Entangled Fates
Episode 4: The First Private Meeting
7:00 p.m. sharp.
The office building had emptied out by now — the usual chatter replaced by a silence too clean to be comforting. Riya stood outside Ryansh Suryavanshi's cabin, her fingers curled tightly around the note he had left. Her heart didn't beat the way it normally did before meetings. This wasn't adrenaline. This was something else.
A challenge. A warning. A call.
She raised her hand and knocked.
"Come in," came the voice from inside — smooth, low, and just detached enough to make her doubt her own footing.
She stepped in.
The room was large, more minimalist than she had expected. Grey-toned walls, a dark oak table, two chairs, and a floor-to-ceiling window that swallowed the city lights into glass. And behind the desk, Ryansh sat — perfectly composed in his suit, sleeves folded neatly at the wrist, fingers interlocked.
His eyes rose to meet hers.
"You're on time," he said.
"You sounded like I didn't have a choice," she replied before she could stop herself.
His lips twitched. Not a smile — but not anger either.
"Sit."
She did.
He didn't speak for a moment. Instead, he pulled up a file on his screen, flipped it toward her, and said, "Read this."
She leaned forward.
It was her employee record — except not the one she'd seen before. This one was detailed, color-coded, and marked with comments that hadn't been visible to her.
Strong under pressure. Reluctant to speak up. Consistent delivery. Undermined by manager bias.
"Where did this come from?" she asked quietly.
"My private audit," he said. "I run it on every department quarterly. But this time… I checked yours myself."
"Why?"
Ryansh leaned back.
"Because of your accident."
Riya's jaw tightened. "I already apologized—"
He raised a hand. "Not because of the accident. Because of your reaction. You didn't defend yourself. You didn't explain. You didn't flinch when I insulted you."
"So you're saying you humiliated me to test me?" she asked, anger bleeding into her voice.
"No. I humiliated you because I was angry," he said, so calmly it cut deeper. "But I watched. And I realized I'd made a mistake."
A long silence passed.
Riya shifted. "And what now? I report to you? I become your assistant?"
He studied her. "No. You become something else."
"What do you mean?"
"I'm starting a confidential internal project. I need someone who doesn't come from the usual circles. Someone who won't leak. Someone who's seen how broken this company really is from the inside."
Riya narrowed her eyes. "So you're offering me a… promotion?"
"I'm offering you war," he replied. "Against corruption. Nepotism. Hidden power lines. You'll be under direct supervision, with access to files that most people here don't even know exist."
"Why me?"
"Because I've been looking for a ghost. And it turns out… that ghost was sitting three rows away from the wolves."
A chill danced down her spine.
She looked at the file again.
"But if I say no?" she asked.
He didn't blink. "Then you'll go back to your desk. And pretend you didn't almost get everything you deserved."
Her chest rose and fell slowly.
"What's the catch?"
Ryansh stood and walked to the window. The city stretched behind him, blinking like a thousand watching eyes.
"There are people in this company who will want you gone if you take this. Not professionally — personally. They will come for your reputation. Your family. Your peace. You'll have to lie. You'll have to listen. You'll have to play roles you hate."
"And if I say yes?" she asked again.
He turned. For the first time, there was something vulnerable in his expression. Not weakness — but memory.
"Then you'll find out things you were never supposed to know. Starting with the truth about your father."
Riya froze.
"My… what?"
He returned to his desk. Opened a drawer. Pulled out a sealed brown envelope.
He slid it across to her.
Inside was a file — not her name on it, but another.
> A.G. – Internal Affairs Report, 2004
She blinked. "A.G.? My father's name was Abhay Agrawal."
Ryansh nodded. "He worked in our Mumbai branch. I think you already know that. What you don't know is that he filed a whistleblower report 19 years ago. He never got a reply. Because someone buried it."
The file was full of redacted text, but some lines bled through:
Misappropriation of funds in Training Division…
False evaluations created to eliminate internal critics…
Threats made against whistleblowers and their families…
Her hands trembled.
"My father never told me—"
"Because he was scared," Ryansh said. "And maybe… because he was trying to protect you."
Riya sat back in her chair, mind spinning. Everything felt too big. Too sharp. Like the air had turned into needles.
"And you just found this now?" she asked slowly.
"No. I've known since I took over two years ago. I just didn't connect the dots — until I saw your name."
Her thoughts raced.
The abuse at work. The silencing. The whispers.
It hadn't started with her.
It had started before she was even hired.
"I need time," she said finally, her voice thin.
"You have until tomorrow morning," Ryansh said, standing again. "Because this offer isn't staying on the table."
---
That night, Riya didn't go home.
She sat at a 24-hour café, coffee gone cold in front of her, envelope still unopened on her lap. The city outside kept moving — cabs, lights, noise. But inside her? A war had started.
Her father had fought something. And lost. Now, somehow, she had the chance to finish it.
She wasn't sure if that was destiny or a trap.
But either way, she couldn't pretend anymore.
---
Next Morning – 8:59 a.m.
Ryansh sat at his desk, gaze on the clock. Sharp. Steady. Waiting.
At exactly 9:00 a.m., a knock.
"Come in."
Riya stepped in, hair tied back, eyes alert, the envelope in her hand.
She placed it on his desk.
"I'm in," she said. "But I want one thing."
He looked up. "Name it."
"If I go down because of this," she said, voice clear, "you don't get to stay clean."
A pause.
Then he nodded. "Deal."
And just like that… the war began.
---
💌 Author's Note
She said yes.
Not to a man. Not to a job. But to a war she never started… and may not survive.
In the next episode, Riya begins her double life — corporate pawn by day, silent warrior by night. But someone's watching… and her first mistake might already be in motion.
🔥 What did you feel when the file about her father came out?
👀 What do you think Ryansh is hiding… that even he hasn't said yet?
Your votes, reads, and comments make this story grow!
Love,
Aarya Patil 🖤