Chapter 75

Well talk about deja vu; wasn't it last year around this time I was awaiting the arrival of a hurricane and hoping I could update before we lost power LOL. Well the lights are still on, and Joaquin is expected to be at it's closest in a couple of hour...but here's the next update...Enjoy!

Chapter 73

 

The little boy's chest heaved in his distress. He didn't want Papa to leave him. Everyone else had: he didn't know where his Daadi had gone, and then Pari had taken her suitcases and left too. She had barely said goodbye because she was crying so much. And then the shouting began: Papa and Rachna Aunty; it had been scary at the time, he had sat in his room covering his ears and even now his tummy was feeling funny just remembering it. It was like the sad time all over again, but instead of him going away, this time everybody was leaving him. He wrung his hands anxiously as Papa kneeled down to his level and hugged him tight. He felt better: safe and secure, but just for the moment. Would he come back for him, or would Papa go away like everyone else had?

"Beta, I will return when school is finished thik hai; Papa will be right here waiting for you."

"Do you promise, Papa,"  he asked.

He nodded, but Sanjay still wasn't sure.

"And will you make her come back too? Please Papa...tell her to come back home... I want Rachna Aunty and I want my sister t.to c...come b..back," he faltered over his words and began weeping uncontrollably in his father's strong arms.

 

Kabir closed his eyes. He truly had never felt more ineffective than he did at that moment. As a husband, as a father, he was completely inept. He hadn't been able to stop Rachna. She had left, taking with her all of the home's happiness...and now he was on the cusp of making a promise that he had no clue he could fulfill to his child left traumatized by these events. He was at a complete impasse; he just didn't know what to do to soothe the fraught child in his arms, or to make his wife come to her senses.

 

"Sanjay, beta, why don't you come with me, and let your Papa get going. We have a fun day ahead of us that you can tell your family about this afternoon, thik hai? Perhaps you can draw them a nice picture...I think they would like that, don't you?"

Sanjay nodded and looked at the outstretched hand held out for him to take.

 

Hesitantly Kabir relinquished his son to his teacher. Empathetic to his plight she smiled at the designer, wordlessly assuring the worried father of his child's welfare for the duration of the school day, allowing the man leave to go and begin his own day.

 

For his part, Kabir somehow managed to remain composed until he reached the car. However, once seated in his vehicle he leaned helplessly on the steering wheel. He could never have foreseen that any of this could ever happen. Had he, assuredly he would have somehow safeguarded against the possibility, but how could one defend against something you had no idea was being formulated against you? All this time they had looked at Naomi possibly being targeted: everything had pointed to that. By focusing on this alone, they had overlooked so much, and now as a consequence, his wife had taken this ridiculous stance and left him. Rachna and his beloved child were gone. And he had reached his limit. It would take very little to send him over the edge.

 

His mobile rang and his heart leapt in his chest when he identified the caller ; it was  her number.

 

"Rachna..." he answered hopefully.

 

It wasn't her, and incredulously, one of the worst days of his life, impossibly took yet another downward turn.

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Rachna had been told to be available to give a statement to the police this morning, and had keenly awaited the officers after breakfast. She had the envelope with the incriminating photos, anxious to give them to the authorities who may have a better understanding of what it would take to manufacture such lies.

She had then attempted to concisely give her account of what had happened, to succinctly impart the details of her involvement in the events that had led to Naomi's leaving home.  Anything that would aid in the discovery of her friend's whereabouts, she was willing to do. Perhaps that was why she hadn't noticed when the line of questioning had taken a more accusatory tone. She had even interrupted Gunjan when she had protested the manner of the inquiry, and asked sister to leave so that she  could speak to the concerns that the officers had.  

Clearly, this was just the opportunity they had been waiting for.

 

"Mrs. Tripathi, can you tell us again your whereabouts after you had asked Naomi to leave?"

"I had gone to the nursery to call Daadi, my husband's grandmother, to advise her that Naomi was readying herself to leave and that she would be arriving at the airport shortly."

The office looked over his notes. "And it was Robin, one of the house-staff who would accompany Naomi?"

"Ji, we needed him to assist her with her luggage, but more importantly to advise us when she had checked in for her flight and had gone through security screening."

"That seems quite the responsibility for a mere houseman. Robin must be a very dependable member of your staff."

"Robin is very reliable..." Rachna concurred.

"And very loyal it seems."

Rachna hesitated before responding. "Well yes; he and all of the house-staff are quite ... well they are all practically members of the family. He feels terrible over everything, especially since it was his responsibility to see her safely there."

"I see...Mrs. Tripathi, would you say that Robin would do anything that was requested of him by his employers?"

Rachna sat perplexed. "Perhaps he would, but I don't understand what you are asking..."

He changed the topic.

"Mrs. Tripathi, would it come as a surprise to learn that we have located Naomi's luggage?"

"Her luggage... You have it?"

"Airline policy dictates that no luggage is to remain on any international flight without the passenger to whom it belongs to being verified on board of said flight. Hence, when it was established that she had not boarded, then her suitcases were removed. Even if she had opted to travel on another flight, wouldn't Naomi have arranged for her luggage? "

"Well yes, but..."

