My husband hates me

Chapter 15 - Unedited

The distant echoes of hooves and car engines mixed with the soft hum of cows in the background. Birds chirped merrily, a mountain waterfall provided a soothing soundtrack alongside distant tractor sounds. In the enermous fields with greenery everywhere a man stood all alone in the middle of the road leaning back on the car. His eyes closed as he breathed in the fresh air, ten days had passed and he had finally reached his destination. Wearing a traditional suit, he glanced at the expanse and shut his eyes. The silence, the calm and peace wasn't something he enjoyed, it gave him time to think. Time to waste, to relive his life and he hated doing that.

He had received the news, a heir was born, his son.

A sense of pride hit him, as he smiled his eyes revealing happiness, he wanted to return but his visit was important. A large black minivan stopped near his car, Saad got in his car and followed it. Inside the streets as they got narrower, and they reached the slum area.

He parked the car outside the small cottage, and they entered. Through the window one could see wild terresterial forest outside, as a man sat on a chair.

"Humari yaad aahigayi janab", he said removing his shades, his black eyes a little hostile as he greeted Saad, who rolled his grey ones in response.

"Come to the point", Saad snapped uninterested in bonding and Sajjad let out a laugh. "Loosen up a little man, we are meeting after ten years... in memory of the old days. Let's go to the kotha?"

Sajjad Ahmed Khan and Saad Nawab Khan, were grandsons of Rehmatullah Nawab Khan. His two sons one moved to Pakistan at the time of partition and the other, Saad's father looked after their land.

Sajjad Ahmed Khan, was a political man just like his father, but he was patriotic if he could be called that. Saad and Sajjad although grew up in different houses, different countries, they had similar childhoods. But their personalities were completely different, where Saad hardly spoke, Sajjad seemed to never shut up. He was playful, arrogant and also called the 'Lion of Punjab'.

The two of them reached the kotha, sharing a hookah reminiscing the old times, as the tawaifs entertained them. Sajjad noticed the uninterested look in Saad's eyes, as he barely glanced at any of the woman.

"Are you in love?" He couldn't help but tease as the woman in his lap giggled, Saad shook his head in denial a little too quickly. But his expressive eyes gave away everything, "You can't fool the devil, I can tell it... you are in love".

"I hate spending time in kothas", Saad denied which was true, he didn't believe in such practices, his religious upbringing prevented him from engaging in such acts.

"And Sajjad aren't you engaged?" 

Sajjad caressed the woman's face with a rose, "She is engaged to someone else, who cares about such an old betrothal? If I have other women who can fulfill my every desire and shower me with love".

"I am a married man", Saad stood up as a woman tried to climb on his lap and walked towards the balcony to look at the government house. "So... it's one of them", Sajjad mused walking towards him and dismissing the women to give them some privacy, "She doesn't love you?"

Saad laughed, this man was a literal fox, too clever, he was sharp, he missed nothing. "Naqam e Aashiq, accha hua Nawab Khan ye din dekhne k liye zinda nahi".

And that sentence charged up the room. Saad's eyes squinted, his face muscles tightening, his jaw clenched, as he turned to face Sajjad, pulling his collar, the sudden rage and change in his demeanor not affecting Sajjad.

"Calm down tiger", that was a playful response but his voice had an edge, a warning, Saad  cursed under his breath. As Sajjad calmly went and sat down on the chaudhrayan's throne, another jab at Saad's ego because he stood right under the jhoomar. He was bursting with rage, with the sheer disrespect but how could he kill the chief minister of Punjab?