It was a high voltage atmosphere at the otherwise dignified board room.

Jatin was fuming in anger as he said: “I am very disappointed in you Aditi. I put complete faith in you and you,….you let me down! Tell me, How on earth could you even let this happen? I have built this organization with great care and hard work. I cannot let weaklings ruin it. This time around I am letting you go, but the next time it could turn costly for you.”
Sumit looked up to Jatin and spoke empathetically, “Jatin do consider that Aditi has always given us high quality deliveries on time. Also, I believe that you should speak to her with some respect. After all, she is a lady.”
“It is immaterial to me Sumit. I am not speaking to a woman or a man right now. I am speaking to my employee and the one, from whom I had high expectations. But I feel deceived and I really don’t like this feeling. I am just making myself clear. I am not here to cater to emotional fools like Aditi.”
Completing his tirade against Aditi, Jatin stood up, adjusted the buttons of his coat and left without even a glance at Aditi.

One by one, people left the meeting room, starting with Sumit, who smiled weakly at Aditi before he left. Aditi and Tanya were the last to leave.

Tanya tagged along Aditi who took a turn towards the ladies room. As they reached the washroom, Aditi tapped Tanya’s shoulder lightly. This was a cue for Tanya and she understood that Aditi wanted some time alone. She nodded and turned around towards the foyer.

Once alone, Aditi reflected upon the recent happenings . She was managing the project well. Things were on track, targets were being met. She was confident that go-live would be smooth and on time. But then, two of her key designers fell sick. She still could have managed to pull through the project...