40) The Lost World
Dushyant listened to Shankaran's account of Maurya and Dharma's visit
with growing astonishment. Shankaran recounted the sketches on the walls
of Avadhi and how Dharma had linked the verse and the ring
around the horse to Jalindra's cenotaph and River Yakshagni. Shankaran
also related their surprise on learning that Shankaran and Dushyant were old
friends.
"After you discovered the trap door, what happened?" Dushyant
prodded.
"Oh, it was so unbelievable! Water gushed out at once. Remember,
you told me about Yakshagni?"
"Yes, and you informed me that the river in Anuragnicheri was
also a tributary of Yakshagni."
"Right! River Agni emerges from Agasthyamalai and
joins the main river near Mangapuram before dropping into the ocean."
"Yes, yes...you mentioned that..."
"So, when Maurya opened the trap door in Avadhi, I
think the water that gushed out was the waters of River Agni."
"Or Yakshagni..." Dushyant murmured.
"While the water gushed out, Dharma fainted and almost slipped into
the ditch and if it had not been for Maurya, she would have gone inside."
"What?"
"Yes...and Dushyant, do you know the mystifying thing that
happened? Just before fainting, she called out a strange name. Both Maurya and
I were shocked."
"Whose name?"
"That is the unusual thing. After she gained consciousness, she did not
even remember whose name she called out..."
"Oh, that is so strange!"
"Exactly! When Maurya asked her, she was so confused. I felt bad
for her."
"Who did she call out for?"
"Ekveer..."
The reference to the name sent shock waves through Dushyant's body.
Unable to say a word, his gaze shifted to the range of mountains that were
visible from the window of the Ashram. He cast his mind back to the
moment he had come across the name, Ekveer in the forest. He
reflected on his meetings with Dharma in Modhera; her mention of
Jalindra's cenotaph, her confused reaction on hearing the name of the
river Yakshagni...
"Dushyant? Are you there?"
"Yes, yes...I am here. I think the signal dropped. What occurred
after she called out the name?"
"She fainted and then Maurya carried her back to my house. I guess
they had a long conversation about the incident. Anyway, I didn't
probe much. But what astounded me was that the house collapsed after their
visit. Dharma and I were right there. And in front of our eyes, Avadhi went
down like a pack of cards..."
"Has she gone back to Delhi? Shankaran, can you share her number
with me? I would like to talk to her about Avadhi..."
"Sure, I will message you."
"Thank you, friend."
The call had rendered Dushyant speechless. It was staggering that
someone other than him had a connection to Alaka. If Dharma had called out the
name of the Prince of Alaka, Ekveer, then that meant that she had an
association with the old world.
He recollected his interaction with her in Modhera. There
had been something very distinct about her that was very different from any
other woman he had met. She had been outstandingly beautiful, almost
bewitching; a rarity today. And her eyes held a depth of wisdom and
farsightedness that was not spotted commonly in the present generation.
As he ruminated over Dharma, his mind evoked images of his morning visit
to the ancient and dead forest. He thought over Anand Acharya's tale about
Alaka, the prince, and his love for the tribal princess...
He gasped at the sudden realization that arose without warning. Like a
flash of lightning, the connotation hit him with incredulity.
In the bygone world, Dharma had been the tribal princess...Ekveer's
love!
The Yakshi!
No wonder, she had cast a spell on everyone in Modhera!
Did that mean that she had travelled through...
Oh, My God!
***************
However painful it was, Dharma had to make a break. She did not want an
undecided Maurya. Even though her love for him was unconditional, she doubted
if Maurya felt the same way about her.
Dharma brewed a cup of tea and carried it to the balcony. Settling on
the chair, she dwelt on Avadhi, her encounter with those invisible Yakshis, their
earful, and the ancient kingdom from where she was supposed to have hailed. The
ring of her phone disrupted her contemplation.
"Hello!"
"Dharma? This is Dushyant."
************
When Maurya reached the hospital, Rashika's aunt spotted him,
"Maurya, our Rashi has opened her eyes and the first thing she uttered was
your name..."
