“- b… Ba… Baba…”
She feels winded, all her being trembling as drops of sweat pearl on her forehead… Tightening her hug on Ayush, her widened fearful eyes can’t detach their gaze from his… Her throat dries achingly while her nostrils retract in repugnance at the familiar smell of his Cuban cigars.
His golden watch, ring and necklace… his velvet blue suit over the silky black shirt and purple scarf… Italian shoes and French perfume… Nothing seems has changed except the scar on his cheek making knots in her stomach…
“- hello… Mere chote shona…”.
His husky melodious voice and those three words plunges her long time ago… Time she buried forever till this moment…
*** FLASHBACKS ***
A huge havelli with opened spaces where the water’s fall cradles the various kinds of birds’ melodies all around…
On the fountain edge was sitting a small girl in pale pink dress, her black silky hair covering her shoulders, her small face eaten by her huge black eyes and a wide smile drawing her lips, playing with the roses’ petals flowing over the water’s surface… she’s singing.
A woman’s voice call out:
“- Shona! Come in beta… Have your lunch”
The little cute girl continues her song like if she didn’t hear her…
Sharmista, in a beautiful anarkali dress comes out searching her:
“- Shona… Lunch time beta…”
But Swara just runs to her continuing her song and taking her hands in hers, she starts turning around making her dance with her and laughing… She finally ends her song smiling mischievously and says:
“- ma… Pyare ma… You know, na? I’ll not eat before he comes…”
“- but beta…”
“- oye! Let her Sharmista-ji… me too, I can’t eat without her…”
A man’s voice coming from the entrance startles the young woman while Swara escapes her running toward him, he grips her by her waist raising her up and making her fly like a plane which makes her giggles loudly:
“- higher baba… higher!”
Sharmista smiles to them, her eyes filled with tears…
The little Swara is sitting on the man’s lap at his office, she’s showing him her drawings… he says admiring her talent:
“- aree wah! You’re a wonderful artist!… singing… playing music… drawing… what can’t you do mere Shona?”
The little girl frowns thinking about his question then says seriously:
“- be like you, baba!”
At his surprised expression, she explains:
“- you don’t fear anyone, baba… you’re so strong, so powerful… with you, I feel like nothing can happen to me…”
“- it’s true… who can harm you, you’re my daughter… people are even afraid of crossing my road, what about you little princess…”
“- because you have all those arms?”
Saying that, she extends her hand to the armory, which was occupying one side of the huge room. He takes her in his arms and walks toward it saying:
“- exactly beta… this is the power of this world… when you have all this, no one can touch you…”
“- I ?”
“- ha… you’re mere Shona, hai na?… all this is yours too… one day you’ll see, the power of…”
“- truth and goodness…”
Sharmista’s voice stops him, she was bringing a cup of tea to him, they exchange a defying look while she adds:
“- nothing can surpass the power of truth and goodness, Shona… hai na, ji?”
For all response, he smiles to her putting Swara dawn. He returns to his desk while she stays there absorbed in her thoughts looking intensively to every kind of arm exposed there…
“- baba… what is there, in that small safe?”
Sharmista gives the cup of tea to her husband and says:
“- challo Shona… you have to change your clothes…”
“- ek second ma… tell me baba, what are you keeping there?”
He stands and walks to her taking a sip of tea, standing next to her, he replies absent mindedly:
“- a secret…”
Swara’s eyes widen in surprise, she looks back to him blinking few times then looks back to the armory asking innocently:
“- even for me?”
He smiles caressing her hair then takes another sip of his tea before replying:
“- even for you…”
“- but you said that all this is mine too… how can you hide from me something which is already mine…”
“- because if you know about it, so I’ll…”
“- Shona!”
Sharmista stops him, worry veiling her face, she says with a stern voice:
“- beta, you never listen to me when your baba is here… didn’t I say that it’s time to change your clothes, you music teacher will arrive at anytime”
a ranch of horses, Swara finishes her horse riding lesson smiling, she drinks some water hearing fire shooting not so far.
Panting, she arrives at the shooting range where her father was showing his performances with some other men. She stands there for a moment looking to him piercing the target’s center making everyone clap for him.
A man teases him saying:
“- it’s immobile target, like if the person facing you will just stay waiting you shoot her…”
Smirking, he looks up to a passing pigeon and points it with his gun, but at the moment he’s about shooting, Swara hurries toward him shouting:
“- nahi baba! PLEASE… he’s innocent…”
As she hugs him tightly, he withdraws his arm hugging her back and says:
“- sorry gentlemen… mere Shona asked mercy for him…”
The people around laughs seeing her hug him again, after giving him a wide smile.
