He nodded and she took the mirror back. Soon she was back with a plate of food. She placed it on the side table before she put his arm back in the cast and started feeding him morsels. He wanted to be offended but his pain was severe and he just wanted to be done with it and sleep. Soon she gave him medicines and made him lie down and covered him with a blanket. It was just 6:30 in the evening but he was feeling tired.
“Don’t go looking around for another room or bed. Sleep here.” He said without opening his eyes.
Anita didn’t say a word. She slid into the bed after reading for a couple of hours, her back towards Salim, but soon she was facing him to keep a better eye on him.
~~~*~~~
Few days back, Shimla
Anita understood Salim’s turmoil. He was struggling to come to terms with Ananya’s death. She knew that when he looked at her, he was trying to see if he could catch a glimpse of Ananya in her. She took a deep breath; he would never see Ananya in her. His Ananya was dead, her Ananya was dead. Her always smiling sister would never return. She could bet Ananya would have been smiling even moments before the accident. Anita hoped Ananya had left before the pain could hit her.
She felt a hand on her shoulder and saw that it was Surendra. He had brought her a change of clothes and some food. She had insisted on staying back in the hospital with Salim. Surendra was not happy with the arrangement but he obliged. She was not surprised to see him back. He was always making sure the girls were comfortable. Except, this time Ananya was not there for him to take care of; only Anita was left. Anita took in a broken breath; the ache was yet to settle in.
Making her sit, Surendra opened the food package and watched as Anita picked at the food. He took the spoon from her and started feeding her. She tried to push his hands away but he didn’t budge. After finishing the food she drank some water and leaned back on the couch. Surendra sat there watching her. Soon she was sleeping, exhausted after the day’s events. Lifting her from the single couch he slowly placed her on the big couch. He called for the nurse and asked for a pillow and a blanket. The nurse quickly obliged.
Surendra made sure everything was all right and asked the nurse to call him in case of an emergency. Then he left.
In the morning Anita woke up and remembered that her sister was no longer around. She closed her eyes, struggling to hold in the tears which threatened to fall. She didn’t want to cry here, especially in front of Salim. Taking a few minutes to gather herself, she slowly got up and was startled to see a man sitting on one of the couches. He was watching her. He was very tall, his long legs stretched out before him, relaxed, except his eyes were focused on her. She swallowed. Something told her he had come for Salim. “Hi!” His voice rumbled.
She nodded. He is very good looking, but Salim is more appealing, she thought. The color rose in her cheeks. What’s wrong with her? Is this the way she was coping with her sister’s death? By checking out how good looking the men were?
“I’m Milind, Salim’s cousin” the man offered.
She raised her hands to show signs and then stopped as she realized he wouldn’t understand. She let out a sigh. She found a notepad and pen on a corner table. She quickly wrote her name and gave it to him.
Milind frowned. “Is this some kind of Mauna vrath?”
She smiled and shook her head in the negative. And she showed actions saying she can’t speak. Milind nodded. He gave her back the note pad.
“Were you with him when the accident happened?”
Her face became pale. She shook her head and wrote with great difficulty, ‘My sister Ananya was.’
He frowned at what she wrote. “Then you should be with her. Why are you with Salim?” His question held a suspicion. ‘They were coming to meet me when the accident happened. Ananya–’ Her hands tightened on the pen and shook ‘- died on the spot and Salim got injured. She was cremated yesterday.’
She handed over her note to Milind.
“God! What has he gotten himself into?” Milind sighed. He leaned forward and placed his hand on hers. She looked up at him.
“I am sorry. And thank you for staying with him” Milind said.
It was with Milind leaning towards her, holding her hands, that Salim saw them.
“Milind!” Milind looked up to see his cousin throwing daggers at the woman by his side. He frowned. Why was Salim angry with this girl?
“When did you come?” Salim asked.
“A couple of hours ago.” Milind walked over to Salim and patted his shoulder. “How are you holding up?”
