Strangers- The sequel (Parts1-5) (Pg 1,2,3) - Page 2

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Opti thumbnail
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Posted: 15 years ago
#11

Originally posted by: JhankaaR000


[

The Kids.... I used Cute and Funny exclusively for them....
I could actually identify myself with their petty fights and the noisy dinner..... It made me nostalgic..
Although I'm just a teenager, but I was reminded of such small childhood incidents.....



As a teenager, I would consider you a kid too!
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Posted: 15 years ago
#12
Wow the sequel is really interesting.. luved the beautiful bond between Maan n dev.. n also Ishaan n Sahana.. hope Sahana understands the situation on knwing the truth.... do continue soon n plzz do pm me the updates
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Posted: 15 years ago
#13

Originally posted by: swetha10

Wow the sequel is really interesting.. luved the beautiful bond between Maan n dev.. n also Ishaan n Sahana.. hope Sahana understands the situation on knwing the truth.... do continue soon n plzz do pm me the updates



Thanks swetha.Lets see what Sahana does. There are two more parts which I will post tomorrow.
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Posted: 15 years ago
#14
omg that was amazing
plzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz continue soon
it was tooo good
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Posted: 15 years ago
#15

Part 4

Geet woke up the next morning at the crack of dawn and gazed lovingly at her handsome husband who was still fast asleep. In sleep he looked innocent and childlike despite the few grey hairs on his temples. Maan proudly called them the silver strands of wisdom and teased her that she does not have any grey hairs yet because she hasn't developed any wisdom. Barring these few grey strands, his unlined youngish looking face belied his forty-five years of age. She trained her gaze on his shapely lips which must have kissed her at least a million times by now, she thought shyly. Her eyes then moved up and rested on the light moustache that lined his beautifully sculpted upper lip. To her surprise she noticed a couple of grey hairs there and gently ran her fingers on them. Her touch awoke him and before she could remove her hand, Maan caught her by the wrist and seeing her bemused expression he raised his eyebrow quizzically.

"Your moush has started to grey!" she teased.

"So what? My desire for you is still evergreen!" he retorted and pulled her against his chest. He wrapped his other arm around her waist and pressed her against him, making her aware of his growing arousal.

"Maan! We have a teenage daughter in the house who is turning sixteen today. We cannot be fooling around like teenagers ourselves, that too in broad daylight!" she admonished him. Wriggling out of his hold, she rushed to the bathroom and banged the door shut.

Maan turned on his stomach and smilingly took the photo frame on the side table. It was a picture of his wife. He traced her lips with his finger tips and kissed it.

Back in the bathroom, Geet brushed her teeth and later got into the tub for a bath. As she soaped herself she was lost in thought. Today was the day they were to tell Sahana the truth about her birth. Geet was very nervous about how she will react. Her thoughts flew back to that fateful day when she realised there was no escaping her past.

Geet's flashback

A month back Geet had overheard Maan speaking to someone over the phone.

"OK. I'll arrange for the money but please do not take any hasty steps, Brij. I don't want my two precious girls hurt by your vindictiveness."

Geet's eyes widened in surprise. How does Maan know Brij? And why was he paying him money? It suddenly struck her that Brij was blackmailing him. There was only one thing that he could blackmail him about and that was her past. She confronted Maan who, at first, was reluctant to reveal the truth but finally admitted that Brij had called him up the previous week demanding a huge sum of money to keep his mouth shut about Sahana's paternity.

It seems that Brij had seen a picture of their family in the newspapers which covered a business party they had attended together. As Maan was a successful businessman he easily traced him and came to Pune. He befriended someone in Maan's office and found out that Geet had married Maan within a month of absconding from her home town. He also came to know that they had a sixteen-year old daughter. On a hunch he tracked Sahana's school records to check her date of birth. As he suspected, she seemed to have been born prematurely. His suspicions were confirmed when his source mentioned that Maan met Geet in London where they were studying in the same college. As he knew for a fact that Geet was very much in India at the time, he put two and two together and realised that Geet was already pregnant with Sahana and Maan seemed to be aware of the truth, going by the story he floated about their meeting in London. He wondered how a man can readily accept a 'fallen' woman like Geet and also lie for her.

