Now why is that?"

Though Dhruv had seen this coming long back, he still hadn't managed to do anything on the system. All thanks to his huge workload. But now, that day was finally here.

"Maybe... it could have evaporated into thin air? Possible. Right?" Siddhant continued to prick Dhruv with his sarcasm. "You should have concentrated on updating the system which was your major task rather than taking time to have fun in something which you were never interested to do before."

At this statement, Roli raised her eyebrows. What the hell is he suggesting? That Dhruv was trying to hit on me? Seriously?

Siddhant glanced at his watch. "It's 12:42 PM now. By 1:15, I need the system up to date. By hook or crook. And you better have a good reason if it isn't." Dhruv looked visibly relieved but devastated as Siddhant turned his attention to Roli. "And you... come along with me."

Oh great. Now what? Roli followed Siddhant's cue and tagged along to his cabin. She found him waiting inside with his hand still stuffed into his pockets.

"Haven't you always wanted that golden opportunity to not look dumb for once?" Siddhant had a ridiculous sneer on his face. "Well, here it is now. My cabin. I want it organized from top to bottom. Your deadline is... 7 PM. And your time starts now."

Roli's eyes browsed around. It was no better than the first time she saw it. This time, it looked like it was hit by an atomic explosion. There were loose papers strewn everywhere. Cabinets were half open with stuff popping out. His desk was a nightmare and everything else was terrific!

"Actually... I have a question."

"Question." Infuriated, Siddhant's eyes went wide and glassy at the courage she had gathered to ask questions. He folded his arms defensively. "Okay. Shoot."

"Why am I serving a month's notice when I have hardly worked for a week?" she asked curiously. "Like... isn't it usually a week's notice for those who are on probation? And why am I doing all this when I'm supposed to hand over my job to a new person. Coming to the point, I don't have anything to hand over in the first place. So why am I still here?"

Siddhant's eyes visibly flickered with rage. He definitely didn't like being questioned or challenged. But he surely seemed ready to give her a virtual slap with his answer. "Okay Ms. Dwivedi," he began with a tight-lipped sarcastic smile, "for your kind information, it is very clearly mentioned in your offer letter that should you end your service, you will be liable to pay two months' salary which is equals to forty thousand rupees OR work for one month and pay one months' salary. Now which sounds better to you?"

Roli was quiet. She wasn't really sure what was written in her letter. She needed to double check just to be sure.

Siddhant was very pleased with himself. He had managed to shut her up. "And if you have any more questions, you'd better check your offer letter and do some research before throwing up. Is that clear?"

"Yes," replied Roli after a seemingly long pause.

"Excellent! You can begin now," said Siddhant as he plopped comfortably into his chair. "And... you're not going to go home before 7. Anymore questions?"

7 PM! But I need to get back now! The Puja is this afternoon!

"But..." Roli was very nervous now. The fear of being humiliated was overwhelming. And with this guy's current state of mind, it seemed highly likely. "I tried to tell you before... the thing is that... I wanted to leave a bit early. In fact... now."

"Now? For what?"

Roli twiddled her fingers as she worked up the courage to deal with his rude demeanour. "I have an important Puja... in the afternoon. And I can't miss it. I..."

"See look," Siddhant began aggressively, "let me make this quite plain. You're not some fuddy-duddy old lady sitting at home. You're a working woman. With responsibilities. And you are answerable to the company. Get it? So keep all your traditions, religion and all other sympathies at home before coming over here."

"But..." His reply felt like a painful slap to her face. A slap that she didn't deserve. At least not now... not when she was trying to talk about something painful. And that too with someone who probably didn't even understand pain! Something that she wasn't... in Siddhant's words... expecting sympathy.

Siddhant, who had been literally burning with coffee and embarrassment since morning was just waiting for an opportunity to get back at her. After all, she shared his nasty secret. "If you were so concerned about all these things you should have simply sat at home. Why did you have to come here and waste my time? I would have given the job to someone else."

"I... it's just for this one day." The struggle to bottle herself up was growing more tedious. The heart wrench was growing to an unbearable level. A level where she could end up breaking down. "I wouldn't have if it weren't so important."