Salim took a deep breath. There was no point in hiding anything from Milind. He just looked at Milind as he helped him sit up, and gave him a hug. Salim held on to his cousin hard.
Milind didn’t have to say a word but the solace he gave Salim was obvious. Anita felt like an intruder. She got up to leave so they would have some privacy.
“Anita! Did you meet my cousin?”
She stopped in her tracks and nodded. Milind heard the edge in Salim’s voice.
“You can freshen up before you leave to get the nurse. We need some tea.”
She looked at them surprised, and then went to the bathroom to freshen up.
“Bro, why did you speak to her that way?”
Salim looked at his cousin. Anyone who knew Salim never questioned him but Milind never feared his silence or his stares. None of his intimidating tactics worked with Milind. Salim remained silent because he didn’t know the answer to the question himself.
“Hey! Do you want to talk?” Milind asked.
Salim didn’t say a word.
“Do you have her photos?”
Salim didn’t move for a moment, and then he took his phone from the table and handed it to Milind. Milind went through the gallery and paused at the very first photo. He looked at Salim, at his exhausted, defeated body.
Milind frowned. “Isn’t this Anita?”
Salim gave a mirthless smile and shook his head.
“That is Ananya, Anita’s twin.”
Milind’s face went grim. Not good he thought. Now that he knew it was not Anita he could see the differences but they were too alike.
Anita came out of the bathroom at that moment. She looked at Milind and he smiled at her. The least he could do was offer some comfort.
She went out to the Nurses’ station. Milind excused himself and went out too. He could get his own tea.
~~~*~~~
When the nurse came to check his vitals at 7:00 a.m. Salim told her that he didn’t want anyone disturbing him for another two hours as he expected few people over for a business deal. The nurse was surprised at his request but remembering Surendra’s instructions to provide anything Dr. Salim wanted, she obliged.
There was a knock on the door at 7:30 a.m. sharp. Three lawyers and a pundit stood at the door.
“Salim, what is this?” Milind asked. The Pundit looked surprised.
“Don’t worry Pundit ji. I was born Muslim but was adopted by Dia Verma, my mother, who is a Hindu. You can check my ID proof if necessary. Please start the procedure.”
“What procedure?” Milind asked when his phone rang. ”Don’t do anything till I come back, Milind said, and went out to answer the call.
Pundit ji! You can’t start a fire so why don’t you go with the mantras and give me the Mangalsutra?”
“Beta! Are you sure? Marriage is not child’s play”
“Pundit ji, I crossed the legal marriageable age a long time ago and so has Anita. Heaven or hell we are going to tread in it together. If you don’t solemnize the marriage now, I will have to make her walk the path of sin.” Salim joked. Shaking his head the Pundit came forward and placed the Mangalsutra and Kumkum on the side table and started chanting the mantras. “I would have just signed the papers. But from what I gather, Anita would love to have a Pundit shower blessings upon us. And since I am a member of a family from Kerala we don’t need a fire to solemnize our wedding. All I need is a Mangalsutra and a pinch of Kumkum and even
those are avoidable.” Salim stated with a cool composure, but some part of him wanted to have that basic part of tradition covered, at least for his mothers’ and families’ sake.
The advocates looked at the door expecting Milind to come back as they realized this madness could only be stopped by him.
“So let’s begin!” Salim said.
“But don’t you want to wait for the person who just left?” Pundit ji asked, knowing Salim was not going to listen to a single word any one of them would utter.
“Pundit ji! Milind cannot change my decision.” Salim took the papers, and without a moments’ hesitation he signed and passed the paper to Anita. Anita accepted the papers and signed where he indicated with a shaking hand. Giving the papers to the advocates, Salim pulled her to his side. She sat down, her eyes wide. Pundit ji gave the Mangalsutra to Salim.
“STOP!” Milind shouted from the door. Without heeding Milind, Salim tied the Mangalsutra and Pundit ji doubtfully stretched the Kumkum box towards Salim. He took a pinch of Kumkum and applied it on Anita’s forehead.