Brij realised that Geet and Sahana were Maan's greatest weaknesses. His criminal mind then hit upon the idea of blackmailing Maan for money by threatening to reveal the truth to Sahana. He claimed to have photographs and letters to prove Geet's relationship with Dev which he planned to show Sahana. As he expected Maan seemed anxious to keep things under wraps.

Hearing what Maan said about Brij, Geet's eyes filled up with tears. She knew how much Maan detested being taken advantage of but the guy was willing to give in to her brother's demands for her sake. She cannot let him do that. He has already done enough for her. She told him that Brij was an insatiable snake and the blackmailing would not stop if he paid up. He would forever hold their secret over their heads and keep demanding for more and more money. She hated to see Maan cave in to that scoundrel's blackmailing. She said that it would be better if she herself comes clean with her daughter.

Deep down Maan too wanted to tell Sahana about her real father when she was old enough to understand, for he felt she had the right to know about her antecedents. He did not fear that she would love him any less if she knew the truth because he was very secure in her love. But telling her the truth about her father would also mean admitting the truth about her mother. He was not sure how Sahana would take that. He also knew how much it would hurt Geet if she fell in the eyes of her daughter. As they say, 'Why mend something which ain't broken?' so he thought it was best to keep quiet about the whole issue. But hearing Geet's apprehensions about Brij, he was not sure silence would help. It may in fact make it worse if she hears the truth from Brij or someone else. There was no knowing how many people Brij has already confided in. They still did not know what became of Geet's step-mother who seemed untraceable. What if she too knows about the truth and starts threatening next.

Maan hesitated, wondering what to do but Geet insisted in telling the truth for all their peace of mind. Maan assured her that both of them will tell the truth to Sahana on her sixteenth birthday which was to be celebrated shortly. He wanted to invite Dev over although he did not let him know that they were planning to reveal the truth to his daughter. She agreed although she was apprehensive about the whole thing. He kept assuring her that he will make sure everything went well and his daughter comes out of this as a stronger individual.

To shut Brij up, Maan promised to give him the money but had also informed the police about his extortion attempts. So the police wound him up just as he was about to take the money from Maan's hands and was locked up in prison. He also engaged a private detective to find out more about Brij's life in the past fifteen years so as to unravel any secrets of his own which could ensure that he spent a longer time in prison.

Suddenly Geet was brought back to the present by the loud banging at the door.

"Geet! What are you doing in there for so long? Have you fallen asleep?" Maan was yelling out.

Geet hurriedly stepped out of the tub and wrapped herself in a large towel. When she opened the latch, Maan who was leaning on the door fell on her. Before she went crashing to the floor, he held her tightly around her waist and pulled her to him. The wet drops of water on her shoulders and arms dampened his kurta. For a minute the two of them froze, absorbed in each other.

"Come on boys wake up, wake up. Don't you want to wish Sahana di on her birthday? " Neha's shrill voice from the next room broke their trance. Maan ran his fingers through his hair in embarrassment and went into the bathroom to complete his morning routine while Geet hastily changed into her clothes before going to help Ramu kaka prepare Sahana her favourite breakfast and wish her darling daughter.

That evening a grand party was arranged for Sahana. Baba and Bua who had returned from Mumbai by lunch time, helped in welcoming the guests. Sameera and Varun arrived with their daughters, Ananya and Sukanya, aged twelve and seven. Sameera had never stopped thanking Maan for saving their marriage which was on the rocks more than 15 years ago. It was Maan who had finally worked out a compromise between the couple. Varun was to let her start the boutique and she was to fulfil his wish of having a baby as soon as she was settled in her business. They agreed, for both of them were still very much in love with each other. Maan then advised them that in marriage there was no place for ego. Whatever problems they faced in future they needed to communicate openly and treat each other as equals in this life partnership. Those pearls of wisdom stood them in good stead and they were a happily married couple.

