Part I
Lahore
Kulbhushan Rai's Residence
February 1942
It was around 7.00 p.m. when Rajbir reached Lahore. Barrister Rajbir Lal to be more precise. He had gone to Rawalpindi for some official work which extended from days into months, and here he was. Raj stood in front of his house, after he alighted from the car, and took in the grand view of the imposing structure which was his home. Lights twinkled from inside the house and Raj heard the front door open. He smiled to himself as he walked towards the door to meet his Mother. Yes, he was back home!
As he entered the Hall, after taking blessings from his Mother, he found his Father waiting for him. So were his paternal aunt and his brother, Kewal and sister-in-law, Madhumati. Kulbhushan, his Father was overjoyed to see him and hugged him boisterously and clapped his back. Raj smiled at all the faces in front of him while his eyes searched for the elusive someone on the staircase. He hadn't expected her to be there to greet him but he knew that he was disappointed. He caught his sister-in-law's eyes who smiled at him, but he noticed that her smile did not reach his eyes. Something seemed different but Raj couldn't pinpoint it exactly. He was happy to be back.
Taking his file of papers with him, he started climbing the stairs. Only to be stopped by his Mother
'Son, where are you going? I have got dinner served early for you.'
Raj turned around and looked at her surprised
'Chaijee, I am going to my room to keep this file and to freshen up. Thanks for early dinner; I will be back in a few minutes.'
A look of dread crossed his Mother's face but Raj ignored it and started walking towards his room.
He would be seeing her nearly after two months.
He entered an empty room to find his bags already kept by the table. The room looked different, almost foreign to his tired eyes, and Raj looked around. Kranti was not there.
'Where is she?' he thought as he opened the wardrobe to take out a fresh pair of clothes. Then it struck him. There were no other clothes in the closet, except his own. Kranti's shelf was empty. Raj was bewildered. He looked all around once again and realized what he had missed earlier; there was no touch of Kranti in the room. It's almost as if she had never existed in his life. Almost as if she had never entered this room or stayed in it.
Raj came and sat down on the bed. Kranti had gone away! That was the only thing that reverberated in his mind. How could she? What happened? He cursed himself for never enquiring about her during the past two months. He was angry with her when he had left for Rawalpindi; she had blamed him for taking advantage of her in the Circuit House, after getting her drunk. He had tried to show her reason, but she had been steadfast in her belief. So much so that he lost his cool and started ignoring her. So when the Lt. Governor had asked him to go to Rawalpindi to fight an important case on behalf of the British Government, Raj had grabbed the opportunity and left for the new city. He hadn't even informed her about his trip and he remembered the look of surprise on her face when he took blessings of his parents before leaving. The look of surprise had been immediately replaced by hurt which in turn gave way to nonchalance. He had shrugged his shoulders casually and turned away.
It was only when the fortnight-long case dragged into months that Raj realized how much he missed her. But he was still angry that she hadn't tried to understand him and so didn't ask for her when he called home. He assumed she would be busy with her Krantikari activities, wasting her time and life. And got on with his own.
Raj was so furious that he wanted to cry. He couldn't understand what happened. Kranti loved his family, he knew it, whatever their relation was, and he knew that she cherished them. Unable to fathom out what happened, Raj threw his clothes down on the floor. He was further irritated when his sister-in-law entered the room.
He groaned inwardly 'Oh Lord, I don't need this right now.'
Madhumati came and stood in front of Raj, Raj was forced to look up at her.
'My dear Brother-in-law' she started 'why are you sitting here dejected? Chaijee is calling you downstairs. Oh dear, you haven't changed as yet? Tch, tch ' what happened? Can't find anything? Say like your wife?'
Raj was about to get up when she forced him to sit down and continued
'Well Devarji, sorry to inform you that your Krantikari wife doesn't live here anymore. She has run away with her Krantikari friends after killing my child.'
Raj's eyes widened in surprise as he searched for proper words.
Madhumati sat down beside Raj and took hold of his hand.