“Good God!” Milind fumed and cursed out loud. He walked towards the duo and almost snatched Anita from Salim’s hold.
“What is this? Some stupid soap opera our cousins watch? This is not the way to get married, Bro!” Milind shouted.
Salim leaned back on the hospital bed as if it was a normal day in his life.
“Bro, are you listening?” Milind asked, aggravated, and without caring for Salim’s broken shoulder Milind shook it. It was Anita who winced. She came forward and slowly released his hold. She motioned Milind to come with her. Infuriated and angry for having gone out to pick the call, he went with Anita. She made him sit on the couch. The three advocates moved away giving them space. Anita knew this was no less than a Bollywood movie being enacted right before them but they seemed to keep their expressions on check. She took the note pad and wrote.
‘Milind, he is doing this probably in pain and anger of having lost Ananya. I can understand this pain. This will soon wear off. At least I know what is happening. Once he realizes what he has done in the state of anger and hatred, he can easily get out of this without much fuss or adverse impact. I am going through my own pain so may be more than anyone else I can understand his need to lash out. So please! He is already hurt and he needs someone to comfort him. From what I saw between you both, you can help him. And as soon as he comes to his senses we can all forget this happened.’
Milind read the note and looked at the woman sitting in front of him. He had been surrounded by strong and inspiring women all his life. His family was full of them. And now life had thrown another one into the mayhem of Salim’s life. He looked at Salim who was leaning back, his jaw muscles twitching. Milind felt his anger rise. ‘Good. He should suffer. He has no right to play with anyone like this.’ He thought. Milind realized it wasn’t as if Anita couldn’t walk away at such a proposal. She just wanted to help his stupid cousin. A guardian angel was watching over his cousin or Anita could have easily thrown Salim into jail for such a stupid idea. Unwillingly Milind took the papers from the advocates and signed as a witness and Advocate Shukla signed as the other. It was all done. Milind walked over to Anita and took her hands in his.
“Are you ok?” He asked.
She gave weak smile and nodded. He gave her a hug, patting her back.
The door opened and Surendra frowned seeing Anita in a stranger’s arms.
“Anita!” Surendra’s voice echoed in the room.
Milind’s eyes shone with mischief. He slowly eased her away but still held her hand.
Milind realized Anita was wearing Kumkum and Mangalsutra which were worn only by married women.
Surendra rushed to him and held Milind by his collar.
“Do you have a solid reason for what you have done? She just lost her sister yesterday.” Surendra shouted.
Milind slowly loosened Surendra’s hands from his collar.
“You must be Surendra.” Milind smiled. “You are holding the wrong collar.”
Surendra frowned and looked at Anita. Taking a deep breath Anita told him about her marriage to Salim, though she avoided giving the details of the legal agreement. Surendra’s face turned red. Instead of speaking aloud he spoke to her in sign language. ‘You have no clue what you have done, he said. I know you are mourning but this is stupidity. Why did you have to be married to take care of him? Do you have any clue what you have done? You could have had a beautiful life. I know you feel dead without Ananya. I feel her absence too. You both were the only people I could call family. You deserved a beautiful life.’ Surendra paused, the suffering obvious in his eyes. ‘Now I lost you as well.’ Surendra finished and turned towards Salim.
“If you make her cry even a single tear, you will never even know what went through you.” Surendra challenged Salim.
“Are you talking about my wife?” Salim challenged back.
Surendra ground his teeth and prepared to leave, then stopped by the door.
“If I don’t hear from you even for a single day, I will be knocking at your door.” He paused to see if Anita heard. “Did you hear me?” Surendra asked and she nodded.
“I will visit you regularly until you go to your new home.” Saying this Surendra left.
Milind saw that Anita was frowning. She had not thought of moving. And this move was going to be huge. She will have to shift all the way to Bangalore. Anita slid into a couch, her eyes closed. Milind could see her slowly accepting what she had let herself into. His eyes moved towards Salim. He hoped Salim won’t ruin this innocent girl’s life. Would Salim be able to love another woman?
