The Runaway Bridegroom

by Venkatraman, Sundari

  Samrat rubbed his unshaven jaw, thinking hard. It wasn’t that he was confused - only how much to tell the client. Both the Maheshwaris seemed quite smart and that’s why he decided to give them the full truth. “Well, presuming that Veerendra is alive and hasn’t left the country, it shouldn’t be too difficult to trace him. I can probably do that in 3-4 days if he’s definitely in Delhi. I’ll search here first as your astrologer is so sure about it. If otherwise—” he shrugged, “only time will tell. Either way, I’ll give you my answer latest within a week.”

  Lakshman nodded his head, quite confident now that the search was in capable hands. He smiled one of his rare smiles before saying, “Would you like to dine with us?”

  Samrat shook his head, a polite smile on his face. “Thank you, but no. As my life’s going to be quite hectic over the next week, I’d rather spend today evening with my wife and kids,” he said before taking his leave.

  Ram and Lakshman agreed that Samrat was probably the best guy for finding Veerendra and went down to dinner, satisfied that they had done the right thing.

  THE NEXT MORNING FOUND SAMRAT at Chanda’s college and later at her hostel. He was out to check all the people that she associated with. He had decided to go on the astrologer’s hunch that Chanda spent a lot of time in probably the same premises as her errant husband. He knew that the search wasn’t going to be easy as the chances were bright that Veerendra Singh Choudhry had changed his name as well as his surname. Then there was this problem of not knowing how he looked. A grin spread over Samrat’s face as he was thrilled to note that this was probably the most intriguing case he had had to solve in the fifteen years of his detective career. He so enjoyed a challenge.

  RAM AND LAKSHMAN REACHED Chanda’s temporary office. RS Software Pvt. Ltd. was on the seventh floor of the building. They waited at the reception after giving their names. They had told the receptionist Ruma that they were there to meet Ranveer Singh and they didn’t have an appointment. Since Ranveer was quite informal and didn’t mind meeting people who popped up at his office some times, the receptionist called his room. It was 9.30 am and Ruma was confident that her boss must already be in his office. The phone rang and rang and no one picked up. With a small frown on her face, Ruma had an office boy bring tea to the two men waiting to meet Ranveer.

  She rang a couple of more times more and not getting through, Ruma called Shikha’s cabin with reluctance. She did her best to keep out of Ranveer’s secretary’s way. The older woman had a lashing tongue and Ruma wasn’t one who was keen to be at the receiving end. Shikha picked up the phone immediately and barked, “Yes?”

  “Hi Shikha, there are two guys waiting at the reception - Ram and Lakshman Maheshwari - to meet Ranveer. They don’t have an appointment, it seems. Should I—”

  “Young or old?” barked Shikha again while she frowned at her computer screen.

  “Huh?” said Ruma, not sure that she had heard Shikha right.

  “Are you dumb or what? I asked you whether the guys you’re talking about are young in age or old,” drawled Shikha, sarcasm dripping in her voice as she dragged out the syllables as if she was talking to a retarded child.

  Ruma blanched. With great difficulty, she kept her face straight as she replied, “Why don’t you get your butt out here and find out for yourself?” before disconnecting the line. While she had been tempted to bang the phone down, she didn’t want to create a bad impression on the hunks who sat waiting to meet her boss. She gave them a sweet smile as she said, “Ranveer’s secretary should be here to meet you soon.”

  Shikha dropped everything and got up to go meet the two men who had arrived without an appointment. She arrived at the reception and ignored Ruma royally and looked directly at the sofa. Realising that she must be Ranveer’s secretary, both Ram and Lakshman got up to their feet. Shikha had a difficult time keeping her jaw from dropping as she eyed the tall, dark and handsome specimens in front of her. Two of them, for crying out loud! They were young and they were dressed in expensive gear - designer jeans and branded shirts. Had her luck changed for the better, after all? She conveniently didn’t consider the fact that they must be younger than her.

