Yakshagni - An odyssey of unbroken devotion - II

 13) Return of the Stalker

Chaitanya finished his breakfast and rushed out of the hotel to the next street where Dharma was staying in Roohi Manzil. He had been tracking Dharma's daily pattern for a week now and he knew the time of the local bus that she took every morning to her office. He strode quickly to his usual spot. There was a jogger's park opposite Dharma's bus stop and he took a seat in the park from where the bus stop was visible. He checked to see if his shades were in place, and the hood he wore concealed his face from her view.

Chaitanya's life was at a good node, where everything was happening as per his wishes. He had taken possession of his in-law's house in Bilaspur and his wife, Seema was in the hospital, getting medical treatment. From what he had learnt in the hospital; it would take many months for Seema to recover. Hence, he was free to pursue Dharma. When Chaitanya's father was alive, he used to say that Chaitanya was as stubborn as a mule. He supposed he was what his father had called because he had never let go of anything that he had wanted in his life. And now, he wanted Dharma, with a desperation that shocked him. He was willing to forego all the material acquisitions that he had gained, for Dharma.

As he waited breathlessly, he saw her arrive. In a purple tunic and black cotton trousers, she looked so appealing that it made a mockery of his conception of beauty. He spied her as she checked her mobile and then drank water from the bottle.

The vision of Dharma, like the rainbow on a pristine blue sky, made him blink in wonder. It was hard to catch sight of a rainbow but it was harder to find someone as lovely as Dharma. Even if she was unobtainable; he was going to hunt her till she became a part of his world.

All of a sudden, Dharma glanced up. Head tilted, her eyes wandered around the road and the park. They fastened on him but he had turned his face away. Although he had wanted her to acknowledge him, he knew it was not the right time to get her attention. In a week, his plan would unfold. Till then, he had to watch her from a distance.

************

Dharma saw him once again in the park; the man with the hood and shades. She had noticed him in the same spot for the last couple of days. At first, she had ignored him but later, her sixth sense forewarned her. Reflecting upon her intuition, she studied him. From this distance, it was not possible to identify. Moreover, his hood and shades hid his face from her vision. The bus arrived and casting aside her suspicion, she surmised that she probably suffered from a disorder called scopophobia. Forgetting the stranger, she considered the tasks that she had to finish at work. Mrs. Singh had promised to message Dharma about the accommodations available in Mehsana.

***************

Maurya was once again haunted by a nightmare and he woke up in a sweat. It was the same harrowing dream where he was drowning in darkness, engulfed by gushing waves. But this time, he was not searching for anyone. Wide awake, he rose and checked his messages and emails.

There were many missed calls from Shankaran Murthy. In exasperation, he returned the call after a cup of black coffee and breakfast.

"Hello, Mr. Maurya, how are you doing?" Shankaran greeted.

"I am good! If you have called me to persuade me to come to Anuragnicheri, I am sorry it is not possible," Maurya informed the older man bluntly.

"Listen to me first. I am coming to see you tomorrow. Please be available and if you are a busy person, make an appointment for me. Message me the time and I will see you then."

"You are quite a persistent man, Mr. Murthy. I must give you that. Anyway, I am free tomorrow. You can meet me anytime in the office."

"Message me the address. I will be there," Shankaran Murthy affirmed.

************

"Done!" Shankaran Murthy declared with a smile.

"What did he say?" Dushyant asked his friend.

"Well, he said he was free tomorrow and he can meet me anytime."

"At least he is polite. Some of these young men are so abrupt with elders now."

"I agree but Maurya has always been gracious to me even when he was not so pleased about owning a run-down house."

"Where did you say Mahendran sir found him?"

"Maurya was being taken from a boat to a bus by a group of child traffickers. Sir found him in the nick of time," Shankaran repeated what Mahendran had narrated to him.

"How did sir reach the place in time? Did he get any information?"

Frowning, Shankaran answered, "That I don't know."

"Hmm, which place was this?"

"Near Mangapuram. Why so much interest in Maurya?"

"Nothing, I just wondered if sir has got anything to do with Maurya's past," Dushyant voiced his thoughts.