With the grown-ups engaged in conversation, the children had their own fun together. Ishan took a fancy for pretty little Sukanya or Suki as she was called. He faced some stiff competition from Sanjay though, for he too wanted to impress the little girl. Noticing the boys' blatant attempts to win her over, Sahana and Sanaya teased their brothers endlessly, prompting the boys to chase them around the house. In the meantime Abhay befriended Suki and they ended up playing together. Ananya remained aloof from all this tamasha. Being a quiet child, she was more interested in music. So she walked up to Dev who was managing the juke box and asked him to play the song of her choice. When he obliged, she sat down in a corner, closed her eyes and got immersed in it.

Soon it was time for the party to commence and Maan called all the children back. Once the birthday song was sung and the cake cut, Sahana offered the first piece to Maan. Dev blinked back the tears in his eyes. She then offered the second piece to Geet. When she took the third piece, Maan prompted her to offer it to Dev. Looking at him puzzled, she nodded and took the piece to Dev's mouth. Dev held her hand and pushed the cake into his mouth, his teary eyes silently thanking Maan, who blinked his eyes in acknowledgement. She then distributed the cake to her Dada, Bua Dadi and the rest of the guests.


The guests were served refreshments and later there were games organised by Sameera and Neha. Buffet dinner was served after that and by the time the guests, including Sameera's family left, it was close to ten o'clock. Baba and Bua retired to bed. The children assembled to open the gifts that the birthday girl had got. Ishan said that he would do the honours, for Sahana was his sister. He looked possessively at Sahana who gave the nod. Soon the kids got engrossed in the gifts which were being unravelled by Ishan. Maan took Geet to their room in order to discuss with her the manner in which they will break the truth to Sahana. They planned to call her in after the gift unwrapping was over and slowly break it to her. Dev and Neha watched the kids for some time and suddenly Dev got emotional and abruptly got up and left with Neha following him.

Sitting with the kids, Sahana's eyes suddenly fell on a long envelope which was marked "For Sahana's eyes only." She took the envelope curiously and ripped it open. Inside was a crisp sheet of paper, a couple of old letters and a photograph. She eyed the photograph and her eyes widened in shock to see her mother with Dev uncle. Both looked much younger, maybe in their late teens. Dev had his arm around Geet's shoulder and she had hers around his waist. She wondered what her mother was doing with Dev uncle for she was under the impression that he was her father's friend and her mother came to know him through her father. She quickly skimmed through the old letters. To her horror she realised that they were old love letters written by Dev uncle to her mother. She turned and saw that her brother and Dev uncle's kids were still engrossed in the gifts and had not noticed Sahana and her letters. She hurriedly got up from there and went to her room with the envelope and its contents. She shut the door and read through the crisp letter.

Dear Sahana,

This is your uncle, Brij, writing to you. You may not know me because your mother would not have uttered a word about her family. Why would she? After all now she is the wife of a wealthy businessman. She would be too ashamed to acknowledge her humble relatives. She admitted as much to me herself. She forbade me from seeing you and when I insisted in doing so, she has got me locked up in prison for a crime I did not commit. You may wonder why was she adamant in preventing me from seeing you. Do you know why? She was scared. She was scared that I will reveal the truth about her lack of character and avarice for money.

Yes, Sahana, your mother, after sleeping with her boyfriend of eight years, ditched him on their wedding day, in order to elope with your father because he was rich. Are you shocked? I bet you are. Wait, there is more. The man you are calling your father is not your real father. You are Dev's daughter. Maan accepted to father you because he lusted after your mother.

For their own gains your parents have ruined your life, Sahana. They have ruined it. They deprived you of being raised with love in a normal family, by your own father and mother. Instead you are being raised by a mother who lusts after money and a father who lusts after her. You may biologically be her kid, but my sister Geet loves your brother more than she loves you because he is Maan's son. Your father pretends to love you but how can any man love another man's child more than his own? So you see, neither of them care for you or love you. They are just keeping up the pretences for the sake of that old man, your grandfather who still thinks you are his own flesh and blood. Once he is gone, I shudder to think what would be your status in this family. That is why I wanted to warn you in advance so that you are not shocked when they throw you out of the house in future.

