Kalyug - TS - Part 3 on Pg 5 - Page 4

Stillness and silence engulfed the room as no one knew how to react at Yug's actions and words. I stood up shocked. I wanted to drag Kaali from Yug's lap and throw her out of the house. How dare she sit there?

Manjari stepped out from behind a curtain and stood in front of Yug before I could take step forward. She pulled kaali out of his lap and gently pushed her to the side. Yug rose up lazily from the sofa chair as she turned back to face him. She raised her hand to slap him but he caught it hand mid-air.

"Pishi Maa, I respect you a lot and I will take every reprimand from you and consider it your blessings if I was wrong. I am not wrong this time."

"You cannot treat Kaali or Gauri like this. You are insulting them both and making a mockery of your marriage."

"I am not. They have made a mockery of me, my beliefs, and my love. Gauri's dad and Daadi knew that I found the whole concept kaala tika repulsive yet they forced it on me. Daadi knew I loved Kaali. Gauri knew, and Kaali knew. Yet, none of them thought about how it will hurt me to see Kaali daily in this role. Gauri's doesn't care about her married life, Kaali doesn't care about me. Why should I be the one to care about everyone?" He paused and continued. "I am done caring and am going to make the best of the situation. You all.." he said looking at Vishwa, Daadi, and Gauri ".. have brought Kaali to me and I am going to keep her."

"This is wrong you cannot keep' her. She is a person" Desperation was starting to creep in Manjari's voice.

"She lost the right to be called a person or to be treated like one, when she agreed to come here as Gauri's kaala tika. Despite being educated, despite knowing that someone was there to help, despite knowing that what she is doing is wrong, despite having options, she chose this path to be identified as kaala tika, then who am I to deny her this identity? She let these people barter her like cattle, and as her luck would have it, I own her" He laughed mirthlessly.

Manji Maa was speechless. "But..."

Yug waved his hand and brushed off whatever she was going to say. "It is late and today was a full day. I am going to bed. Gauri, come let us go to sleep."

He paused and gave me a wry smile as I took step back. "Oh I forgot, you were going back with your father. Then this is the end. I will contact a lawyer and tomorrow and send you the paperwork to annul the marriage." Looking at my shocked face he continued "Don't worry! Daadi will pay financial compensation for any wedding gifts we are unable to return" looking pointedly at Kaali. Kaali squirmed under his glare.

Yug grabbed Kaali's hand, turned on his heels and left the room dragging a struggling Kaali behind him.

Manji maa turned to face my father. He had been staring at her since she had come out from behind the curtain.

"This is happening due to your superstitions. Both my daughters' lives are on a verge of destruction and there is nothing we can do about it" she said quietly. "I know yug, he has a heart of gold, but right now he is angry and hurt. We may be able to reason with him when he calms down but I don't know when that will happen" She was crying. I knew she was crying Kaali, not me.

Dad approached her but she stepped back. "There is nothing more to say. Past is dead and there is no future for you in my life."

Dadi asked "Do you know each other?"

Manji maa replies " We are acquaintances now."

She took my hand and took me to her room.

----

Manji Maa was blunt, there was no prologue. "Do you want to save the marriage?"

I hesitated before answering before shaking my head in affirmative.

"Why?"

"I love Yug"

"You know he loves Kaali. Even then.. " She left the sentence hanging in the middle.

"He is just infatuated with her! Have you looked her? How can he love her? I am so smart and good looking. How can anyone even spare a second glance after meeting me?" I was frustrated.

I saw a fleeting expression resembling pity on her face and it maddened me.

"You don't need to pity me! I get what I want. I want Yug and I will get him."

"Then you have to stay back and save your marriage. You also have to save Kaali" she said

"Save Kaali from what? Currently she is the wall between Yug and me and I am going to destroy her." I stomped out of the room.

---

I went to Yug's room about an hour later. The door was open and Yug was lying on the bed with his eyes closed and Kaali sitting on the floor beside the bed.

