One Summer Tale, by Deepti Nair

They say we must be careful what we wish for, lest it comes true. I never really knew how true it was, until that ominous day, almost two years back. I started that day, as I usually began all days during that dull and dreary summer, wishing for some miracle to pep up my life, little knowing that I was about to get more than I bargained for.

I was late getting to office that dreaded Monday as I had to service my little scooty. I finally trooped in through the front gates of „E-solutions‟, three hours late and mentally cursing my

scooter stealership for overcharging me. There was a man chatting with Christine at the reception. Dressed in a metrosexual pink shirt and brown khakis, he was attractive in a way that might appeal to the teenage psyche. As I approached the counter to sign my half-day forms, I saw the stranger looking me over. My heart sank a little lower as I saw him give me a dismissive look and turn his attention back to the attractive Christine. Well, who cares what he thinks, I thought angrily and went to my cubicle.

Work had piled up in my absence. There was even a note from Mr. Mansoor asking me to be present for a conference at noon. I was just preparing myself to face his tantrums when Avni came over. Avni Nair, the intrusive and loudmouth graphic designer, was the only friend I had in an organization I had worked for more than three years.

“Where were you, Deidre? I have been waiting for you, like, forever.”

“I was getting my scooty fixed. Why? What happened?”

“Isn‟t it time you got rid of that contraption?” Avni grimaced. “Well, did you hear about Saahil Shah?”

My heart suddenly leapt to my mouth, “What about him?”

“He‟s vanished.”

“What?”

“Yes, he‟s missing. For the past week.”

“I thought he was on leave.”

“So did everyone else,” Avni now lowered her voice and said conspiringly, “Rumor has it that a big chunk of money is missing from the Simmons account fund. There is a detective around, asking questions. Hey, I gotta run now. Catch you later.”

I sat silently on my desk and thought about Saahil and the last time I had spoken to him. Was he an embezzler? I hoped that there was a simple explanation to the disappearance of the money and that it had nothing to do with him.

The staff meeting at noon was short but shocking. Mr. Mansoor confirmed the rumors about the money missing from the account and requested us all to cooperate with the detective.

“Miss Fernandes, could I have a word?”

I turned away from my computer screen and looked up into the dark eyes of the man in the pink shirt.

“I‟m Detective Aaron Joseph.”

“You..you.. are the detective?”

“Er, yes. Is anything wrong?”

“No, nothing. How can I help you.”

“What can you tell me about Saahil Shah?”

“Well, only what anyone else here could tell you. About his job and…”

“I know all of that. What I want to know is about your relationship with him? You were in his department earlier, weren‟t you? Why did you shift?”

“I.. I wasn‟t getting along with Saahil and so decided to move here to Production.”

“After spending more than two years in Finance you decided you weren‟t getting along with Saahil, your boss. Aren‟t you an MBA in Finance?”

“Well, yes. But Saahil was difficult to work with. He could be very condescending at times,” I hoped the detective wouldn‟t notice I was hedging.

“I have a few more questions for you, Ms. Fernandez. Do you mind joining me in the meeting room where it will be a little more private?”

I spent the next hour answering questions about the job, Saahil, the production and finance departments and my personal life. Aaron had an easy and pleasant manner and I answered his questions as truthfully as possible. I had hoped that would be the end of it. But a week later he was back.

“Why did you lie to me, Deidre?”

I was busy with the monthly production statement, something I still had to get the hang of, and looked up, irritated at the interruption.

Detective Aaron Joseph was at my cubicle looking more professional in blue blazers and trousers. His eyes seemed to bore into me and I quickly looked away.

"You told me, when I questioned you, that you have never been to Saahil's home."

"That‟s true... I have never been to his Bandra house."

"But what about the apartment he had rented in Malad? We found your fingerprints all over."

"But how did you... my fingerprints..."

“That‟s not important. The important thing is why you lied to me?” he asked.

I was too busy chewing on my rapidly pounding heart to reply.

“Take your purse and come with me,” he said abruptly.

I looked up, shocked, tears filling up my eyes.

“Are… are… you arresting me?”

“Well, I was thinking of getting a coffee. But I leave the choice to you. So, where shall it be…the station or Starbucks?”

“Coffee, please,” I replied quickly. “Thank you.”

Over a steaming latte, I poured out my tale of woe. Of how I left my family in Indore and came to Mumbai. How the excitement of life in a metro lured me to this city of sin and what I ultimately found was loneliness. The first few months I spent in the city had almost driven me crazy. The beautiful and smart woman in the office made me feel ugly and gauche. Saahil had been a messiah to me. He understood the pain of loneliness within me. Understood my internal struggle and the stubborn refusal to go back to my small town. Understood my need to be accepted and loved. And love he did give me. More than I could imagine. After he came into my life, everything seemed rosy. I was not very attractive and had never before received this much attention from a man. His love was like a breath of fresh air; it made me happy and complete. Even the thought that he had a wife and son did not deter me from my feelings. And before I knew it, love turned to passion and passion took me to his rented studio apartment in Malad.

