RajPreet TS: Wings of Flight Part 3A on pg 6 11th Aug - Page 5

Raj brushed his hand on the board hanging by the tree and gazed longingly at the words written on it:

'Yaara da Adda'

The one place that remained untainted by the Pawaniya Bajwa enemity and the one place where you could just be yourself without having a care in the world. Though a tiny hut, it had been a world in itself filled with love, happiness, friendship and trust. He so wished that they had never grown up and remained children forever. The thought of never having to see this place tore at his heart but he had to and he would do this for his Preet. He had seen her fight a battle of wills to keep up the farce her mother had orchestrated but if Preet did not wish to break free he could do little but respect her wishes and let her be. He would do this for her even if it would destroy him forever.

"Raj Bajwa!"

Raj was stunned to hear someone take his real name and even more so, when he saw the bearer of the voice who stood facing him, a gun pointed in his direction, accusation written all over her face.

"Amba Aunty," he said in a strangled whisper. He wondered how she got to know the truth about his identity. His mind flew back to Preet and he hoped she had not faced her mother's wrath yet.

"I must say I am impressed. Well at least some of the Bajwas are not so foolish as the rest of your spineless clan. You planned this out very well. Right from befriending Mannu when he was a kid, uncovering her secret and making her fall for you, just the way your brother Raman did," she spat the words at him.

"Aunty I can explain..." Raj began throwing his hands up in a gesture of surrender but Amba was beyond furious.

"Explain what? That you were plotting against us all this while enjoying our hospitality? That's low even for a Bajwa! Was it not bad enough that your brother had ruined my Simmi's life that you are behind Preet now!" she fumed.

"If anyone has ruined Preet's life it's you Amba Aunty," he spoke up quietly but firmly and Amba was taken aback.

"You made Preet pose as a boy before the world so that you could save her from beeji but that was then. She was a child and you could mould her however you wanted her to. You told her she is the shah of the Pawaniyas, she believed that. You taught her to see right from wrong and she did that. Even when she realized she is a girl, she suppressed her feelings hiding behind that turban and kalgi just for you. If she wanted to, she could have broken free from the chains you have bound her with but she chose your prison over her freedom. If she wanted to she could have come with me but she chose to stay back for you and what have you done for her? You say you are protecting her but from whom?" he retorted.

"Don't you think she has the right to embrace her identity? Doesn't she deserve to be happy? Live her life like a woman, fall in love and have a family she can call her own?" he continued.

"You know what Amba Aunty? I always envied Mannu as a kid and not because Mannu was the shah of the Pawaniyas and I was the unwanted son of Harjeet Bajwa who was always ridiculed by his own father and brother. I envied him because of you," he told her looking her in the eye as she looked at him trying to decipher the meaning behind his words.

"My mother for all her goodness, could never fight for my rights against her own husband but you... You fought for Mannu against the world, shielded her so fiercely and I found myself wishing that my mother could be like you. But now I pity you. You have sacrificed your daughter's happiness, her identity and all for what? Your false pride," he told her in a sad voice.

"For all the world cares, you could be the queen of the Pawaniyas but I have not seen a more miserable person in my life," he remarked as Amba looked like she had been struck.

"How dare you..." she fumed and held

"If it makes you any happy go ahead. You can take my life and I will not try to stop you. If you want to believe I hatched a plot with my father to ruin your family's reputation, it's your call and I don't have the energy to convince you otherwise. But even a person on the verge of death is entitled to his last wish. Will you give me that?" he asked her earnestly and for a moment Amba was reminded of Amrit. Sweet, innocent and trusting. Now that she looked at him closely she could see he was a reflection of his dead mother's. The only Bajwa who was untainted of the hatred and treachery that ran in their blood just like the boy before her who stood bravely even in the face of an imminent death.

"Set Preet free. If not with me, I can still hope she will find her happiness. But give her that chance," he said looking her in the eye and in that moment she realized the depth of his love for her daughter but he would always be an enemy for her. She knew better than to trust a Bajwa but try as she might she could not bring herself to pull the trigger on him. She lowered the gun without taking her eyes off him.

"Go away and never set foot here. And never ever try to talk to Preet again," she told him hoping for his own sake he would walk out from here. If Jagan ever got wind of this, all hell would break loose endangering not just Mannu's but Gunjan's life too. Jagan would never forgive her for holding back his right to be the shah. No one would ever understand that she had done what she had to, not to snatch Jagan's rights but to protect her daughter and the pind. The only ones in on the secret besides herself was Gunjan and now Raj. She could not afford to risk having Preet's real identity revealed before the world and for that Raj had to leave. For a fleeting moment she felt a stab of pity for Harjeet who was mourning Raj's death never knowing his son was alive and well. But Raj was a Bajwa and she knew better than to trust one.

At that precise moment her phone buzzed and she froze seeing the image on her screen.

"Aunty what is it?" Raj asked anxiously but even before Amba could reply, her ashen look had confirmed his fear.

"Preet!"