" Yes, I am irritated with your presence Mostafa. I don't like you visiting my wife whenever you feel like doing it," Sagar told Mostafa in the hospital.
When he came to the hospital after work, he found Mostafa near the bed of Meera. It was visiting hours.
" If you still think she is your legal wife, please feel free to take her away. At least I can lead my life peacefully." Sagar hissed at him and walked out towards his parked car.
Mostafa stood there helplessly. When he heard from Mansy that Meera had started showing improvement in her condition, and she was hospitalised again, he made his way to the hospital after work.
But, Sagar's reaction made him feel unwanted and ashamed.
He walked towards the cafeteria and ordered some tea and samosas.
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" Ajjee , don't hit me..It pains...Please leave me ..." Meera kept shouting at the top her voice. She wriggled in pain. She had never expected such inhuman actions from him.
She was tied to the bed. She struggled to free herself. She started hitting the ground with her legs . But with no much help. He was busy heating the knife on the stove and placing it on her hands. His actions showed the wild animal that he had turned into. Each time he placed the hot metal on her skin, she creamed loudly in pain. But there was no one to help her.
He was smart enough to keep the TV on full volume. The neighbours could never hear her cry out in pain.
He hit her with his fists and slapped her across her face. After a while, she had lost her consciousness.
He walked out into the cold of the night locking her in their flat.
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It was not just Hamid, there were others too who praised his wife. Her beauty, her cooking skills and how smart she was compared to him. Mostafa couldn't take such comments any longer.
He started suspecting her even when she went to the nearby supermarket alone to buy articles. He thought she had an affair with one of his friends.
Hamid was already notorious among his friends for sleeping with any beautiful female he met.
The first thing he did was to force her to stop her work at the cloth factory. That was unsuccessful. No work meant no documents. No work also meant not enough money for survival. He slowly tried to forget that idea.
Next, he made sure that she returned home from work on time. He calculated the time taken to reach from the factory to their flat. He stopped all her friendship with her colleagues. He stopped her from going to the market. He started locking her inside the flat whenever he went for work, especially during the night shifts.
One day, Meera was shocked to see holes dug onto the bedroom doors and bathroom doors. He made sure she was watched always!
To make matters worse, he received a letter one day. The letter was addressed to Meera from her mother.
Out of curiosity, he opened and read it. It was neatly written. He was sure that the old woman could never pen a letter , let alone write her own name. Even though her husband was a school teacher, she was almost illiterate.
The content of the letter made his eyes thrust forth. The letter read:
My dear child,
I hope you are doing well. I haven't heard from you for a few days now. Why did you stop phoning me?
Gudiya is not well for the last few days. She has high fever and tonsillitis.
I need you to send me money child. Whenever I look at Gudiya, she reminds me of your younger days.
Waiting for your reply soon.
With lots of love,
Your loving mother.
He sat with the letter for a while, staring onto it. He couldn't comprehend the content at first. What did it say? Who is Gudiya? Was Meera sending money to her mother secretly?
He went wild. She was washing clothes in the washroom. They didn't have a washing machine. So, she had to sit down and wash all clothes by herself.
He dragged her out of the washroom. Then, took her to the bedroom. He tied her to the bed, and started hitting her with his belt.
"You, wretched woman, tell me the truth.. were you cheating on me?"
He never waited for an answer from her. He never gave her a chance to talk. He kept hitting her until she bled.
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When Mostafa returned the next day morning, Meera was till unconscious. he threw some water on her.
He started to panic. He immediately called for a taxi and took her to the government hospital nearby.
He reported that she had slipped and fallen on the kitchen floor hitting against the stove, and thus had burn marks.
Thankfully for him, it was Friday. It was a holiday in that part of the world. Hospitals didn't show much of a rush. And he was on an off duty day. So was Meera. That meant there was no one to ask after them.
Her clothes were drenched in her own blood. Mostafa sat like a lost man on one of the benches outside the Emergency room. he clearly regretted his wild actions. He couldn't even remember what had happened to him then. It was more or less like a devil taking over him.
" Tell me the truth, had you hit her?" He stared at the question darted at him. He was back in his senses.
It was one of the female nurses who worked there. She seemed to be an Indian, perhaps a Malayalee. There were a lot many females from Kerala working in nursing there.
"Do you want me to report you to the police?" Now the voice got harsher. He looked at her blankly and slowly put his head down.
" She has already lost her child. Now, we are struggling to see if she gets back her life ," You better sign this form. She produced a form which he signed without any response.
" And, mind you, if she is dead or fallen into a comma, then your life is finished in this country." saying so, the head nurse walked away.
Mostafa sat there, alone, leaning against the wall, weeping bitterly like a child.
YOU ARE READING
Meera's Husband!
Cerita Pendek......She was a Muslim woman and he was a Hindu man. She had been working at the place for ten years with no one actually suspecting anything about her Identity. Then a casual question from a colleague triggers nervousness, confusions and tensions...
