Chapter 36: A Mishap
"A traitor? Whoever this is, I don't think he is working against us." A return text came back in a few moments.
"Not yet. But he has his own agenda, one that is hidden from us. We are a small enough group, certainly not big enough to have a member with a separate motive from us. Thus, any dissidents will have to be suspect." He sent his reply and waited.
"Roger. Will be on alert. Another news. Called the tabloid. They said that they cannot reveal the author, partially because I don't think they are entirely certain about the identity of the source. They won't get the next part until the day before it goes to print. That is next Tuesday."
"We will wait then." He shut off his phone afterwards and sat back in his seat thinking. Nowadays, he increasingly felt like he was juggling too many balls in the air… and that there was one that snuck in there without him noticing…the only way he knew that it was there was because he was off-kilter.
He hadn't contacted Salome since that day when she had asked him not to, although he did keep tabs on her as he had done during the past three years, just to make sure that she was indeed safe. She remained as she was, traveling more frequently now than before, usually out of country… but it was not anything that she hadn't done before. He used to go with her at times; in fact, those were some of the best memories they ever had, but inevitably they had had to return… one always had to come back home... not matter what hellhole it may be…
His phone beeped again; it was the alarm that he had set to alert him to head back to get Vidya.
He pulled into the driveway and waited outside the car. Within a few minutes, a woman came out of the house towards him.
"Are you Vidya's husband?" she asked and he nodded, straightening away from the car.
"Would you come in? There's been a bit of a mishap."
He rushed up the stairs and into the house and the woman led him to the back where several women were clustered around in a crowd around someone.
They all looked back when they heard him and parted way for him as he walked towards his wife. She was sitting on a chair with her left foot balanced on another chair and Mrs. Fernandez, the self-defense instructor, was bending over her knee.
Mrs. Fernandez tapped and then pressed down on different parts of her knee and he saw Vidya wince once in pain. She must have heard the silence that fell over the crowd because her eyes suddenly opened and she looked up at him, her eyes widening. Mrs. Fernandez had given her a cotton churidar to wear and now she had the bottom of it lifted past her knee as Mrs. Fernandez inspected the damage.
He raised his eyebrow at his wife and she tried to tug down the bottom of her churidhar as she shook her head at him.
Mrs. Fernandez looked at her in surprise, saying, "Wait, I wasn't done yet."
Vidya looked back at Mrs. Fernandez, embarrassed now. "I'm sorry. But I'm alright. Really. I am truly alright."
She turned to him again and Mrs. Fernandez finally followed her gaze to look back at him.
"Oh Gaurav. There you are. We had a little accident. Vidya fell and I think that she may have twisted her knee. But she keeps telling me that she is okay. I think you should definitely ice it when you get home."
By the time she turned around to face Vidya, she had already shrugged down the edge of her churidhar bottom so that it covered her fully once again and was starting to get up. She stumbled in her haste, just as he had known that she would do. He made her nervous at times… Just as Mrs. Fernandez steadied her, he walked forward to swing his wife up into his arms.
She was visibly surprised and looked around them at the women, some of the young ones now giggling, before whispering without looking at him, "I am alright, really. Put me down."
He didn't acknowledge her request as he thanked Mrs. Fernandez and started carrying her back towards the front of the house, the women following behind.
"Honest, Gaurav. I can walk. Put me down." She bit out to him a second time in a whisper, trying to keep a smile in place as she looked over his shoulder at the women behind.
"Be still Vidya. It's only a few steps down to the car, but if you keep wiggling like this, we might both fall on our behinds." He said in a matter-of-fact tone.
She looked up at him briefly, but did not resist afterwards.
One of the girls rushed ahead thoughtfully to open the passenger-side door for him. He thanked her before leaning in to place his wife on the seat.
"My books and sari…" she whispered to him before he pulled out.
He nodded and straightened just as one of the girls passed him just those items. He thanked her as well and walked around to the driver side of the car, giving a brief nod and wave to everyone around.
Once he started the car and pulled out of the driveway and noticed that she was still quiet, he asked, "So, is this a clever ploy to get the Man in the Cape to reappear?"
He turned towards her just in time to see a small smile appear on her lips.
After a moment, she replied, "It depends."
"On what?" he asked.
"On whether it's working." She said just as she rolled down the window fully.
This time he did laugh out loud.
When they got home, he walked around and carried her out of the car, once again to her resistance, this time more vehement.
"Someone is going to see…" she whispered.
"I thought that is the only way that I am allowed to touch you…" He whispered back and she looked up at him in surprise.
He didn't acknowledge her reaction as he carried her in and up the stairs.
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Bigg Boss 19
