"We received an offer for the old bungalow." Chhaya Agnihotri informed as she poured the tea for her husband.

As the matriarch of the Agnihotri family, Chhaya took pride in being part of the high-class society. She liked to exhibit her wealth, even in trivial details, like the tea set on the breakfast table made of handmade porcelain from an Italian brand. The emblem of the Agnihotris, the cursive A, was painted on each of the six cups, the teapot and the creamer.

"How did that happen?" Her husband, Ankush Agnihotri asked.

In the past 30 years, she had learnt to read Ankush like a book, like a classic which you are not supposed to critic. It was not surprising that his answer was not about the bid price or buyer information, but how come there was a bid in the first place. She was supposed to keep the old bungalow under wraps, known to a few people. And his question hinted that she failed in doing that.

Born as Chhaya Luthra, she was always called a failure. The Luthras were a well-to-do family in the 1960's Saharanpur^. She was the younger of the two daughters. While her sister excelled in studies, Chhaya passed with utmost difficulty. At times, her father resorted to underhand means to promote her to the next class. She learnt from there that when things don't go your way despite putting in hard work, other hidden paths lead to the same destination.

"A property agent called saying someone is interested in buying it because it is the only unoccupied place along that road."

---

Ayaan waited for Dhruv to come downstairs before he joined his parents for breakfast. He observed their quiet conversations, as he flipped through pages of the police report in his mind.

For past three years, he had read the report innumerous times, enough to memorise not just the content but even the handwriting and the tears of the paper. It was a clear account of the happening, with details explicitly mentioned. He was a man who trusted his instincts and his instincts said it was not the complete story despite being elaborative. There was a missing link he had to drag out from the shadows.

Dhruv slapped his back. "Hey, Bro! I have interesting news for you."

Ayaan closed the file in his mind. It was time for some fun. But Dhruv was not talking about fun even though had a smile on his face. "Do you know that being the Managing Director, you don't have access to the archive?"

Honestly, Ayaan never cared about the archive. He did find it interesting. It was probably frequency illusion^ that sparked the thought of connecting this to the report. If the Agnihotris were involved in that incident, there might be a history to it that's hidden in the archive.

"It doesn't matter to me, Dhruv. I don't have time to read archived stories, so I don't need the access. By the way, what were you trying to do?"

Ayaan had provided his username and password for Dhruv to explore the company policies and procedures. While he didn't expect his brother to be serious about joining the business, he knew Dhruv would have fun digging into restricted areas, and that was what he wanted now.

---

Ankush threw the newspaper he was reading. This was not the first time they received an offer. Every time the answer was the same - No. Despite having the pre-decided reply, he disliked the discussion of the old bungalow. The memories it dug out were unpleasant, to say the least. He hated them. He had no qualms about his actions. He planned, and he executed. He did that in order to secure his life.

The timing of the offer was terrible. All the other times, he decided, and Chhaya would take care of the rest. However, this time he will have to involve Ayaan in this decision, and he knew his son to not silently accept his decision.

His thoughts didn't take long to materialise. Ayaan joined them with Dhruv tailgating him. "Hi Mom, Dad. Good morning." Ayaan greeted and sat next to Chhaya. Dhruv sat on the opposite side.

"You were talking about property agent. What happened?" Damn, Ayaan heard it, and now, there was no way he would let this slide.

Chhaya glanced at him unsure of what her response should be. I stared at her hoping she would cover like she always did. "We received an offer for one of our properties, but we don't want to sell."

"Which one?" Dhruv asked casually, buttering his bread. It was almost time he took notice of his younger son too. Dhruv was growing out of his carefree attitude and taking an interest in family matters.

"The old bungalow," Chhaya replied.

"No one lives there. It's opportunity cost^ is too high. Might as well sell it." Hearing those words from Dhruv instead of Ayaan grabbed his attention. He needed to concentrate on Ayaan. This was the wrong time for Dhruv to manifest. Chhaya was overprotective of her son which meant he would have to handle Dhruv himself. Being this close, just a mere six months away from his achievement, he could not let his toddler son grow up suddenly and squash his laid out plans.

As if, his issues were not enough; another person joined the table.

---

Aakriti Agnihotri was the younger sister to Ankush. She had a significant role in their company, Agnihotri Manufacturing. She had started out in a financial role but soon took charge of the corporate governance of the company. Her rapport with the shareholders, her leadership to her team and her commitment to the business gave her the spotlight she enjoyed not just within her office but also in the industry.

However, her place in the family was a blurred one. She stayed with them but often travelled on business matters, being in places her brother couldn't be. She was close to her nephews; Ayaan being her favourite. Not that she loved Dhruv less.

Aakriti had her timing well synchronised. She happened to reach places where she was needed, at the exact moment. Except for that one.

She quickly crushed the thought and turned her attention to the discussion at the table, taking her place to her brother's left and next to Dhruv. All these years, when the offer came, the decision was made. Now it was toned down to a discussion, which meant challenging Ankush's authority.

"Ankush, they approached me, but I asked them to contact Chhaya. I received the call from the buyer as well. Basically, they want to tear down the building and construct a house on that land. They are currently staying out of India and are planning to move back and need a place to call their own."

"This is Mumbai. That wr..." Ankush bit his words identifying his sons' presence at the table. "That is not the only plot in the city."

Chhaya took over the argument. "Aakriti, you know we don't want to sell the bungalow. Then why didn't you reject them youself?" She had to give it to her sister-in-law. She had a way with questions that did the job of taunt, counter and blame. The irony-laced in her words could only be felt when understood in the context.

"The buyer is here in India intent on closing the sale. They are ready to pay the asking price. I thought you would consider. Anyway, I am not the deciding person here." She played the ball to her brother.

Like a coward she always saw, Ankush collected his phone and left the table. She stared at Chhaya to translate the exit in human language. "We are not selling", Chhaya said and continued having her breakfast.

This was often the scene whenever the offer for old bungalow was discussed. So Aakriti shrugged as she shared a quiet laugh with Dhruv. Owing to her timing sense, she caught Ayaan watching Chhaya and the empty chair Ankush vacated. His forefinger and thumb pressed to his temple, he leaned against his right arm, the calculations running in his brain visible through his eyes.

###

With this, the main characters are all here, except Deepshika, whom you will meet in the next chapter.

^ Refer to Glossary