When Aastha met Veer, she knew they had a connection.
However, the connection would be from two centuries ago, she never could have imagined.
A love story that remained unfulfilled, broken by evil, and destroyed to ashes - whose reference hide...
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For most of the ride, Aastha had been simply relishing the feel of the breeze, letting loose and accepting the fact that she was on a bike! But the moment she saw the multiple-lane roads narrow down into a single asphalt street, she brought her attention to the route.
There was a brief moment during the journey when Aastha wondered about the worst of Veer. What if he was kidnapping her? What if he was going to hurt her?Could she trust him?
The thought had left the moment it had come. Throughout the journey, Veer constantly kept an eye held through the side view mirror. Once every few minutes, he kept her engaged with random questions about Roopgarh, Prem Mahal, Shakti Mahal and whatnot.
It amazed her to watch the huge stretch of fields on either side of the road. Despite the darkness that was encircling them, the view looked breathtaking. She had always glanced at such scenery in the confines of her air-conditioned car. This was a different feel altogether. She could feel the breeze, smell her surroundings, watch the sky change its colours and zoom through the street with speed channelled by the motorbike.
Eventually, she watched the fields disappear, and large trees lined the roads. Aastha wasn't familiar with this part of Roopgarh as it led to the valley down the Aravalli hills. She was only more excited to see where Veer was taking her.
***
Aastha watched in surprise as Veer parked the bike in front of an ancient building.
"Why do I feel like I have seen this somewhere?," Aastha mused as she scanned the building with a depleting Victorian-styled architecture. Massive arches by the doorways, fading paint marred with patches of green moss, and broken wooden benches were thrown at a corner of the yard. Every part of the building seemed like it was reaching its final moments.
Veer chuckled, "Family history, perhaps?"
When she looked at him in confusion, Veer spoke, "It was built roughly 150 years ago. At first, it was a British dormitory, later, it became a trade house, and post-Independence, an Anglo-Indian turned this place into a restaurant."
Aastha took in the information as it rang a few bells in her head. She had heard this story multiple times. Finally recalling her grandmother's stories, Aastha burst out laughing.
"Ah! It used to be 'Imperial Coffee House'. It was run by a couple named George and Sarah. Sarah inherited it from her grandmother."
"So you know."
"Of course, Daadi sa hated them with passion! Before the British built a dormitory here, it was a royal rest house," Aastha informed him excitedly.
Veer's eyes were scrutinising Aastha's every move. She wandered around the gates, softly stroking the rusted iron gates before leaning against the mango tree outside the compound wall.
