VIBGYOR

by Keerthana Jayaraj

  “I am an only child too.”

  There was such bitterness in Shiva’s voice that both Dan and Jacob looked startled. “As for being whiny….You don’t do that when a cane leers at you from the wall.” “Oh!” “I used to write little stories then too. There was this angel…I named her Miss. Pink. She flies around at night and punishes horrid parents who beat their kids for silly things - like…you know…laughing too loudly or humming a song or writing silly things…” Shiva looked rather wistful. “During some nights I dreamed that she came to me and stroked me till the bruises stopped hurting. She had this magic wand wand too…It turned into a cane when she wanted to punish and the prettiest chocolate box when she wanted to make someone smile. I drew almost fifty cartoons about her before my Dad found my sketch book and tore it up.”

  “Why would he do that?” said Dan bluntly. “That was not kind of him at all!” Shiva appeared not to hear. The ghost of a rebellious little girl glistened in her eyes. “To him it was not worthwhile.”

  I remembered the man’s unkind sneers at his daughter’s choice of profession and her passion for writing. Not a surprise at all. The delicious idea of giving him a few smacks went through my head.

  “I wonder…”

  “Yes, Goldy?” I asked, turning to my partner, who had her eyes fixed on Shivani. “I wonder if there is an award for the worst father on earth.”

  Black and white…White and black…I laughed at her naive remark.

  “There are sure to be other eligible candidates. Don’t talk like a human, Goldy!” “What is that supposed to mean?”

  “It just means…It just means we can and should be able to see the larger world…The bigger picture.” Oh my! Now that I think about it…The more time I spend in the human world, the more philosophical I was getting. The idea didn’t thrill me much though. The philosophies were anything but pleasant.

  A deep resonating voice effectively put an end to our conversation. I half-thought a fellow spirit was in with us but no…It was simply Shivani,, her deep brown eyes fixed on the sheaf of papers in her hand. On second thought, it wasn’t Shiva. It was the nameless heroine of her novel - bitter, frustrated and rebellious. Her eyes flashed as she read the beginning, her hand twitched as the woman with murder in her heart reached for the torch and at the moment of the gruesome deed, her voice lashed out like a whip, making poor Dan jump.

  “Poor, plain, talentless girl, aren’t you?” Jacob laughed softly. “Poor plain soul unable to do anything worthwhile.” Shiva went red. “It isn’t very good.”

  “And to think I actually pinned you down as a sensible young woman.”

  “I’m having second thoughts about that as well.” Dan joined in. “You, my friend, are a big…no, the biggest idiot I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing!” Shiva couldn’t help laughing. It set Goldy off and I joined in too. Really! How could one help laughing around Jacob and Dan? They were perfectly jolly, friendly and natural.

  “I wouldn’t say that Dan. The person who filled your thick head with such idiotic ideas is a bigger idiot.” said Jacob, smiling teasingly.

  “Idiots. Plural.”

  The smiles stopped suddenly as if someone switched them off. A bewildered Dan stared at Shivani, shocked by the hurt in her eyes and voice. “I presume my ex-fiancee is one of the idiots?” Jacob said breezily. “But I wouldn’t take her seriously. She has the knowledge of a first grader when it comes to literature or science or…most subjects on earth except…”

  “Fashion, gossip and the latest gadgets. Don’t I know it!” said Shivani with a sigh. “Yet she could be so lovely…so…”

  “I don’t see why we should waste all our time and spoil it too by discussing Anasuya.” Dan interrupted hotly. “Appalling what she did at the restaurant…I don’t Anasuya.” Dan interrupted hotly. “Appalling what she did at the restaurant…I don’tVIBGYOR know why I am surprised. She turned up at the hospital when you were…and dared to break up with you. If I had been there when it happened instead of seeing you in a terrible state afterwards….”

  Dan went red. Apparently he realized he had said a little too much. Too much… Those were the words all right. And here I was thinking my opinion of Anasuya couldn’t possibly get any worse. Goldy snorted in disgust.

  “Spoilt, selfish, heartless brat!”