'Devarji, I would say good riddance to bad rubbish. Do you know what she did? She accused me of projecting false pregnancy in front of all family members and in this confusion, I fell down. The Doctor couldn't save my child; I was also in a bad condition and was admitted to the Hospital.'
Raj snatched his hand away.
'Why didn't anybody inform me? Where is Kranti?'
Madhumati also got up from the bed.
'We didn't tell you anything because you were fighting such an important case. At that juncture if you had heard anything about Kranti, who is your wife after all, your concentration would break and we couldn't afford you to lose the case. Bauji's Raibahaduri depends on all these cases actually. And what would we tell you? That your wife has been thrown out of the house for doing such a heinous crime?'
Raj was disgusted. He picked up his coat from the stand and rushed towards the stairs. He didn't have any more time to lose, he was already left.
He met his Mother at the bottom of the stairs.
'Raj, where are you going so late in the evening?' his Father asked.
'To find Kranti' Raj answered as he walked towards the door.
Kulbhushan got up from his seat
'But you can't go. She lied to us and she killed my grandchild indirectly.'
Raj turned around and eyed everybody in the hall. He then spoke slowly and deliberately
'Kranti never lies. And I believe her. Yes, even after everything she did to me.'
And then he was gone.
The others stared dumbfounded at his receding back.
'''
Raj stood outside the house, beside his car, thinking furiously.
'Where could Kranti go, that fool?' he thought. He was very angry with his family members too. How could they let Kranti go? Bauji and Chaijee should have known better.
He stood thinking as to where she would go. He couldn't go and meet the Krantikaris, they would tell him nothing. Not that he knew where they were. For the first time, he was hoping against hope that she was safe with them.
A thought suddenly came to his mind and Raj hopped inside his car. He looked at the darkening horizon and pressed the accelerator. He had a long night ahead him. He had to find Kranti, no matter what.
'''
It was around 9.00 p.m. when Raj reached Amritsar. He was hoping against hope that Kranti was in Amritsar. He had heard earlier that her parents had left her a house here but he had no idea where. He had never come to her house. Sitting inside the car Raj realized that he had never tried to find out about her as an individual. Yes, she was his wife alright, but it was a marriage of convenience that they were both executing.
Raj parked his car in front of a Guest House and went inside to book a room. He wasn't going back to Lahore without her. Inside the room, he realized that he had no leads whatsoever and it could take time to find Kranti, especially if she had gone underground. He settled down on the sofa inside the sparsely furnished room and lit a cigar.
After an hour or so, he left his room and stepped out. He saw several horse carts standing at a distance and approached them. Tentatively, he asked one of them if he would take him to Late Dayal Singh's residence. The driver looked at him for a few minutes and then just nodded his head. Raj noticed that the other drivers had also become quiet. The cart progressed in a lazy manner as the driver kept a strong grip on the reins. When they approached a shady boulevard, the driver stopped the cart and turned towards Raj abruptly.
'Babuji, why do you want to go to Late Dayal Singh's residence? It's in ruins.'
Raj remarked simply 'Because his daughter happens to be my wife.'
'Then where is she?' the driver questioned again.
Raj was feeling irritated with every passing moment. He couldn't check his irritation.
'But why are you asking me all these questions? I am not supposed to answer you.'
'Then I am not supposed to take you there either' the driver answered. Raj was shocked by his brazen answer.
'And what is that supposed to mean?' Raj asked, unable to hide his anger anymore.
The driver looked at Raj appraisingly and said
'Do you have any idea that the British would be keeping a tab all around, especially since the Krantikaris had launched an offensive against them and killed an Officer?'
Raj's heart began to thud as he took in the information. He looked all around; indeed the city seemed to be a dark splotch and the few people outside were hurrying towards their homes probably. He also noticed policemen strolling around the City; there seemed to be more policemen than what he would normally expect.
Fear gripped his heart and he whispered to the driver
'Please take me to that house please. I need to find my wife, she may be in trouble.'
Raj was sure that the driver would say 'No', but he was surprised when he whipped the horse and spurred him it to action. As the cart turned around a corner, the driver told Raj in a quiet voice
'I don't know what you will find there, but be very careful. You might get her hurt with your actions.'