  “Hello!” cooed Shikha, setting Ruma’s nerves on edge. She ignored the threesome as she sat down and fed in some phone numbers into her computer. Shikha shook hands with the two men, fluttering her eyelashes at both of them. She invited them to sit on the sofa before sitting on the adjacent one herself. Crossing her legs to show them the best view of their length, she asked sweetly, “Was it something urgent that you needed to see Ranveer about? I’m afraid he’s out today.” She didn’t want to tell them that he probably wouldn’t be there the whole week. If they came again tomorrow, she would get another chance to meet them. In fact, she would be better prepared and dressed to suit the occasion. Today, she hadn’t bothered as there was no one to impress, or so she had thought.

  “Should I give you an appointment for tomorrow?” When Ram Maheshwari agreed, she told them to come over the next day at 12.30 pm, pretending to check her cell phone for Ranveer’s appointment list.

  Disappointed they couldn’t meet Ranveer, the brothers gave Shikha a vague smile and turned to leave. As they moved towards the lift, Lakshman suddenly walked over to the receptionist and said softly, “Bye Ruma! We’ll see you tomorrow.” Ruma looked at the handsome man in front of her in surprise. Did she hear right? Ranveer wasn’t there the whole week. She had just received an email from Abhimanyu that said so. The mail had been sent to everyone in the office. Then how come Shikha had given them an appointment? Ruma decided it wouldn’t be right on her part to say anything. She nodded to Lakshman, who waved before leaving. Ram watched on in astonishment. His silent brother appeared to find the receptionist attractive. But knowing Lakshman the way he did, Ram decided not to say anything just then.

  After the men left and Shikha had gone back inside, Ruma called Abhimanyu’s extension. She knew that he was the man in charge when Ranveer wasn’t in the office. She explained to him about Ram and Lakshman’s visit and how Shikha had given them an appointment to meet Ranveer the next day. “Did you say Maheshwari?” asked Abhimanyu, his brain going into overdrive. While the whole office worked on a first-name basis, Abhimanyu tended to remember people by their whole names. Maheshwari had struck a bell. When Ruma answered in the affirmative, Abhimanyu gave her a couple of instructions before disconnecting the call.

  Where had he heard the surname before? More like he had read it somewhere. It took Abhimanyu exactly three minutes to arrive at an answer. Chanda’s surname was Maheshwari. Abhimanyu’s photographic memory recalled her bio-data. Under family background, she had mentioned that she had four elder brothers. The chances were high that the two guys who had visited their office to meet Ranveer without an appointment, were her brothers. Abhimanyu put two and two together and arrived at an exact four.

  Chanda had taken leave this week citing a family emergency. If there was one, then what were two members of the same family doing here in Delhi while she had been retained at home? Abhimanyu left his work alone and sat down to think, his logical brain going over the situation, bit by bit. One conclusion he arrived at immediately. Things were not as they should be. Something was definitely not fitting in. He decided to meet the Maheshwari brothers the next day when they arrived. No sense in hitting the panic button by trying to get in touch with them by phone today itself. Yeah, that would have been possible as all visitors had to leave their names, phone numbers and contact addresses.

  He called Ruma and told her to inform him the moment they arrived the next day. As an afterthought, he asked, “Did they leave a contact address?” Ruma checked the visitor’s book and told him, “Yeah, of course. They are staying at Hotel Jewel Palace.”

  Abhimanyu thanked Ruma before disconnecting the call. It looked like his guess had been bang on. He sincerely hoped for Ranveer’s sake that there was no trouble afoot. Ranveer must have left that morning to go to his village. Abhimanyu decided to
find out all details before contacting his friend and boss. No sense in bothering him just now. Abhimanyu went back to work realising that there was nothing to it but to wait till the next day when the Maheshwari brothers came back for their appointment.

  Thirty-two

  Chanda pressed her soft lips to Ranveer’s rough cheek as she bent towards him as he lay on the bed. She simply loved the tingly sensation on her sensitive mouth as she kissed the man she had fallen in love with. She knew that he wasn’t sleeping while he pretended to. She didn’t mind as it gave her a sense of freedom that would have not been possible if his eyes were open.