"I don't think so. If that had been the case, sir would not have left Maurya in Delhi."

"True! Anyway, I will be travelling next week to Chanderi. I will leave you an address, you can contact me if required."

"What an enchanting life you lead! Look at me, all the time looking at dead bodies and studying them..." a long sigh escaped Shankaran.

"But I remember you told me once that they fascinated you and the stories behind the lifeless faces persuaded you to find out their truth," Dushyant reminded Shankaran.

"Yes, that is true! It fascinates me to dig into their former existence. That is how I came to know that the human bone found in the house called Avadhi was more than a hundred years old."

"But who lived in the house? Someone in the village should know," Dushyant queried.

"I have asked everyone but no one seems to know. They say that the village had only a small number of houses, hundred years ago. And no one is aware that a woman had lived in the house. As far as they know, the house has been locked for several years. Some even say that it has a treasure buried underneath, while others whisper that it is haunted."

"Sir never revealed anything to you?"

"Never, he only handed me the letter and keys, and asked me to inform Maurya about it at a particular time."

"Typical of Mahendran sir!"

"Yes!"

"You know there is something else I discovered about the bone," Shankaran's voice dropped lower and Dushyant chuckled, "You are scaring me now Shankaran."

"There is something different about the DNA," Shankaran said thoughtfully.

"What? Don't tell me it is not human."

"Of course, it belongs to a woman. I don't know if she was poisoned or murdered but there is something odd about her."

"What do you mean?"

"I just got one piece of the bone. I am curious to check for more of them."

"Oh, that is why you are so eager to get the house opened."

"That too and also it was Mahendran sir's wish. I want to carry them out."

"Yes, I understand."

"I was an orphan and he took care of me, brought me up like a son, and ensured that I had a good life."

"He was a father figure to so many of us."

"Yes, but Dushyant, you had a family, then why did you come to him for studies?"

"Well, like I told you I was entrusted with a lifelong task. And to get an idea about it, I joined Mahendran sir's class. He had knowledge about such things."

"So, he knew you were searching for your ancestor's cenotaph?"

"Yes, he knew that I was devoted to my mission. He was the one who directed me to find a clue in the cenotaphs. You know, he does not disclose anything. He only directs you," Dushyant recalled his mentor's traits with affection.

"I agree...Anyway, I will let you know the progress I made with Maurya and you tell me about your discoveries."

************

Dharma and the team would be staying in Ahmedabad and travelling to Modhera. There was Dharma and, Mitali and Nikhil, from Krishna Industries. Nikhil was also familiar with the local language. They planned to stay for three days and Dharma was asked to make appointments with the concerned authorities to seek permission for the show. Engrossed in the work, she did not realize that it was already eight when she finished her calls. Most of the staff had left and Dharma ordered take-out before leaving.

Dharma left the office, snacking on the burger. When she took a seat on the bus, she thought she saw the same hooded man near the rear of the bus. She turned to check but did not see anyone. Grimacing at her hyperactive imagination, she settled near the window to watch the passing view of the city streets. As usual, she took great pleasure in viewing the mundane way of life on the streets. It gave her a sense of peace to watch children playing unconcernedly on the streets, to see people hurrying home after work, to observe shop sellers urging their customers to buy their products and someone else haggling with a roadside vendor. When she caught a glimpse of other lives moving at a sedate pace, she felt an ephemeral assurance of the equanimity of her life. Often, Dharma had this impression about time rushing her; that she had to dash somewhere to complete a task. Nonetheless, when she watched the humdrum life getting along, it accorded her a sense of tranquillity.

**************

The next day, Maurya waited for Shankaran Murthy. In fact, he was curious to meet this very cultured, at least he sounded so on the phone, and persistent man. All the same, when he met Shankaran Murthy, he was surprised to learn that he was a forensic expert and an orphan like him.

"Mahendran sir was kind to me and like in your case, he took care of me," Shankaran's words broke the ice. Somehow, Maurya warmed up to the man as soon as he heard about his life with Mahendran Namboodri. He felt he had found a compatriot in Shankaran Murthy. They talked about Mahendran Namboodri and discussed Shankaran's reason for the visit.

