Chapter 105: chapter 105

THE SILENT LOVE ...Chapter 104 :Abruptly halting his actions by hearing a sweet and innocent voice, Sreekar whirled back and saw a cute little girl with two braids dangling on either side of her head. He can see the fear in her eyes for his father as if he was going to hurt him.“Daddy ...!”The little girl ran to her father and hugged him tight, crossing her little hands around his neck while hiding her face in his neck.“Daddy! Why is this bad person beating you? Why is Ajju uncle not stopping him?”looked towards Ajith from the corner of her eyes and complained,“Ajju uncle! Why are you not throwing him out? He is beating my dad”.Amusing for her cute little words, Sreekar kept staring at the little girl with adoration and slightly chuckled for her words. Sreekanth whirled the girl towards Sreekar and pointing his finger at him, he informed his daughter.“Honey! He is not a bad person. He is my brother, your uncle who adores you more than me and treats you like a princess”.Honey gaped at Sreekar with widened eyes, scrutinizing him head to toe, while narrowing her eyes, she asked,“Will you not hurt my daddy? Are you really my uncle? Why have you not come before?”, while enthusiasm dancing in her eyes to see a new uncle.Mesmerizing at her innocence, cuteness and her antiques, Sreekar took her into his arms and showered her face with kisses.“Why brother? Why? For whom? Why the baby girl who should blossom like a princess, leading an ordinary path rather than the life she should rightfully lead”, clutching the baby girl close to his heart, Sreekar enquired his brother while his eyes shedding tears.Watching his brother remain silent, Sreekar pointed his finger to Shilpa and with a heavy heart he accusingly queried,“What sin did she commit to get deprived from the warmth of our family? Why the woman who should be the lady of our mansion, living in this confined area where even our maids don't live?”.“Chinna Babu! Don’t accuse him when he is not  at fault”, pleaded Shilpa wiping her tears  that were gushing out continuously remembering their earlier wounds that were still fresh in their hearts.Sreekar rose to his feet while carrying honey in his arms, surged towards Shilpa and took her in his arms with the other hand and cried like a child, pouring his heart out.“Sister in law! You don’t deserve this. You are the lady of my brother and the queen of that mansion. How can I tolerate seeing you in such a miserable state? You deserve to get the love, respect and warmth of my family rather than this abandonment. Whoever it may be, I will not forgive them for throwing you people to this state. I will make you claim the life which is rightfully yours”, with overwhelming emotions, Sreekar promised to his sister in law.Perceiving his inner turmoil and his agony, Shilpa gently caressed his back, being aware of  his attachment to his brother. Wiping his tears, Sreekanth reached them and patted on Sreekar’s shoulderr to comfort him.“Sree! Why don’t you go and fresh yourself? You had a long journey and we can  talk about everything  once you people fresh yourselves and have your  breakfast”, suggested Sreekanth trying to ease the atmosphere.Shilpa agreed with her husband and chimed in,“Yes Chinna babu! Go and  bathe yourselves. I will prepare breakfast at the earliest. Let me feed my brother in law and let you taste my cooking”.Sreekar reluctantly followed Sreekanth along with  others carrying honey in his arms not wishing to leave her for even a single minute. Ajith called out for his servants and arranged everything for them according to their comfort.Upon completing their breakfast, they all gathered in the front yard, Sreekar ready to unravel the  truth from his brother.“Brother! Will you care to explain the reason behind your fake death?”, directed his question to his brother.Sreekanth shifted in his place uncomfortably and darted his eyes towards Ajith and enquired him about Swetha to change the topic.“Aju! How is my butterfly? Why is she not back with you? Didn’t she complete her exams? I miss her a lot”, queried Sreekanth.“Yes brother! Isn’t she supposed to come back? Honey is awaiting for her. I too missed her mischievousness”, asked Shilpa dooking directly at Ajith.Ajith, feeling uneasy and restless, glanced at Sreekar who was uncomfortably trying to clear his throat while discussing about Swetha. He quickly shifted his gaze to Sreekanth and responded,“Swetha has expressed her desire to spend more time with Gautham's family. She will be returning shortly”.Before they could question further, Sreekar rose to his feet, haunched in front of Sreekanth and looking deeply into his eyes, he repeated his question,“Don’t try to distract the situation. I don’t leave you without hearing your reasons”.Having no other option with Sreekar’s persistence to unravel the truth, Sreekanth gazed at  Sreekar, helplessness reflecting  in his eyes, he answered,“Sree! You don’t look strong enough to learn the truth. Leave everything and let us enjoy the reunion”.“I   am ready to hear the truth, how hard it may be  to learn”,answered Sreekar with an unwavering determination. Palming his face  with his hand, Sreekanth took in a deep breath, shifting his gaze between Shilpa and Sreekar while unveiling the truth which he buried beneath his heart,“Mother! Our mother is the reason behind this enduring abandonment”.Sreekar could  feel his heart exploding like a volcano by hearing  his words and staggered back seated abruptly  on the ground. He kept staring at his brother with widened eyes,   a mixed emotions of horror,  misbelief and astonishment evident on his face. He anticipated some conflicts about their love story but the revolution of their mother  behind  his abandonment is out of his imagination. He  kept numb for a while as if he forgot all the  words in this universe.Giving him some moments to process his words, Sreekanth continued,“Mom fancied me getting married with