"Who would you say Robin is more loyal to Mrs. Tripathi, you or your husband?"

Rachna's head began to reel. She began to breathe noisily, the ramifications of what the officer had revealed were more than disturbing. It was worse than she could ever fathom. To be so forlorn that she had walked away from everything was not in Naomi's character. She covered her mouth in alarm. She recalled every unanswered message she had sent her friend, and was filled with unmitigated fear for Naomi's safety, as she tried to comprehend what would possess Naomi to act the way she had; what could be so vital that she would take the steps that she had. Rachna placed her hand on her abdomen, and then it dawned on her...the baby.

She stood up suddenly and began walking out of the room. "I'm sorry, I have to leave..."  

 

The young woman's inattention once she had  been advised of the located luggage, and now her sudden move to leave, read like pure guilt to the officer. A scorned wife...a  missing pregnant rival, he was definitely on to something. Once he had her in custody he would quickly extract the information he needed, and as far as he was concerned he had just cause to, as she was clearly about to attempt to abscond. He began imagining the accolades he would receive for his actions. He made eye contact with the woman constable who had accompanied him. At his signal, the female officer swiftly intercepted Rachna and prevented her leaving. She summarily bound Rachna's hands behind her back.

"Wait..what are you doing?"

"I'm afraid Mrs. Tripathi, we cannot allow you to leave..."

 

"And I'm afraid that I cannot allow you to ill-treat my wife. I assure you neither of you will have a job to report to tomorrow if you do not release her immediately." Furious, Kabir addressed the more senior of the two officers. Neither of them were part of the team who had collected his statement yesterday, and clearly they were not familiar with the specifics of the case to act as they were. Kabir's attention was drawn to the ringing of the police officer's mobile. "I would suggest that you answer the call from your Inspector who will explain that your overzealousness to discover the whereabouts of our sister does not sanction either falsely accusing or the maltreatment of my pregnant wife."

 

Rachna had swiveled in the direction of the treasured voice of her husband.

"Kabir," she whispered in relief.

 

 She had rushed into his arms after they had un-cuffed her. "How did you know that I needed you even before I realized..."

"Gunjan. She wasn't comfortable with how the interview was progressing and telephoned me."

Her hold on him tightened and by rote so did his on her. Far too soon, Rachna was seeking an avenue out of his embrace. Kabir resisted her attempt.

"Rachna we must talk. We cannot go on like this."

"Kabir, please I... we need to go and see the doctor."

Concern etched on his face, Kabir rested one hand protectively on his wife's stomach. "Rachna, what is it, are you sure we shouldn't go directly to the hospital?"

His wife shook her head. "Ha... I mean after the doctor, we will need to go to the hospital." She separated from him, and left the room, calling out to him that he should go to start the car."

If he stood any chance of comprehending what was going on, he had no choice but to submit to her request.

--------

Having the hospital's Head of Obstetrics as your personal caregiver was a double edged sword, Naomi came to learn.  Feeling much better than she had at the time of her admission, she had sat up and welcomed Dr. Khan into her hospital room the next morning. The physician carried her chart and was accompanied by three people, two women; one man...all relatively young; Foundation doctors, Naomi suspected given their youth.

 

She was correct in her supposition, when Dr. Khan introduced them.

"Naomi, I've invited my three colleagues to accompany me on my clinical rounds this morning. As you can imagine cases such as yours are an anomaly for the maternity ward, so I wanted to ensure they visited with you today. They have been provided with the specifics of your case however the level of their participation will be entirely up to you. If you prefer that they keep only to observer status they will do so, but for the record we will have a general follow up amongst ourselves afterwards. Do you have a preference?

"Perhaps we can play it by ear?" Naomi offered studying the three others.

Dr. Khan nodded.

 

"Very well, female patient, age twenty four, entering her ninth week of pregnancy; recently arrived from India; suffering from severe dehydration, probable onset by the ingestion of yet unnamed illegal substance...

 

Whereas one would expect the male of the trio of young doctors to be the most judgmental of the bunch, he wasn't. That wasn't to say that Naomi had missed his speculative glance at her left hand; well all three of them had, to tell the truth, but it wasn't his regard that set her on edge and had her staring defiantly at the culprit who was clearly judging her.  Naomi narrowed her eyes at the young physician, not backing down from the derisive contempt that she hadn't been able to hide.  Her pejorative attitude was definitely not a good indication that the woman had chosen the right field where a decent bedside manner was expected. But in way Naomi was glad for it. The woman's disdain was actually a taste of what she may encounter once she returned home: conjecture and hearsay being a staple of her small community. Whereas exposure by the media would not be a concern; the grapevine could be just as damning. 

She sniffed obstinately. Later, for anyone who dared to judge her, and her life choices.

 

------------

As fortune would have it, an unexpected cancellation would provide Kabir and Rachna the opportunity to meet with  the doctor ten minutes from their arrival. Escorting his wife to the waiting room, Kabir settled her in a chair and waited for her to check her mobile for any possibility that Naomi had reached out to her.

"Why didn't you tell me Rachna?"