After about fifteen minutes, the cart stopped in front of a neighbourhood lane and the driver indicated with his eyes that Raj has reached his destination.
Raj got down the cart and paid the driver who turned around immediately. It was a dusty neighbourhood, the doors of the houses were all shut, and so were the windows. Chinks of light fell on the path outside through the irregular window shutters of the other houses in the vicinity.
A house at the far end off the lane beckoned Raj; he went and stood in front of it. It didn't look like that anyone was inside, the door was tight shut and so were the two windows at the front. The courtyard looked unkempt and dusty with dead leaves heaped all across. Raj walked around the house stealthily, he could find no light or any sound from inside. At last, he stepped on the courtyard and knocked on the door lightly. There was no sound from inside the room. It was dark. He lit a matchstick and looked down towards the handle. A rusted lock hung on the lock. An irritated sigh escaped him and he retraced his steps. He walked towards the exit of the lane racking his brains.
'Now where do I go from here?' Raj thought. 'Kranti had once mentioned about his parents casually and that's how I remembered her Father's name. No Krantikari will help me. What do I do now?'
As he walked along, Raj did not find a single horse cart or bullock cart. He was weary by the time he reached the Guest house. Glancing at his watch, he saw that it was nearly midnight. The porter at the reception was half asleep and he failed to recognize Rajbir as a guest for a moment.
Raj entered his room and turned on the light. He hadn't brought any change of clothes, along with him and was feeling uncomfortable. He opened his shirt and hung it on the peg by the cupboard. He then curled up on his bed and went to sleep.
''
The chirping of birds woke him up from sleep and the first thing that Raj remembered was Kranti. He had to get her back and he didn't know how. The bellboy brought him some breakfast as he freshened up and Raj tried to think logically as he sipped his tea.
After a while, he came down and drove to the local police station. He had forgotten that Inspector Gordon was in charge of this Station, he had met him in Rawalpindi while working on the case. As Raj walked inside the Station, he weighed the option whether to inform the Inspector about Kranti's disappearance or not. If he complained, Kranti and her fellow Krantikaris could be in trouble, on the other hand, he would need all sort of help to find her.
Inspector Gordon was talking over the phone when Raj stepped inside his cabin. The Inspector looked up when Raj entered his cabin. He flashed a smile and indicated Raj to sit down. Though he didn't want to overhear Inspector Gordon's subject of conversation, he had no choice but to hear it. The Inspector was talking about the increased activities of the freedom fighters in his area and how he had caught a few of them and was trying to extract information from them. He was sure that they were planning something big.
Raj waited patiently for the Inspector to finish his call. He was worried more about Kranti now and decided not to tell anything to the Inspector. Inspector Gordon kept down the receiver and turned towards Raj,
'Mr. Rajbir Lal. I remember you' he said while shaking Raj's hand.
'What brings you here?'
Raj shook his head. He answered
'Just came to meet a friend who has settled down in Amritsar. So I thought I would come and meet you.'
The Inspector looked pleased. 'Good good, Mr. Lal. The Lt. Governor has told me how you have helped the British Empire at Rawalpindi.'
Just then a policeman came out from inside and whispered something in the Inspector's ears. Raj noticed that he looked worried. Inspector Gordon left his seat abruptly and ran inside muttering
"Damn these terrorists.'
Raj sat patiently waiting for the Inspector to come outside, when he heard screams coming from inside the police station. Something snapped inside him and he was attracted towards the screams like a magnet. He got up and peered inside the back room. He saw a couple of people huddled at the corner of a cell, sitting beside each other, staring blankly at the wall. They all bore marks of torture but they all sat quietly, their eyes glinting like hard metal. Raj was about to turn back when he suddenly heard the sound of a door opening and Inspector Gordon storming out of the room, followed by a lady constable dragging a woman outside. Raj couldn't see the face of the woman but abruptly his heartbeats started galloping. The lady constable pushed the woman towards the group sitting on the floor, the woman fell in a heap near an old man, who protectively extended his hand to shield her fall.