"Really?" asked Siddhant was an amused smirk. He was now standing close to her. So close that she had to tip her head uncomfortably to meet his eyes. "How important? Someone died or what?"

Roli felt like the lights around her had just flickered. His words were like a sharp knife that just got driven through her heart. The mockery in his words and expression was the last straw. "Yes..." her quiet reply sounded like a gasp as she struggled to stay strong before his ridicule.

"Seriously?" he chuckled sarcastically. "Who? Your dog?"

Roli's breaths grew quicker and shallow. The constriction she felt in her chest was bad enough to cut off her air supply. As if it wasn't enough for him to humiliate her, he had now begun to humiliate the memory of her parents and sister.

"Or... let me guess," he continued relentlessly with no sign of giving up. "Wait," he pretended to think hard. "Oh come on. Now don't tell me that it's your dad."

Though her speechlessness gave him the much required satisfaction, the tears that had begun to spill over her eyes and roll down her cheeks told him that his "guess" might be right after all.

"Yes!" she heaved in a clogged and unsteady voice.

As realization dawned on him, the smugness on his face instantly dissolved to surprise and then an uncomfortable remorse. Roli, who had crossed the threshold of her tolerance, broke into a quiet sob and bustled out of the room.

A stunned Dhruv and Mukti looked up from their work to see a tear stricken Roli hurry out of the department. "Roli?" Mukti shot to her feet and took off after her.

Dhruv turned his questioning gaze to Siddhant who was now at the door of his cabin. He looked stiff all over as he stood there with his fingers twiddling in guilt.

****************

Thank you so much inspite being busy giving the update. Even at work I quickly check if the updates given or not and was so happy to see one.Once again thanks for making my day with lovely update.

Once again fab update dear and thanx for giving update from ur busy time hope u provide nxt update soon

Nice dear. Hope sid understands roli now

Pretty hastily done. Haven't done much of proofreading or adding more colours. Still, I hope you'd enjoy. Will try to give more updates today. Stay tuned.

~ CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN ~

Mukti bolted in through the door that led to the stairwell. The door was slightly ajar when she saw it. So she was damn sure that Roli had used the stairs instead of the lift. Mukti craned her neck over the railings and checked out the flight of stairs below. Empty. But then, an obvious sniffling from the next flight of stairs caught her attention. "Roli?" she called out softly but no response.

Mukti bounded up the stairs and stopped as she reached the next set. There she was. Roli. Huddled on the stairs with her legs drawn to her chest. Her shoulders shook furiously as she quietly sobbed into her hands. Mukti was beside her in no time. "Roli?" She put a consoling arm over her shoulder and shook her gently. "See look at me. Tell me what happened. Why are you crying?"

Roli was too broken and breathless to give her a reply. She continued to sob with her face buried in her hands. "What did he do to you?" asked Mukti. The very thought of Siddhant having said or did one of his nasty things got her blood boiling over.

"Come on, tell me!" Mukti demanded quietly. But Roli was having a tough time in controlling herself. She was drowning in a crying fit.

"Roli," hissed Mukti as she gently tried to pull her face off her hands, "see look. If that mother fuc... sorry. If he has stepped out of line we need to put an end to it. Do you understand? So you need to tell me. What is it?"

*********************

Harshad Saxena, a handsome devil in his mid-twenties stepped out of his department - Project Management, and headed down the stairwell. He was a handsome devil in every sense of the word. Blessed with drop dead gorgeous looks and the twisted mind of the devil himself. A deadly and dangerous combination.

As he effortlessly floated down the stairs, a woman's high-pitched voice made him stop in his tracks. "Is someone crying or what?" he mumbled to himself and stuck his head out to see the flight of stairs below. When he did, he spotted two girls huddled on the steps. And one of them was...

"... Mukti," he whispered to himself. "I wonder what's wrong."

Mukti was probably the only member of the HR team who was in Harshad's good books and for obvious reasons. The way she carried herself, her vibrant outlook and "don't give a damn" attitude coupled with her stunning gorgeously bold looks could leave Harshad tingling at any time of the day. Twisted as he was, he decided to hang around and eavesdrop on the girls' conversation.

"All what I wanted was to go home earlier for just one day," came Roli's quaking tear-ridden voice. "Perform the rites of their anniversary. But he insulted me. Even that's okay with me but he insulted my parents and my sister. Mocked their memory."

