Page 94 of Born in Sin

“You’ve given enough for me. No more.” She reached forward and wrapped her palm around the back of his neck, pulling him close. “You’re mine. They can’t have you.”

“We said we’d end this whatever the cost.” Virat closed his eyes, his head dropping to her shoulder.

“Not at the cost of you. They. Cannot. Have. You.”

“I have to do this, Celina. I have to end it.” The words were a brand against her skin. “We’ll never be rid of them, if we don’t shut them down. We’ll live our lives looking over our shoulder, waiting for the other shoe to drop.”

“They can have it all, Virat. My peace, my sanity, my identity. But they can’t have you. You’re mine.” She repeated the words,hoping to brand it into his consciousness. “End it only if you then come back to me. That’s my choice.”

“I will always come back to you.” He took her mouth in a searing kiss, a promise, a vow she knew he’d never break. She kissed him back with a desperation born from a love that was steeped in her every cell and a fear that lived in her heart. A fear that told her their time was running out. Someone had turned the hourglass over and the sand was dripping through, a grain at a time.

“What’s the news?” she asked, closing her eyes to stem the tears gathering there.

“Someone from my team checked on Mohan.”

The sand flowed faster, taking Cara’s nascent happiness with it.

“He’s dead, Celi.”

Ice encased her heart and mind but when she spoke, her words were laced with fire. “Well, that’s unfortunate. I was hoping to kill him myself.”

Crestwood

Chandrashekhar got up from his seat on the dais to a thunderous round of applause. The Head of School walked over to the podium, folding his hands over the top and gazing out at the auditorium filled to the brim with teachers and students.

“Today,” his booming baritone echoed through the hall, “Is the first day of the rest of your life.”

Virat fought the urge to roll his eyes. Amay sat beside him, his gaze on the back of Dhrithi’s head. Varun and she sat two rows ahead, right behind the school dignitaries, with their parents.

At the far back, in a dark corner, Ishaan sat with his mother. His father hadn’t come. Virat assumed another drunken binge had kept him away. Neither Amay nor Virat’s family had bothered to come. Thank God for that. Neither of them wanted them around.

It was done. The board exams were done, the last exam finishing two days ago. Unlike other schools, theirs waiteduntil the end of the exams to hold graduation, with the children staying on an extra week to finish packing and complete formalities. The parents who’d arrived for tonight usually checked into nearby hotels so they could help their kids pack and tie up all loose ends.

Virat had been on his best behaviour. He’d kept his head down ever since the suspension had been lifted and Chandrashekhar had agreed to keep it off his record so it wouldn’t impact his college admissions.

“Consider it payment for services rendered,” he’d told Virat with a small smile before dismissing him.

“It’s finally done,” he’d told Celi, the other night. She’d been leaning back and looking up at the stars, as usual but quieter than normal. “We can get out of here and never come back.”

Celina didn’t say a word, her mind clearly not in the present, with him.

“Hey.” He tapped her hand lightly. “What’s worrying you?”

“I think my parents might be getting a divorce,” she said, her voice small. “That’s what my father said.”

“Oh Celi, I’m so sorry.” He gathered her into his arms. “I wish I knew how to make that better.”

“You know something, don’t you?” she asked, her face smushed up against his chest. “About my mom? That’s why she hates you so much. You know something bad.”

His heart stuttered in his chest as Celina pulled out of his arms and looked at him, her gaze steady. He knew he couldn’t put this off for long. He’d promised her that he’d tell her everythingafter they graduated and now Graduation Day was only days away.

But how did he tell her that he’d caught her mother cheating on her father? How did he tell her that the abusive piece of shit her mother had been involved with was blackmailing her and wouldn’t allow her to go back to Celina’s father?

Another thunderous round of applause shook the auditorium, drawing Virat back to the present. Chandrashekhar had finished his long-winded speech. He’d promised Celina that he’d tell her everything tomorrow. Tonight, she was going out with her parents. Her father had finally agreed and flown in to celebrate her graduation, a rare family moment that Virat knew meant everything to her.

And Virat would spend tonight with his family, Ishaan and Amay, celebrating the end of their hellish time at Crestwood. Tomorrow, he’d tell Celi everything. Lay all his cards out on the table and hope she didn’t blame him for any of it. A lie of omission was still a lie. He looked to where she sat between her parents, her presence a beacon of energy that always drew him in. Almost as if she could tell he was looking at her, she looked over her shoulder at him, smiling, a wide beam of happiness and sunshine that warmed his heart.

Tomorrow. Tomorrow was when everything would fall into place.

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