The woman sat down against the wall, when the dupatta covering her head slipped. Raj's heart jumped to his mouth when he realized that the woman was none other than Kranti. She looked tired, Raj noticed, and she seemed to have lost considerable weight. Raj's blood began to boil when he saw a trickle of blood near her lips, and bruises on her left cheek.
'''..
Kranti had seen him the moment when she was being dragged into the room by the constable. She would know him anywhere. At first she was happy to see him there, thinking that he had come for her, but the next moment, her trust faltered. He was with the Britishers, maybe he had come to laugh at her condition. It was unfortunate that they have been caught two days back, but the good thing was that nobody had opened their mouth even under torture. There was no proof whatsoever and the police would have to let them go. Kranti realized that it was the reason to drive the Inspector mad. She turned towards Rahim Chacha who had a guarded expression on his face, as his eyes were fixed on Rajbir standing near the gate.
'''.
Rajbir strode towards the Inspector and sat down, breathing heavily.
'What happened Mr. Lal?' the Inspector asked, mopping his brows.
'Why is my wife locked here?' Raj asked.
'Your wife? Who? What? Where?' The Inspector asked, bewildered. Then it suddenly dawned on him and he spat out
'You mean that terrorist woman?'
Raj stood up and nearly yelled
'She's not a terrorist. Damn it. Do you have any proof to support your claim?'
Inspector Gordon also stood up and started yelling
'Mr. Lal! Please do not raise your voice over here. This is not your court. This is a police station. And I don't need proof to arrest these damn terrorists.'
'But she is not a terrorist' Raj yelled back. 'She must have been at the wrong place at the wrong time' Raj said, hoping that the Englishman wouldn't notice that he was fibbing.
'Well that's for us to decide Mr. Lal', the Inspector said. 'I am listening to all these nonsense only because the lt. Governor has spoken so highly of you and your family as supporters of the British Rule in India. I think it will be better for both of us if you return Mr. Lal.'
Saying this, he turned his concentration on his work and Raj had no option but to leave the police station. But he couldn't stay behind in the area as the Inspector would surely complain to the Lt. Governor about his behaviour.
He paced inside his hotel room furiously, unable to think about what to do next. He knew that being a true freedom fighter, Kranti would be able to cope up with the situation well, but he definitely could not see her like that. Something turned inside him and he felt the urgent need to be with his wife, to hold and console her, if at all. For a brief second, he had seen the despair and emptiness in her eyes. And then it went blank.
A sudden knock at the door broke his concentration. The porter downstairs was standing outside his door carrying the lunch tray. Raj was surprised, he hadn't ordered food. He looked at the waiter surprised. The waiter entered the room and kept the tray on the table and left without uttering any word, even though Raj tried to tell him that he was making a mistake.
'What's wrong with everybody over here?' he thought, feeling highly irritated. Disdainfully, he lifted the cover of the tray, to find a paper ball, beside a covered bowl. He opened the paper ball, a bit curious. There was only a single line scrawled on the paper.
'She will be home tonight.'
Raj had no illusion who that 'she' was. But he was intrigued with the sender of the one liner.
He went to the small balcony attached to the room and looked outside, trying to fathom the happenings of the day. There was no one around, the streets looked deserted in the lazy summer noon. He was about to return to his room when his eyes fell on a lone horse cart parked a little away from the hotel; Raj looked at him intently. The driver joined his hands in a namaskar. Raj's brows furrowed. Somehow the man seemed known to him. The cart drove away.
'..
That Evening
There was no power in the Guest House. Raj noticed that the streets outside were more or less dark, except for the spots near the street lanterns. He slipped out of the Hotel and started walking. He could see more policemen all around; he heard casually that the police were expecting more terrorist attacks as a few of them have been released from jail. Raj did not stop; he started walking towards his destination. He knew the direction to the Singh residence, though it was at a distance. He suddenly remembered who the cart driver was.