You ever loving and caring uncle,

Brij.

Sahana was horror stricken reading this letter. She dropped it and made a dash out of the door. As she ran out into the corridor she overheard voices coming out of the guest room in which Dev and Neha stayed. She stopped and listened.

"Neha, it is so hard to hear Sahana call me Dev uncle. I know I cannot expect anything more but I so want her to call me Dad, at least once."

"You know that is not possible, Dev......"

Sahana did not wait to hear more. With tears streaming from her eyes, she blindly ran out of the house. Just as she opened the door to rush out, Ishan caught sight of her as he ripped the wrapping of the last gift to be opened.


"Didi, where are you going?" he yelled out in alarm. Dev's kids looked towards the door but she was gone by then.

Hearing Ishan's shout, Maan, Geet, Dev and Neha came rushing out of their respective rooms. Seeing that Sahana was missing Maan asked his son where was she.

"I don't know Papa. She ran out of the door without turning around," said a confused Ishan.

"Uncle, I saw her running out of her room before she ran out," said Abhay.

Maan rushed to Sahana's room with Geet, Dev and Neha behind him. He found the letters and photo strewn around. A quick look at the letter told him the reason for Sahana's strange behaviour.

"That rogue, Brij. If ever I get my hands around his neck, I will throttle him!" he gnashed his teeth.

"What happened?" asked Dev.

"She knows only half truths and lies," whispered Maan angrily handing the letter to him.

Dev was horrified to read it. "Now what do we do?"

"I'll find her."

"I'll come with you," Dev volunteered.

"No Dev. It is better that Geet and I confront her and explain the truth to her."

Neha nodded in agreement.

"Yes, Dev. Let them handle their daughter. They know best. Moreover, we need to calm the rest of the children. Somebody needs to be with Ishan and assure him all is well with his sister."

Dev had to agree that she was right. By now the children came trickling into the room. Maan quickly shoved the envelope into his pocket lest they see it and asked Ishan to be with Dev uncle and Neha aunty while they go to bring back his sister.

"Why did Didi run away like that?" asked Ishan innocently. "Was she angry that I opened her gifts?"

"No darling. She is not angry with you. She loves you," said Neha patting his cheek. "It's very late. You need to catch up on your sleep." She took the kids to their guest room and made them all lie on the bed. She stretched out between them and tried to envelope them all with her arms asking them if they wanted to hear a story. The children enthusiastically nodded their heads. She then narrated a long fairy tale. Soon the children's eyes felt droopy and they fell asleep.

All the while Dev stood by the window and chewed his nails in nervousness, wondering where his daughter was and what was going on in her mind.

Edited by Opti - 15 years ago
--Revv-- thumbnail
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Posted: 15 years ago
#16
Reserved!!
Opti, rushing for work.. But could not help not reading it 😳😳😳.. will commeint in a while\
BTW,its beautifully written..Hopefully u ll give us the next update soon 😊
Downhill thumbnail
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Posted: 15 years ago
#17

simply fab................

loved ur prequel and sequel is equally successful in keeping the readers hooked to ur FF........
brilliant narration and loved every word of ur FF
keep it up
waiting for the next update
reva
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Posted: 15 years ago
#18

Originally posted by: MaaneetDD

Reserved!!

