A Bend in the River of Life by Budh Aditya Roy Read Free Book Online Page B

on a short vacation.However, to take advantage of his presence in the town, his partners requested him to extend his stay for a month to audit their Calcutta office. No one was happier than Rana. It was the first time in many years that his father would be present on his birthday. Kamala and Devika came with their children and stayed back for a few days. Came around Sheila also and at Amit’s request she too stayed back for a week.
    On one cool and sunny afternoon during that week Rana returned home from the school. While he was still sitting in the school bus very close to their house, it appeared to him that Rajani and Sheila were waiting for him rather anxiously on the front balcony of the second floor. He sensed something unusual. By the time he entered the house Sheila had already come down from the second floor. She almost swooped down upon him and said, “Hurry up, your mother has come!”
    She was breathing heavily. She appeared to be excited but not nervous. Before Rana could realize or say anything she literally dragged him up the stairs to the second floor and dropped him on the lap of a lady. Rana did not look at her face but felt a drop of tear on his right cheek.
    Sheila said, “Talk to your mother.”Rana did not know what to talk. He was dumbfounded to hear that his mother was still alive! But before any words were exchanged Rajani rushed in and said, “Taxi is waiting, we got to go.”
    As Sheila pulled him aside from the lady’s lap to help her stand up on her feet, Rajani held her hand and walked down the steps rapidly. Sheila took Rana to the front balcony. But the taxi drove off faster than a nor’wester. All these happened in such a flurry that Rana was literally dazed. His eyes became wider at the horrendous prevarication of the entire family. He thought his mother Monika was dead! That’s what he was told since he was not even two. He reflected upon in utter disbelief how could a dead person come back live in flesh and blood? Was Monika’s death a lie? Suspicion clouded his trust ineveryone. Deception and untruthfulness of those on whom he reposed unwavering faith stupefied him. He remained speechless and dejected. Sheila realized his puzzled state of mind. She sat next to him and tried to explain why and where Rajani took Monika. She did not say how an individual pronounced dead many years ago, could come back hale and hearty. She did not say where Monika came from and why everyone had to lie to him about her.
    The reason Rajani had to rush Monika from that house was to protect her from the rage of Amit. The mother in Rajani was pleased that Monika came back of her own accord. She was also happy for Rana, although she took his astonished and wounded feelings for granted. Obviously, she was oblivious of the lie and deception of the entire family to Rana when he was not even in a position to understand. But knowing how angry Amit could be, she had to take an on-the-spot decision. Sheila supported her judgment.
    Few years earlier Rajani had purchased a property at the outskirts of Calcutta with the purpose of constructing a family hub which would replicate the ancestral mansion that they had left behind in Birpur. Rajani’s mother Nandini and her two sisters also settled down next to that property. However, the Divine Wisdom had a different idea for that property. As Monika’s brother dropped her off at the Roy family residence at the Garden Lakes, Rajani and Sheila conferred and decided that the best way to avoid a dangerous confrontation was to move her to Rajani’s country house in order to allow sufficient time for Amit to blow off his steam. In their judgment, that was the only prudent solution immediately. So after eight years of her own ego-driven, self-imposed exile, Monika’s second exile began.
    Sheila was left with the most unenviable task that could be imagined to convey the message to Amit and keep him pacified at the same time. If