“Anita!” Salim’s curt voice woke her up. She saw that he was in immense pain. She pressed the button to call for help and soon a nurse came in. She checked Salim and seeing him sweat profusely, the nurse called the doctor. The doctor checked Salim and told her Salim needed surgery. The doctor gave Salim a painkiller while Anita wrote a note and asked him to go ahead with the preparation; that she would ask Milind to finish the paperwork, as soon as he woke up. Anita slowly caressed Salim’s forehead with her thumb when his eyes flew open and looked at her. Salim was about to say something when he flinched and clutched her wrist in pain. She gasped, but let him hold her. Soon he drifted off to sleep, his hands gripping hers.
She took a deep breath. She didn’t know how long she sat that way. She was startled when she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to find Milind towering above her, his eyes slightly swollen with sleep.
She smiled and he slowly eased her hands from Salim’s grip. She told him about Salim’s pain by writing on a notepad and how the Doctor wanted to do a surgery. Milind asked her to rest and went out to speak to the doctor.
~~~*~~~
Present day, Bangalore
As the days passed, Salim and Anita set themselves into a routine. She was mostly invisible; he never knew where she was until she miraculously turned up at the time of his food and medicine. There were times when he really lost it and would taunt and trouble her but Anita always stayed calm. One day as Anita gave Salim his medicine her phone rang. She usually got messages. “Come for video chat, now!” Surendra sounded angry.
Anita frowned. Surendra had never spoken to her like that. Something was wrong.
Surprised at Anita’s request for access to a computer, Salim switched it on. He would have left her alone but he just sat in a recliner in the study, an odd curiosity gripping him. Who would chat with her? Of course Surendra! But why would he?
The moment she went online on Skype the call came in.
“Enlighten me, Anita, why was your husband so interested in checking about your and Ananya’s property?” Surendra boomed.
Her confusion gone, she started explaining. She didn’t want Surendra to misunderstand Salim. Both of them meant a lot to her and she wanted them to be on good terms.
“You knew about it?” Surendra’s face was grim as he looked behind Anita.
Before she realiz
ed what was happening, she felt Salim’s hand on her shoulder. She stifled a gasp when his hands slid from her shoulder to the base of her neck, holding her in his arms and pulling her to him. She tried to keep a blank face but their image on the screen made her aware of all the hypersensitive nerve ends.
“Surendra ji, Anita knew. Did you think I would go behind her back? I wanted to rule out all suspicions regarding Ananya’s death.”
Anita tried not to be surprised at his disclosure.
“You suspected her?” Surendra was struggling to control his anger. “Then why the hell did you marry her, you . . .”
“Be careful of the words you use in front of my wife.” Salim’s voice held a dangerous edge but his hands moved to caress Anita’s long slender neck and with his thumb, he tilted her head slightly and rested his chin on her shoulder.
Surendra cursed, frustrated.
“Mr. Surendra, I no longer suspect her. Nor did I suspect her when I married her. I just wanted someone who would know the pain I am going through, and who could be a better choice than Anita? After all they were two parts of a whole.”
“Do you hear yourself? Did you marry her to share your sorrow? God damn it! You don’t marry for that reason, you moron.”
“I did warn you about how you should speak in front of my wife. I gave you my reasons only because you were her guardian. Now that was my last explanation.”
Salim’s hands were sending entirely new sensations through Anita’s body. She could feel her body reacting in odd ways.
His breath was caressing Anita’s skin as he spoke. “Surendra there is nothing I am hiding.”
“Oh yeah? I had my own findings done and know the clause you have added as a prenuptial agreement. Is that the transparency you spoke about? “
Anita didn’t want to speak about the agreement. Her thoughts were going haywire with Salim’s hands on her neck. But she needed to set the record straight. “Surendra, I knew what I was signing on.” Anita signaled.
Yours To Love Yours To Take Page 4