Opti, rushing for work.. But could not help not reading it 😳😳😳.. will commeint in a while\
BTW,its beautifully written..Hopefully u ll give us the next update soon 😊



Thanks Rev. will wait for your comments.
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Posted: 15 years ago
#19

Originally posted by: revav

simply fab................

loved ur prequel and sequel is equally successful in keeping the readers hooked to ur FF........
brilliant narration and loved every word of ur FF
keep it up
waiting for the next update
reva



Thanks Reva. Glad you like the sequel as much. I'll post the next (final) update in 2-3 hours.
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Posted: 15 years ago
#20

Part 5

On leaving her house, Sahana had got on to her bicycle and peddled as fast as she could. She reached her haven in fifteen minutes. It was a small secluded mound not very far from her house. It was where she went whenever she wanted to be on her own and think. Tonight of all nights she wanted to be on her own but she did not want to think. She just wanted to blight out all memories of her life, for they were filled with images of the two most important people in her life, her Papa and her Mama. Today she felt let down by both the people she had reposed all her faith and trust. She did not care that it was nearly eleven in the night and she was the sole person in that desolate place which was dimly lit. All she cared was that she got the much needed air to breathe, for in her own house she felt suffocated. She sat on the green grass and pulling her legs up, she buried her head between her knees and wept bitterly.

Meanwhile, Maan and Geet got into their car and Maan started the engine.

"Where could she have gone?" asked Geet

"I know where to find her," Maan said without elaborating further. He knew his daughter's secret getaway. He had followed her there several times but always stood at a distance so that she felt she was on her own. He always kept a watchful eye over her though.

When they reached the spot, he saw her bicycle lying at the bottom of the little mound. He parked his car and together with Geet he climbed up. Even before they reached up they could clearly hear her heart wrenching loud sobs tearing the quiet of the night. His heart went out to his daughter. In the past he never intruded into her private space but tonight he had to, if only to stop the unbearable sobs. Geet followed him silently, her own heart heavy with grief and despair. As soon as they spotted her, Maan rushed to his daughter and sat down beside her. He then gently laid his hand on her shoulder. She jerked her head up and seeing him, her eyes opened wide in surprise. How did he know her secret place, she wondered. She shrugged his hand off her shoulder and yelled.

"Please leave me alone. Have you not done enough?"

"What have I done, darling?" asked Maan in a pained voice.

She did not respond for she felt ashamed to say that he lusted after her mother. All said and done she had called him Papa till now. She cannot speak so derogatorily to him.

"Sahana, your Papa is not at fault. I am," Geet tried to intervene.

Sahana turned to her mother and looked at her with flaming eyes, "Yes, you are. You are the one who ditched your boyfriend on your wedding day and forced another man to father your child," she spat out.

"Sahana!" For the first time in his life he raised his voice at his daughter. "Is this the way to speak to your mother?" If there was one thing he could not stand, it was anyone accusing his Geet of immorality.

"Maan, please!" implored Geet, a hand on his arm before he flew off the handle.

Maan soon realised it was futile to yell at his daughter. He can't fault her, for she has been fed lies by that snake, Brij. She wasn't thinking clearly. After all she was just sixteen years old, not old enough to discern truth from lies. She was at an age when one is super sensitive and hot blooded. He has to give her a wide margin.

He ran his hands through his hair and asked her in a more subdued tone, "Sahana, I have given you 16 years of my life. Will you give me 16 minutes of your time and hear me out before you pass your judgement on your mother?" His voice and eyes betrayed the pain and hurt he was feeling which Sahana could not ignore. She silently nodded her head.

He then continued, "Most of us look up to our parents and treat them like demi-gods but we fail to realise that they are human too. Our expectations from them are high and when we realise that they have failed in some respect we are more unforgiving of them than we would of any other relative or friend because we feel that parents are supposed to set examples for us to follow. But then nobody is born a parent. A parent was also once a teenager and went through all the confusions and temptations of one. Some fall prey to it but some survive and come out unscathed. Your mother committed a mistake, one she never ceased to repent. She gave into the weakness of the flesh and conceived you. You can pass your judgement on her based on that single fact but do you realise what her life was before she got into this entanglement?"

Sahana looked at her father questioningly. Maan turned to Geet and silently apologised with his eyes for what he was about to do. Geet knew that her old wounds would be reopened but if in the process her daughter's emotional wounds are healed, she would be more than grateful. She nodded her head to give her approval.