  Chanda’s hands ran through the silky strands of his hair while she sat down next to him on the edge of the bed. Ranveer moved unobtrusively to accommodate her. He kept his eyes closed with difficulty as he felt her fingers massage his scalp. He felt the feather touch of her lips all over his face as she explored it inch by inch. He felt impatient for her to reach his lips. It became too much when she ignored his mouth to place hers on his chin. There was only so much he could endure.

  Chanda was startled when Ranveer’s strong arms suddenly wrapped themselves around her as he captured her lips in a devouring kiss. He was thoroughly aroused and wanted more than her playful pecks.

  He pulled her quite easily across his chest without breaking the lip-lock and held her body close to his. Chanda shut her eyes tightly the moment she realised that Ranveer had taken over. She felt too shy to look at him. Moreover, she was quite dazed at the awareness that spread over her body. Her breasts were crushed against his hard, wide chest and they felt bombarded with sensations that were quite new to her. But she loved them all.

  If Ranveer held her close, Chanda clung to him, her legs tangled with his while he kissed her thoroughly. His large hands were on her back. While his left arm held her close, his right hand moved in a caress as he traced the contours of her slim waist and lush bottom. Chanda was lost in a rosy world when she heard a knock on the door. She froze in Ranveer’s arms as he continued to kiss her. Couldn’t he hear that someone was at the door?

  Chanda tried to pull out of his arms, but Ranveer refused to let go of her. The person at the door was getting impatient as they knocked loudly and incessantly. Chanda pushed Ranveer away and got out of the bed. She ran her hand over her hair, pulled down the kurti that had ridden up and walked to the door.

  Chanda opened the door a couple of inches to see her father-in-law standing outside. She shut it immediately and leaned against it. What was Surendraji doing here? Chanda panicked. It was one thing to decide that she would divorce Veerendra and get married to Ranveer - presuming he wanted to wed her too. It was an entirely different matter that her father-in-law found her in the same room with a stranger while she was still married to his son. But why had he come here?

  “Chanda, we know you’re there. Open the door, will you?”

  What? That was her father. Her father was also there with Surendraji. Chanda turned to look at the bed. Ranveer was lying there, his eyes closed as if in sleep. Was he mad? Chanda most definitely didn’t want him to meet her father just now.

  Before she could do anything, a third voice joined the melee. “Chanda, open the door Beta.” That was her mother.

  Where the hell was Lakshman? Or Ram for that matter? They were supposed to help her out. That’s the reason she had come here to Mount Abu. To wait here till everything was set right. She didn’t want to face Veerendra’s father at this juncture. It was his son who had run away and there was no need for her to be afraid of him. That’s what Lakshman had told her that day. But why had her parents brought the old man here along with them? Chanda was in a fix as she didn’t want to talk about Ranveer to her parents just now, most definitely not with her father-in-law hovering in the background.

  The door rattled on its hinges as three people knocked on it now. Not able to wait any longer, Chanda opened the door halfway to find the hotel boy outside.

  “Memsaab! You have to get ready for the trek. We tried to call you on your phone, but you didn’t pick up. I came here to call you as you have barely half an hour to get ready.”

  Chanda stared at him, her black eyes confused. She turned to look at her bed to see no one there. The bedspread and comforter were in a mess as if she had tossed and turned throughout the night. Had she been dreaming?

  “Memsaab!” called the boy once again, worried about the dazed look on the guest’s face. He wondered whether what he said had registered with her. She had only requested for an alarm service that morning.

  Chanda nodded her head much to his relief. “I’ll be ready,” she said before closing the door behind him.

  Luckily, the geyser heated up water quite fast and she had a quick shower before wearing warm clothes. She carried an extra shawl and sweater in her backpack and ensured that she had a water bottle along. Locking the door behind her, Chanda ran down the staircase to join the knot of people waiting at the reception. Thank God there were still three others who were yet to come down. That gave her a chance to have some hot tea that was being served. Thank God for small mercies! That dream had been so authentic, not just Ranveer and his lovemaking. Her parents and father-in-law had appeared real too. A small shudder shook Chanda’s slender frame as she held the hot cup of tea in both her hands, willing it to warm her chilled body.