"Is it? I thought she would take Arjun's name," Maurya's
disparaging reply caught the older woman's attention and she narrowed her eyes
indignantly.
"Maurya..." she began but Maurya cut short her response.
"Forget it. Let me go and see Rashika first." As he strode
toward Rashika's ward, the family members gave way for him wordlessly. He was
the cynosure of all eyes.
Vasukinath and his wife were present inside the ward. Rashika cried out
in a feeble voice, "Maurya..."
Her father embraced Maurya and exclaimed, "Thank god, she got
through, Maurya...It is all your lucky stars!"
Maurya wrenched away from Vasukinath's hold. He flinched in objection.
The family's callousness appalled him. How had he not detected this
insensitivity earlier? Had they forgotten that another family was grieving
wretchedly; especially due to Rashika's fault?
Rashika's mother stated, "We should give them some time
alone..."
"Yes, yes..." Vasukinath patted Maurya's shoulder and left the
room with his wife.
Rashika accorded a weak smile. Maurya took the chair next to the bed and
surveyed her. The bruised side of her cheek was plastered. Due to the impact of
the steering wheel, there were ruptures in her chest. The doctors had taken out
the glass shards that had pierced her ribs and stitched up the skin.
"Hi..." she greeted, her eyes not leaving his face for a
moment. She discerned every flare of emotion in his eyes.
"Hi...How do you feel?"
She pointed out her cheek, "This side pains a lot...."
Maurya nodded, deliberating if he should ask her about Arjun.
"When did you come?" she asked him instead.
"Last evening..."
The nurse arrived and she began to note down Rashika's readings. Maurya
stood up to leave but Rashika clutched his hand tightly. The nurse's eyes
puckered with mischief, "You don't have to leave...I will be gone in a
minute."
After the nurse left, Maurya asked, "Do you know about Arjun?"
She nodded without a word. Maurya noted that there was no indication of
regret or guilt in her.
"Where were you going with him on that road? Tell me the whole
sequence of that day..."
"Ok...I was at home when I got Arjun's call. He persuaded me to
have coffee with him because his team had won a legal case. Then after coffee,
I wanted to come home but Arjun insisted that we go for a drive. He directed me
to take that road."
There was an uneasy silence in the room after she reeled off the events
of the day.
"That was it? You didn't meet anyone else?"
"Who else could I have met? I am telling you exactly what happened
the other day," Rashika reiterated defensively, scowling at Maurya.
"That is not what Arjun's brothers are saying."
Rashika burst out vehemently, "What are they saying? You know how
they are. They have never liked me much. They would spin any story and you
would believe them?"
Maurya's eyebrows shot up, "Are they lying then?"
"Of course! How can you believe them over me?"
"Rashika, I haven't yet told you about their account of the day.
What makes you think that they lied to me?"
Rashika winced in pain, "Oh god! This is troubling me so
much...." She touched her face and moaned.
The sheer indifference to Arjun's death, her lies and her theatrics
disgusted him.
"It is all your fault," Rashika blurted out suddenly.
"Excuse me?"
"Yes, if you had not gone waltzing with some other woman, I
wouldn't have had to spend more time with Arjun," without any qualms, she accused
him brazenly.
"Seriously? How do you manage to stoop so low Rashika? Sans any
guilt, you transfer the blame on me! Actually, it was my fault that I thought I
could talk to you. Your senseless driving killed Arjun, and here you are;
finding ways to wriggle out of the responsibility."
Rashika had never seen Maurya so furious before. His hurtful words
aggrieved her. She recognized the cold indifference and subdued violence in
Maurya's demeanour. It frightened her. Had she lost him? No, that was not
possible...
She regained her composure and assembled her disarrayed thoughts. She
grappled with the possible truth that Arjun's brothers would have convinced him
of his innocence.
"Why did you meet Chaitanya?"
The question startled Rashika. Her glance scurried around the room,
looking for an escape from Maurya's mercilessly grilling glance. How did Maurya
know about her meeting with Chaitanya? With an adeptness that would stun even
the best of manipulators, she decided to pin the whole fiasco on Arjun.