Maan then went on to give a complete account of Geet's life before he met her, right from the fact that she was an illegitimate child to the miserable life she led in her own house after her mother's death. When he recounted the torture she was subjected to by her step-mother and her brother, Sahana's eyes widened with shock and filled up with tears.

"You believed what your uncle wrote about your mother. But did you know that this very same uncle tried to molest your mother when she was just fourteen and that he was locked up in a juvenile delinquents home for it? Now the guy has the audacity to talk about morality," he said between gritted teeth.

Sahana felt nauseous just hearing about this dark part of her mother's life. Her revulsion for this unseen uncle kept growing. She turned to look at her mother who sat crumbled next to her, weeping silently. Her heart went out to her mother.

Maan continued, "Yes, your mother absconded from her wedding but the scheduled wedding was not with your biological father, as your uncle would like you to believe. It was with an old widower who was more than twice her age. She tried to escape so that she could wed your natural father. Unfortunately here too it was your uncle and his accomplices who ruined everything. They beat up your father and got him bed ridden for six months. In the meantime they made your mother believe that your father had ditched her."

Geet intervened here and said in an emotional voice, "I was all set to take away my life, unable to face the prospect of raising you fatherless. If it had not been for your Papa, we would not be around now. We both owe our lives to him."

She then told her how Maan saved her, took her to his house and later married her in order to give an identity to a child he did not even father.

Maan hastened to add, "Well, I have to admit I was not totally selfless in marrying your Mama. It suited me fine because I wanted to perpetuate a lie I told my father."

Seeing his daughter's surprised expression he nodded his head. "Yes, Sahana. Your Papa is flawed too. I was an incorrigible liar. But believe me darling, whatever I am telling you now is the truth and nothing but the truth."

Geet continued, "Your Papa may have had his reasons for marrying me but darling he had fallen in love with you long before you even arrived in this world. He modified his entire life for you, giving up his freedom to spend more time with you. Did you know that your Papa even brought you into this world single-handedly?"

Geet then described how she could not go to the hospital due to a curfew and Maan helped deliver her baby. Sahana looked at her father in amazement on hearing this.

"After all this, do you still believe your uncle's words that your father does not love you? Let me tell you something. Why do you think there is a six-year age gap between you and Ishan? It is because it took me five years to convince your Papa that his love for you will not diminish or be divided if he has another baby. In fact, love can only multiply when shared. So you see, your Papa loved you so much that he was willing to give up having a child who was genetically his for fear that his attention on you will be lessened."

Sahana was moved to tears hearing about her Papa's love and the sacrifices he made for them. She could not have dreamed of having a more loving set of parents than she already had and she had hurt them by doubting their love. She flung her arms around both of them and hugged them tight.

"I love you Papa. I love you Mama. Please forgive me for being so harsh in judging you," she cried, whimpering loudly.

"Sh....sh..." Maan patted his daughter's back soothingly. "Darling. You needn't ask for forgiveness. It is we who should ask yours for not being the perfect parents that you so deserve to have. We should have told you everything. In fact we were planning to tell you the truth tonight but that sadistic uncle of yours beat us to it and that too filled your head with all those grotesque lies."

"But still Papa, I believed the lies told by a stranger whom I had never met without wondering about how they can be true. I have witnessed nothing but love in all my sixteen years of existence and yet I suspected that love."

"Darling, don't be so hard on yourself. You only behaved the way any teenager would have behaved, hearing such horrible things about her parents," Maan assured her and kissed the top of her head.

Sahana lifted her eyes and saw the love and understanding reflected in her father's eyes. She kissed his cheek and said that she was lucky to have such a wonderful Papa, the best in this whole wide world. She then turned to Geet and kissing her chubby cheek she said, "Mama, I am sorry you went through hell. I cannot even imagine what your life must have been like. I have been privileged to have such lovely parents like you unlike you who did not have a real family. I hope I could do something to alleviate your pain."

