Chapter 1|Catastrophe

'Ra-rani sa, please pardon my husband! I don't know where my ignoble son is. We a..are very poor!! I cannot pay the price of my son dishonoring your royal dignity..please pardon his j-job, I beg you please!!', sunita wailed crouching near her queen's feet, tears gushing out of her aged eyes.

Never in her twenty five years of serving in this palace, she had encountered this furious form of Rani sa (Queen).

'Get away woman!!! Who else will pay? Your run away son is missing!! Doesn't he thought about his parents before kidnapping my princess? I'll make sure you get no job anywhere in this country. Get off me, right away!!!', she kicked the woman with her pointed sandal causing minor wound to form on her forehead.

She winced in pain writhing like a fish pulled out of water but continued begging bowing down in reverance. She couldn't afford getting kicked out of the palace, the only livelihood she had where she served the royal family for more than two decades. Because of the daring stunt of her ungrateful son, she, her husband and daughter's fate has been pushed into darkness..

How will she run the house, get her daughter's education furnished and how will she marry her off without a penny in pocket? Internally she was cursing her son in agony for throwing them in such lamentable circumstances for his own sake of happiness.

'Rani sa, I beg you, pl-please! Please pardon us for the sake of our unparalleled loyalty and service in this palace. He's not my son anymore. I disown him for hurting your pride b-but-.'

'Get out you low life!! Be thankful yuvraj has no idea. Do you even have the slightest realisation of what great offence your son has carried out? Eloping with the princess of svamgarh?!! My son will not think twice before beheading him and throw you all on road to rot!!', she seethed.

'R..rani sa! Show mercy!! I have no where to go..!', her croaked voice fell to deaf ears. The queen summoned her guards to collect the cast off clothes from the maid's quarter and throw them on the street. 'Enough Sunita! This is the least mercy I could show. You are yet to witness the wrath of yuvraj!! He'll not spare your life, get this straight in your thick skull. Leave my leg..', she harshly jerked her feet and went away leaving the poor old woman to cry upon her dismantled fate.

'Oh lord...what crime had I committed that my elderly eyes has to witness my dawn? She bawled her eyes out wiping her face with the pallu of her saree mentally preparing herself to accept whatever challenges is going to be thrown her way..

She lifted herself from the marble, hobbling on her rheumatic old joints. She passed through the tranquil alley scanning every painting and architecture as it was her last day in this palace. Such bitter goodbye was unexpected but now she has no choice than to swallow the bitter pill.

My son will not think twice before beheading you and throw you all on road to rot

Rani sa's threatening voice rang in her ear, her heart picked up a shooting speed in trepidation. Lowering her dampened lashes, she stood outside her quarter. The guards without an ounce of pity were hurling their items that they were provided on mercy of their queen 'Sulekha Devi'

Sunita's husband Vijay was standing in a nook, his lips sealed but his eyes were moistened with tears though the poor old man was trying head over heels to control them. He had a disastrous thunder struck his life yet he adopted calmness on his wrinkled face. He was shattered by this one objectionable act of his offspring. But he couldn't show it, it'll only further break the hope of the other two lives he has to feed.

'Aren't they yet gone Raju?!!', Rani sa boiled in anger as soon as the couple bow down seeing her standing near the balcony. 'If they're not going or showing resistance, show no hesitancy in forcibly expelling their blemished bodies out!!'

'We'll never defy the command of our queen!', Vijay croaked joining his hands in front of her and then the duo was shoved outside the palace gates with the rag they call clothes. Soon the gigantic metallic gate was closed and so was their re-entry in palace for lifetime.

The real challenge of living in hardship with no job will start now as they have to pay their daughter's hostel fees and arrange a place to live.. They plodded near a shanty town beseeching them for granting them some space for a stay overnight in exchange of few coins. Many of them plainly declined but an aged woman gladly welcomed them in her abode. The space was small and mucky but looked heavenly to them.

