3.
I came out of the washroom and, while drying my hands with a napkin, moved towards my cup of tea. Suddenly, something strange happened—I spun around and dashed out of the room, then out of the bungalow's main gate, and started running wildly on the street. In my hurry, I didn't even realize that I wasn't wearing slippers.
Actually, I had taken off my bathroom slippers after coming out of the washroom when I saw my sister-in-law standing there with a cup of tea in her hand. But when I had entered the washroom, I had left my wife sitting here with the tea. I had already been suspicious, given the strange events happening in this bizarre house over the past few days, that anything could happen here—even something magical. And that's exactly what happened. I was initially startled to see my wife suddenly appear with tea for me, and we even talked—she told me that my brother had called her and sent a car to bring her here. But when I came out of the washroom after using it, it was not my wife standing there, but my sister-in-law, holding the cup of tea. In my panic, I couldn't even ask her where my wife had gone, and out of fear, I immediately ran from there.
I can't imagine what the people in the neighborhood must have thought, seeing me running barefoot on the street. But my surprise knew no bounds when, shortly after, my nephew ran after me, grabbed my hand, and pulled me back. At the main gate of the bungalow, my brother, sister-in-law, and my wife were all standing there, looking bewildered. My sister-in-law was telling my wife, "See? See... didn't I say that Bhaiya has been acting strangely for the past two days? God knows what he's been thinking."
I was utterly embarrassed. I couldn't understand why I ran like that. Maybe I thought that my wife had actually disappeared after I saw her in the morning. But the truth was that after I went to the washroom, she had placed the tea down and gone back inside, and my sister-in-law had come over to check if the tea had gone cold. I don't know what made me think that some magic had occurred again, which led me to run.
About half an hour later, I was forcibly laid down in a room, and a doctor with a stethoscope around his neck was examining me. The two kids, my brother, sister-in-law, my wife, and one of my brother's shop assistants were all standing around me. No one was asking me anything anymore. Whatever was being asked, it was directed at my wife. Whenever I tried to say something, the doctor would interrupt me, saying, "Relax!" and then ignore me.
I was shocked to hear my wife telling everyone, "He does this there as well. You know, he came here without telling anyone back there. We only found out later from one of his friends that he had come to stay with you all!"
I lay there, silently watching with wide eyes!
The next day, my brother sent my wife and me back in his car with the driver. My brother and sister-in-law said they would come to visit us soon with their children. My sister-in-law also gave some lovely gifts and sweets for my mother and the children.
The doctor who examined me said that I was not suffering from any illness and that my mental health was perfectly fine. I asked my wife why she lied to my brother and sister-in-law by saying that I behave the same way here and came here without informing anyone at home.
My wife laughed mischievously and said, "Everyone was joking with each other, so I just joined in with a little joke of my own." So, she, too, took advantage of the situation. This meant that everyone had taken whatever happened there lightly and as a joke.
But my mind still couldn't accept that nothing was wrong. I had clearly seen that the police had come to my brother's house and were inquiring about him. I myself was searching for my brother along with the two police officers. But later, after they had left, my brother appeared at home as if nothing had happened. And my sister-in-law and the children also made me out to be a liar by saying that they were all at home, the children were playing outside on the lawn, and no police had come.
How could this be possible? I wasn't a small child or an elderly person who would forget things or have incidents happen to them without realizing it. I had gone there only with the intention of meeting my brother who had returned from abroad, to check on his family, to invite them to my home when they had time, and to find out how their stay abroad had been. I also wanted to know what they were planning next, whether my brother had found a good job here or if he was thinking of starting a business.
I had heard many times that some people go abroad for a short period, earn a lot of money there, and then return to live a luxurious life here by starting a big business.
But something strange and unusual happened to me. I was repeatedly humiliated in front of my brother's family, made to feel like a liar, and various doubts crept into my mind that perhaps my brother had returned after doing something illegal or unlawful there.
But until a doubt is proven, it remains just that—a doubt.
Days passed, and I had almost forgotten about my visit to my brother's house when one day, I read a big news article in the newspaper that made my hair stand on end. A businessman living next door to my brother had been arrested on charges of smuggling and fraud.
He and my brother had bought those houses around the same time, which were located in the city's posh colony. There was a unique feature of these houses that only the builder who had constructed and sold them knew, and now he had disappeared somewhere.
As soon as I read this news, my head started spinning.
Once again, I decided to visit my brother. But then it immediately occurred to me that if I told my wife that I was going to see my brother, given the previous events, she wouldn’t let me go. And if I insisted too much on going, she might even suggest coming along.
The biggest problem with taking her along was that I wouldn’t be able to carry out my mission easily. I wanted to go because I suspected my brother was involved in some criminal activities, and I wanted to find out the truth. If my wife was with me, she wouldn't allow me to secretly investigate anything. Moreover, whatever efforts I made would be directly revealed to my sister-in-law and the kids. They might not even let me do anything. Investigating such activities isn’t easy; it has to be done secretly and carefully. This isn't a casual visit to my brother’s place where I could just plead with him, "Brother, brother, tell me, what shady business are you up to?"
I couldn't accept the idea of standing by and watching while my brother put himself and his family in danger. I deliberately didn’t want to let that happen. I had to find out what my brother was up to and stop him from continuing down that path. After all, my brother's family was like my own. How could I watch innocent little children and my sister-in-law get caught up in trouble? After all, money isn’t everything. There’s also some value to the family’s honor and peace.
Just look at me. My own shop was doing quite well, with good earnings, and everything at home was running smoothly. But as soon as I realized that running the shop kept me busy from morning till night, seven days a week, I immediately hired a capable manager to take care of the business so that I could focus on my home, family, and children.