Putting the arm in her small hands, he puts her in front of him facing the target and helps her pointing it, she smiles looking up to him as he kneels behind her. He says :
“- let’s see if you’re able to touch someone who is just facing you and waiting for your bullet”
He takes off the security while she puts her finger on the trigger but at the moment she’s about pressing it, her mother’s angry voice reasons behind her:
“- SWARA!”
*** END OF FLASHBACKS***
Facing a bullet and waiting was exactly what Swara is doing right now, her look goes from his eyes to the gun on his hand, it was the same gun… she grew up between them, she could recognize every piece of her baba’s so precious collection.
Ayush starts crying again which makes him smirks, he says:
“- he has your eyes, Shona… bilkul your ma…”
She shivers, her eyes looking everywhere, her Dida was standing behind him at the corner of the terrace… her lips let’s go of an inaudible whisper:
“- Ma”
*** FLASHBACK ***
It was Durga Pooja celebration’s day in the entire city… Swara who has been dressed by the servant is worried that her ma didn’t came to wake her this morning as usual, she wonders if she was still angry at her for what happened at the shooting range the day before.
At the moment her hair was combed, she escapes from the servant guard and runs to her parent’s room where she finds her ma putting on her mangal sutra and sindoor. She stays at the door shocked, the reflected image of her mother on the mirror gave her goose bumps, her face was covered with bruises, blue surrounding her right eye and she was wincing raising her hand to reach her hairline.
Sharmista applies lot of layers of make up to mask her injuries unaware of her daughter’s presence…
“- ma ?”
She didn’t enter the room, her mother finishes the last touches on her masking make up and turns to face her. She’s surprised to find her holding her ears heavy tears shining in her eyes
“- Shona?… kya hua beta?”
She walks toward her and kneels in front of her to be at same height, Swara bows her head guiltily letting her tears roll over her adorable cheeks. But her ma puts her fingers under her chin making her look up to her, she wipes her tears asking her voice filled with concern:
“- tell me, Shona? Why are you crying…”
“- I’m sorry ma… for yesterday…I just…”
She was sobbing inconsolable, at her age she was unable to understand what happened exactly, but she was sure that it was bad… Sharmista smiles reassuringly to her and taking off her hands from her ears, she wraps her in her warm embrace kissing the top of her head and says wiping her tears too:
“- It’s ok beta… you’re too young, you don’t know the difference between good and bad yet… it’s our role to make you understand”
Swara nods silently, a single tear escapes from her lashes again, her mother wipes it adding:
“- arms, guns are things which can be qualified as good, or bad… out there, there is people using arms to protect us, our lives, our security, our country… those arms are good… but out there, there is other people, using arms too… to take what isn’t for them.. to harm innocents… those arms are bad…”
Swara frowns thinking about her mother’s words then she asks:
“- and baba’s arms?”
Sharmistha doesn’t reply, she hugs her again wiping her own tears secretly then plants a fake wide smile on her face and says:
“- aree… you didn’t yet take your breakfast… challo, and you remember… today is a celebration days, so show me your adorable smile and let’s go…”
*** END OF FLASHBACK ***
Looking again to the gun at his hand, she tightens her hug on Ayush who caresses her cheek with his tiny small hand brushing away her tears, she looks back to him trying to gather her thoughts surpassing the fear gaining every inch of her body, she bends down putting her brother behind her and putting her phone in his hands to keep him occupied, unaware of what is happening around him, the little boy crawls a bit further.
When she straightens up again, her eyes weren’t expressing fear anymore, her black irises seems huger, her eyes wider and emotionless and surprising him, she just bends down touching the ground near his feet then brushing her hand over her head back… she smirks at his stunned expression saying:
“- ma ka ha hai, baba ?”
When his hand rises instinctively, she makes a step back before he reaches her a disgusted expression covering her face.
*** FLASHBACH ***
Little swara in sari is running after a small boy to throw colors on him…
“- no Swara… You’ll never catch me…”
“- I’m not Swara… I’m policeman and you’re the criminal I have to catch you…”
They continue their chasing game inside the mansion…
“- Nikhil! You’re finished! Here you’ll never find a way…”
Surrounding pillars… Griping curtains… Hiding here and there… The small boy didn’t even notice that Swara wasn’t running after him anymore… At the moment he turns back looking for her… She appears in front of him throwing colored pounder at his face giggling:
“- got you!!!!”
“- OH swara! This is not fair… Come to my house and you’ll see how I’ll never let you win!”
