Chandni sat with Advay in the backseat in the car and rested her head on his shoulder. Advay pulled her closer and kissed her hair and sighed deeply. He felt as if he was in such a powerful vortex of emotions, but was still holding onto some sanity, and still maintaining some balance, thanks to this wonderful person resting her head on his shoulder.
Chandni slowly raised her head to look into Advay's eyes. They looked troubled and wet.
"I am trying to understand how you must be feeling, but still can't imagine what burden you must have carried all these years. You must be feeling so much agony today and some relief too. I can't...Is there anything I can do help you?" Chandni asked him earnestly.
Advay suddenly remembered her grief stricken face as Kishen Chacha was talking so harshly about her parents. And just look at her now, she was trying to make him feel better. His Chandu indeed had become a mature woman. She needed to be comforted too.
"Chandu, please don't mind Chacha's words. He might sound harsh but he means well."
Chandni nodded her head and he pulled her fiercely into his embrace and kissed her on forehead. If it wasn't for the fact that they were in a car with a driver, he would have kissed her properly. He was not able to control his emotions today. He desperately felt as if he needed a release. Finally seeing and touching his parents ashes made him feel so complete, even though listening to Kishen Chacha describing their funeral rites raked his wounds all over again.
His parents were the most respected members in the city, symbolic heads of a great temple and for them to meet their end in such horrendous way, and for their funeral rites to be performed by a non- family member who took upon that duty himself... could there be anything more tragic than that?
Tears threatened to spill from his eyes again but he bit his lip hard and tried to control himself. Chandni could feel and see every twitch, every emotion that he was going through and her heart wept with him, for him. If only there was some way in which she can take his pain away, she wondered.
Thinking about him and his pain made her forget her own pain. In her mind she knew her parents were guilty of destroying the most loving and respected family that she knew, but like every child whose heart foolishly hoped that their parents could still be innocent, she too hoped. But today that hope had been finally crushed, and how much ever pain she felt because of that, she didn't have the time to mourn over it.
She probably never will get that chance. Her duty now was to support her husband and even her in laws. How good it would have been if Janaki Ma was here, teaching all things a mother in law would teacher her daughter in law..... even perhaps explaining her son's quirks and tastes!!!
Her life too had been equally shattered and traumatised by her parents' action. Helplessness and grief filled her heart, which was slowly replaced, for the first time by fury towards her parents.
They reached home and Advay blinked away his tears and turned towards Chandni. But Chandni got off the car first and asked him to wait.
"I will check who is still up and sitting in the living room." She informed him and entered the living room only to find Nani and Niru Mama chatting in low voices.
Chandni beckoned to Advay that he can join her now and they both walked hesitantly inside, Advay holding the chest with the urns. As Advay saw his Nani happily chatting with Niru Mama, his heart bled once more that he is carrying the Urn of her favourite daughter, and how this is going to rake all those old wounds again, which have just began to heal for her.
"Cheeku... you are back at last. Kajalji is down with fever. I was just saying to Niranjan ji..."
"Nani!!" He couldn't say anything beyond that but his Nani with very perceptive senses understood the anguish in his voice.
"What happened Cheeku? Why do you sound so upset? Come here." She stretched out her arms and Advay sat near her feet and looked up to her, still unable to decide how to reveal what he is carrying.
But Niru Mama, noticing the Urns in the Chest, hastily exclaimed "Dev!! Whose Urns are these?"
Nani suddenly stilled. She reached out to Advay's face and felt the wet streak of tears and understood the rest of it.
Advay finally found his voice.
"Nani!! Kishen...Kishen Chacha told us that he performed the final rites for Baba and Maa that day. He kept these Urns safe all these years, waiting for me." He slowly lifted the chest to place it in Nani's lap and she touched them and hugged them dearly as her heart wept for her daughter and son in law.
Chandni looked on as Nani and Advay cried their hearts out, sharing their common grief. Niru Mama reached her and hugged her and she couldn't control herself either.
After some time Nani called out to her.
"Chandni why are you standing so far from me Beti, come here to your Nani."
Chandni sat down at Nani's feet opposite to Advay and Nani cuddled her too.
"This is our grief, don't ever feel you are separate from us and distance yourself. I know how much Janaki meant for you too. You know what she used to say to me? Maa, With Chandni in my home I don't miss having a daughter of my own. And when she will grow up, she will come to our home as our Bahu. What else can one need? She loved you just like her daughter, and her loss would be devastating for you too, especially because you have come to know about it just recently. But Beti, just like any other tragedy, we will pull ourselves through this too. It doesn't sit well to brood and think about the past all the time. One must always look forward to the future. That's what life is...."
