Lotus among the Roses

Cracks in the wall

The sun was beginning to soften..... melting slowly across the rooftops like ghee on warm stone. The market, while still bustling, had taken on the shade of tired laughter and fading footsteps. The wives began gathering near the carriages, clutching their bundles of spices and bangles, murmuring about heat and sandalwood drinks.

Kumud adjusted her dupatta as she stood near the edge of the square, her eyes tracking Haran's wife in the distance as she spoke softly with Devsena now, who leaned with her arms folded, her face unreadable.

She was just about to step forward when Devsena turned, caught her gaze, and gestured with a lift of her chin.

"Let the rest leave.... " she murmured when Kumud reached her side. "Gajendra's wives are chatterboxes. We've planted enough curiosity in them today."

Kumud nodded faintly. "What did she say?" Her hint towards Prabhavati.

Devsena didn't answer at first, instead her eyes lingered on Prabhavati who was now standing quietly with her hands folded, not saying much, but not hiding like before either... .

"Haran is not one of Gajendra's man," Devsena said at last. "He is serving him yes, but not willingly.... at least."

Kumud nodded as Devsena's voice lowered further, "I think he made a promise to the late Governor..... Then later some other pact about his wife... something binding. And now he's stuck. Torn between that promise and the muck he's drowning in.... "

Kumud's brows furrowed, "So he's trapped...."

"Yes, But my concern is that I don't know if it's fear, love, or loyalty that's holding him down....."

Kumud smirked and said after, "Well then. Let's stir the pot a little....."

Fifteen minutes later, one of the court wives called out, "But what about your carriage? Would you two like to join us? "

"Oh, don't worry!" Devsena replied sweetly, adjusting the hem of her veil. "They'll walk. My Brother and his lovely wife, my Bhabhi were just saying how much they miss the early days of their marriage, wandering through the streets alone..... I think we should leave them alone.... "

Kumud choked, as her eyes widened. Vyom who had just arrived there, blinked. "We....  were? Missing old days....? "

Devsena elbowed him. Hard! Her eyes clearly calling him an idiot for stupidly wasting the opportunity she had just created for him....

Vyom grunted, although his eyes lit up, "Oh Yes! We were... Yes!."

"Oh," one wife sighed. "How romantic......"

Another giggled, yet her words were laced with jealously "I'd never have the opportunity of my husband taking me through the city like that.... "

"Ah, but not all husbands are my Brother, are they?" Devsena said meaningfully.

The women tittered again, as the carriage door slammed shut, and just like that, Kumud and Vyom, the false husband-wife duo, still reeling from the absurdness of the situation. They looked at each other, then at the surroundings as a smile crept up their faces. 

They realized that Devsena knew that they would never be alone, because Gajendra, that  charming snake, didn't trust people easily....

With a mutual nod, they began to walk. They hadn't walked far when Vyom caught it. A flicker in the shadows, casted upon the huge temple walls. A reflection on polished mirror..... as they passed by a Blacksmith's shop. A man who bought no spices, when they stopped by to admire the flower garlands, but lingered near every stall they passed.