Amballore House by Jose Thekkumthala Read Free Book Online Page B

inshedding some light in our lives, is there anything to hope for? Is the reincarnation theory true after all? Did we all commit unmentionable crimes in our previous lives to deserve the inhuman punishment that we are all awarded?”
    Ann’s voice was faltering. She was weeping while reading.
    “Why are you putting us, your father and mother, down like this, my dear daughter? Why?” Ann asked her daughter, who was miles and miles away, unable to hear her lament.
    Her siblings were surprised at the outburst on a happy occasion, coming on the heels of landing a dream job far away from her home where hell was a permanent guest as long as they could remember. They blamed this on the overpowering memories of misery and starvation throughout Kareena’s days in Kerala that sowed sad images in the core of her heart, memories so powerful that they easily eclipsed even the powerful bursts of happiness triggered by her newfound life.
    Rita resumed reading, because Ann could not continue. Rita used to join the family along with her husband, Tim, on days when letters from Kareena arrived.
    “All along I was hoping there would be a silver lining to our combined suffering. All along I was hoping that there would be a rainbow after a heavy rain to signal some hope. All along I was hoping there would be a bright morning after a long night of suffering. Why are we all born to suffer without a break?
    “Even though I am bitter and mad, I keep seeking hope and happiness. I will continue seeking them, even if it means the end of the world.
    “I send my love to you all. I hope we will continue our friendship forever, because we have none except ourselves. I hope one day we will be reunited in Kerala and live together happily ever after, just like in fairy tales.
    “From Kareena, with love.”

4OLD MAN MISERY
    Thoma and Ann often remembered their wretched life in Mannuthy. Often those memories would rise like monsoon storm, refusing to die down. They could not help remembering the past, because it was hard to forget it, however fervently they wished they could.
    Heavy monsoon rain was pelting Mannuthy with gigantic rock-sized water drops. The day looked like night with dark, heavy clouds hovering over Mannuthy and the surrounding areas. The very air in the town looked and felt ominous.
    Thoma and Ann were at their home, watching the torrential rain and in the company of Subashini, the parrot.
    The monsoon rain season was depressing to Thoma and Ann, since it only brought with it forlorn days, when he would be out of job, with hunger staying with them like a perennial guest. They had been unable to feed ten mouths, been unable to clothe them, and been unable to pay rent to Chettiar, the landlord.
    Old Man Misery (OMM) entered Thoma’s household, totally uninvited, at the beginning of the monsoon rain to stay the whole season. He was also known as hunger man or simply, misery man. He was tall, scary looking like a cobra, and with an imposing presence. His annual visit had a clockwork quality—as sure as the monstrous monsoon rain in Kerala, as sure as days dark as midnight during the depressing rainy seasons in Kerala, as sure as the gloom written on the faces of the toiling masses of rural Kerala, and as sure as starvation that stalked them during monsoon season.
    For the hunger man and the spectators, his visit had all the elements of a grand ceremony. He made a spectacular entrance, clad in a black robe, signaling the black days of misery to come. The black robe trailed behind him. He made his arrival like an actor would make his dramatic entrance onto a stage. He smoked a beedi, puffing out its black smoke, and chewed tobacco at the same time. He spat out the tobacco’s blood-red liquid at the cracked door of the house. He then sent a sobering look all around, especially toeveryone in the family, terrifying them out of their wits. He laughed loudly and hysterically. He laughed devilishly. He was an insane man.
    He sowed discomfort in