Thakur's Ardhangini | 18+

38| Her Angst

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Next update : Wednesday

Author POV

Balraj arrived at the hospital after murdering Aryan. Jai, his mother and Arjun were wrapping the little baby in a white cloth for the last rites. Balraj couldn't control anymore, so he broke down there. Aradhya understood his condition, and embraced him tightly as he kept sobbing before his brother and Arjun, who were again in tears now.

"My daughter, Ma. If only I knew....I would never let this happen."

He quavered like a child in between, grumbling badly.

"We cannot control our destiny, my son. Let her go back to Mahadev with peace."

Aradhya elucidated to him in a quivering throaty voice, still caressing his head lovingly. Aradhya hugged the little girl for a last time before the men took her away to the cremation ground.

A small deathbed was created for her. Even the priests couldn't control their tears while preparing it for her.

"You'll come back to your father. Promise me, my little flower."

Balraj cooed the dead body, her little fingers curled around his thick index finger before he slowly kept her on the woods. He walked around the death bed, carrying an earthen pot over his shoulder, which he left after completing a round, followed by putting his little lifeless daughter on fire.

All the men kept sniffing as she sailed on her last journey.

"I'll name her Aarohi when she'll come back."

Balraj mumbled, silently praying to Mahadev for his daughter. They kept her remains in a kalash and decided to wait for Kashinath before they could visit the Ganga ghat for last rituals.

They returned to hospital, and started waiting for Mandakini to wake up. A week passed, but she still couldn't gain consciousness.

Balraj's eyes had turned red, as he hadn't slept for the last seven days, just random naps were helping him out to stay sane.

Kashinath Mathur was still not here, and this was troubling Balraj to the core. How busy was he to not visit his daughter even after she had undergone an induced abortion?

However, Jairaj and Aradhya seemed unaffected regarding this matter. Aradhya was constantly trying to pacify Balraj by stating that Kashinath might be busy in something really urgent, as if she knew where he exactly was!

Jairaj was gawking at the television, where the news was being telecasted, in the hospital itself.

"Kya hum musalman bhaiyo ko ab aise ghar me ghus ke mara jayega? Mere bete ko us Thakur ke bade ladke ne sirf isliye mara kyuki wo ek musalman tha aur ye unka atank hai."

"Are we Muslims destined to be murdered like this, inside our own houses? My son was slaughtered by the eldest son of that Thakur, only because we are Muslims. This is terrorism."

Amjad was delivering a triggering speech in his political rally. The Muslims public was hailing him, and hatred was very carefully induced into their naive minds. They did not the know the entire matter, but they believed in their leader.

Jairaj's gaze came back to his phone's screen, and a video played on that.

"Hamari bahu garbhvati thi. Uski kokh pe laat maari us paapi darinde ne. Kya ab hamare sath ye vyavhaar kia jayega? Abhi hamari sarkar hote hue hindu behen betiyo ke sath Aisa atyachaar ho raha hai, to inke rajya me kya hoga? Agar sache hindu ho to badla lo."