April 15, 2021
EPISODE 12
Had Kirti’s visit been the only crisis of the day, Farhad would not have disturbed Raghav’s meeting. Conveying Kirti’s stern warning could wait until evening. The issue between them was long-standing—and though it was important and would necessitate action, it did not require immediate attention.
However, an even greater crisis rose later that afternoon forcing Farhad to immediately drive out to Sagar Lake where Raghav was in conference with the engineering team for the new mall.
When Farhad entered the boardroom, Raghav met his eyes—then dismissed the team. He and Farhad now had the room.
Farhad had anticipated his entry would suggest to Raghav that he had news on the identity of that woman.
Though the ring had been recovered, Raghav wanted her found—and had conveyed that to him last night in the strongest terms. “Get Swamy involved if necessary.”
Swamy was one of their contacts on the police force. He could be depended upon for redirecting police resources to assist in any matter Raghav deemed important. For a healthy fee, of course.
Raghav was on his feet, hands at hips, and asked eagerly, “Tell me you found her.”
“No, Annah, not yet—.”
Raghav mouthed an expletive.
Farhad said, “I don’t yet know who she is but I now believe she was planted to compromise you.”
Raghav drew closer. “Planted? By whom?”
“Anjali.”
“Anjali?” Raghav repeated. “To what purpose?”
“This.” Farhad removed his phone from his jacket and said, “This is going viral on twitter.”
Farhad watched Raghav while the short video screened. Raghav’s eyes narrowed. His jaw clenched. His hands fisted.
“Why do you suspect Anjali? This could be the independent work of that woman. We know she is bright and brazen enough for anything,” Raghav stated, at the end of the one-minute-eighteen-second clip.
Farhad said, “Listen—” He replayed the last few seconds in which the voiceover states: ‘Those who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.’ Weren’t those Anjali’s exact words to you that night before she left the villa?”
Raghav considered this. Played the clip again. And agreed. “That b**ch!”
Farhad continued, “She wanted to publicly shame you but she couldn’t appear in the video herself—”
“—So she engaged this woman to set me up!”
“And paid someone to leak the video. This is filmed from a static camera. The angle suggests it is footage from the security camera facing the bar.”
Raghav reached for Farhad’s phone again. He scrolled through the screen. “Sixty thousand retweets! Who are these idle people? Hashtag MeToo? Hashtag Predator?! Hashtag Sagar Lake Sex Scandal?!—I’m going to f**king destroy her. Anjali. That woman. And whomever leaked the footage!”
Farhad removed his phone from Raghav’s hands afraid he might hurl it across the room. Raghav frequently smashed phones—his own and those of the people in his vicinity.
You may be wondering, Sisters—who is this Anjali creature? And why was she tormenting Raghav Rao.
Here is the entire sordid tale: A month ago, Anjali and her friends were at the nightclub at Sagar Lake. It was Anjali’s bachelorette party. Raghav had popped in to see someone and was drawn into a dance with the soon-to-be-bride. She made it very obvious that she was interested in much more than a dance. He declined as politely as a man like Raghav was capable of. Raghav had no tolerance for cheating lovers and spouses. He left the club. She followed him to his villa, stripped, and jumped into the pool. To teach her a lesson, he called her fiancé. The fiancé ended their relationship; Anjali vowed to pay Raghav back.
The viral video was of Pallavi and Raghav at the casino. It was cut and edited in such a way that to the casual viewer—a viewer unaware of the facts—it appeared as though Raghav plied a young woman with enough champagne to cause her to fall off her chair—he then took her by the hand out of the casino. The audio playing over the video states Raghav Rao routinely preys sexually on guests at his resort.
Farhad was saying, “Swamy has his cyber crime division looking into the video—but he doesn’t expect it to lead anywhere. We may never have concrete evidence.”
Raghav was pacing the length of the boardroom. “We don’t need evidence. It’s not as though we are going to file charges. We’ll handle this as we do everything else. Privately. Find the security leak. Bring Anjali to me. Anjali will disclose the identity of that woman.”
“There is something that continues to bother me,” Farhad said, “why did she return the ring at such risk to herself? First she agrees to compromise you. Then she redeems herself. We are missing something.”
Raghav corrected him. “Farhad, you are trying to apply the rules of logic to her actions. As I told you yesterday, she is a thrill-seeker. Logic does not apply. Now get Swamy to find Anjali and through her that woman.”
“I can do that, Annah.”
“No,” Raghav said, “I want you to find our security leak. And I’ll get our PR department to get ahead of this Hashtag Sagar Lake Sex Scandal.”