"Seriously! This Siddhant Bhardwaj!" Harshad could hear the audible gnash of Mukti's teeth. "This guy is too much! This has to stop! Mukherjee has to know."

"No..." said Roli.

"Roli. What do you mean no?" asked Mukti in disbelief. "Girl, he harassed you! And I mean... like on a personal level! This is way over the edge. Mukherjee must know."

Harshad couldn't keep in his curiosity any longer especially since the topic was on Siddhant Bhardwaj, the one person from the company he loved to hate the most. After all, he was that arrogant HR bully who kept finding ways to screw up his paid leaves, bonuses, increments etc. "Siddhant-Siddhant-Siddhant," he chanted under his breath, "you just can't stop being the asshole that you are, eh?"

Harshad decided to confront the girls and trotted down the stairs. "Hi ladies," he chirped in a cheerful voice, "everything alright?" He paused for a moment as he noticed the girl accompanying Mukti - Roli. "Hang on, this... you are the speaker girl, aren't you?"

"Her name is Roli," Mukti snapped irritably through clenched teeth. Harshad was one guy besides Siddhant that she just didn't dig. Her radar could pick up his negative vibes from even hundred miles away.

"Roli..." Intrigued, Harshad wrung his jaw as he glanced over at Mukti. "Sweet. But why is she so upset?"

"Harshad," began Mukti with a sarcastic smile, "I believe you were heading out for some important business?"

"Nah!" said Harshad as he casually leaned onto the railings. "Just for a breath of fresh air." His eyes twinkled as he stared at Mukti. She on the other hand had displeasure written all over her face.

"Then I think you better make it fast," said Mukti as she hastily rose to her feet, "...before you suffocate to death."

"You Mukti," Harshad snorted, "You're really very funny you know."

"Thanks, I know!" Mukti flashed him a quick, tight-lipped smile. "Come Roli."

Mukti helped Roli to her feet and led her far away from Harshad and back to the HR floor. "See listen. Do as I say. Just pick up your bag and leave. Or else you stand here. I'll go and get your stuff."

"But..." Roli was hesitant. Indeed, she did fear that leaving the premises without getting an official permission... from the monster would put her into trouble.

"No buts!" snapped Mukti. "Just do what I tell you. Leave now. I'll talk to him." She gave a couple of assuring pats on Roli's shoulder. "Trust me girl. He won't say or do a thing. I'll handle him."

"Okay," replied Roli feebly.

"And don't worry," said Mukti as she prepared to head back to the department, "ping me if you need anything."

"Thank you so much Mukti," said Roli in a low voice, "I really don't know how to thank you."

"Just buy me a coffee later on." Mukti winked at her whilst she returned. "Pun intended."

************************

This had been quite a day for Siddhant. It started off with a sharp dose of pain then anger followed by embarrassment and fear. Then back to rage and now a rattling, uneasy feeling in the head and chest. Though he allowed himself to wallow in the huge waves of e-mails that had flooded his inbox from morning, it wasn't quite working the charm he wanted it to. Keeping her speechless with no space to fight back was a very satisfying experience indeed but the way her lips trembled and nostrils flared when he rattled her before... the way her eyes brimmed over with shock, hurt and pain was disturbing. Deep down, a voice kept reprimanding him for his impulsive behaviour.

You shouldn't have. Couldn't you hear me asking you to stop? What's wrong with you? Why were you so harsh with her? Is this the way you handle things?

I know... I didn't want to... didn't mean to get her so upset and all that... and there was no need for her to either... but I was angry... because she told Dhruv about it... and they were laughing... I had warned her not to...

A soft rap on his door brought him out from the depth of his thoughts. It was Mukti.

"Siddhant?" Her voice was low, but her expression was grim and the tone in which she spoke made it clear that she didn't give a damn to what he thought. "Just dropped in to let you know that Roli had to go home. It's her parents and sister's death anniversary so she has to attend the puja and other functions."

Siddhant just looked at her. His features were soft. No angry glares, no scowls, nothing.

Mukti prepared to leave but stopped in her tracks. "And Siddhant. I had forced her to go home. So... I take responsibility for her absence this afternoon."

