THE CURSED BEAUTY

C-19

Ram dev didnot tell Anirudh about malti's condition. Upon further annoying insistence from Anirudh for some information, ram dev lied by telling him that someone injured just happened to want his help.

"You mean to say, that girl was crying and begging just to help a person who had a minor injury?" Anirudh looked at his uncle skeptically. His statement was hard to digest.

"That girl has a name Anirudh. Her name is Ishumati." Ram dev dismissed the matter lightly.

"Yeah yeah.... That Ishumati. I didn't perceive her to be the kind of girl who would want to save someone's life, let alone behaving frantically over some scratch." Anirudh said.

Ishumati was a bad news from him. From making him extremely annoyed and angry within seconds, to finding topics for her to fight and almost declaring him as a bhramhachari, she was a cookie he never wanted to have. Yet, craved it secretly in the back of his heart. This chaotic girl was a mess he wanted to fix.

Ram dev winced at Anirudh's causality of words. He knew the truth about Malti getting raped and almost being at the brink of death.

Dr. Bhola did a once over on Malti's condition, and he strongly suggested that it was a miracle that she did not die. Her feet were trampled and the bichiya (toe rings) she used to wear were deep inside her wounds which had to be surgically removed. Her upper body had many cuts and bruises, her breasts had teeth marks, her vagina had been scraped up which caused internal bleeding. Her face had claw and nail marks, all the flesh of her skin mangled. The scars would be permanent.

Ram dev's soul hitched at the doctor's words and the cruelty of the man who committed such heinous crime. He had sworn had who ever had done this crime would be punished harshly. His infamous thakur Roy Chaudhary anger swinging in full form.

"Talk with care Anirudh. The lady you are talking about is dear to me." Ram dev said, deadly silent.

"Why?" Anirudh asked.

"Why is she so dear to you? What connection do you have with the girl?" Anirudh had seen his uncle displaying affection to this young unknown lady from the start. He even made her join the puja at the temple with the family members and Somnath and batuknath were concerned about her wellbeing too. Was Anirudh missing on something?

"She is the daughter of the love of my life, Anirudh. Of course we have a connection." Ram dev smiled sadly.

"Huh-"

It shocked Anirudh. Not the news that Ishumati was the daughter of his uncle's love but his uncle's sadness. Thakur Ram dev Singh Roy Chaudhary had everything. Money, family, fame, authority. Then why was he sad? Why couldn't he get his love?

His uncle never married. Anirudh would often ask his uncle why, but ram dev would change the topic instantly. Maybe he was still grieving for his love.

"Let me tell you from the beginning", ram dev smiles rejoicing his old memories.

FLASHBACK

Ram dev Singh Roy Chaudhary and Sumati Das were what is considered to be childhood friends. Ram dev for the eldest son of the Roy Chaudhary thakurs and Sumati was the daughter of the biggest spice sellers and exporters of Devipur. They were neighbors too, which nourished and bloomed their friendship. Both families were aware of ram dev's fondness towards Sumati.

Sumati's parents also proposed marriage alliance when ram dev was 12 and Sumati was 9 years old, but the thakur family rejected it, publically humiliating Sumati's parents audacity. According to ram dev's parents Sumati belonged to a lower family than theirs in every sense of money, clothing and social status.

But this public humiliation deeply hurt ram dev and Sumati's parents. The das family immediately declared that within 4 months they would marry their daughter in an equally auspicious family than the Roy Chaudharys. And the hunt began. Meanwhile Sumati was unaware of the drama and ram dev's love and fondness towards her. She was a happy child who thought the world was all roses and rainbows.

4 months passed in a blink and Sumati was married to the Singh Varma family who was one of the best jewelers and gold miners of west Bengal. They had social grandeur as great as the Roy Chaudharys at that time.

Neither ram dev nor his family was invited to the grand wedding at Devipur. And Sumati was sent to Taalabganj as a newly wedded bride. Ram dev experienced his first heart break that day. All the money and fame in the world could not win his love for him.

Months went by and Sumati was adjusting to her new sasuraal. Her husband loved her deeply but her mother in law was a different scene. She bullied and belittled Sumati was being a chote-ghar-ki-beti and taunted her for not bringing enough dowry from her father's house. Sumati was just a child so she never understood the ill intensions behind her words but as she grew older, she always had the insecurity of being sent permanently to Devipur, if she fails to pay the dowry.

One quiet day when she arrived at her father's house at Devipur, her sad face caught everyone's attention, including his neighbor ram dev Roy Chaudhary who was sat in his terrace, mending his broken heart. When he saw Sumati after such a long time, he felt elated and wanted to celebrate that day like a festival but the rivalry between the parents stopped him from doing so.

He quietly sneaked out from his haveli and caught her hand and dragged her to some distance so that they could talk in private. But Sumati misunderstood the situation and slapped him as soon as he left her hand. He was shocked at first, but later explained and apologized for his aggressive actions. Sumati too apologized, feeling guilty about how fast she judged him without knowing the reason behind his actions.

They sat down on the grass and started talking about those good old memories they shared with each other. Ram dev slowly asked about her marriage with the Varma family and Sumati excitedly told him, how good and caring her husband was. Ram dev experienced his heart breaking the second time. But when she told him about how her greedy mother-in-law was for the dowry, ram dev took matters in his own hands. He told Sumati not to worry about it and enjoy her stay at her maayka (father's house).

Ram dev then ordered a hefty amount of jewels, clothes, sweets, cows, fruits and some property papers to be sent to the Varma haveli along with a note which said that this gift (dahej) was sent by Sumati's father for her sasuraal.

He did it all for love. He couldn't see any tears falling from Sumati's eyes, hence he took it upon himself to make her happy. He was the Roy Chaudhary heir and nothing was impossible for him.

Except professing his love to Sumati.

He never said he loved her. He never said 'I love you' to her. Though they remained friends for entire life. She was his first friend and also his last.

Sumati enjoyed her stay at Devipur and left for Taalabganj because staying away from sasuraal for a long time was not socially acceptable. But when she reached her husband's haveli, the air had changed. The mother-in-law who was so rude from the beginning to Sumati was showering flower petals on her. Everyone had now started addressing her as the choti malkin of the haveli and she received a heartfelt grand welcome. She understood ram dev must have helped her considering their friendship. She decided she would repay him sooner or later.

It was all calm for some years, Sumati was happy in her sasuraal and ram dev was burning in love. 

But it all changed when Sumati got pregnant.

TO BE CONTINUED - in the next chapter.

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