She looked up from her device into her husband's questioning face.

"It wasn't my right to."

"You realize that it changes everything," Kabir responded worriedly. "In light of the discovery of her luggage, the situation has entirely changed. We have no clue what Naomi..."

Rachna put her hand up to her husband's mouth, shaking her head. Just as she had to dissuade herself from such ominous thinking, so would she prevent her husband.

"Nay, don't you even dare consider that a possibility. You know her; we both know her, and she would never consider harming herself.  The situation has devastated her, but she is so very happy for the baby. Naomi would never entertain such thoughts."

He closed his eyes, unable to put aside his somber thoughts. Yes, his wife was probably correct in her assessment, but she was discounting the foibles of a pregnant woman. He could only pray that he was thinking like the typical clueless man, his own powder keg of hormones often accused him of being.

 

"Mr. and Mrs.  Tripathi, the doctor will see you now."

---------------

 

Dr. Sareena Arora entered the doctor's lounge and headed straight to the far corner of the room where she collapsed into one of the comfortable club chairs that along with its twin made up one of the more intimate seating areas in the room.  Grateful for the solitude of the empty space, she let her bag fall off her shoulder to the floor, and then yawned loudly before propping her head on her hand braced on the arm of the seat. These double shifts were going to be the death of her, but at least she had this time, a priceless hour and half before she had to report back to work. She had never been happier than when she had received the last minute telephone call from her financial planner, who had contacted her to cancel their quarterly meeting.  She didn't have the strength today. Her very spirit felt weak and she couldn't bear to discuss bhai's estate today, it only brought to mind her lack of success in fulfilling her brother's last wish. Her eyes felt droopy, and she forced herself to set her watch's alarm for thirty minutes from now. She had become a grand master of the power nap, and this is exactly what she needed right now.

 

Exactly twenty nine minutes later, she woke up and preemptively shut off the alarm, a good thing too, as when she looked around she noticed she wasn't alone. Amy, one of  her fellow second year foundation colleagues had come in at some point with the same intention it seemed, as she was  quietly resting on  a nearby sofa. Emitting a soft groan as she flexed her muscles, Serena was startled when, after she had reached into her bag for her IPad, her friend called out in greeting.

"Hey Reena, how is your Acute Care rotation working out?"

Sareena smiled to herself, despite her exhaustion and complaints of the long hours, her work was actually pretty exhilarating.

"Actually pretty well," she responded, as she logged into her email. "Not quite the world of Happy Endings that  the Maternity ward is, but when things go right, Emergency can definitely be a good place."

The other woman came across the room and sat in the chair opposite her friend.

"Yes, you're basically right, but we have the occasional bad days too, and nothing can compare to the loss of a mother's hopes and dreams. Still when it goes well it's an absolute miracle. I know I have one more rotation left, but I'm really leaning toward Obstetrics as my area of specialty. How about you," she asked. "Any thoughts of what area you are aiming for?"

 

Her friend's face had gone pale, and she sat there her mouth ajar.

 

"Reena are you okay?" Amy's eyed followed her friend's fixed gape at the tablet she held. "Reena..."

"It's him...it's really him." She thrust the image at her friend.

Amy didn't know what to expect, and didn't understand why a picture of a little boy would garner such a reaction from the normally poised young woman.

"Reena, I don't understand; who is...oh my god, I know her...Reena the bride, is she a friend of yours?"

 

It was the other woman's turn to be caught unawares. "I have no idea who she is, Amy, how..."

"She's here, Reena here in the hospital, on the maternity ward. I actually visited her this  morning. She just arrived from India and something terrible must have happened to her there. Dr. Khan is treating her personally."

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She didn't know what she was dreaming; instead of being a steady flow of ideas, there were a combination of images and emotions:  first of her and Rajeev talking ...dancing...kissing...a dark room...the sensation of being restrained... her fear of being groped against her will...a threat against her baby whispered sinisterly in her ear.

 Naomi's arms flailed before her in defense against her nightmare.

"No...no, not my baby...please!"

 

Hands restrained her  gently, while a lilting voice coaxed her back to reality. Finally Naomi opened her eyes. Two young doctors were at her side. She remembered Dr. Amy Snaith from earlier in the day, but had no idea who the second woman was.

"Just breath Naomi, everything is alright."

The patient nodded and turned her face away. She was still frightened by her nightmare, and frankly could not cope with the curiosities of another intern.

 

"Naomi, this is Dr. Arora, she was hoping to have a word with you if that's okay.Reena..."

Naomi stilled and slowly turned to face her visitor.

"Namaste Naomi, I'm sorry for intruding...

"Dr. Reena?"

"Actually it's Sareena, but..."

"Aunty Reena, who's a doctor?" Naomi asked, thoroughly shocked by this unexpected turn of events. Every thought of her night terror fled her mind, as she gawked at the woman.

The colleagues glanced at each other.

 "Am I still dreaming? Are you really Aunty Reena?"

The doctor handed Naomi the IPad. Naomi looked at it and then back at her in stunned silence.

Oh my God, Naomi thought, the plan had actually worked!

[NOCOPY]

crtkelly2016-05-27 04:12:53