"Okay," Siddhant replied quietly after a brief moment of silence.

************************

8 PM. Siddhant wasn't in formals anymore as he walked into a posh residential building with a bunch of blood red roses in his hand. He seemed to be dressed for a casual evening with...

Naina opened the door of her apartment and grimaced at Siddhant and the flowers. She definitely didn't seem pleased.

"Hey," he grinned sheepishly. Looks like she's still mad at me. "H..."

Before he could talk further, she BANGED the door shut on his face.

Siddhant was stumped. "Naina?" He rapped softly on the door. "Hello?"

With a frustrated sigh, he pulled out his phone and tried ringing her up. From his free ear, he could hear her phone ringing for a while from inside the apartment but after a couple of rings, it was switched off. "What!" he muttered to himself in disbelief, "You can't be serious? How can you just..."

"I think that she's really mad at me," he mumbled as he gave up on trying to call her and had a go at the door again. But this time, the door was answered by a grouch of a man - Naina's father. He was one guy with whom Siddhant hardly liked to lock horns with. "Yes?" asked the man with a deadly glare.

"H-Hi uncle," he fidgeted in a soft uncomfortable voice, "Naina..."

"Naina isn't here," he snapped abruptly. It almost seemed as if he was in a hurry to end the conversation.

"Wha...?" Siddhant was stunned. "But she just opened the door now."

"That was her sister." he concluded irritably.

"Sister?" As far as Siddhant knew, Naina had a brother, not a sister. Have I missed out on something, he wondered. "But she doesn't have a sister..."

"How dare you!" he growled at Siddhant. Naina's father was an extremely delicate nuclear bomb that had to be handled with care. One wrong move could cost one his ass. "Are you telling me that I don't even know who or what my children are?"

"No uncle..." Siddhant knew that he had blurted out the wrong stuff before. "it's just that I didn't know th..."

"If I say that Naina has a sister then she has a sister. Do you understand!??"

"Of course, but..." replied Siddhant. He so wanted to get away from there but he had to meet Naina and patch up with her. He was a bit harsh to her this morning and he knew that she was upset.

Before Siddhant could talk any further, the door was slammed shut on his face once again.

************************

A new day had dawned but it seemed that Siddhant was off to another miserable start. He was unusually late to work today. This was something that rarely happened with Siddhant but today he was late. Extra late.

By the time, he walked into the office, it was past 11 in the morning. He hardly looked around as he bustled to his cabin.

Cabir, who was preparing to step out for his routine work stopped in his tracks as he noticed Siddhant finally present in his cabin. "Siddhant?" Cabir walked in after a couple of soft raps to his door.

"Hey Cabir." The late start to the day had a huge dose of adrenaline pumping through Siddhant's veins. His PC was already turned on and mails had begun to pour in. "Shoot."

"How come you're late today?" asked Cabir curiously.

"Traffic jam," answered Siddhant, "long story besides that."

"See listen," began Cabir in a low voice. He had a very solemn expression as he spoke. "Mukherjee was in here a while ago... looking for you."

"Looking for me?" Siddhant was a bit worried at the unusual silence in his department and the grim expression on Cabir's face. Something was definitely not right.

"Yeah," replied Cabir looking equally curious, "he said he'll be in Waudby's cabin. You need to meet him there."

Now Siddhant was sure that something was wrong. It's not like it was the first time he had to sit down for a meeting with Mukherjee and Waudby or any of the other senior management. He had done this before. After all, he was a core member of the HR team. Its backbone.

"Is everything okay Siddhant?" asked Cabir after a brief moment of silence. Siddhant had no answer to that. He wasn't sure though he hoped it was.

**************************

Moments later, Siddhant walked into the CEO's lofty cabin and found Mukherjee sitting beside Waudby on a comfy ergonomic chair. "Come Siddhant," said Mukherjee in his deep voice.

There was an air of uneasiness as he entered. He had never felt this before. He knew that something wasn't right. As he closed in, he noticed that one of the two visitor's chairs was occupied by a familiar someone who gave him the chills - Roli.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Amazing update dear waiting for more

Lovely update. It is getting more interesting .Can't wait to see what the outcame of the meeting 😉

eagerly waiting for the next one

~ CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT ~

The minute Siddhant set eyes on Roli, he knew that what he had feared was true indeed. He desperately searched her eyes for answers to the extent of questioning them. But she had effectively barricaded them to his penetrating stare. What is she doing here? Has she told them something? This is so not right.

