The Forbidden Marriage ✔

63• त्रिषष्टिः

In the grand yet austere room of Kashyap and Katyayani, the air was thick with anticipation. The richly adorned chamber, with its high ceilings and intricate tapestries, seemed a world away from the simple life Damru described. The boy, a small figure in the vastness of the royal chamber, looked around with wide eyes, clutching a stuffed teddy bear to his chest.

Katyayani, seated in a regal chair with an air of authority, leaned forward, her stern gaze fixed on Damru. "So you two lived in Darjeeling all these time?" she asked, her voice carrying the weight of command.

"Yes..." Damru replied, his baby voice soft and hesitant.

"Since your birth you know your baba?" Kashyap asked, his tone gentle, contrasting with his wife's severity. He sat beside Katyayani, his expression kind and encouraging.

"No! No! He visited us a few months back and I didn't even know he was my baba until my maa told me yesterday," Damru said, the earnestness in his voice making them all lean in a little closer.

They listened, their faces serious, absorbing the gravity of his words.

"That's why Trishul was so happy after coming back from Darjeeling," Katyayani mused, a flicker of realization crossing her face. "I was very suspicious about it, but never guessed something like this."

Ambika, sitting cross-legged on a plush cushion near the window, her bubbly nature momentarily subdued, asked, "So you two used to live alone?"

"Yes... But we had Ved uncle, Manish uncle, and Maya aunty," Damru replied, his eyes brightening at the mention of his familiar caretakers.

"Who are they?" Ambika asked, curiosity piquing in her voice.

"Maa's best friends!" Damru replied with a tiny smile.

Katyayani's eyes narrowed slightly as she asked, "Do you know what work your mother used to do?"

"Yes! Mother works at a hotel! She cleans and helps the people in the hotel. I also go to the hotel so many times with her. In fact, that's where I met baba."

"What?! Cleans and helps?!" Ambika exclaimed, her voice rising in disbelief.

Katyayani's shock was palpable as she interjected, "How did she survive there? By cleaning? She was raised as a princess!"

Damru's eyes grew even wider. "What? Maa was a princess?" he asked in awe, looking at his grandmother with a mixture of amazement and confusion.

Kashyap, his eyes filled with a deep, pensive sadness, added, "Now I am more curious about what could compel Minakshi to leave this lifestyle and choose the lifestyle of a helper and cleaner."

Katyayani hummed thoughtfully, her eyes distant as she contemplated the mysteries surrounding her daughter in law's choices. The room fell silent, each of them lost in their thoughts, the only sound of the faint rustle of the wind through the open window.