She smirks raising her brows repeatedly then says:
“- na! Don’t be bad loser, Nikhil ji… and moreover… You know baba.. He’ll never let me go out…”
He grimaces sadly making her feel bad… Nikhil was her unique friend, his father working for hers and their mothers being friends, he’s her only contact out of that home… She smiles to him saying:
“- accha Sonu… Let’s inverse roles, you’re the policeman and I’m the criminal… Catch me if you can…”
Saying this , she lets him stunned in place and disappears behind the curtains running away….
Few minutes later, Swara enters the unique place she was sure Nikhil would never search her there…. running silently to hide under the desk. The little boy passes by the door’s way not even daring to look toward it… She was in her father’s office.
***END OF FLASHBACK***
“- kya hua, shona?… Won’t you take your baba blessings?”
He makes a step toward her, she walks back making him smirks again, looking at her hand pressing protectively her belly. He turns to Dadi saying:
“- you heard about this, Parvathi ji? I’m going to be a grandfather… So sad that the unique person capable to give me a heir will have to let us…”
“- you’re Adarsh baihya’s father, hai na?…”
Swara’s voice startles him in his back, she has came closer, her huge eyes piercing in his without any trace of fear. Still tears are filling them at the idea of that her Dadi was again against her.
He smiles at her determined posture saying:
“- ha… Here is my little princess… As strong and fearless as her father”
“- main apke princess nahi ho… your Shona nahi… I’m Shekar’s Gadodia’s daughter, Sanskar Maheshwari’s wife and… This is your enemy’s grand son… Yours nahi…”
As anger submerges him, his grip on his gun tightens dangerously, her eyes look down to it, taking a deep breath, she closes her eyes imperceptibly saying an audible prayer :
“- hurry up sanskar… we haven’t long time…”
***
Somewhere in the town…
Sanskar’s car was rushing on the road escaping the opposite side car’s way difficultly as he passes from a side to the other to avoid circulation, his foot on the accelerator, he dials Nikhil’s number again which was still unavailable… hitting on the wheel, his vision in blurred with unshed tears while anger was consuming him… his phone rings:
“- Sanskar!”
“- ha Lucky…”
He controls himself from just hang off throwing the phone by the window, Ragini’s worried voice startles him:
“- Sanskar, Swara is…”
For a moment he freezes, his heart beats pounding in his ears and all oxygen has rushed out from his throat… Lakch’ try to calm down his wife…
“- let me talk, Ragini!… Sanskar… Swara has called us… I mean, just her phone, she’s not talking…”
This time Sanskar brakes almost crashing on the road side due the high speed he was driving on, Laksh’ continue after what seems to him like eternity…
“- what I mean is that she didn’t call, maybe it’s a false manipulation, but we here her, he’s there too…”
Sanskar lets go of a groan letting himself fall over the wheel, composing himself, he starts the engine again saying:
“- don’t hang off… I’ll reach there in some minutes…”
Saying that, he cuts the call not waiting for their responses, from the voices, they seemed on the road too… his head was aching like hell, memories submerging him…
*** FLASHBACK ***
Two months ago… Banaras…
Sanskar gets out of a car, meets some men then enters a kind of hostel, few minutes later, he comes out defeated. He orders the men to just leave him and walks away dragging his feet tiredly.
He failed for a billionien time in those past six months, why is his brother escaping him every time at the last moment? People there said that he just moved away yesterday… he feels exhausted and takes his phone out of his pocket, standing just in the middle of the road he’s lost in the image he’s looking too on the engine… the selfie of the day he proposed to his princess… it seems in another life, he whispers, tears accumulating in his eyes:
“- Sorry Swara… I failed again”
His thoughts flows over the memories of their happy moments, first time she felt over him on the couch, when she offered him chocolate, when he told her that he’s in love with her, all the times she told him those magic words… the helicopter journey, the proposal, the first time she kissed him… their picnic, their dance, their engagement, their marriage, that first night… when she got her memory back, her scared eyes after he was empoisoned by Sahil… her lioness roaring when that mad man tried to force her marrying him threatening “her” Sanskar… her calm soothing words and acts supporting him over the last awful events…
Tears escape his eyes when their last confrontation memory comes like a destructing storm, her disappointed look toward him, her harsh words, her decision… he tightens his grip feeling his heart bleeding as much as at that moment, like if six months didn’t just pass away digging the void between them more!… how could he fix things again? How erase the past and return to their happy life?… why was his brother doing this again?
Suddenly, he feels a hand pressing his shoulder; he turns around exclaiming:
“- Lucky!?”
But all he finds is the most unexpected person he ever thought about…
“- Dida!?”
She looks to him frowning confusingly, he was different, like if he took ten years in some months, his face tired, his eyes swollen, his body slimmer… a beard eating half of his face and alcohol smell escaping his lips… she blinks putting her hand over his head as he hurriedly bends down to touch her feet.