"You are doing this because you want Kaali."

Yug opened his eyes lazily. He looked at me carefully and did not say anything. His silence was maddening. I pushed him further with my words.

"You are being amoral,despicable leech that you want to share this space and room with two women. Is this your upbringing. Are these your values?"

Still no response, he did not even sit up. By this time I was screaming on top my lungs "Say something. If you think I am going to let you live with this harlot, you are mistaken. I am going to make you miserable! I am going to make you sorry! "

Kaali put her hand on my shoulder "Gauri..."

"I am talking to my husband" and brushed her hand off. She went and sat down on the couch resigned to her fate. Loser that she is, I knew she was not going to anything.

Yug got up. "You don't need to trouble yourself so much about making me miserable or making me sorry. I already am. How can I not be? I am married to you."

I was quiet. Satified that I did not have anything else to say, "Let us go to sleep. Tomorrow will be another day". He looked at Kaali "You sleep on the bed with Gauri and I will sleep on the couch" and collected a pillow and a bed cover and headed off to the couch.

"I will not sleep with her" I said. "Ok, then you can sleep on the floor" he replied settling on the couch and turned over to indicate that the conversation was over.

"I will sleep on the floor. You can sleep on the bed." Kaali said.

"At least you know your place." I said lying down in the bed.

----

That night was a beginning of an uncomfortable pattern that our lives settled into. The room was silent when all three us were there and livelier if only one of us was there.

Yug cancelled the honeymoon and started going to work the very next day. Kaali took over all the chores like serving him breakfast/tea/dinner, laying his things out, packing his lunch etc. She was the maid and doing her work well. I tried to be the wife only to be rebuffed every time. I joined him for tea and he would hide behind the computer. I would dress for him but he would ignore me.

Yug rarely spoke to either of us. But I saw them talking through eye. I could feel their emotional closeness when Kaali was doing chores for him. Jealousy began to burn a hole in soul that grew every time I lay my eyes on Kaali

----

I returned late that night, tired from the whole day of shopping with my Maa. Yug was already home as his car was in the driveway. I went to the room and quietly opened the door when I was stunned to see Kaali massaging Yug's shoulders. His eyes were closed but the expression of pleasure and satisfaction jolted me. I stood there for some time but they did not notice me lost in their own world. Quietly, I stepped outside taking few gulps of air. "That tramp is stealing my husband! She is now trying to seduce him." My body shivered in rage. She had to go! Anyway!

----

I talked to Daadi and my father about returning Kaali back to my house but they both refused. They arguments were a variation of how important Kaali was to protect Yug and me from my kundali's bad luck. No argument could sway them, even that Yug and Kaali may be having an affair. They were surprised but still did not budge from their position. According to them it was a small price to pay for all the good luck she brings me.

Good luck?!?! My foot!

-----

I bought some strong sleeping pills and some rat poison. Kaali was going to die a painful death. Poison was going make her writhe in pain before killing her. I was going to watch it. Sleeping pills were for Yug, to keep him out of the way.

----

On the fateful night I slipped a couple of sleeping pills in the tea when Kaali brought the tea for him that night. He was asleep a few minutes later. I went to the kitchen and came back with a couple of glasses of juice. I had laced her glass with poison.

"Kaali! I have brought some juice for us. We have not talked for a long time. I am missing my friend. Can you please be my friend again?"

Kaali was surprised and got emotional as she nodded her head. The idiot had tears in her eyes!

We sat down on the edge of the bed and started talking about old times and reminisced happy days.

"Oh you are not drinking your juice. Here take it" Kaali took the glass from me with a smile. She looked happy.

"Cheers!!" we said in chorus and raise the glass to our lips.

THUD!! A loud sound from the couch distracted us. Yug had fallen off the couch. He was shaking, his face had swelled up, and had hives all over his face and neck. His breathing was labored as he whispered "Call the doctor!"