Tell A Thousand Lies (38 page)

“No one saw us leave.” And the one person who had wouldn’t say anything.

“Why are you fussing? The point is, you did leave.”

I took a step closer to this sister of mine, this wife of my husband’s.

Lata took a step back. “What are you doing?” She sounded flustered.

“I’ve always wondered how Srikar’s grandfather found out,” I said softly. “We were very careful not to take any risks. You gave us away, didn’t you?”

“I don’t know what you are talking about,” Lata blustered. “I have no time for such nonsense.” She turned to go.

This time, I grabbed her arm.

Across the road, people were watching us with interest. One man gave us an encouraging wave.

“Why Lata? What did I ever do to you?”

Her face twisted in a vicious mask. “If you had stayed, my marriage wouldn’t have broken up.”

The force of her hatred was almost physical. I stumbled back. “What are you talking about?”

“You could have given my in-laws enough dowry to shut them up. It was bad enough that I had to suffer a scandal before marriage. You could have spared me humiliation a second time. Had you stayed, you could have shared with me some of that luxury being a Goddess brought you. But did you think of me? Oh, no! You had to run off to your perfect love, to your perfect marriage.”

I was astounded by her version.

Lata was not done. “After you left,” she said, starting to shout, “my in-laws threw me out because there was no child. Their fool of a son was infertile. And, because you ran away, there was no dowry to keep them happy.”

“Catering to your in-laws instead of being with my husband – that was your plan for my life?”

Lata harrumphed.

“Didn’t you tell me that if I came back and helped you get married, you would find a way for me to be with Srikar?” I said, trying hard to keep my voice down. I stole a glance at the people gathered. A few bystanders had settled on the footpath. “Did you not?”

Lata had no answer to that.

“Nothing to say? You put me in a position where I was forced to come back to the village and bail you out. I got you married. You paid me back by ratting to Srikar’s grandfather? And stealing my husband?”

“Don’t take it personally. I was trying to escape my marriage. Any man would have done.”

I leaned forward and gave her a tight slap.

She put a hand to her cheek, her mouth open in shock.

“Does Srikar know you have a special relationship with his grandfather?”

By the scared look on her face, I knew he didn’t. “I didn’t steal your life. You stole mine – my husband, my child, my home.”

Lata crumpled on the footpath, beginning to cry in earnest. “You managed to survive,” she said between sobs. “You seem to have done well in life. I have a borrowed husband, a borrowed son. What else do I have?”

I turned my face away from my sister, feeling terrible anger at her betrayal, terrible sorrow for ruined lives. Marriage to Srikar was Lata’s payback for ratting on us to Kondal Rao. Who else would have married a cast off woman, a ‘barren’ woman? Who but an honourable man like Srikar? Lata continued to sob, holding up the edge of her sari to shield her face. The audience wasn’t going anywhere.

My driver walked over, speculation in his eyes. I had no doubt I’d be the topic of the month for the drivers and the maids. “Doctor
garu
, is everything okay?”

Lata looked at the driver and then at me, as if she could not believe her ears.

Oh no!

She got up slowly, wiping her tears with the edge of her sari. “What did you say?” she asked the driver, menace in her voice.

The driver seemed confused.

“Go back to the car,” I told him. “I’ll be there in five minutes.”

“Why did you call her Doctor
garu
?” Lata asked the driver again.

“What else will I call Madam
garu
…” The driver’s voice trailed off, sensing there was more to it than a mere question. He backed away.

Pure malevolence radiated from Lata’s eyes. “Oh, so Madam is a doctor now?” She tossed her head at me. “Madam has grown so much in stature that she can afford a car and a driver?”

“Lata, please,” I said, trying to minimize the issue. I couldn’t afford to antagonize her. Lata was the only mother my son knew. “It was just something that happened. It is not important…”

“Just happened?” Lata gave an incredulous laugh. “Not important? You knew that’s all I wanted to be. You knew that.” Her voice rose. “I didn’t give up on my dream even after I married Srikar. I enrolled in a college. But your son was a sickly child, always needing attention. I had to give up my dream because of
your
child.”

“He... he is still sick?”
No. Srikar would have told me if he were.

“Didn’t you hear what I said?” Lata screamed. “My dreams died because of your child. Now I’m too old to get admission in a college.”

“But Lata,” I said, close to tears. “None of this was my fault. If I had any say, I’d still be married to Srikar, raising my son with him. I never wanted luxuries, or education or anything else. All I ever wanted was the chance to be a wife and mother.”

“Life’s not fair, Pullamma.” Lata’s face was hard. “Look at me. No education. No respect. Not even a real marriage.” At the look of shock on my face, she screamed. “Like he didn’t tell you? Like the two of you didn’t laugh behind my back? So what if he made it a condition for our marriage,
hanh
?” She leaned forward, face a mask of fury. “What kind of man stays away from something that’s so freely offered?”

I felt a fierce surge of joy flood my being. Not telling me this in order to protect Lata’s privacy, that’s exactly the honourable man I’d fallen in love with.

“What did I get out of this marriage,
hanh
? Not even a child of my own. My marriage is as barren as my womb. Someone else’s child to tie me down. That’s all I got.” She leaned forward, her tone fierce. “See if I let you an inch near my son.” She grabbed my arm, nails digging in. “My son, do you hear? My. Son.”