"Who is he? I didn't meet anyone like that..."
"You didn't?" Maurya quizzed, his lips thinning savagely.
"No, of course not! Wait, oh yes, Arjun told me that he had to meet
someone urgently, so I guess he probably met this man before coming to the
café."
"So, you don't know anyone by the name of Chaitanya?"
"No Maurya, I don't. Will you stop this third degree?"
Shaking his head in disbelief, Maurya snapped, "Even Machiavelli
would be surprised by you..."
"Who?" Rashika frowned.
"We are done! Consider our engagement broken."
While Rashika stared at him shell-shocked, they heard a commotion
outside the ward and Maurya rushed out. There were police personnel and they
had come with a warrant to arrest Vasukinath.
The relatives blocked the officers from getting close to Vasukinath and
demanded to see the warrant. Maurya made his way through the fracas and spoke
to the officer in charge.
"Can we see the warrant?"
The family quietened as soon as they saw Maurya taking charge. He
scanned the piece of paper carefully and glanced at Vasukinath. Arjun's family
had filed a complaint against Vasukinath for Negligent Entrustment because the
car that Rashika had driven was registered in her father's name.
"You have to go with them now. I will bring our lawyer and bail you
out as soon as possible."
When Vasukinath's siblings and cousins began to argue, Vasukinath held
up his hand, "I trust Maurya. He will do the needful. Now, let me
go..."
As they watched, the police took him with them. Rashika's mother held on
to Maurya and wept, "God knows whose evil eyes have snared this
family!"
Maurya wanted to answer that it was the result of their own daughter's
evil deeds. Instead, he dialled the lawyer's number.
There was so much to do that he heaved in weariness. The stinging ache
that caught him unawares was rearing its head once again and he squashed it
down forcefully. There was no use crying over spilt milk. Dharma had made her
decision. Nevertheless, she hadn't heard his decision. Dharma thought he was
this indecisive moron who couldn't choose his woman. She had already concluded
that his ambition was more important to him than his love.
Drawing a deep breath, Maurya pledged himself to make Dharma proud of
him. There was no way he was going to let go of the only woman he had ever
loved so passionately in his life.
No, he was going to do everything right this time...
The arrival of the legal counsellor diverted his attention.
****************
"Dharma, I heard what transpired in Avadhi from Shankaran..."
Dushyant said after their initial greetings.
"It was momentous. I haven't gotten over it yet."
"Why don't we meet and discuss? Say, in Parijatpur?"
"My friend is getting married next week. Can we meet after
that?"
"Sure! I will return to Almora by then."
"I will call you once I reach Parijatpur..."
"Good, now that it is settled, I want to ask you about Ekveer...Why
did you call out that name?"
Dharma went rigid. She shut her eyes and the face that sprung up was
Maurya's. She jerked open her eyes and realized that Dushyant was waiting for
her reply. "I was not even aware that I had called out that name. When I
saw the water rushing out of the trap door, I think I recalled my
nightmares..."
"What kind of nightmares, Dharma?"
"That I was drowning in a swollen river and the currents were
dragging me away from someone close. That obscure image would stay with me for
days after the nightmares."
"Dharma, we need to meet soon. Call me as soon as you reach Parijatpur..."
"Sure!" After a pause, Dharma appealed, "Sir, I want to
ask you one more thing..."
"Go ahead, Dharma."
"Is there a position vacant in your office for me? Can I apply for
a post there?"
There was no reply from Dushyant immediately. Dharma wondered if she had
been impudent in asking for a job...
"You are a fashion designer and a successful one at that; that is
what I gathered in Modhera."
"I am quitting this job."
"Why? Is it because of what happened in Avadhi?"
"Partly! I am looking for a change. I am sorry that I was flippant
about it..."
"That is alright. I had been thinking of getting another person for
my lab. However, I think you are an artist by nature. You must explore your
innate talents more."
"Sure, sir. Thank you for calling me."
"Anyway, my assistant Bilaval has been whining for a long time. I
would be happy to get a teammate for him."