  RANVEER REACHED AJMER THAT NIGHT and checked into Mansingh Palace. The luxurious room was lost on the distracted guest. Throughout the day, he had been thinking of Chanda. He so hoped that she was attracted to him as much as he was to her. But just now, he was unable to quite believe it. How could she not contact him? She had mentioned a family emergency to Parth. Then, obviously nothing was wrong with her. Why had she switched her phone off in that case? Ranveer refused to think that she may not be interested in him. It had been obvious that she was an innocent when he kissed her. Why would she return his kisses so fervently if she hadn’t wanted to get involved with him?

  Ranveer’s mind went round and round in circles as he thought of different reasons for her silence. Finally, as he went down to dinner, he decided to concentrate on his visit home rather than the woman he had fallen for. There, he had admitted it finally. He had fallen for Chanda. And he wanted to marry her.

  Ranveer went to Sipehsalar, the luxury bar at the hotel. He sat back in a comfortable chair in one corner and ordered for a Johnny Walker Black Label whiskey on the rocks. While he waited for his drink, he thought of his grandfather. The old man and Ranveer had been very close. While Daadaji loved all his grandchildren, Veerendra had been his favourite, more so as he had been the youngest.

  A sudden thought struck Ranveer. Will his Daadaji be alive? Oh my God! He had never thought of that all these years. In fact, over the past fourteen years, Ranveer had done his best not to think about his family; except for that one visit. But he didn’t want to think about that now. Getting in touch with them hadn’t been an option as he would have been stuck with a wife that he most definitely hadn’t wanted. They hadn’t left him much of a choice. While Ranveer regretted breaking off ties with his family, he was glad that he had found a way out of that marriage. And better yet, Dave and Jane had educated him. He wouldn’t be what he was today if he had stayed back in his village. He would probably be a farmer like his brother Jeetendra. He wondered whether Jeetendra had kids by now. He must have surely, Ranveer answered his own question.

  His thoughts moved to his father and mother. He wondered whether they had grown very old. If he remembered right, his mother was barely eighteen years older than him, while his father was ten years older than her. That made Sona forty-five and Surendra fifty-five. Ranveer couldn’t recall his grandmother’s features clearly. She had talked very less and had always remained in the background. But then, she had passed on immediately after his wedding to Chanda. That much he knew and he refused to feel guilty about it. Ranveer’s sister Sulekha had been a year elder to him and had been married when she was nine. He didn’t remember her much either. He had be
en quite close to Jeetendra who was four years older and the first born.

  Scenes from his childhood came in flashes as Ranveer allowed his mind to recall his life before his marriage, after all these years. He remembered playing a lot. It had been fun in the village and the young lads usually had no responsibilities. That was until they got married of course. He recalled his bitterness when Jeetendra had married Meena and stopped coming out to play.

  Jaggi! Jaggi had been a close friend. In fact, Ranveer had misused their friendship quite badly. He had spent more than a year mentally apologising to his best friend for having placed him in a quandary. He wondered whether Jaggi still lived in Jastwantpura or had moved on. His father had been the local blacksmith and there had been vague talks of moving to the city as business had been quite bad in those days.

  Ranveer looked down at his glass suddenly to realise that it was his third drink. Not wanting to imbibe more, he finished the whiskey and got up to go to the restaurant. He opted for the Italian buffet that was available at Sheesh Mahal. A live ghazal programme was on while a local artiste entertained the guests to popular numbers sung by Jagjit Singh and Pankaj Udhas. The soothing music barely registered with Ranveer who walked directly to the buffet spread.

  Carrying a plate filled with pasta in tomato sauce, fresh salad topped with a dollop of onion sauce and crisp golden garlic bread, Ranveer found a table for two and sat there all by himself. While he had his dinner without tasting it, his mind wandered once again to the family that he had left behind at Jaswantpura. He wondered how they would greet him. Will they be too annoyed? Of course they would be. He only hoped that they would forgive him. Ranveer didn’t feel too apologetic as he knew that he would do exactly the same if the circumstances repeated themselves once again. He hadn’t wanted to be tied down to a child wife at thirteen years of age and had found the only way out that had been possible.