"You have, baby. You have more than compensated for everything I went through. The minute I laid my eyes on you, I knew you were worth all the trouble. I am very sorry darling, I nearly punished you for my sins by trying to take away my life," Geet's eyes started streaming, thinking about that fateful day. Maan wiped his wife's eyes and asked her to forgive herself first.

Turning to his daughter he said, "We are not exemplary examples for you to follow darling but I guess you can learn from us what you should not do. Your mother's pre-marital relations very nearly cost her life and yours as well. The lies I told my Baba cost me my freedom and deprived me of my cherished bachelorhood, not that I am complaining. I guess that marrying your Mama may have been the best spur of the moment decision I took. Both of you are like my two eyes. I can't imagine a life without you. You are my special baby, Sahana, because you brought together two strangers."

He then got up and with both his arms he yanked his daughter and wife up simultaneously. "Come on, it is getting late. Dev and Neha will be worried."

At the mention of Dev's name Sahana's face fell. Maan was quick to notice the change in his daughter's expression. He did not say anything immediately. He shoved the bicycle in the car's trunk and got into the car. Geet asked Sahana to sit in the front next to her Papa and Sahana gladly agreed.

On the drive back home, Maan slowly broached the topic of Dev again. "Darling, Your natural father is not at fault, darling. He was as much a victim of circumstances as we were. He loved your mother very much. Yes, he should have waited till they wedded before he...(he did not complete the rest of the sentence, considering the delicacy of the subject). But he had no intention of duping your mother. He too suffered. Can you make room in your heart for him?"

Sahana had tears in her eyes, "Papa, how can you be so magnanimous? You accepted Mama and me into your heart and now are even willing to share me with my natural father."

Maan smiled and said, "Remember what your Mama said a few minutes back? Love multiplies when shared. It does not get divided. I know you will always love me and I will always love you. I don't feel threatened by Dev."

"Papa, give me some time. It is all too much to accept in a day," she pleaded. He pressed her hand and smiled understandingly.

"Yes, darling it is too much to handle in a day. Take all the time you want. I am sure Dev can wait a little longer."

When they reached home, Dev came rushing to them asking them if everything was fine. Maan nodded his head and turned to look at his daughter. Sahana gave Dev an embarrassed glance and hurried to her room. Maan asked Dev to give her some time and Dev nodded.

Maan picked up the sleeping boys, took them to their room and laid them on their beds. Dev carried his daughter to Sahana's room and laid her in bed. He turned to Sahana and said in a soft voice, "I'm sorry for everything." When she did not respond he shuffled his feet and murmured a hurried good night and left her to her thoughts.

The next morning Dev and his family got ready to leave for Goa. He explained that the kids wanted to see more of India. After their Goa visit, they planned to visit Kerala, Chandigarh, Agra and Delhi before they return back to London at the end of the month. The Shergills and the Khuranas had an emotional farewell. Sahana remained unduly quiet throughout it. Baba and Bua who were blissfully unaware of all the happenings of the last 12 hours asked Dev to visit them every year as the children got along so famously with each other. Dev smiled ruefully and said he will try. Maan then dropped them at the airport.

One month later

Maan got a call from the detective he had engaged to do a background check on Brij. The news he gave was shocking. It seems Brij had ended up killing his own mother, Amrita in an altercation five years ago. He hit her hard and she fell down dead. He later buried her in the garden in their house in Hoshiarpur. He had admitted to his crime in his diary which was kept well hidden but was unearthed by the detective. There were other evidences too which pointed to him. Maan submitted all these to the police. With this he was sure Brij would be locked up for life.

That same day Sahana sat at her table to write a letter.

'Dear Dev uncle,' she began her letter and then struck out the words 'Dev uncle' replacing them with 'Dad'. She then went on to describe her school life to her natural father. At the end she signed 'Your loving daughter, Sahana'. She smiled and sealed the letter in an envelope. She was a lucky girl indeed. When she was in her mother's womb she very nearly did not have a dad but now she has two. Both of them loved her very much. While she had accepted Dev into her heart, her Papa will always hold a very special place in it forever.

***The End***

Edited by Opti - 15 years ago

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