Page 168 of No Boss
Her absence grew louder.
Six hours now.
The sky went dark. Stars hung overhead. The lamps burned while he moved through their light.
Six hours without her voice.
Six hours without knowing where she was.
Six hours of his mind building terrible possibilities, then tearing them down before they could take shape.
The businessman inside him continued functioning flawlessly. Calls. Coordination. Control. The man inside was unraveling with each passing minute.
Sarita stepped into his path as he turned again. Her hand closed around his arm and stopped him.
For the first time in hours, he stood in place.
“Beta.” Her voice was soft, meant only for him. “You must keep faith.”
His eyes lifted to hers. For a moment, the control slipped. Fear appeared. Raw and exposed. Gone almost immediately.
“I have people covering every route. We’re checking the entire…”
“Not only in your people.”
His voice cut off.
“In her.” Sarita’s faith did not waver. “In Kuldevi. She is watching over our Meera.” Her fingers tightened slightly around his arm. “She will not abandon the girl who has tended to her so faithfully all these years.”
Kuldevi.
The word hit deep.
It struck a crack that had run through him for months.
It had begun in a house filled with medicine and dying hope. It had widened through nights spent beside his father, through watching a strong man disappear inch by inch while machines kept count of what remained.
It had never closed.
Only buried under work, control and routine.
Until now.
Abhinav stepped back from her.
“Kuldevi,” he repeated.
The word felt harsh.
His eyes lifted toward the temple. Toward the flame behind the glass. Calm. Untouched while everything else fell apart.
His restraint gave away.
“That,” he snapped, voice high enough to chill the entire Haveli, “is a statue. It does nothing.”
His hand cut through the air toward it. Sharp enough that Naina flinched.
“Papa prayed every day.”