Nani patted her head affectionately.
Advay slowly reached out to hold Chandni's hand and kissed her palm and cupped it against his cheek for few moments .
"Niru Mama please come and sit here." Advay offered and scooted to make some place so Niru Mama can sit next to Nani on the lounge.
"There's one more thing Kishen Chacha told us. He asked us to meet another priest who used to work in the temple... Sadanand Agnihotri. He lives in Banaras now it seems, and Kishen Chacha says he has got something that can help us prove my Parents innocence, regarding all those false allegations that were levelled against them back then.
"Who? Nandu?" Niru Mama exclaimed in surprise.
"Do you know him?" Advay asked happily.
"Yes I knew Sadanand very well back then. He got married just after Yash Jijaji became Mahant but his Sasural (in-laws home) was in Banaras and he moved there after marriage. His wife was the only daughter so the In-Laws requested him to become Ghar Jamai, and he is the head priest now in one of the local temples there. We have lost touch but I see him now and then in Banaras." Niru Mama explained.
"I want to go Banaras as soon as I can, and meet him. But I am worried that my movements might be closely observed by Ranjit's men, so I have to make it look like I am going to Banaras for something else." Advay muttered in frustration.
"I have the perfect solution for you. It is your Nanaji's Barsi (death anniversary) day after tomorrow. I was going organise a Havan at home but you can perform the Barsi at the Banaras Ghats instead. I will accompany you and it won't look suspicious." Nani advised.
"Very good Maaji, I will also come with you Dev, I am not sure what Nandu can tell you but I can help you meet him quickly. I can speak to my friends over there, and get Priests and other things ready for the Barsi too. " Niru Mama offered.
"Oh good, that's all settled then. I will check with the security agency tomorrow for the travel arrangements." Advay said.
Then observing the worried face of Chandni, he assured her.
"Chandni, we will be gone only for a day or two max. Please don't worry."
"Cheeku, take Chandni inside now. We all had a shock tonight. Let's rest now and tomorrow you will feel much better." Nani said as she slowly got up.
"I am OK Nani, I will take you to your room first." Chandni offered, and led her to the bedroom. After carefully tucking her in the bed, Chandni softly kissed Nani on her forehead and wished her goodnight. Chandni knew how brave Nani was trying to be, but she knew how traumatic the loss of a child is to a mother, and she must be feeling the trauma even after all these years.
As she entered her bedroom, she observed Advay pouring a drink into a glass which he hastily hid from her.
"Chandni, I need to work for some time. You please go to bed." Saying that, he hurried off to his study. Chandni sat on the bed fiddling with her Saree Pallu for a while; but she couldn't leave him like that on his own... She followed him soon after.
He was standing in the balcony, his back to her and staring into the backyard, the drink still untouched in his hand.
She was about to call him by his name and stopped.... She knew what he liked to be called.
"Suniye!!"
Chandni's soft voice interrupted the disturbing thoughts Advay was having. And why is she not calling him by name? His Khatto Ghileri is trying to be too cute for her own good.
He slowly turned around. She was looking ethereal in that simple white saree, as if it was made just for her, the simple design on it highlighted by her perfectly curvy body... Advay sighed and turned back again.
"Why are you not sleeping Chandni? Please go, I will join you shortly. I just want to be left alone for some time." He said with gritted teeth.
She slowly walked towards him anyway. She wasn't sure what made her to do it, but she slowly took the glass away from his hand, and placed it on the table in the corner.
"Why are you trying to push me away like this? I know you are feeling very disturbed tonight, but I want to be with you. Can't you understand?" She asked softly, her eyes automatically welling with unshed tears.
Advay turned to her, hearing the anguish in her voice.
"Chandni, I am not trying to push you away. I am just not sure of myself today, a part of me feels like smashing everything in this room, while the other wants to just cuddle and sleep. Right now my self-control is out somewhere. I know if I come near you, I will lose myself but I am also afraid I might hurt you physically in my current mood. So I am just trying to keep myself away from you. Please try to understand." He raked his fingers through his hair in frustration and walked away from her.
His honest admission and pleading eyes melted Chandni's heart.
But he was still considering this just as his pain, not theirs.
"Has it occurred to you that I don't want to be alone and might need your company?" Her voice trembled.
Advay's heart sank. What a selfish fool had he been?
He reached Chandni in two strides and hugged her.
"I am sorry... All I was trying to do was..." He never got to complete the sentence.
