Chapter 22(Promised you double treat, so gotta work hard. 😉 )
Maan was shocked by the decrepit state of the Handa house.
The paint was peeling off the cracked walls. All kinds of abuses were permanently engraved onto the walls. Yes, it did give the impression that it had once been an imposing structure. But it looked like it had been abandoned.
He rang the bell. The door was opened by a nervous Mohinder.
"Hello?"
"Um..uh...Papaji?" asked Maan, feeling slightly awkward.
"Maan!" Mohinder said, his face brightening up. "Come inside!"
"Mohinder!" Daarji boomed. "Who's at the door?"
"Daarji, he's some big benefactor," Mohinder said brightly, without skipping a beat. "Come to fight our Brij's case."
Immediately Daarji came running into the verandah.
"You're Lawyersaab right?" he asked, jumping up and down with big childish eyes.
"Um, yes," said Maan, not knowing what else to say. He had to gain entry into the house somehow.
"Come come!" he said. "I will be back in a moment. Rano, lawyer saab has come! Make some nashta!"
Rano hurried into the hall with a tray of snacks. On seeing Maan, her eyes widened.
"Maan!!" she said, putting down the tray and hugging him. "Kaise ho puttar! Geet kaise hain?" she whispered, glancing behind nervously.
"Theek hain."
"Or baccha?"
"Absolutely fine. We went for a check up."
In his mind, Maan was hurling abuses at himself.
What type of a husband are you? You know your wife is pregnant and you have not taken her for a -censored- checkup!Brijveer Handa entered.
He was no longer the aggressive elder brother who had tried to murder his own sister. He was a defeated man. Maan noticed specks of coal on his face. His attitude, especially his bowed shoulders, indicated he had faced a lot of humiliation.
And yet, the voice was still there.
"So you are the lawyer," he grunted. "Saw what haalat this Geet has made of our family!! No one will touch our case due to all those female NGO's!
Maan groaned mentally.
Not NGO's again! "I have already studied the case history," Maan said casually. "I'm busy, I will drop by later."
Brij made a motion, as if to fall at Maan's feet, then stopped.
For one moment Maan felt sorry.
And then suddenly-
Please save me!
Yes, it is Dev's child.
What a tamaasha she has created of herself!
And when that did not work, they tried to kill her.
Did you see what a haalat she has done of our family!In his turmoil of emotions the only thing that was clear was the face of a smiling Geet. His mission.
He felt anger at all those people who had betrayed her, especially his own brother.
He felt sad he had never tried to find out her situation and help her.
He felt annoyed that Geet had hidden so much from him. More of a kind of irritation that she did not consider him close enough to share everything.
He felt happiness that he had finally found out about her past.
And he felt pride. For the bravest, most beautiful, and the most loving mother a kid could have was his wife.
There was just a small problem.
Her name was Lianna.
And now he finally understood how Geet had felt. Because suddenly, the thought of telling her about another girl made him want to find the nearest black hole.
Edited by IndigoBlues - 14 years ago