  “She broke up with you in the hospital…No…”

  Shiva’s eyes were full of horror as she gazed at Jacob. “Surely…She isn’t as horrid as all that, is she?”

  Jacob sat like a man in a dream, his listless eyes full of pain, tears slowly trickling down them. A white faced Dan rushed to him and took his hand. “Hey…I’m sorry!” He said wildly. “I’m really sorry!”

  “Jacob?” Shiva laid a hand on his shoulder “Are you alright?”

  Jacob appeared not to hear them, his eyes staring straight at the wall. I moved towards him, alarmed by his pale face and quivering lips. Shiva looked dead pale. Her hands shaking as she she feebly called out his name.

  “Jacob! Jacob!”

  Dan shook him hard, tears streaming down his face. “Jacob!”

  Jacob’s expression cleared. Colour rushed back to his face, making him look rather red. “I’m ok…” he said, a bit too brightly. “It’s…”

  Dan sighed so loudly it startled both Shiva and Jacob.

  “Whatever possessed me to mention that awful day in the hospital! What…”

  “It’s all right, my dear man.” Jacob smiled a little. “I really shouldn’t go batty like this every time something upsets me.” “You nearly scared me to death.”

  Shivani smiled, wiping off her tears.

  The awful day in the hospital…So something had happened after Anasuya visited at the hospital. And I had pretty good idea what. The very thought made me shudder and a dull throbbing started in my head again.

  “We have to find that witch.” Goldy muttered darkly. “And…Any ideas?”

  I glanced first at Jacob and then at Shivani and clenched my fists.

  “Plenty!”

  No matter that my head was hurting again. No matter it was hurting more every minute. All that mattered was finding Anasuya and teaching her an unforgettable lesson.

  “If you don’t mind me asking…and of course if you wouldn’t think me horribly interfering…”

  “You want to know what exactly happened in the hospital.” said Jacob, calmly. “Of course…”

  “There’s really…” Dan began but Jacob cut him short.

  “You rather gave the show away, my man.” Jacob smiled. “You’ve given the young lady a bad case of curiosity.” Shivani laughed too.

  “But if you’d rather not…”

  “Oh no!” Jacob said, leaning back comfortably. “It’s quite a story…You may find it useful.” I noticed that his smile stayed in his mouth. His eyes still looked misty and miserable. Anger against the horrible Anasuya, who didn’t hesitate a minute before striking a fallen man, hit me in the head like a sledgehammer. It was a wonder I didn’t cry out at the horrible bout of pain. At my side Goldy stamped her feet.

  “Bloody two faced…”

  “You aren’t beginning a headache now, are you?” I asked slyly, casting a sideways glance at her. Goldy punched me playfully.

  “I am not as batty…unlike some people.” She shot back.

  We both laughed out loud - so loudly that we almost missed the beginning of Jacob’s story. “It was a week after I was admitted at the hospital. My aunt and her daughters had come and gone - satisfied that I was probably not going to make it.” Jacob snorted, a smile spreading on his face. Shiva simply looked horrified - both at his candidness and his heartless relations. Dan gritted his teeth.

  “I knew they were no good the moment she started on her sympathy talk. Tosh!” He “I knew they were no good the moment she started on her sympathy talk. Tosh!” He made a face before continuing. “She had the eyes of a butcher.”

  “You should have heard her speak about you.” Jacob’s eyes twink
led. “He looks like a thug on the street and his eyes…so red…Don’t keep him around son or he’ll cut your throat.”

  “Said that, did she?” Dan scoffed. “I would say she lives by the rules of the street herself. I know the type. Smile and talk compromises and at the last moment…A gun is pulled out and…BOOM.”

  Jacob smiled at his friend before continuing. “Dan had gone out to get some medicines when she turned up. I didn’t hear her come in, only…only when she touched my hand did I realize she was there. Her voice was shaking…I thought she was scared and worried.” Jacob paused and gritted his teeth. “I thought she came to say she would stand by me and…but she didn’t. She…” His voice began to shake. “She said she was sorry that this happened but now that it happened, things wouldn’t really work out for us and…she…she couldn’t be with a man who requires a servant or nurse more that a wife.”

