Kyra (Complete)

Chapter Nine

Angry eyes glared at Kyra from across the table, its intensity digging a hole in the centre of her bowed head. Heart pounding in a painful manner in her chest, she didn't dare lift her eyes up for she was afraid she'd crumble under Kapoor's glare.

She had lied to Kapoor. What choice did she have? She had no idea where Vihaan was, she hadn't set her eyes on him since the morning before. Yet, when Kapoor asked her about it this morning before breakfast, she instinctively told him Vihaan was still in bed. A transparent lie Kapoor could read through, but it was a lie he couldn't prove otherwise.

Her gaze remained on the cold scrambled eggs before her that was barely edible now. She didn't even think she could swallow past the terrified lump that had built up in her throat.

Where was Vihaan?! She wanted to yell but kept her composure. She hated having to lie for him while gaining the mistrust of his parents. It was bad enough that he hated her, she didn't want his parents sharing the same feeling.

The clearing of someone's throat did nothing to gain her attention; she couldn't lift her gaze.

“Kyra.”

She heard the authority laced in Kapoor's voice. Swallowing a big gulp of air, she lifted her gaze slowly in response,her eyes coming to settle on his eyes of steel, aimed at her like a gun.

“When Vihaan decides to climb out of bed, tell him to see me at the office.” Kapoor was rising to his feet.

She watched the gray haired man, his bulky, stout form, seeming extra large and pumped today. It must have been the anger.

She nodded furiously. “I will, sir.”

With a frown still creasing his aged face, he leaned down and planted a kiss on Mrs. Sodhi's full mass of raven hair. She lifted her head then, her green eyes lighting up as a small smile tugged on the corners of her lips. Without speaking, she nodded her appreciation and turned her attention back to her meal.

Kyra stared at her, silently comparing the gentle, yet firm older woman before her, with her own mother, Anja. While Mrs. Sodhi's silence seemed to have been a matter of nature, Anja's silence was born out of the fear of her husband.

Letting out a soft sigh, she refocused her attention on the plate before her, her mind wandering to her mother. The part of her that was accustomed to worrying over her mother's welbeing, was clawing for her attention. Yet, she knew she couldn't worry for it would proffer no solution to the problem she wasn't even sure existed. Perhaps her father did not love her mother? Still, they managed to live together all those years even before she was born. Surely they could live together in her absence, couldn't they? And she, could she live with Vihaan? Every day with him seemed to do nothing but heighten her fears and anxieties.

Kapoor's retreating footsteps drifted to her. Raising her head up, she watched in relief as he exited the room.

****

Kapoor knew quite well that the girl Kyra was lying —he could smell a lie from a mile away. Yet, she stood her ground, insisting that Vihaan was somewhere in the mansion.

Knowing Vihaan, Kapoor was convinced that he hadn't slept at home but he didn't see the point in verifying Kyra's claims when he knew the truth.

Handing his suitcase to his driver, he made to enter the car when his eyes caught a glimpse of a young maid. For a second, he stood watching her struggle with the weight of the laundry basket, his mind trying and failing to remember who she was and why she appeared important to him. Then, just as quickly, he remembered she was Kyra's and he decided he needed to have a conversation with her to perhaps find out about Kyra's health? She hadn't been on her pills for a few days, but she appeared fine to him —a thought that left him feeling dissatisfied.

Straightening, he waited until the maid lifted her gaze and saw him. Fear flickered in her eyes for a moment, the same fear that reflected in the eyes of his household helps whenever they caught a glimpse of him. Good, he didn't want them thinking they could misbehave in his home.

Motioning for her to approach him, he watched her lift one trembling foot after another until she was standing before him, head bowed.

“Has Kyra had her pills this morning?” He asked gruffly.

Kyra looked too healthy for her condition. Of course he didn't expect things to get worse anytime soon but she appeared completely normal for his liking.

“I wouldn't know, sir.” The maid answered, eyes fixed on her toes. Or was it the ground? He didn't care.

“What do you mean, you don't know?!” His voice rose a notch, his frown deepening.

“Sir Vihaan administers Kyra's pills, not me, sir. I'm forbidden from that task and so—”

“Vihaan has done what?!” Feeling the blood draining from his face, he leaned heavily against the door of the car, horrified.

Surely the maid was mistaken? Perhaps she wasn't even Kyra's maid?

No, he shook his head, she was. He knew she was because she had been hired for that exact purpose. He also knew he had given specific instructions to her to hand Kyra the pills he knew was fake. Why would Vihaan relieve her of her duties?

Kapoor didn't need an answer to his question, for he already had one —Vihaan was defying him by giving Kyra the right pills. But for what purpose? It was impossible to think he was doing it because he cared for Kyra. Kapoor couldn't believe it, not in a million years could he believe that Vihaan took control of Kyra's pills because he cared. Vihaan cared for Kyra as much as a hungry lion cared for his prey. No, Vihaan didn't care, which meant...

“No.” He shook his head, anger immediately clouding his view until he was completely certain that if Vihaan was anywhere near, he'd rip his head off.

It was several seconds before he could tear his eyes off of the trembling maid and turn his attention to the car. Pulling the door open, he shoved his angry self inside and slammed the door. There would be no use confronting Vihaan, his son would do whatever he wanted.

The more Kapoor thought about it, the angrier he became. He knew he had made a terrible mistake by telling Vihaan his plans. Yet, he thought the news would please Vihaan. To know he didn't have to love Kyra, to know he gained more from the marriage, to know he could be one of the richest men in the country. All that needed to happen was Kyra's death.

But a fool Kapoor had been! He should have known his son's conscience was worth more to him than money. There was no talking Vihaan out of it.

But there was fooling him into it. A smile settled on his face as the perfect idea creeped into his mind as he neared his office building. Kyra was going to die, whether Vihaan approved of it or not. And Vihaan was going to be the one to kill her.

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