Destiny's Play!!

Chapter - 71

Karan had to keep a tight control over himself. For now she needed him. He needed to be stronger than he had ever been before. What had that man done to her? No wonder she was uncomfortable in angry situations. And he hadn't made it easy for her either. His own rough, rude behavior had made her nervous enough times. Now he knew why she was so skittish at the slightest hint of hostility. Guilt rose within him. What had he done?

Had Sahil hurt her? Had he physically harmed her? The mere thought made his blood sing. If he had...what could he do, the man was dead. He closed his eyes momentarily and then opened them again.

"Did he hurt you?" he asked clogging on his own question.

"No," she whispered, understanding what he was asking her "apart from one time," she said softly. Her voice so soft he could barely hear her but it was still clear. "I had accidentally broken his photo frame. He had lost it that day with me. The broken glass had grazed my finger but he..." she said and bit her lip, "he was so mad he pushed me away and I fell. Luckily I didn't get much hurt but apart from that he never even touched me," she murmured.

Karan felt a rage so blinding for a second he wanted to go after the man make him live again just so he could kill him. How do you hurt someone over a bloody photo frame? Who in their right minds did that? And then to not once notice your own wife was hurt you push her away? What kind of monster was he? And then suddenly he remembered the day she had accidentally broken the coffee jar at his house. She had been scared even then. Oh God, she must have been going through this memory then. She had gotten hurt that day too and he had been mad at her. But he had been mad at her for getting hurt not for the broken jar. He tightened his hold on her even as he kissed the top of her head.

"What was so precious about that photo frame?" Karan asked tightly.

"It was a gift from someone he loved," she said silently.

Karan straightened her. Did she just say...Sahil had been in love with someone else? Then why had he married her?

"He had loved someone else?" Karan asked shocked.

Avni nodded her head, "He was angry at me because he had to marry me," she said, "now that I think about it I guess he was angrier with himself," she said reflectively, "for not being able to be with the one he loved. For ruining my life too I think. The day he died he had left a note for me. He was leaving me," she said in a dead tone.

"He was leaving you to be with this girl he loved," Karan said frowning.

"Yes," Avni replied as more tears came to her eyes, "only he never made it. He was driving way too fast and couldn't get out of the way of an oncoming truck. The collision was so bad he died on the spot and the officials had to pry his car open to get to his body," she said, "he had signed the divorce papers before he left, freeing me from the marriage only before I could sign them he died making me a widow instead," she said and laughed hysterically.

Karan didn't know what to call the circumstance apart from calling it bizarre. So she would have been a divorcee if Sahil had still been alive.

"Did you never go tell your mother what you had been through," he asked as he stroked her head.

"Strange as it may sound she refused to have anything to do with me," she said and at the surprised look on his face she went ahead, "it isn't her fault," Avni defended, "once the girl has married her in laws' house is the place for her," she said and at the anger she saw in his eyes she continued hurriedly, "that is what I was told to believe. I had always adjusted Karan it is how I am. And Shalini ma was all alone too after Sahil was gone. Besides my mother had to think of her other daughters too. Who would marry them? With the eldest sister being a widow," she said and bent her head.