Chapter 2

Same evening

Arjun drove towards a road which was once his home, but things had changed some seven years ago. That time when his father had asked him to choose between his luxurious lifestyle and business or his career as a police officer, he chose the latter.

Now he was going there just to meet his siblings. His father had written a letter, it was almost an emotional blackmail to bring him back to the house. Arjun’s mind tried hard to reason and stop him from visiting ‘Rawte Mansion’ but his heart won, he couldn’t break his sister’s heart and decided to meet her.

~

Inside the Rawte mansion, the same young girl sat on the couch in her room. She made a drink of rum for herself and kept the bottle back in a closet. She picked her drink and went downstairs, sat on the sofa surfing through different channels and sipping her drink little by little.

“Woow man! Bicardi Limon! A perfect rum for this hot day..okay night. Well, I didn’t introduce myself did I? I’m the one and only, none other than Neha Rawte!” She said dramatically holding her cell as mic, she mimicked the news reporter on the television in her own way. “Today’s news headlines once again, my dear brother is coming home! Yay! Woohoo!! Will be back after a short break.” She whistled and squealed in happiness. “Dinu Kaka!” She called the head servant.

“Ji bebiji!” An elderly man came and stood in front of her.

“Kaka, aarti ki thali ready?”

“Ji bebiji!”

“Dinner ready?”

“Ji bebiji!”

“Kaka, how many times shall I tell you, don’t say ‘ji’ ‘ji’!”

“Ji bebiji!”

“Kaka, go and bring aarti ki thali.”

“Ji bebiji! But Arjun baba hasn’t arrived yet.”

“You go and bring the plate, bhaiya would be here shortly.” She smiled warmly at him and shook her head as he left. “Ji bebiji!” She mimicked him and laughed to herself and quickly finished her drink.

~

Arjun drove in the most posh areas of Mumbai, ‘Rawte Mansion’ was situated at the end, very close to the sea shore. The security guard saluted him, opened the huge black gate and let him in. Nothing had changed much except the trees that had grown bigger. A cool breeze disarranged his nicely kept hair as he jumped out of his car. A driver came to him and took the keys to park the car in parking lot.

Arjun now slowly climbed the stairs and stood by the large teak door of the mansion, as always, it was open. Before he could step in, a familiar voice stopped him from inside, “Wait! Put your shoes outside. How dare you forget the rules?” Neha said sharply as she came to the door, with a plate in her right hand.

He removed his shoes in a corner, no one was allowed to enter the mansion with their shoes on. He stood at the doorstep, looking at his younger sister holding the Aarti ki thali in one hand. The memories of his childhood came floating in his mind.

23 years ago, he was standing inside, holding the plate to welcome his little sister who was five days old then. She was coming to this house for the first time and he stood with his mother to welcome her. His excitement knew no bounds when he got to know that he had a little sister.  

      

“Come in now!” Neha said as she had finished doing aarti and saw him lost somewhere.

“It feels as if it was just yesterday I had welcomed you in this house, you were this little.” He said gesturing his hands as if holding a small baby, “And now you’ve grown up to become an almost replica of your mother.”

“Is that a compliment or you’re saying that I look as old as my mom?!” she questioned him.

“No, my Chhoti Maa is quite young, don’t you dare call her old.” He said as he pulled her hair slightly.

“Leave, come in.” She said as she caressed her hair.

“Dollie! I didn’t mean to shout at you in the morning, it’s just that...” He said but she cut him short.

“I know bhaiya, you were concerned and couldn’t come up with anything other than your infamous anger. Come, the dinner is getting cold.” She smiled and cleverly changed the topic.

“What happened to your hand?” He questioned.

“Nothing! It’s all good.” She replied in a carefree manner.

“Then why is your left hand in a sling?”

“Oh, that’s because I slipped in the washroom yesterday.” She chuckled.

“How?” He couldn’t believe what she said.

“Don’t know, well actually, I was a bit sleepy and I had dropped soap so it was all soapy and caused the floor to be slippery and so I slipped.” She said it all quickly confused him, “And what happened to your hand?” She questioned him back.

“Nothing.”

“You punished yourself because you thought you had hurt me, right?” She gave an ‘I-Know-It’ look.