Chandni kissed him softly on his lips and then proceeded to kiss every inch of his face.
Advay's breath hitched. He cupped her cheek in one hand while his other hand wrapped around her waist and pulled her even closer.
"Chandu...you are my little dove... what if I hurt you by accident in my wild mood tonight? I would never be able to forgive myself if you get hurt." He groaned, trying to hold on to his crumbling resistance, as every pore in his body ached for her.
"You will never hurt me, I know that for sure." Chandni smiled back at him, the trust and confidence in her voice finally undoing every ounce of willpower he had.
He carried her to their bed, gently laid her down and covered her with his own body.
"Do you know how beautiful you are looking in this Saree? I kept staring at you all the time during dinner." He nuzzled her cheeks softly.
"And you are looking like a handsome groom in this dhoti kurta. I wish you wore this for our wedding." Chandni whispered back.
"I am ashamed to admit now that my heart was black with revenge, and that's why I wore that black joda that day. I was a fool to think that I will hate you forever, and avenge my Parents death by making you suffer. I still don't understand how you could forgive me Chandni?" Advay choked as he looked lovingly at his wife.
"Even though I didn't know you were Dev, I knew that your feelings towards me have always been conflicted; as if you were fighting with yourself to be hateful towards me. I hoped that the love within you will overpower the hatred. I promised myself that I will win you over with my love, but even before I did that, you proved yourself to be a loving Dev, who always cared for his Chandu." She smiled happily at him and he captured her lips in a passionate kiss.
All through the night their lovemaking took various forms and fulfilled a different purpose. For Chandni it felt like she finally knew what her husband's needs are, and Advay on the other hand was making sure that he understood what pleasured his Katto Gilheri most.
Both felt that their bonding had gone to all new level that night as they found this new understanding of each other, without any barriers, where no words need to be spoken but just a lot of give and take.
It was in the early hours of the next morning that they both finally fell asleep, as naked as newborns and with the same happy smile on their faces, the pain and trauma of the previous night finally forgotten.
******
In the morning, Advay sat with his team of lawyers as they finalised the draft papers on the trust formation with all the latest inclusions and modifications agreed on the previous day by Sanjay Gupta and Rajpal Singh. They were going to submit it for approval and register today, if everything went well.
Just then, he received a call from the MLA Rajpal Singh.
"Mr Raizada, I just want to..." There was loud noise in the background of wedding shahnai and music.
"Please give me a moment." He heard sounds as if Rajpal was trying to enter a private room.
"Oh yes, as I was saying, I want to get my brother in law Mukesh Singh to be added in the list of board members for the trust. He owns a number of construction companies in Allahabad and has contributed a lot to its development. It's only fair that he needs to be there. Mr Sanjay Gupta ji is also with me here and he agrees too." Rajpal laughed aloud much to the irritation of Advay.
He knew it! He would be put under pressure to add names of the politician's family members and cronies; So far he had managed to avoid it successfully. If he came across as being too rigid, things might get pushed back by these guys. He could always make sure that only the trusted people of Allahabad are chosen during the voting later.
"Of course Rajpal Ji we can do that, but please remember that this is only the initial list. Final list will be chosen by voting later." Advay said smoothly.
"Aaah..yes... of course. One more thing. You forgot to include the jeweller Gangaram's name in it. We are here at his daughter's wedding right now you know. He is one of the wealthiest and well known jewellers in town. In fact they made all the temple jewellery too. His name should be included too don't you think?" Rajpal asked.
Advay's blood boiled hearing Gangaram's name. He was the one who sided with Indrani, and laid the allegations that his father had replaced the temple jewellery with duplicate fake jewellery. He was a simple jeweller back then, but from what Rajpal is saying he seemed to have amassed wealth in the last 16 years. Yes, maybe it was not a bad idea to keep him on the board after all. As they say, keep your friends close and your enemies even closer. But he must put an end to this kind of pressure from Rajpal Singh and Sanjay Gupta.
"Rajpal Ji if we keep adding names like this in the last moment, it is going to be problematic. You know my lawyers are actually on their way to submit the draft papers as we speak."
"Of course Advayji, no other names will be added. Just add Gangaram's name that's all. In fact he didn't even ask for it. But we both thought, since we are here at his daughter's wedding, we will announce it to him as a favour from our end, you know." Rajpal chuckled.
Advay agreed reluctantly and ended the phone call. He called the lawyers to include those two names in the list.
Politicians and their bloody favours, he smirked to himself and went on to check his email that screamed for his urgent attention.