Raj didn't want the policemen to see him entering the lane, so he took a short detour after asking a local vendor for the direction. The detour took him to a narrow lane, crowded with houses on both sides, all of whom seemed to be deserted. After a while, Raj reached what seemed to be a dead end, only to realize that it was the rear side of Kranti's house. He could make out the sidewalk there, but everything seemed to be too dark for his taste. Raj was about to turn away when his eyes caught a flitting shadow near the obscure back door.
In a flitting second, Raj was beside the figure who had not sensed Raj's presence at all. The figure was intent working on the lock and was caught unawares when a hand clapped over the fingers working on the lock.
The figure turned around towards Raj, completely taken unawares. With his other hand, Raj removed the black shawl and stared into his wife's face, which looked haunted in the hazy glow coming from a distant street lamp. The key fell down from her hand on the dust below as she tried to free her hand. Raj tightened his grip on her and looked into her eyes, she was a bit frightened he noticed. Not a good thing for a Krantikari, he thought bemusedly.
'Rajbir' there was question in her voice 'What are you doing here?'
'I came to take you home' he answered simply, still refusing to let her go.
She turned her face away, but not before Raj noticed her eyes glistening with unshed tears, and bent down to retrieve the key. Raj loosened his grip a bit. Kranti found the key at last from amidst the dead leaves and then turned to open the lock. Raj let her hand go.
The inside of the room was pitch black, Raj lit a match stick and looked around at the unkempt room. The air was suffocating inside. He kept on lighting match stick after matchstick as Kranti went and threw open a window, letting the haze from the street lamp shine inside the room. There was dust everywhere.
Raj noticed her going to the side of the room and pull out a lamp from beneath a charpoy. He noticed her limping slightly and walked towards her. As she worked on the wick, he lit another matchstick and the flame started dancing around the room.
'I stayed here after I came to Amritsar, so I do have the essentials here. The room is like this because I have been away for two weeks or so, hiding from the policemen' Kranti said.
Raj came and stood in front of her and then raised her face, holding her chin. His eyes flittered towards the cut near her lips, the blood had dried and was a caked maroon colour. The deep purple bruises on her face almost seemed ghoulish and he traced them with his finger. Kranti flinched and took a step backwards. All this while, her eyes had not left his face at all.
''.
She failed to understand why he was here with her in this dilapidated room. He surely knew why she was here; was he still acting as a spy for the British?
She had been surprised to see him there in the police station but had thought about it as an accident. But seeing him in that darkened lane, behind her house, she was confused. Had he really come to take her home? Home? The very word almost caused her to laugh. She didn't have a home ever. Never. And she knew that she would never have one. The yearning for a home had almost been her downfall and it was with great difficulty that she had stopped herself from dreaming about a happy future with Rajbir.
Rajbir! The same person who had evoked hatred in her was also the same person who had made her feel hurt and lost when he went away to Rawalpindi without informing her. What hurt her most was when she heard him speaking with other members of the family over the phone, but had studiously ignored her. So when the situation became worse, she didn't hold herself back. After all, how could she continue in that house when her identity was at stake and be considered a killer of an innocent child?
Now standing inside the room, she was almost embarrassed that Rajbir had found her in this state and in such a situation. Her heart and mind was at conflict and she needed time, she couldn't let him fool her again. Her heart advised her to believe him while her head contested the advice. She was tired of all the games and turned around. Limping to a corner of the room, she started sweeping it with all her might.
''
Raj saw the hesitancy and hurt in her eyes and cringed internally. But he knew that this was not the time to talk. He noticed a small wardrobe and opened it; it contained Kranti's dresses and some other belongings. He stuffed his coat inside the wardrobe as he watched Kranti changing the cotton bedspread. He didn't want to overcrowd and scare her in the process.
After an hour, Kranti looked around the room, feeling satisfied. It looked habitable enough, she thought. But there was nothing to eat, what would she offer him? She mainly subsisted on what her Krantikari friends offered her as a share but since she was away for two weeks, there was hardly anything to offer him.
Raj was standing in front of the window, looking outside. She went and stood beside him.
He looked towards her inquisitively. After a moment's hesitation, she said
'I am sorry there's nothing to offer you to eat.'