“I made you cry.” His voice was filled with guilt.

“No, you didn’t. Well actually, I didn’t even cry.” She lied to make him feel better.

“I saw tears in your eyes.” He said plainly.

“That’s because something got into my eyes, I wasn’t crying.” She reasoned.

“You’re lying.”

She hugged him, “I know. It’s been three years bhaiya! Three years that I didn’t meet you. I didn’t cry because you shouted at me, it was just that I got a bit emotional.”

He hugged her back, “I’m sorry for that behaviour, I was a bit surprised and when I saw your hand, I thought that someone attacked you.”

“Stop overthinking. You know bhaiya, there’s so much that I’ve got to tell you. So much...” She closed her eyes, she had longed for this protective embrace for long, now she didn’t want to leave it.

“I’m always there to listen to you dollie, say whatever you want to.” He felt that she wants to tell him some deep dark secrets that she’d held inside for long.

“Dinner is getting cold and I’m damn hungry!” She exclaimed.

“Oh okay..”

The driver came back with a box in his hands, “Sir, this box was in your car.”

Arjun took the box and let him go, “Spoilsport!” he muttered under his breathe, “This is for you, dollie!”

“Chocolates! Wow! Thanks a lot bhaiya!” Neha beamed with happiness like a five year old kid who’d got her favorite chocolates after long time.

“Please, grow up!” Arjun shook his head in disbelief at her childishness.

“Never! Always stay young at heart.” She winked.

They sat at the dinner table, as the servants served them food.

“For your information, I’ve cooked this food.” She said proudly.

“It looks delicious and smells yummy! Now I’m quite sure it’ll taste wonderful.” He praised her fully.

“You didn’t wait for me?” A young man in his mid twenties came towards them and took his chair. He was dressed in a three piece designer black suit, and a strong aroma of his imported perfume, he was the perfect businessman.

“Rahul dada! Why wait? You said you’d get late.” Neha said as she took a bite.

“Yeah but my work was completed, so I left early.” Rahul replied.

“You didn’t call or inform, how would I know it then?” Neha questioned.

“Now the dinner’s getting cold, have it first and then continue fighting over the most stupid reason ever.” Arjun shook his head in disbelief as his younger siblings kept arguing.

“Point.” Rahul agreed.

“Always.” Neha replied.

After a not so peaceful dinner, three of them sat in the garden talking about random things.

About an hour later, Arjun said, “Okay, now I’d take your leave.”

“What?!” Rahul and Neha almost shouted, together.

“Where are you going?” Neha asked.

“Dollie, you asked me to come for the dinner, so I came, but now I must leave.” Arjun answered sincerely.

“Didn’t you read the letter that was in the envelope?” She questioned again.

“I read it. But I can’t come back here. It’s for your own good.” Arjun said as he got up.

“Bhai please, don’t go.” Rahul tried to stop him.

“Rahul, Neha, please try and understand, I need to go.” Arjun said in a way which meant ‘end of discussion’.

“Good night.” Neha said plainly and went to her room.

“Bhai..” Rahul tried again.

“Sorry dear. Take care.” Arjun hugged him.

“You too.” Rahul said disheartened.

~

Arjun was back in his lodge. He sat at the reading table and pulled out the envelope and re-read his father’s letter.

Arjun folded the letter and kept it back in the envelope. He lay on his bed with his eyes closed, but sleep was far away from his eyes. He felt his heart and mind battling. After a long while he took a deep breathe and calmed his mind, took his phone and dialled a number. The call was answered on second ring itself, as if the call was awaited.

“Dollie, you’re not sleeping yet?” Arjun directly asked without any formal greetings.

“Bhaiya? What is the point in asking this stupid question in the middle of night? Dollie was busy playing hockey, say, why did you call?” Neha usually talked with him in third person when she didn’t really want to talk.

“My dollie wanted to tell me something.” He said understanding her mood.

“No. Dollie is not talking to you.” She said adamantly.

Arjun said, “I know dollie is upset but...” She cut him short, “Dollie is very happy. If you’ve called doll for nothing then let dollie sleep, dollie doesn’ wan’a talk now. Good Night.” She disconnected the call.

After a few minutes Arjun’s cell buzzed, and he picked up, “You didn’t ask about my children.” Neha said from the other end.