Chapter 47

The Past Catches Up

I
shook with rage as I climbed the stairs to our flat. My own sister, my twin, had knifed me in the back. If that weren’t bad enough, she was using my son to control me. I tightened my lips. I wouldn’t let my child be used as a pawn. His welfare had to come first. I’d take him away. Eventually, he’d learn to love me. He had to, if we were to have a chance together.

A part of me, admittedly a very tiny part, felt sorry for her. She was in love with my husband. But there was no excuse for colluding with Kondal Rao to destroy my marriage, just so she could escape hers.

In my room I opened the cupboard and dumped out the contents of the locker. Spying the passbook to my bank account, I pounced on it. Not as much money as I’d have liked, since I was sending a large part of my salary to Ammamma each month. No matter. I could always earn more. I’d take my son and leave tonight. Srikar would have to let me – after what his grandfather did, he couldn’t possibly refuse.

I rushed around the house taking only the essentials, wanting to leave before Aunty returned. It broke my heart that she couldn’t come with us, but I couldn’t ask her to go into hiding again. Not when she’d just reunited with her son. As for Ammamma, I hoped Kondal Rao would recognize that I’d not been in touch with her for years. Hopefully, that would protect her.

 
Don’t think about Aunty or Ammamma now. You don’t have the time to fall apart.
But I couldn’t stop thinking of Srikar. Knowing the kind of man he was, how could I have ever doubted him? How would I survive the rest of my life without him? It did not bear thinking about.

At the knock on the door, I tensed. What would I tell Aunty?

I opened the door, and my eyes fell on that stubby neck.

My grandfather-in-law pushed his way past me, and parked himself on my sofa.

Maybe it was the passage of the years, maybe it was that I was older and wiser, but Kondal Rao was just another old man. Now that I had a plan for my son, he had lost his ability to frighten. I folded my arms and rested a shoulder against the door, curious to see what he would come up with.

He sat back, crossed his legs and looked at me without saying anything. An old trick, a policeman patient of mine had once assured me; an effective interrogation technique to intimidate a person into breaking the silence. I looked right back.

“Aren’t you curious?” he finally asked, the cords in his stubby neck standing out. He hadn’t liked to be the one giving in.

I raised my eyebrows in response.

“Getting very friendly with my grandson, Doctor
garu
.”

“Is that what caused you to crawl out from that dung pile of yours?”

“Disrespecting your elders, Pullamma?
Tch
.
Tch
.
”

I snorted.

He sighed. “Your sister. Getting too big for her boots, isn’t she?” He lay back against the cushion of the sofa, folding his hands over his belly. “I’m not a monster, you know –”

“Trying to get me killed is just part of doing business?”

“
Bah
! You’re going to hold that against me?”

I shook my head in incredulity.

“Give me a berth in the Chief Minister’s Cabinet, and I’m a happy man. Then, you sisters can fight over my grandson, or share him, or bring in a third girl, I don’t really care.”

“What’s the problem, then?” I said, looking him over. The old man was mellowing. “You go your way, I go mine.”

“Pullamma, Pullamma. You can’t be that innocent. Your little sister is turning out to be as unpredictable as a
Diwali
firecracker. Never know when she’ll explode.”

“What do you mean?”

“Forcing my hand, is what she’s doing. Says she’ll expose my connection to you, if I don’t take you back to the village as my Goddess, the silly girl.”

I gasped.

“Making a proper nuisance of herself, she is.”

“I can’t believe she said that!”

“I don’t like to be manipulated, you know.” He examined a finger nail. “Today she does it, tomorrow you will get bold. It’s the principle of the thing.”

“What do you mean?”

He put his little finger in the ear, then pulled it out to inspect it. “It means you have a journey coming up in the near future.”

“I thought you didn’t like to be manipulated.”

“As it happens, it also serves my purpose.”

I started to get angry. “The last time I went quietly because I was too young to fight back. This time you’ll have to take me kicking and screaming. Don’t think I’ll be the same brainless Goddess as before.”

He leaned forward, the black of his eyes glittery pinpoints. “You will do exactly as I say.”

“Or what?”

“I tracked your father down in the Himalayas. The esteemed Sri.
Simhachalam
and his two whores are shacked up in a small temple town, very much enjoying earthly pleasures. When this news spreads in the village, oracle Ranga
Nayakamma
will tremble from the fury the Goddess plans on unleashing on an unrepentant village.” His oily tone conveyed intense satisfaction. “Only thing that’ll calm the Goddess down will be punishment for that sinner’s kin.”

“Ranga
Nayakayamma
is already under your control,” I shouted. “Why don’t you use her? Why ruin my life?”

“Blame your beloved sister for that.” He sighed. “I was happy enough chugging along with the crackpot oracle. Can you believe it, two bottles of whiskey is all it took for her to set you up as my Goddess?”

Blood rushed to my face.

He cocked his head in thought. “What would be the most suitable punishment for your grandmother, and your other sister, Lalli, is it?”

“Malli!”

“Disrobe them and parade them through the streets? Hmm. Now, that’s a thought.”