Dream and Destiny:The Saga of Love, Faith and Betrayal. *Editing*

Chapter Three

Years passed, she turned 10, she slowly learnt that her parents would never come, and she got used to the fact. Everyday she'd stand in the lobby and watch the visitors who'd come to adopt children. There were rich people; there were middle class people; there were poor people too. Sanyukta began to learn from the people, from whatever she saw in them. She learnt manners, how to dress dignifiedly, how to talk elegantly. The orphanage was her mother, father, teacher and friend. She knew it inch by inch.

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One day, there were a rich couple to the orphanage and they adopted two kids. All the while when they were in the orphanage, Sanyukta studied them with undivided attention and only god knows what she felt, that night before going to sleep, she made a mental note that — she'd become rich some day and conquer the world — she'd have a family of her own. A small one but happy one.

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When sanyukta was 12 she got to know about the nurse, who was visiting the orphanage every month for her, without her knowledge. She met her. But the first question she asked her was 'Where are my parents. What happened to them' the nurse chose to stay silent. No matter how hard sanyukta tried to know the truth, the nurse said nothing.

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Then on, the nurse every month met sanyukta and gave the money her father gave her. Sanyukta always refused to take money but continued to meet her. She was the only one she had.

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On the other hand, Mr.Shekawat's business began to deep root, and spread its branches widely, Mr.Shekawat sent his son to the best school in the city and then abroad for his studies, all he wants was, his son to take over his business empire. As Randhir grew up, he was the most notorious kid in the school, and then in college, he's a total brat! When in college in abroad, he had at least a dozen blondes in his bed at minimum that year.

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As years rolled, sanyukta turned 18, from the innocent childhood to picturesque adolescence; she was the cynosure where ever she goes. She completed her schooling, but never went to the college; she used to borrow books from the library somewhere near the orphanage and would read them till the next dawn broke,

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Sometimes it's English literature, she read. Sometimes it's organic chemistry, sometimes it's human anatomy, sometime it's marketing, other times it's cost inflation management. Sometimes it's physics, other times it's engineering of fluid mechanics, engineering of electro magnetics, engineering of power systems, and the list went on... She hadn't had any degree but she had knowledge.

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On her 19th birthday. When she was waiting for her nurse aunty to show up, she saw a guy in his early twenties walking towards her, the nurse was nowhere to be seen

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"sanyukta?" he asked her in askance, on reaching her.

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"Nurse Aunty kaha hai?" sanyukta asked the guy who was now standing in front of her.

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"dadi died a week back" the guy spoke,

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"tum.." she stopped in middle as she figured that the guy was grandson of that nurse. He sighed.

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"I am raghu. dadi told me about you, she asked me to give these to you and tell you about your parents." he said handing her wads of money and few documents. Sanyukta was looking at him in surprise and anxiety on his mention of 'parents' in his words. "dadi brought a piece of land for you, with the money you refused to take, there are the documents and the left over money." He said. She grabbed those documents and money from him, clasped his wrist and took him to the back of the orphanage. The guy was taken by surprise.

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"You know about my parents?" her voice was curious.

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"dadi knows." He cut short. She made him sit down and she sat beside him. "What do you know? Please tell me. I want to know. I want to meet my parents." She pleaded.

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"Have you heard of Agarwal Automobiles" he asked her. She nodded. He took a deep breath and said "tere papa uss company ka MD hai." He said. Sanyukta was silent. Whilst Raghu continued to speak. He told her everything, right from how her father abandoned her in the orphanage just because she's a girl, to how he intimidated his dadi to stay shut in this matter. Tears silently began to flow down. Raghu looked at her and got to his feet to leave.

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"You have any picture of my parents?" she asked fighting tears. Her voice was dark.

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"No. but you have seen your mom." Raghu remembered her dadi telling him what happened on sanyukta's fifth birthday when she went to orphanage to see her. Sanyukta looked up at him. Confused. "Dadi told me that, on your fifth birthday, your brother celebrated his birthday here" he said.

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He was still about to say something but she ran off to the chief mother's room and rummaged the rack behind her table till she found the album of year 1992, she opened it to a sheet of October and found a two group photos on it. On the top was one in which sanyukta was holding Mrs.Agarwal's hand hiding behind her pallu, and in the bottom was a picture in which sanyukta put her arm round a little boys shoulder. She hardly remembers his name; she caressed the picture on top in which she was holding Mrs.Agarwal's hand.

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"mumma" she mumbled and tears refused to stand back. She hugged the album and cried out loud till she heard a huge commotion outside; she quickly tore off the sheet from the album, stuffed it in her pockets and slunk away from the room before the chief mother entered in.

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When she came out, Raghu was nowhere. She collected the documents and money and left for her room. The whole day, she locked herself in her room and curled up in a corner, crying hugging the photograph to her heart. She missed them; she hadn't committed any sin to live this shitty life of an orphan. All the days, she lived crying for her parents, craving for their love came rushing to her mind. Tears stopped flowing down. She was hurt, more than hurt; she was determined to teach her father a lesson. I'll make you realize Mr.Agarwal. To me you're dead. — She swore to herself