I stopped and looked at Aaron‟s face. I expected him to be judgmental about a woman who had a love affair with a married man but his eyes were surprisingly gentle and compassionate. They encouraged me to go on.

“Our relationship lasted for almost a year. Every Tuesday and Thursday I would go over to his apartment, which he said, he had rented, just for me.” I couldn‟t continue. The memories were painful.

“What happened next? Why did you break up?” Aaron asked, breaking the long silence.

“It was a colleagues‟ wedding that opened my eyes. I met Mrinal and Sahas then. Saahil‟s wife and son. After I saw them I realized I was committing a big sin. I was breaking up a family. I didn‟t want to have that blood on my hands. I decided to break up with Saahil.”

“And…”

 “It wasn‟t easy. He had become more possessive of me than I realized. He didn‟t want to let go. It was very difficult, but my mind was made up. Things became very difficult between us after, that‟s why I requested and got myself shifted from his department.”

Now I looked up at Aaron.

“That‟s all, Detective. I don‟t know anything else. I had seen a lot of company documents in his apartment but I never really thought anything about it. I just assumed he was working from home.”

“Did you know that Simmons is not the only account he has been misappropriating funds from. We also found out that someone from your office knew the truth and was blackmailing him. That‟s why he took off suddenly. We found a lot of evidence incriminating him in the Malad apartment. But it took us a lot of valuable time to locate the apartment itself. If only you had told me all this when I first questioned you, we could have caught Saahil by now.”

“What did you expect me to tell you, Detective? That I was sleeping with my ex-boss? I couldn‟t do it. I really couldn‟t. If anyone in office finds out…”

“I can‟t make any promises, Deidre. But I‟ll try to keep this between us.”

It was difficult to go back to work as if nothing had happened. But I needed to keep my mind occupied. I found out that Kiran, the Assistant Finance Manager had confessed to the blackmailing. Aaron called a few times to ask more questions about Saahil and I was as truthful as I could be. We even had lunch once when he told me that they were not taking any action against Kiran as she had provided a lot of information to the police regarding the embezzlements and which would help them prosecute Saahil.

“Hello.”

“Deidre?”

“Aaron.. Hi.”

“Have any plans for today?”

“None that I can think of.”

“Great. Join me for dinner then. 8pm.”

“Ok.”

Dinner was at Don Giovanni. I was surprised as it was quite a change from the last meal we shared at McDonalds. Aaron was dressed in yet another of his vibrant shirts. Sapphire blue this time, contrasted with pearl white trousers. He seemed very chirpy and kept talking about his scheduled trip to Lonavala to meet his sister the next week. I was mostly silent. I was sure he had something to tell me and just waited for him to find the right time do so. The right time seemed to be after the ravioli was served.

“We caught Saahil.”

I was so surprised by this sudden change of topic that I almost choked on my lemonade.

“We traced his wife and son to her house in Hauz Khas. She gave us some leads through which we were able to catch him. It‟s a few years in the slammer for him now.”

“I‟m sorry I wasn‟t truthful the first time, Aaron. I really am.”

“Can I ask you something, Deidre. Do you still have any feelings for him?”

“No. I lost whatever affection I had for him when I found out he was just taking advantage of my being an ugly misfit in a new city.”

“Who said you are ugly?”

 I smiled now, “I have a mirror at home.”

“It‟s a liar then. I think you are simply lovely. In fact I think you are so gorgeous and so very sweet and kind that I would like to invite you to Lonavala to meet my family.”

…………..

I stopped my musings as I eased my vehicle into the designated parking below my apartment building. It had been almost two years since that summer. A lot had changed since then. My promotion as Assistant Finance Manager may have helped to replace my worn out scooter with a small car but it also brought on a myriad of responsibilities that kept me in office at all odd hours. But today I had been determined and managed to leave a little early. The door was unlocked when I got home. I hurried into the kitchen and stopped shocked. It looked like the aftermath of a terrorist attack. The place was strewn with flour and there were dirty dishes everywhere. Even on the floor. I hated messes especially in my kitchen. I looked exasperated at Aaron who had a sheepish grin on his face.

“Happy first anniversary, Darling” he said pointing to a heart shaped black rock which might have been a burnt cake.

My eyes welled up with tears of joy as I rushed into the open arms of my husband.