*****
First the honourable MP Sanjay Gupta and then MLA Rajpal Singh went and blessed the newlyweds at the altar. Gangaram was personally attending to all their needs in the wedding along with other bigwigs who have come to bless his daughter at her wedding.
Both the politicians refused to stay back to eat lunch so Gangaram personally served the finest desserts that were prepared for the wedding for both of them.
After enquiring about the groom, wedding and other business interests, Rajpal Singh casually mentioned about the temple trust.
Gangaram's beaming face suddenly became tense but he covered it up again with a false smile.
Rajpal looked at Sanjay Gupta as if asking him to do the honours.
"Listen Gangaramji, we have decided that your name should be included in the board of members for the new trust of the Shiv Temple. You have been the temple jeweller for all these years, and it's only fair that you should be part of the board too." Sanjay Gupta smiled benevolently.
"Oh no Guptaji! I have no interest in being the board member or anything to do with it. Yes we have been serving humbly for the temple all these years, but now that my daughter is married, I am going to cut down on many things, and concentrate on spending the rest of my old age with family... you know like retirement. So please don't include my name at all." Gangaram's vehement reply stunned both the politicians.
"Arre Gangaramji, we are trying to do you a favour here and you are straight away rejecting this without even giving it a thought!!" Rajpal Singh exclaimed.
"Rajpalji, Sanjayji I am forever indebted to you for thinking so highly of me and wanting me to be the board member, but trust me when I say this, I am seriously thinking of cutting down all my commitments. That's why I don't want to take any additional responsibilities at the moment." Gangaram pleaded with folded hands.
As Gangaram went to the next table to look after another prominent personality, Gupta and Singh looked at each other in confusion.
****
Ranjit and his gang were waiting patiently outside as Indrani was released on bail. Even though the Mayor of Allahabad sponsored her bail and worked behind the screen for her release, he was nowhere to be seen either. At the moment, no one wanted their name to be publicly associated with Indrani Vashisht, the fraudster and a heartless mother, who arranged for her own daughter's kidnap.
Indrani's gaze was as stern as ever and her posture straight and hawk like, as she walked towards Ranjit and his men. Silently, Ranjit opened the car door for her as they left for his new home, a small house that he bullied one of the local business owners to vacate, so that he could live with Shakun and his gang.
Jail has of course had not suited Indrani. Her normal impeccable appearance and glittering jewellery were gone and so was the haughty authoritarianism. But she was still Indrani Vashisht who could command anyone just with her gaze.
"Hmm... So what's happening?" She asked in her usual imperious voice.
"Well nothing much. The Temple is being run by a temporary board till the permanent board is going to be setup. The same priests are still performing all the Poojas at the temple."
"Who cares about the temple right now, you fool. Tell me what is that Advay Singh Raizada is doing?" she cut him off.
"Well the same we told you before when we visited you. One of my men is always tailing him and making sure of his movements. He had been away, I think he went to US all this time but he returned couple of days ago. Whatever he is up to, he is keeping it under wraps because, the only thing we know is that he is working on the temple trust. Wherever he goes there's security guard with him. Chandni stays inside the bungalow all the time. She came out just few times but only with Advay since his return."
"Is Advay meeting anyone, trying to do something?"
"Well... he meets his lawyers and they went to the local assembly. I am assuming he went to meet MLA Rajpal Singh there. Other than that he hadn't been anywhere. Yeah Raju here told me that couple of times they went to this small medical store in their neighbourhood to buy nappies and stuff... obviously for that bitch Meghana's son." Ranjit spat.
"Don't you dare call my daughter names like that!! You have no moral authority to call any one any names." Indrani replied furiously.
"Anyway why are we going this way... why are we not going to Have...." And then Indrani remembered.
"Mahantaniji you are no longer the Mahantani and the Haveli no longer belongs to you. Advay had put it under lock. There are some tradesmen doing renovations but it is otherwise locked." Ranjit smiled at her sarcastically.
Indrani fumed inwardly. Her whole status, standing in the society has been ruined by one man ... Advay Singh Raizada and she won't rest unless she will ruin him forever.
^---------------------------^
Hi Everyone,
Here I am with another speedy update. This is another emotional and eventful chapter. The bond between Advay and Chandni is only becoming stronger with each passing day. And they know now how to soothe each other and fulfil each other needs.
Things are moving steadily forward for the temple trust too and we meet another culprit who was part of the conspiracy, Jeweller Gangaram.
So what do you make of this chapter?
Let me know with your comments and votes.
Love
Sesi