They squatted on their aching feet, placing the bale of old ragged clothes in the corner of the hut. 'Do you want something else..food, water?', the elderly woman asked, her voice full of love and life. She looked happy in this little accommodation which explains that not always money showers happiness, it's the inner soul who's cravings needs to be quenched in the solace of nature..

'Don't bother yourself amma (mother)!', sunita being tired of bleeding river through her eyes in grief, didn't want to further become burden on a stranger. 'What's to bother here beti (child/daughter)? Atithi devo bhava (Guest is god)!', a warmth crept inside the hollow heart of the woman hearing her melliferous and soothing voice. 'No..we don't need anything!', Vijay stepped in nudging the arm of his wife to decline it.

'You wait here, I'll bring warm tea and water for you', the old lady went further inside the cottage with her slow shaky limbs, her back arched at 90 degress in her dotage due to senescence.

'Beti, my limbs may be weak but i still have strength left in me like my days when I used to be a young beautiful woman..', the old woman spoke fetching two glasses of water, her hands trembling yet heart had so much vigour to serve. 'Let's eat something before the sunset. I ran out of oil today so I can't lit the earthen lamp..'

The couple looked at each other, admiring her vibrant charisma that didn't fade with the ticking of clock. Crouching on the floor, they relished her handmade food, thanking her again and again for giving them a roof to hide their head for the night and dinner to smother the hungry stomach. Though the fear kept nagging them that how will they pay their daughter's hostel fee tommorow?

The singh palace

'Rani ma sa(queen mother), if you hide the truth from bhai sa(brother) than he'll chop me alive. You are familiar with his wrath. He hate liers. Nandini Jiji sa(Nandini sister) ran away with the son of our guard, a penurious uncivil man and this is not something to get away with. She has marred our reputation by eloping with a commoner, if bhai sa finds out, he'll grill us all', Adrit tried to console his foster mother who wasn't aware of the storm that could demolish everything. He's familiar with the peak of aggression his brother shows in fury.

'He wouldn't find out. He'll return from Delhi after a week, till than I'll arrange something', he again tried to speak but she raised her palm signalling him to keep quiet. 'Say no more Adrit. Retire back to your room. You can't meddle in elder's matters..'

'But..', he swallowed whatever he was about to speak seeing the angry glare of Rani ma sa.

'Let him arrive home, we'll talk about this issue in depth and I know how to lessen the rage of Yuvraj', she replied, her voice evinced a tint of determination and shrewdness in it.

Adrit silently slipped away from her chamber, ungratified by her answers yet he can't voice out his opinions as firm decisions since she is the queen and her command is the final and mandatory to accept for all. Sulekha dialled a number and placed it near her ear,'Yuvraj?'

'Maa sa, is everything alright?', a tensed manly voice came over from the other end of the call. 'Yes yuvraj, why're you asking?', she stammered a little but somehow managed to getting reins on her slipping tongue. 'You called at this hour in the middle of the night so I asked!'

'So, do I have to take your permission to even call Yuvraj?', she asked, a hint of resentment reflecting from the strained voice of hers. 'No ma sa, I didn't mean that.'

'Or you were busy chit chatting with your girlfriend?', she inquired. 'I don't have a girlfriend. I only have a wife and that's my business!! It's too hectic these days since our company is working on some new software projects. Recently I had some engineers fired so I'm looking forward to get few fresh faces interviewed by my secretery. The best ones I want for my company to maintain the top notch position'.

'Hmm..And on what date are you planning to come home?', she asked trying to know how many days she has to weave a lie or make up a convincing story.

'Next tuesday but my plan of visit may extend..I'm not very sure if I could make it home this month or not since there's a lot of meeting scheduled and pending projects..'

'Okay son, I'm hanging up. I'm feeling sleepy, was just checking on you', she announced and was about to end the call when his voice boomed, 'Wait ma sa, can you handover your phone to Nandini. She isn't picking up my calls...'