12-04-2026, 10:39 PM
Chapter 91: The Cracking Mask
Rahul could not sleep.
For almost a week now, the brutal truth he had learned in the hospital corridor haunted him every single night. He would lie beside Anandhi, staring at the ceiling fan spinning slowly above, his mind replaying Madhavan’s words again and again. The cells eating each other. The final thirty-day end cycle. The impossible conception.
Every time he closed his eyes, he saw Suriya’s face — smiling at Anandhi’s swollen belly, the man who had actually planted life inside her. The real father.
He started slipping at work. He forgot to reply to important supplier emails. He mixed up meeting schedules. He even burned the simple dal he was making for the children one evening. Anandhi noticed the change. She would gently ask if everything was okay at the company, rubbing his shoulder with concern, assuming it was just business pressure from the rapid expansion.
Rahul would force a smile and say, “It’s nothing, just some tight deadlines.” But inside, the storm kept growing.
He could not stay idle anymore.
One late evening, after the children were asleep and Anandhi had gone to the bedroom to rest, Rahul stepped into the small study corner and dialled Dr. Madhavan.
The doctor picked up on the second ring.
“Rahul? Everything alright?”
“I can’t wait any longer, Doctor,” Rahul said, his voice low but urgent. “Push Suriya for more branches immediately. Two new locations this month itself. And next month, force the franchise model forward.”
Madhavan sighed on the other end. “Rahul, don’t do this in haste. We need to set one store after another. Starting multiple at once won’t work. The money I’m investing is important. You said you wanted to teach Suriya a lesson — that’s why we split the verticals and kept them in our own names. But I cannot risk everything until I recover all my capital.”
Rahul’s grip tightened on the phone. “No. I cannot wait anymore. Doctor, you never know what would be the impact if he stays here—”
He stopped mid-sentence, realising he had almost slipped.
Madhavan sounded confused. “What do you mean ‘impact if he stays here’?”
Rahul recovered quickly, his voice turning smooth. “I mean… I want the house soon. I want to gift it fully to my wife before the baby is born. I cannot delay the process. Make sure you push him for franchise next month. This month I need two more branches opened. And one more thing — don’t blabber about your experiments and results to Suriya. I know he works closely with you in Chennai. Remember, he is the person I’m trying to kick away. Don’t complicate things.”
Madhavan paused for a second, then replied, “Okay… I’ll handle it carefully.”
Rahul’s voice dropped even lower, cold and final. “Suriya should never ever get a single doubt—”
At that exact moment, the bedroom door creaked open behind him.
Anandhi stepped out, rubbing her lower back, clearly looking for a glass of water. She had heard the last few words clearly.
Rahul’s eyes widened for a fraction of a second. He instantly changed his tone, forcing lightness into his voice.
“…let it be a surprise for him until Suriya should never know. Yes, exactly. Keep it completely secret.”
He cut the call abruptly and turned around with a practised smile.
Anandhi stood there, one hand resting on her seven-month belly, her eyes searching his face.
“What was that about?” she asked softly.
Rahul shrugged casually. “Just some business surprise I’m planning for Suriya. Nothing important. Don’t worry about it.” He walked past her, kissing her forehead lightly as he headed toward the kitchen. “You need water? I’ll get it.”
But Anandhi knew Rahul too well.
She had seen the way his shoulders tensed. She had heard the sharp edge in his voice before he noticed her. The quick cover-up. The sudden change in tone.
He was lying.
A strange unease began to grow inside her chest. Her mind instantly said, Rahul is doing something behind the back of Suriya.
After drinking the water Rahul gave, she moved to bed, but the question still remained same, everything that she saw in past few months came to her mind, she started questioning all .
Why did he generously give Suriya 75% share if he is now in such a hurry to push him away? she thought. I thought it was only to settle the house money… but is there something else?
She remembered that day outside the doctor’s room — how Rahul had come back looking pale and odd after chatting with Madhavan. She had caught bits and pieces of their conversation… something about impregnation, experiments. At the time she had brushed it off as medical talk.
But now?
If Suriya should never get a single doubt… could it be related to the pregnancy? or business.
Should i alert suriya? What if it turns out to be my misunderstanding?
i asked him already and he said its a little surprise? but why i still feel its not what he says?
The thought sent a cold shiver through her despite the warm night. She trusted Rahul completely — he was her husband, the man who had come back for her, the father of their family. Yet something felt deeply strange, something she could not name.
She placed both hands on her belly, feeling the baby kick gently.
A quiet fear settled in her heart.
Whatever secret Rahul was hiding, it was growing bigger by the day.