That's why I was almost free now.
When I told my mother about what had happened at my brother’s house, she became a bit worried. But my wife immediately reassured her, saying that there was nothing to be concerned about and that it was just my imagination that my brother was doing something wrong.
My mother was instantly reassured by my wife’s words, and she, too, started feeling that I must have misunderstood something. I was left frustrated when my mother said that I was just coming up with idle thoughts because I had nothing better to do.
Look at that—my mother hit two targets with one arrow. First, she indirectly told me that I was idle because I had left my business in the hands of a manager. And secondly, she unintentionally accused me of being jealous of my brother’s success abroad, and therefore trying to bring him down.
I sat there feeling insulted once again. Was it really true that I was jealous of my brother’s progress?
If I were truly that attached to making more money, why would I have left my work to a manager and sat back?
But fine, if everyone wants to think that way, let them. I would have to do something about it. I resolved in my mind that I would uncover the truth...!
It was early morning, very early—what people in the old days used to call "Bhinasare." Interestingly, back when we were under British rule, we would say "Bhinasare," but now that the British have left everything to us, we say "early in the morning!"
So, in the darkness of this early morning hour, a large tonga (horse-drawn carriage) came to a stop in front of a grand mansion. The tonga seemed large because the Arabian horse pulling it was exceptionally strong, sturdy, and muscular. The horse’s impressive build added to the tonga’s grandeur. The horse had a golden-brown coat with a slight hint of white. Magnificent.
As soon as the tonga stopped, a handsome young man jumped out and walked toward the mansion's main gate. The young man was dressed in a white Pathani suit, and his thick, shiny hair swayed gently in the cool morning breeze.
As he reached out to ring the doorbell, the screen door suddenly opened on its own. This wasn’t magic, but rather, a maid in the mansion was sweeping the room early in the morning, and while sweeping the dust out, she had come to the door and opened it from the inside to clean the area outside. It was at that moment that the young man appeared before her.
She said nothing. She glanced at the young man once, then stepped aside to let him enter.
In the young man’s hand was a packet wrapped in newspaper. He carefully unwrapped it with his fingers and placed three or four beautiful flower bouquets on the table. Then, he turned around and left. The fragrance of the flowers filled the room.
The young maid watched the boy as he left. The young man leaped back onto the tonga and urged the horse to gallop away.
As the maid picked up the bouquets that the young man had left behind, she blushed slightly. A delicate, unfamiliar thought had just crossed her mind, causing her to feel shy.
In reality, the scent of the flowers felt like the scent of the young man to her. But how could that be? Fragrance comes from flowers, after all. Even if a bit of the scent had come from the boy’s hands or clothes, so what? The aroma was still that of the flowers. The boy must have touched the flowers, made the bouquets, sprinkled water on them, and carefully carried them here in his hands. That’s how a little bit of the scent might have transferred to his body as well.
Just like when you work in a coal mine, your hands get blackened; when you care for flowers, a few drops of their essence fall on your hands and clothes, making them fragrant.
End of story!
As she walked back inside, the young maid felt a bit disheartened. A strange thought crossed her mind—had she, too, started smelling like the dust and dirt she had been sweeping all this time?
But there’s no time for idle, pointless thoughts when you have work to do. The boy came and left, right? He had a job to do, so he did it and left.
The maid had her own job to do, too—cleaning the house. So why should she dwell on such thoughts?
The maid got back to work.
Soon, everyone in the house would wake up; there would be tea, breakfast, and the house would come alive with activity.
She wasn’t afraid of the activity. What scared her was the fierce, shaggy dog, who was currently sitting quietly chained in the backyard but would be let loose as soon as the children woke up. The little girl would grab the chain and run around the lawn with the dog.
The maid hurried to finish her work.I assume you might have guessed what happened. If not, let me tell you. It's important for you to know because you've been with me throughout this whole story.
So, the bungalow where the carriage stopped in the early morning fog was none other than the one my brother bought after returning from abroad, and where I had recently visited to meet his family. And as you already know, strange and unusual events happened to me there, and I was insulted and made to look like a liar.
After reading the news in the newspaper, my suspicions deepened that my brother was involved in some illegal activity or scam. When I decided to investigate on my own to uncover the truth, I was told by my mother and wife that I was jealous of my brother's success and was making a mountain out of a molehill.
So, I made up my mind that I would not give up and would find out how genuine my brother's success was and why the police were after him.
Before the story progresses, I need to share a secret with you. The secret is that the young man who goes out every morning on the carriage to sell fresh bouquets is actually my man.
I’m still in my own city, but this young man's home is in the same city as my brother’s. It's not really a home, but a small house in the courtyard of a temple where he lives with his father.
My small town is about a hundred kilometers away from my brother's rapidly growing metropolis.
This flower-selling young man is the son of a temple priest who came to my shop a few months ago seeking a job. I couldn't offer him a permanent position with a good salary, but considering his behavior and desperation, I did give him a job at my place. The young man's desperation was that he had fought with his father and left his home to seek work with me. The boy was smart, and soon became trustworthy. That's why I made him my partner in this secret mission.
A few days passed, and I found myself on the same morning train heading to my brother’s city again.
This time, I didn't inform my brother about my visit, nor did I tell my wife and mother that I was going to see him. There was no point in telling them. They wouldn't have understood that I was going to check on my brother’s family and see how they were doing. They would have just assumed that I was going to see how my brother had earned so much wealth. In their eyes, I was just jealous of my brother, right?
That’s why I lied to them, saying that I was going somewhere to buy goods for my shop. I also told them it might take a few days.
The train was on time, and I arrived comfortably.