her friend's daughter who matches our status and wealth. She never wanted to accept Shilpa as her  daughter in law”.Emerging from his daze, Sreekar processed his every word, feeling puzzled he enquired,“You could have come out of  the house and embarked your new life with   my sister in law. What led you to abandon the family, city and your identity.Rising from his seat, Sreekanth settled beside Sreekar on the ground making himself comfortable, taking Sreekar’s Hand  into his, he replied,“It’s not so easy as you make it sound. When I refused her  request to marry her friend’s daughter, we had an heated argument which compelled me to reveal my love for Shilpa. She least expected me to fall in  love , especially an orphan which didn’t settle well with her. She tried to chase Shilpa out of my life by offering a huge amount. When she couldn’t succeed in it she tried to threaten her for her life and went beyond it. Realizing her dangerous intentions, I neither risk Shilpa’s life nor sacrifice her love”.Sreekar remained quiet without disturbing Sreekanth, allowing  him to continue the rest of the story. Taking a deep breath, reminiscing about the past, Sreekanth explained,“I wished to convince mom putting all my efforts but unexpectedly Shilpa went missing. I searched for her in every corner of the city, but my efforts didn’t give any result for three agonizing days. Later I got a mysterious call from a stranger giving me a distant address to meet. Expecting to hear any news about Shilpa, I ran to the address which is in the outskirts and met him. He guided me to Shilpa who was sheltered by him under his protection. The goons who were behind her tried to eliminate her from the universe but she escaped with a stab in her shoulder running away from them. Fortunately she got rescued and treated by that stranger hiding her in his house. During the period of those three days of her absence  speculated the rumor of her eloping with a wealthy man  tarnishing her reputation in the city. Realizing our mothers presence behind everything, after contemplating with different thoughts, not wishing to raise any conflicts in our family which can tarnish our mother’s reputation, I decided to leave the place forever with Shilpa who has only me as her family. I orchestrated my own demise, bidding farewell to my family  in my heart, left the city and reached this place to embark a new life with Shilpa”.An intense silence settled in the atmosphere, similar to the tranquility before the storm. Unraveling the truth from his brother, misbelief enveloped him at the revolution of his mother’s true nature,  engulfing him in a thunderous mix of emotions in his heart. The burden in his heart felt almost unbearable with the weightage of the newly founded truth. Everyone fell into hushed silence, daring not to utter a single word as the darkness and intensity in Sreekar’s expression reflects the turmoil of his inner soul.“Sree! Don’t let your temperament take over you. Think rationally and everything happened long back. I not only forgive everyone but also forget the past. I don’t hold any resentment for anyone. I am leading a heavenly life enhanced with tranquility and serenity embraced by the love of my life and my only daughter who is the symbol of our love”, his words cut through the silence like a sharp knife slicing through the cold ice.Sreekar jolted back from his thoughts hearing his brother’s words. He watched him with mixed emotions of misbelief  and astonishment to see his brother playing the role of a saint.“Brother! How could you say, you don’t have any resentment when your wife and daughter are being unjustly deprived of their rightful privileges? How could you act like a saint, when they were enduring the abandonment of luxurious life which is rightfully theirs? How could you keep quiet after watching your wife at the edge of her life because of our mother”, snapped Sreekar while his voice resonated with fury and indignity.Retaining the serenity on his face, Sreekanth presented a warm smile at Sreekar and responded,“I would regret my actions if my wife is enduring abandonment from her family members. She has only me as her soul family and we are navigating our life together. Perhaps remorse would linger in me if I made her cut ties with her  family if she is not an orphan. Fortunately, God has blessed me, sparing from shattering the dreams of a father for her daughter’s life”.Sreekar felt as though a bucket of icy cold water had been unexpectedly thrown upon him upon hearing his brother's final statement, a sudden realization washed  over him with . Balaramaiah’s words reverberating in his mind which were spoken when he had confronted Sreekar about his love. The probable future that Balaramaiah had feared for Swetha, being distanced from her family, now became visible before Sreekar's eyes. As he glanced at Shilpa, he could imagine Swetha's life enduring isolation from her family and loved ones, living like an orphan. As he envisioned Swetha in such a vulnerable state, his body tensed and a shiver ran through his spine pushing him into panic. His heart protested against subjecting her to such a heartbreaking fate.A wave of dread and fear engulfed him imagining the most precious woman in his life enduring such a pathetic and vulnerable life. Ghoosbombs appeared on his skin from the roots of the hair, feeling anxious with the thought of Swetha’s life with him. He was cognizant of Swetha’s  preference of being accompanied either with family members or friends or dearest one’s but never wished to be alone. He felt remorse for dragging her into his life oblivious to the hazard that is awaiting for her if comes into his life. He felt suffocated as if he was trapped within four walls struggling to breathe, feeling restless.“NOOoo …...”, unable to bear the thought of Swetha enduring such an atrocity he couldn’t control himself and rose to his feet letting out a heart wrenching scream.