  There was silence when he finished. Shiva looked at Dan, who nodded grimly. She placed a trembling hand on Jacob’s. “She is a pathetic excuse of a woman.” She said, with feeling. “Maybe she’ll end up in a wheelchair one day and then…she’ll have all the time in the world to regret everything she said and did. Don’t worry about it.”

  “He never spoke a word to anyone after that for a week. Kept saying all sorts of strange things to himself…and…the doctors were worried. I mean…he had been in a terrible state before…all those nightmares about dead kids and…not eating or drinking unless he was forced to and half the time they had to force him to take meds and…then came this…”

  Shiva looked at Dan, her eyes simmering with rage. The heat I felt coming off her, blended with my own rage. An orange came out of Shivani and joined us, just as she exploded.

  “She did that to a person suffering from PTSD? Did she actually come and whip a broken person with her poisonous tongue?” “You bet she did!” said Dan. “And if I had been there…I would…” he cracked his knuckles menacingly. “And frankly, I half thought of finding her house out by myself and giving her a piece of my mind and if I hadn’t been so worried about Jacob I would have too…hang on…” He paused, looking at Shiva curiously. “I never told you that.”

  Shiva hesitated for a moment but then, with an air of calm determination she broke into speech.

  “That’s what they told me at the hospital. I went without food for five days and I could rarely get out out bed and there were these horrible nightmares…Horrible horrible nightmares that kept me awake at night…And there were times I thought I could see her. Shakti…” Tears brimmed in Shiva’s eyes but they didn’t fall. I kind of felt she wasn’t in the room anymore. “She was calling me…Calling me to join her…”

  For one moment I thought she was going to break down completely but it didn’t happen. She simply bit her lip extra hard and said. “That’s how I know.”

  “Who is…”

  “Dan!”

  Jacob said sharply, effectively snapping Dan’s mouth shut. “I think we’ve spent enough time discussing our unpleasant condition.” “I agree its not exactly the most inspiring of topics.” Shiva smiled.

  “Any idea what this PTSD is?” Goldy asked.

  “I have an idea.”

  Although I was pretty confused by the doctor-lingo, from Shiva’s and Jacob’s experiences, I had an inkling of the kind of disease they were talking about and it wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t bound to be pretty when your own brain becomes your personal torture chamber. Add a venomous snake like Anasuya to the equation and…

  The grandfather clock clanged unpleasantly, its poorly maintained mechanism groaning and moaning. One O’clock. The subject of the conversation, with little effort turned to lunch. Jacob was all for ordering a good lunch for their guest but Shiva insisted that she be allowed to help Dan to cook or heat up leftovers.

  “No…We don’t cook that much. There’s nothing in the fridge.” Dan had turned as red as a beetroot at the word ‘leftovers’. In a flash it came to me. The leftovers in the fridge was bound to be the practically untouched lunch Shiva cooked the other day. Of course…I explained the whole thing to Goldy just as Shiva opened the fridge. There was the sounds as things were moved. A smiling Shivani emerged a moment later, two trays full of her cooking.

  “And to think I wondered why ‘leftovers’ made a person blush.”

  “You made far too much.” said Jacob twinkling. “Far too much for two lonely people.”

  “Nice game, Sherlock!” Shiva shot back. “Yes…I know you two aren’t greedy pigs but even pigs with moderate or small appetites would have eaten something.” “What if I said we wanted to enjoy your so excellent cooking in your company?” “You’ll be the clever cat who always lands on four legs.”

  The two burst out laughing.

  “Forgiven?”

  “Why don’t we talk about that while we eat?”

  Dan and Shivani ran about setting the table and heating the leftovers. Jacob, his keen ears alert, sat still, laughing when Dan dropped three plates and five spoons, making a terrific clatter. He laughed even harder when Dan, embarrassed, commented that he was getting clumsier.

  “That is unfortunate, for both of us.” The lunch itself proved to be entertaining. Dan, as if to make up for his ‘clumsiness’, kept a flow of bright conversation, full of endless jokes and one-liners. Shivani and Jacob countered enthusiastically, keeping the environment nice and pleasant. PSBD’s or PFGD’s or whatever it was was entirely forgotten. Shiva’s cellphone wailed three times but she barely glanced at it. Perhaps it was because the hellhouse didn’t appeal to her at the moment. Or maybe the word ‘Dad’ and Raghunath’s smiling face flashing on the screen had something to do with it.