Waudby who had been watching the apprehensive glares that Siddhant threw at Roli got all the answers he needed to know. "What happened Siddhant?" he asked with a sly smile, "Is something worrying you?"

That startling question got Siddhant to look away from Roli almost immediately only to be hit with Waudby's smirking eyes and Mukherjee's intense glare and tight throbbing jaw. The look in their eyes was disturbing. It was as if they knew something. "No," answered Siddhant with a soft nervous chuckle.

"I think that you're worried about her presence. Isn't it?" probed Waudby with his fuzzy brown eyebrows clumped together in a shrewd smile.

"A-Absolutely not," Siddhant shrugged in an attempt to look cool about the entire situation. However, his voice was noticeably hollow as he spoke.

"Sit," Waudby gestured at the empty chair beside Roli.

Siddhant attempted to chuck out the growing sense of dread as he settled down onto the chair. Chill dude, he thought to himself as he threw quick glances at Roli, don't freak out. It could be something else. But as much as he tried, he couldn't convince himself. Something definitely wasn't right.

"Do you know why you're here now?" asked Waudby as he intertwined his fingers and leaned forward onto his huge glass topped table. Mukherjee remained silent throughout the conversation. Contrary to Waudby, he was leaning far back onto his chair with a hand resting on the arm. He had his "I'm going to kill you" glare fixed unblinkingly on Siddhant.

"Guess I'm pretty clueless," said Siddhant in a low voice. Though he did a good job of burying up his anxiety, Roli could still sense the impending sense of dread that was consuming him.

"Alright," said Waudby with a distinct sigh, "I'll come straight to the point. We have received quite a lot of complaints about you. So we thought we might as well ask you about it."

"Complaints..." Siddhant raised an eyebrow and ran his tongue over his lips as he tried to sound amused. "Okay?"

"The accusation is pretty serious," continued Waudby, "That you had been purposefully subjecting your subordinates and other departmental staff to mental torture and harassment. What's your take on this?"

"Harra..." the words got stuck in his throat. He took a shallow gulp of air as he tried to cover it up with a quiet chuckle but his heart couldn't lie. It pounded like a drum in his chest. Yes. He could now see where all this was headed to. He was in trouble. Big trouble. In a big mess that could cost him his job and career. His reputation. And who else could he thank but Roli? If something like that happens... I swear... I'm not going to let her get away with it.

"Go on." Waudby's words wiped the smile off Siddhant's face.

"I... can't understand what made them think that I was... harassing them," replied Siddhant with a smirk. "My question is... if there was an issue... why didn't they talk to me about it?"

"Can you look at Ms. Dwivedi and repeat the same question or answer, whatever?" asked Waudby with a grim expression. The tone of his voice made it very clear that he wasn't ready to take any shit. Siddhant's alibis or other attempts to divert the topic weren't working. The two big shots were fully equipped with complete details.

Siddhant felt his vision blur at this. He clenched his dry lips as he gave a quick sideward glance at Roli. His eyes were everywhere else other than on Waudby and Mukherjee. Yet, he couldn't get the picture of Roli's tender hands and the colourful bangles that adorned it.

"Come on Siddhant," urged Waudby.

"N-no," Siddhant attempted a poor chuckle. "What has she got to do with this?"

"I guess she can answer that question. Ms. Dwivedi? What's your say on this?"

"Sir..." Roli began in a hesitant voice. She threw a quick glance at Siddhant and noticed him staring at her with wide, apprehensive eyes. "Nothing."

"Nothing?" Waudby wasn't surprised. "So you're telling me that Siddhant here has been exceptionally good with you? Even when he denied you the permission to leave earlier last evening?"

Denied the permission to leave earlier last evening. Siddhant had a quick flashback of how he had taunted her about the puja. He had even let his impulse get the better of him by breaking her with his stinging words. But the information Mukti gave him later on had got him overwhelmed with remorse. He knew that he had hurt her badly and he wish he hadn't.

