My Daughter

My Daughter

The corridor was different, it was not the narrow simply decorated one she was used to instead this one was big, with huge decorations at every two steps and guards everywhere. They all bowed to her as if they knew her, but she did not recognise any of them. Uneasiness set in as her eyes fell on the Mewar’s emblem hanging on the wall, her breath turned short as she felt suffocated and then she heard a voice call out,

“Kunwaranisa.”

She woke up in his bedroom with her hand firmly clasped in his warm ones. She tried to pull it out, but it woke him up.

“Ajabde, I was so worried” he hugged her. Their eyes met, his filled with concern and hers filled with trepidation. The sound of anklets made them both look away as Maharani Jaiwanta Bai entered the room,

“Ajabde my child,” the woman sat beside her as she checked her forehead for a temperature.

Ranimaa,” she called out before everything went dark.

Kunwar Pratap and Kunwar Shakta sat in shock seeing Maharani Jaiwanta Bai in front of them. She had come to their doorstep in the morning while Patta was being scolded for his rude behaviour by Rao ji. Seeing his mother in flesh had made Pratap happy but her behaviour was making him angrier by the minute.

“Gauhar Khan is the killer,” she told the men as they looked at the trinket kept in front of her, “this trinket is your evidence.”

Rawat ji inspected the trinket and nodded his head, “Maharanisa you are right, this trinket has the snake symbol that we had discovered in the past while investigating some of the mysterious deaths of our spies and soldiers.”

“Then we need to search for this Gauhar Khan,” Patta spoke up excitedly, “then tackle the Afghans so he can leave” his eyes narrowed towards the young crown prince while Shakta stood up

“Dadabhai and Bhabhisa will leave together,” he told Patta firmly. “Anyone who comes between them will have to face me.” He stood face to face with Patta, eyes glaring both ready to tear each other down to bits.

Before anyone could intervene, a child burst through the door panting, “it’s Ajabde Jija, she’s fainted.”

Patta placed the bowl of water and bandages beside Kunwar Pratap who quickly dipped one and placed it on his wife’s head. A neighbour and few kids had found her unconscious with a burning fever clutching onto something. Pratap had rushed to be by his wife’s side after barking orders at his brother for calling the village doctor.

“Baisa has a fever,” the doctor informed them, “she is completely exhausted and needs rest.”  He looked at the men, “apply a cold compress to her head to keep the temperature low and change then them frequently.”

Patta observed Kunwar Pratap as he took over as Ajabde’s caretaker from arranging her pillows to making her drink water and medicine. His mother had taken charge of matters, but Pratap had refused to leave Ajabde’s side. “Maybe he does care,” Patta thought to himself.

After the doctor had left, Jaiwanta Bai had told them to tighten the security around the village. “Increase the patrols, guard the check-posts and entrances” she looked at her daughter-in-law’s fist with a frown and added, “Ajabde was attacked.”

Gasps rang out but it was Pratap who confirmed their fears, “Ranimaa is right. Ajabde was clutching on to this,” he let the trinket hang in his hand, “Gauhar Khan is somewhere in this village.”

“Ajabde don’t you remember,” Pratap pleaded, “I’m your husband. We were married in a big ceremony attended by our family members and friends. Ranimaa did your grah pravesh.”

She shook her head as tears rolled down, “yes I remember and then you abandoned me.”

Pratap’s heart ached to see his Ajabde in pain. He wiped away her tears and changed the compress praying that the temperature went down but to no avail. Her forehead was as hot as burning coal.

“You need to go and help out with the security measures,” his mother told him. He refused to move an inch as she sat on the other side, “do not forget you are here for a reason.”

“My reason is lying unconscious in front of me,” he looked at her angrily, “my reason for coming here was to seek forgiveness” he stopped seeing his mother’s raised hand.

“Seek forgiveness when you have punished the culprit,” her voice was soft, calm and understanding, “show through your actions because it was your words that hurt her.”

Seeing her son’s conflicted expression, the mother’s heart softened, “go and do your duty to Mewar, Kunwar Pratap. I’m here to take care of my daughter.”