"Maurya, I have to check if there are more bones scattered in the house and I need to verify them. For Mahendran sir's sake, you have to open the door of Avadhi. If not to take possession of the house, at least to uphold sir's wish, come to the village."

"I will come but I have only one problem," Maurya answered sheepishly.

"What is it?"

"Mahendran sir has mentioned in his letter that I should visit Avadhi only with my soulmate."

"So? Is that a problem? Don't you have a girlfriend?"

"I have a fiancée."

"Problem solved. Take her along with you," Shankaran advised.

Sighing, Maurya uttered those words finally, "She is not my soulmate."

Shankaran's eyes widened in a mixture of confusion and sympathy. His glance seemed to question, "Then why did you get engaged?" but Shankaran did not ask.

"You may not realize that she is your soulmate now but you have chosen her to be your lifelong partner. Hence, I don't think there will be a problem."

"It is not that simple," Maurya extracted Mahendran's letter from the folder and showed it to Shankaran.

"Please read it..."

Shankaran's expression went through a transformation after reading it, a thread of fear in his eyes. Shankaran repeated a line from the letter," One wrong step and you will wind up in the jaws of hell...Good gracious!"

"I know right?" Maurya smiled at Shankaran's reaction.

Shankaran read aloud, "Only your true love will guide you in the right direction to accomplish your task," he glanced at Maurya and quizzed, "And you think that your fiancée is not your true love?"

Maurya nodded, revealing his innermost thoughts to Shankaran, "Frankly speaking, I don't know what true love is. How do you perceive true love when you are not even sure that it is what you want," he paused and asked, "Does a human not follow his needs? Then where is this demand for true love?"

Shankaran chuckled, "Today's youth have no concept of love. You people get engaged to post pretty pictures on social media."

Maurya grinned, "A) I am not a teenager, and B) I did not get engaged to post pictures." He pondered how Shankaran would react if he told him the truth behind his decision to propose to Rashika.

"You may not but most others do that," Shankaran smirked.

"What about you? Didn't Mahendran sir ask you to find a soulmate?" Maurya asked curiously. Shankaran Murthy was handsome in a classical sense. He mulled if Shankaran had ever found an appropriate partner.

"I never looked for a partner. I was happy being single. And to answer your question, no! Sir never insisted on me finding a partner. And sir must have been certain that you would find yours. Hence, he gave that instruction to you."

Maurya shrugged, not believing any of the stuff that Shankaran was saying.

"Anyway, you have to come to Anuragnicheri sometime. I suggest you bring your fiancée and get the job done. Then, at least you can dispose of the house and move forward in life."

"Let me get back to you. But you will certainly see me soon," Maurya promised, not certain what he was going to do.

After talking to Maurya in person, Shankaran was satisfied that the young man would keep his word.

"My driver will drop you back at your hotel."

Maurya accompanied Shankaran to the exit door.

"See you soon Maurya. And remember to bring your soulmate to the village," Shankaran teased, adding, "You know who is a soulmate, right?" Maurya gave a dry amused glance at Shankaran who continued, "Someone with whom you feel comfortable, someone who understands you...."

"Got it. I think most of the staff in the office feel comfortable with me and understand me. So, I guess, that explains it..."

Shankaran's face beamed with humour, "According to theosophy, a subject I have learnt and I presume that I am an expert at; when two souls seek each other to fulfil a karmic debt, they will come together for the ultimate." He paused to discern Maurya's face, "And mark my words, there will be undeniable attraction and union of hearts. You will be drawn to her helplessly," Unaware that his words had made an impact on Maurya, Shankaran nodded as the car pulled up to the patio of the entrance.

Shankaran's words stirred a recognition of similar feelings in Maurya. Staring at the taillights of the car, Maurya acknowledged the depth of his attraction for the first time. He recalled the night when she had saved him from danger. Was he helplessly drawn to her?

He pivoted on his heels, only to stop short on seeing the woman who occupied his thoughts.