"Sir..." Roli knew that anything she said could land her in Siddhant's blacklist. But more than that, she knew that his fate now rested in her testimony. Anything said against him can screw up his entire career and reputation. Though she knew that he deserved it, she didn't want to be the one responsible for the same. "As far as I know... He is a... taskmaster."

"Who sets unrealistic deadlines?"

"Sir..." Roli grew fidgety. She kept glancing at Siddhant from the corner of her eyes.

"Come on," urged Waudby. "You don't have to be afraid. Just say yes or no."

"Speak up Roli," Mukherjee finally spoke after his long and disturbing silence. "Yes or no?"

"Yes sir," replied Roli feebly after a brief moment of hesitation. She had this dreadful feeling that she shouldn't have said so. She wasn't sure in what sense they would take it.

Siddhant felt his guts clench painfully. He knew that his doom was at hand.

"And putting unneeded stress on the employees," added Waudby. "What was that girl's name? From your department? She had to quit after suffering a mental breakdown?"

"Alya Saxena," replied Mukherjee.

"Yes. Alya Saxena. The girl who used to be in Roli's place. Ever since we had to keep an open eye and mind on this issue." Waudby turned his attention to Siddhant. "And we're so sorry Siddhant. But the evidence we have is just too strong to turn down. We have to take action."

Take action. Siddhant very well knew what the action would be. After all, he was an HR guy. "Sir," he began in a low shaking voice, "if I could just explain..."

"What would you like to explain Siddhant?" came Mukherjee's verbal slap. "How could you? You of all the people?" Mukherjee's voice kept getting harsher with each word. "I'm so-so disappointed! The very department! The very guy that is supposed to stop these heinous acts are committing them! I feel so ashamed of myself and my department!"

"Sir. No. I..." Siddhant's eyes were watery now. He felt trapped. Helpless. Doomed. Ashamed. Never had Mukherjee spoken to him like this before. Never had he faced his wrath. For Mukherjee, Siddhant was always the apple of his eye. But now? A downright bottomless shame!!!

"You very well know that bullying is illegal in this company. Don't you Siddhant Bhardwaj?" snapped Mukherjee in a strict tone.

"Sir..." Siddhant was clueless.

"Yes or no?" he repeated firmly.

"Yes sir."

"Then why did this happen?" asked Mukherjee.

Siddhant's breath was stuck in his throat. The volumes of confidence which once used to emanate from him was nowhere to be seen. It had just vanished into nothing. He was as meek as a mouse right now. Roli could feel his presence diminishing into size zero. And at this point of time, she felt sorry for him. She didn't want to see him like this. Helpless. Voiceless. Broken.

"Come on! Speak up dammit!" barked Mukherjee. His booming voice shook the walls and foundations of the cabin.

Siddhant wasn't looking up anymore. His head hung low and his shoulders drooped like a wet rag.

"I'm sorry Siddhant," Mukherjee continued sternly. "But rules are rules. You know them very well. And rules are the same for everyone! From the CEO to the labourer. And if I don't act on this today, then it will be unfair on my part. Unfair to the company and its employees."

Roli's chest thumped hard. She knew what was coming. A harsh action that would put him to shame. Scar him for a very long time. For the very first time, she got to see a broken Siddhant. Defenceless. And at that point of time, she felt like she could finally see through his battered barricades. The one inside him didn't seem like the monster she used to see every day. Not at all. This one was different. This one was scared. Timid. Hurt and unarmed.

"You were the most dependable guy I ever knew," said Mukherjee as he removed a freshly printed paper from the printer. "And I'm so disappointed that it has turned out to be this way."

Siddhant never even looked up. He never even uttered a word.

"Both of you come along." Mukherjee got up and moved to the middle of the room. Roli joined first followed by a slouching Siddhant.

They stood across, facing each other while Mukherjee stood in between them like a referee. "Siddhant," he began on a serious note, "you very well know what happens in a case like this. But I don't want to lose you. You're my best guy. And because of that... only because of that, I'm willing to give you a second chance."

Siddhant finally looked up from the depths of his depressed state as he felt a tiny ray of hope shine on him. But what Mukherjee said next, destroyed that little string of light that had started to give hope.

"... After you apologize to Roli."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~