“- Sanskar… you’re here?… Sorroo with you?”
As he looks to her not knowing what to say, she asks:
“- when did you come to Banaras, and Lucky… Lakshya?… your chota bhai… is he here with you?”
Like if she was putting her finger on the injuries still bleeding in his soul, he suddenly broke down plunging in her warm embrace and cries endlessly letting out of the pain consuming him like a burning fire inside his heart.
*** END OF FLASHBACK ***
Passing a red light without stopping, Sanskar wipes his tears childishly thinking of that meeting with the old Dida which changed their destiny.
She welcomed him in her small house, giving him warm food and a couch to sleep on as night has already fallen.
In the middle of the night, when he woke up with a startle, she was there waiting for him to tell her what has happened in all those months she was away.
*** FLASHBACK ***
“- Your elder brother did all that? With your family? His own parents?… he always seemed so calm and obedient… for money? Why? It’s also his money in this family… he’s the elder son…”
Sanskar holds his head with his both hands, how giving answers to those same questions torturing him? The old woman adds:
“- but… if he did all that with you for money… what was the point of torturing my poor Shomi like that? Why kidnap then try to kill the little Ayush?”
He looks up to her defeated, she understands saying:
“- this Parvathi! If I catch her!…”
She gestured with her hands the manner she would be strangling her right now if she was facing her, Sanskar hold her hands calming her saying:
“- Dida… Dida… calm down… please! What will we have with anger?”
“- look at who is talking?… fighting with your silly little brother? I always thought that you’re matured enough and what you did? Don’t you know how Lakshya has always been so emotional? Where was your mind then, ha?”
He was about arguing with her but she raises her finger at his face saying:
“- Shup… none of your nonsense with the old woman I am… My Sorroo was right…”
He frowns feeling hurt, even after all what he told her, she’s blaming him TOO… but she continues her blabber angrily:
“- but… Sorroo too… she’ll hear me! Six months… six months…”
Sanskar stands up avoiding her gaze, he walks to the window folding his arms on his chest and says:
“- I’m searching Lucky for six months, Dida… if I couldn’t find him… it’s my fault not hers hai na?”
He lies, how could he tell her how their relation has been deteriorated during those months until all love seems has disappeared… nothing is left between them… nothing but anger!
*** END OF FLASHBACK ***
Tears start flowing over Sanskar’s cheeks as he recalls all what he did and said with Swara those times… when drunk, he used to call her every night just to pour his poison on her… when they fought every time they met… when he let her fall on the ground… when jealous, he hurted her more… when in a mad moment he said the bitter word “ex-wife”…
Clearing his vision from the tears blurring it again, he’s taken back to that night… how their conversation has been dragged to the finding Laksh’ failing mission details.
*** FLASHBACK ***
Taking a sip from the coffee Dida served to him, Sanskar takes a deep breath before telling her all the times he was about finding him and he systematically disappeared just before he reaches the place.
“- at the beginning, I thought that he was just avoiding me, still angry… but it became strange, like… how could he know every time? How was he aware of the closeness at every city he was in?…”
Dida asks him pensively:
“- you think that he is forced to disappear every time?”
Sankar walks to the window again, putting his hands in his pockets, he sighs before replying:
“- yes… no… I don’t really know… but it’s like if… I mean, do you remember how all those fights started? About a bad work he choose to earn money for bade papa… I started to think that may be he’s still involved with them… mafia isn’t a simple affair… but then I recalled that he lastly lived peacefully for weeks before his disappearance… then I found his trace here at Banares… like by coincidence there some case opened here, about diamond’s traffic dealing?”
At the last words, the plate escapes from Dida’s hands broking all its content on the floor. She bends down gathering the pieces when Sanskar kneels at her side putting a hand on her shaking fingers to stop her worried, he asks:
“- kya hua, Dida?… what is this fear about?”
She looks up to him with teary eyes and says choked:
“- save Swara, beta… she’s in danger… he’ll kill her!”
*** END OF FLASHBACK ***
Sanskar shivers at the only memory of those words:
“- save Swara, beta… she’s in danger… he’ll kill her!”
He whispers with a strangled voice:
“- I’m coming, princess… just hold on… nothing can happen to you… both!”
His eyes see the protective thread she knotted this morning at his wrist, he kisses him closing his eyes briefly, then fixing the road, he accelerates more.
At Badi… Aysh who was sitting on the terrace corner away from the drama just happening around, Swara’s phone next to him on the floor, he was playing with the protective thread he snatched from her wrist without her knowledge…
TO BE CONTINUED……….