'That's fine' he answered with an air of nonchalance.
Kranti replied
'Well you don't need to be here. I am sure you will get food at the guest house.'
Raj scrutinized her face carefully, his arms crossed.
'Well I choose to be with my wife.'
She seemed to be a bit surprised by her answer and looked away.
A knock on the door announced the presence of someone else and Kranti opened it. It was Rahim Chacha's servant. He had come with some food and water. Kranti closed the door behind him.
'A little water would do' Raj continued.
Kranti picked up the water jug and carried it to Raj. Raj took the jug from her hand and frisked out his handkerchief. Kranti was alarmed to see him wetting the corner of his kerchief with water. However her surprise knew no bounds when he pressed the wet kerchief on her lips, and it stung. She suddenly remembered the blows she had received inside the station.
Raj lovingly wiped the dust and blood away from her face, the cut seemed to be a bit deep. He would have a good look in the morning.
He made her sit on the bed and knelt down in front of her. He noticed that one of her foot nail was missing in half and the finger was caked with blood. He wet his kerchief more and touched her finger lightly. Kranti jerked her feet away but Raj caught hold of it quickly. He tore his kerchief into two and bandaged her finger ineffiently.
'This would do for time being' he thought.
He stood up and looked down at his wife's face. Her eyes were brimming with tears and she was trying hard not to cry. He sat down beside her and took her hand in his
'I am sorry Kranti, should have come to you earlier. I failed as a husband and I let my anger and ego get the better of me. But from this day onwards, I will never leave you alone, no matter what.'
Kranti quietly wiped the tears rolling down her cheeks and she got up from the bed. Her silence was killing. After a while, he returned with the food and placed it in front of Raj.
'I am not hungry Kranti' Raj said. 'You eat. I am sure you haven't eaten anything for some time now.'
Kranti looked downwards but stood rooted at the spot. Raj held her hand and pulled her down on the cot, beside him.
'Ok we will share' offering a compromise.
'.
Their simple meal over, Kranti readied herself in making the bed for Raj. Raj noticed her putting a single pillow there. It was hot and sultry and he took off his shirt.
'Where are you going to sleep?' he asked.
Kranti indicated the floor.
'I think I should return to the Guest House' Raj said quietly, reaching for his shirt again.
Kranti looked up at him in concern and his gaze held her to her place. After a while, she whispered
'Please stay.'
Raj came and stood in front of her
'Kranti, we are mature enough to handle sleeping on the same cot. Moreover, I want to hold you tonight in my arms so that you can sleep peacefully.'
He held her close to him and kissed her forehead. Then, he bent down and swung her up in his arms and set her down carefully on the cot. Turning off the lamp, he joined her. The cot was small enough for both of them, and he turned around sideways to pull her in his arms so that her head rested on his chest. After a few minutes, he felt warm tears tickling down on his chest, but he feigned sleep. He wanted her to cry her heart out, wash away all the hurt from within, and so he held her close as she cried copious tears.
'.
The chilly crispness of dawn woke Raj from his slumber. He was happy to see her peacefully sleeping in his arms. He stared at her face and noticed the ugly bruises. He wanted to kill those policemen for torturing her.
Her innocence was her forte, Raj knew, even though she acted tough in front of everybody. He understood her now; he realized the deep yearning inside her to belong to someone, to belong to a family. He hadn't missed the look of security and belonging that he had seen in her face the night before. Her emaciated frame nearly drove him to tears and he cursed himself for being so egoistical.
Raj shifted a bit to adjust her comfortably in his arms. He sensed her waking up and smiled as her chocolate brown eyes fluttered open. She seemed to be surprised for a moment, which soon gave way to a smile of happiness. Raj smiled back at her and bent down a bit to kiss the bruise at the corner of her lips. She gasped a bit and tried moving back. But Raj was quicker and stronger. He smiled against her lips and moved back, to take in the blushing face of his wife.
He claimed her lips back and made a promise to Heaven above that he would never leave her alone, never ever in the days to come.
.................
Edited by poetic - 16 years ago
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