“You mean my children?” He corrected her.

“Same thing. They are fine and they miss you sometimes.” She replied monotonously.

“Sometimes?” He asked with surprise.

“Yes. They want to meet you. Rest is up to you.” She disconnected the call again.

~

Next evening,

After a tiresome day, Arjun reached the lodge. The owner informed him that he had emptied the room, all his luggage had already been taken and dues were cleared.

“But I never told anyone to do that. And who took my things? Why didn’t you inform me?”

“Your sister came in the morning. She told...”

“Fine.” Arjun stepped out and was about to call Neha when a black sedan stopped in front of him and driver came out.

“Sir, madam has asked me to take you to the mansion. Sir please come. If you won’t come, madam will fire me, sir.” The driver was trembling with fear of losing his new job.

They reached Rawte mansion and Arjun went in.

“What the hell is all this?” Arjun asked angrily.

“Keep your shoes out.” Neha said coolly.

“Answer me first.” Arjun said sternly.

“Shoes outside.” She said with no-nonsense attitude.

“I...” Before he could complete Neha almost dragged him outside and pointed at a board above the shoes stand. It read, ‘Keep your ego and shoes here.’

“This wasn’t there before.” Arjun said as he read the lines again.

“I bought it today. Now keep both here and then come in.”

She gave him a glass of cold water, “Take water and chillax first. Then we’ll talk.”

Arjun looked at her smile and almost forgot his anger. “Why did you empty my lodge room?” He asked after drinking water and calming himself.

“Eh, that shabby, dirty place! How did you live there? It was such a small room, not even our servants would stay in such a place. I wonder you didn’t feel suffocated there! I could hardly stay there for two minutes, I felt like being choked to death!” She made many dirty and wierd faces while saying it.

“Now where shall I stay?”

“Three years you haven’t been with me, so see how much dust had stuck up on your brain, you don’t use it do you?”

“What?”

“I mean you will stay here, of course.”

“No.”

“Yes. Yes, and YES!” She yelled at last, making it sound like the end of discussion.

“No. I left this house to never return, seven years ago.”

“Come on, people don’t remember what they did seven days ago, you’re talking about years? You still haven’t read the letter properly, have you?”

“I told you, I read it, why do you ask the same questions again?” He sounded irritated.

“Hope you remember the famous sanskrit saying, ‘क्षमा वीरस्य भूषणम्।’ which means that forgiveness is the jewel of the valiant.”

“It isn’t about forgiving dollie, it’s just that once I decide something, then I don’t..”

“Commitment issues like Salman, eh? I’ll tell you only one thing, if you really love your family and want to see them happy, you should do what they like, sometimes it is better to think of our family before oneself.”

“I love my family a lot, and that’s why I don’t want to put their lives in danger. They’ve killed my Roshni, I can’t let them harm my family, no.” His voice was vulnerable.

“Bhaiya, trust me, nothing will happen to anyone of us. No one can harm our family. No one.” She said confidently and held his hand, “I promise you that I will not let anyone even cast an evil glance at my family members, leave alone harming them.”

“Neha, do you even know what you are saying? I deal with dangerous criminals, and sometimes even with terrorists, it’s not at all easy, and what you are saying is almost impossible, because they always try to get our weaknesses, specially our family, so staying alone is better, no weakness makes you strong against your opponents.” He explained.

“I’m no kid. You don’t need to tell me all that, I know it. What you don’t know is that family is not one’s weakness, it’s strength, not everyone has it. Being afraid of death is foolishness, for it is an inevitable part of life, a painful truth. If one is born, one has to die, today or tomorrow. And you are giving a very foolish reason to stay away from us. You give me one solid reason of not to stay in this house, I’ll give you ten, that why you should stay here.”

“Neha, please try to understand.”

“You are not trying to understand bhaiya! I want you to stay here, and that’s my final decision. If you leave, I’ll believe that you don’t love your family and you don’t love me. Decision is yours, bhaiya.” She said and went to her room, closing the door with a bang.

Arjun walked out towards the sea shore and sat thinking on the shore, under the moonlit sky and humid breeze.

~ ~ ~

That's it for the day.

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Eagerly waiting for them.