  Only after comfortably washing her hands would she pick it up and even then too she wouldn’t press ‘call back’. She simply dialed ‘Home’.

  “Mom…It’s Shiva.” She said mechanically. “I’m at a friend’s and will be home soon.”

  “What?”

  Shiva’s eyes widened. Both me and Goldy moved towards the phone. Something was not right…Shiva was almost burning with anger.

  “They want to see you and if it is agreeable…”

  The soft voice of Shiva’s mother sounded rather helpless. And pleading…Hmmm…I couldn’t get anything in it to be mad about. “I am not going to be passed like a…”

  Shiva snarled. “No again and again…”

  “Are they talking about what I think they’re talking about?” Goldy eyed me apprehensively. “But your father…”

  “Tell him to go to hell!” Shiva cried. “No Mom…This is not going to happen. I am coming home and I will tell him this in person.”

  Great! Another row on the schedule. Another wrestling match. Had Shiva’s father gone mad? The girl had only been up and about for a few days. What in the world is he thinking? And what the hell kind of person does things like this?

  “Shakti…Are they talking about what I think they’re talking about?” Goldy’s voice piqued up again.

  “Have you seen a house full of oranges?”

  “What! Hell no!”

  “Get ready for it.”

  ‘

  CHAPTER 14

  No…The house wasn’t full of oranges. It looked as calm and contrite as a proper ‘family home’ should be. To say the truth, the sight disappointed me a little. I was really looking forward to some excitement. Goldy didn’t look that happy either. The house of oranges…I don’t thing she appreciated me breaking the promise. She kept glaring me as we walked through the front door, rather like a pouting child.

  “No Oranges…Not a single one…”

  She sighed when we reached the living room. “I thought we were supposed to stop a fight.”

  “The gladiator isn’t here, my dear.” I laughed, pointing at the empty car porch. When the master is away, peace dances in the house. At least in this particular house. “So he’s going to come with…”

  “A suitable groom, or so he thinks for Shivani.”

  Coming bac
k to the irritating question of why he should do that when his daughter was just beginning a new life…And to the greater question of why he was so anxious to get his daughter out of the house…I had no answers. The only thing I could think of that people were so eager to throw away was garbage.

  There was the sound of opening gates. Two sleek cars pulled in - one was Shiva’s Dad’s car, in its full shiny luxurious splendor. The other was a larger one - all cushiony and cosy inside. Probably even had a price tag larger than the other car.

  The doors opened in unision. Shiva’s Dad stepped out, beaming, not a speck of dirt marring his coal black suit.

  “Devi…They’re here.”

  No flurry of footsteps. No welcoming, small timid voice. In fact, no sign of the woman at all. Come to think of it…Why the heck was the house as silent as a crypt? “Devi!”

  Ouch! The sharpness nearly pricked me…And if it pricked me, where in the hell was that woman? I mean…Wasn’t she supposed to jump up and come running out? “DEVI!” A little company of people hovered awkwardly in the carporch. I counted two whiteheads, one greyhead and one single handsome young man. He was dressed up handsomely but simply in a pure white shirt and light blue jeans. His untidy light handsomely but simply in a pure white shirt and light blue jeans. His untidy light

  brown hair bristled in the evening wind. Hmm…

  “He looks nice.” Goldy piped in.

  “Mr. Raghunath…I was of the impression that your daughter and wife were waiting for us.” A bored, mechanical voice poured out of his thin mouth. I didn’t like him at all. I liked him even less when his ice-cold eyes glared at Shiva’s Dad. Definitely not the kind of person who should enter Shiva’s life. If the first impression was anything to go by, he could easily wind up Nandan - the worse version.

  “If you are here about me…”

  Ack! Shiva nearly made me jump. She wasn’t inside, of course, but standing quietly to the left side of the house. “Shiva! Where is your mother?”