The Blue Bar (Blue Mumbai #1)(48)
Was she not also Tara, though? The one whose name Arnav called with such huskiness in his voice?
Yes, she was Tara, but only for a while. She was Ma first, the name her daughter called her. Calm down. It is Pia you’re supposed to think of. Not yourself.
At her mirror, Tara piled on the gunk, deepening her eyes, reddening her lips, covering up the faint wrinkles that showed she was no longer in her twenties. Picking up her handbag, she left the room.
Shetty’s new office, right above the bar where they performed, was a far cry from the old one. This one boasted plush gold-trimmed sofas and cushions, a marble table, and a swanky office chair. Deities presided over a golden temple in one entire corner of the office, complete with lamps, garlands, and burning incense. Shetty glared at her as she walked in.
“Here’s your pay for the last assignment.” He slid an envelope across the table.
“Thank you.”
“Before you thank me, let me tell you it’s only half the amount we agreed on. You missed the three-minute deadline.”
She released a long breath, but didn’t let herself sag with relief, instead preparing to argue. She’d missed it, but only by a few seconds. About to open her mouth, she stopped herself. She needed the entire pay for her remaining performances. Antagonizing Shetty might backfire. In her world, men held all the power. Her lot wasn’t as bad as that of the prostitutes who couldn’t choose who used their bodies—or perhaps it was. Maybe it was better to have sex with a stranger and be beaten up, than live in fear of not returning to your daughter.
“I’ll get to work,” Tara said.
“I know you’re strapped for cash.”
Tara didn’t see a way to respond, so she kept quiet.
“You used to visit for private dances. The same client wants you to do it one more time.”
Tara shivered. The jackal. So the consequence wasn’t merely a pay cut—that was clear after her chat with Mithi. Gauri had vanished. Tara kept her expression blank.
“He’s ready to pay. For one hour, you’ll make more than all of this week.”
Tara studied the dizzying patterns on the carpet. The image of a trip in the dark toward the voice of her nightmares made her stomach churn. Her terror aside, if she went and didn’t return, her daughter wouldn’t stand a chance.
“Don’t say no out of hand. You’re doing well. If you like, I can make arrangements for you to stay on. Your daughter can go to a school here.”
She met his eyes. How did Shetty learn about Pia? She hadn’t told anyone, not even Mithi.
“I make it my business to keep tabs on those who work for me,” Shetty said, his manner placid, as if he’d carried out an obligation, not invaded her privacy.
It must be her phone. Her assistant. She’d made calls, messaged Zoya about Pia. Tara lowered her gaze. It wouldn’t do to show her anger.
“Take your time to consider the offer.” Shetty grew paternal. “It would be foolish to lose such an opportunity. I guarantee your safety—you know you can trust me.”
Shetty had uttered much the same words on the night she’d cut and run from Mumbai. Tara was now thirty-one, and a mother. She didn’t want to take her time.
“I’m sorry,” she said, keeping her tone polite. “I’d just like to finish my contract.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
ARNAV
Arnav sparred often with Shinde, but at the dojo. This was different.
“Two women at the same time?” Shinde gaped at him. They sat in Arnav’s car at the hospital parking lot. “That’s why you didn’t visit me—why you’ve been phoning in and emailing your reports?”
His right arm trussed up and a ratty sweatshirt draped over his shoulders, Shinde looked nothing like his usual ebullient self. For as long as Arnav had known him, Shinde had been a terrible patient. Each time he was injured in the line of duty, staying in the hospital for extended periods, he made life difficult for his entire team, for his family, and Arnav.
“Well?” Shinde said, as though interrogating a culprit.
Arnav shouldn’t have mentioned Tara. He’d hoped talking about her would make it more real. It still felt like a dream, Tara coming back.
“I’m here today first thing in the morning,” Arnav said, “and I’m taking you home. Vaeeni visited you every day. You didn’t have a serious—”
“A deathbed wouldn’t be serious enough for you.”
Arnav ignored Shinde’s grumbling. Driving out of the hospital, he eased the car onto the back roads that would take him to his friend’s apartment, and stopped at a slow traffic light.
His phone buzzed. Rehaan’s agent wanted to cancel the training appointment—the movie star had to be elsewhere. They needed him to visit the set instead. Arnav dashed off a reply confirming he’d stop by on the new date but couldn’t stay long.
“Why did I not know about her?” Shinde wouldn’t give up. “You never told me a thing about this Tara.”
“Did you tell me about all your women?”
“Does Nandini know you’ve taken this bar girl home?”
Arnav held his tongue. He did need to tell Nandini. Break it off with her. He’d tried hard to pretend it didn’t matter what he had going with Tara, but it did. Nandini deserved better.