And she was caught right in the middle of it.
Rahul could not sleep.
For almost a week now, the brutal truth he had learned in the hospital corridor haunted him every single night. He would lie beside Anandhi, staring at the ceiling fan spinning slowly above, his mind replaying Madhavan’s words again and again. The cells eating each other. The final thirty-day end cycle. The impossible conception.
Every time he closed his eyes, he saw Suriya’s face — smiling at Anandhi’s swollen belly, the man who had actually planted life inside her. The real father.
He started slipping at work. He forgot to reply to important supplier emails. He mixed up meeting schedules. He even burned the simple dal he was making for the children one evening. Anandhi noticed the change. She would gently ask if everything was okay at the company, rubbing his shoulder with concern, assuming it was just business pressure from the rapid expansion.
Rahul would force a smile and say, “It’s nothing, just some tight deadlines.” But inside, the storm kept growing.
He could not stay idle anymore.
One late evening, after the children were asleep and Anandhi had gone to the bedroom to rest, Rahul stepped into the small study corner and dialled Dr. Madhavan.
The doctor picked up on the second ring.
“Rahul? Everything alright?”
“I can’t wait any longer, Doctor,” Rahul said, his voice low but urgent. “Push Suriya for more branches immediately. Two new locations this month itself. And next month, force the franchise model forward.”
Madhavan sighed on the other end. “Rahul, don’t do this in haste. We need to set one store after another. Starting multiple at once won’t work. The money I’m investing is important. You said you wanted to teach Suriya a lesson — that’s why we split the verticals and kept them in our own names. But I cannot risk everything until I recover all my capital.”
Rahul’s grip tightened on the phone. “No. I cannot wait anymore. Doctor, you never know what would be the impact if he stays here—”
He stopped mid-sentence, realising he had almost slipped.
Madhavan sounded confused. “What do you mean ‘impact if he stays here’?”
Rahul recovered quickly, his voice turning smooth. “I mean… I want the house soon. I want to gift it fully to my wife before the baby is born. I cannot delay the process. Make sure you push him for franchise next month. This month I need two more branches opened. And one more thing — don’t blabber about your experiments and results to Suriya. I know he works closely with you in Chennai. Remember, he is the person I’m trying to kick away. Don’t complicate things.”
Madhavan paused for a second, then replied, “Okay… I’ll handle it carefully.”
Rahul’s voice dropped even lower, cold and final. “Suriya should never ever get a single doubt—”
At that exact moment, the bedroom door creaked open behind him.
Anandhi stepped out, rubbing her lower back, clearly looking for a glass of water. She had heard the last few words clearly.
Rahul’s eyes widened for a fraction of a second. He instantly changed his tone, forcing lightness into his voice.
“…let it be a surprise for him until Suriya should never know. Yes, exactly. Keep it completely secret.”
He cut the call abruptly and turned around with a practised smile.
Anandhi stood there, one hand resting on her seven-month belly, her eyes searching his face.
“What was that about?” she asked softly.
Rahul shrugged casually. “Just some business surprise I’m planning for Suriya. Nothing important. Don’t worry about it.” He walked past her, kissing her forehead lightly as he headed toward the kitchen. “You need water? I’ll get it.”
But Anandhi knew Rahul too well.
She had seen the way his shoulders tensed. She had heard the sharp edge in his voice before he noticed her. The quick cover-up. The sudden change in tone.
He was lying.
A strange unease began to grow inside her chest. Her mind instantly said, Rahul is doing something behind the back of Suriya.
After drinking the water Rahul gave, she moved to bed, but the question still remained same, everything that she saw in past few months came to her mind, she started questioning all .
Why did he generously give Suriya 75% share if he is now in such a hurry to push him away? she thought. I thought it was only to settle the house money… but is there something else?
She remembered that day outside the doctor’s room — how Rahul had come back looking pale and odd after chatting with Madhavan. She had caught bits and pieces of their conversation… something about impregnation, experiments. At the time she had brushed it off as medical talk.
But now?
If Suriya should never get a single doubt… could it be related to the pregnancy? or business.
Should i alert suriya? What if it turns out to be my misunderstanding?
i asked him already and he said its a little surprise? but why i still feel its not what he says?
The thought sent a cold shiver through her despite the warm night. She trusted Rahul completely — he was her husband, the man who had come back for her, the father of their family. Yet something felt deeply strange, something she could not name.
She placed both hands on her belly, feeling the baby kick gently.
A quiet fear settled in her heart.
Whatever secret Rahul was hiding, it was growing bigger by the day.
And she was caught right in the middle of it.
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