A walk in the clouds

Chapter nine under the sky

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The dead of the night

It was the dead of the night. The moon was high up in the sky. Nature had settled to rest. Crickets were chirping loudly. Nothing else could be heard. It was cold out here, the weather changing drastically with the setting of the sun. The wind was blowing lightly but enough to lower the temperature by a few more degrees more. It was normal for the desert so tonight was nothing new. Taking a blanket that was lying next to the pack of food, I covered myself. I wish I could change my clothes, since I was still in the torn saree that I had been wearing in the day. The cuts and bruises were throbbing badly, there were dirt marks and blood on my clothes. A shooting pain in my ankles had been troubling me since the afternoon, because of the impact of the fall. Although I had wiped my face and hands with a wet piece of cloth I still felt so grimy. But all in all my spirit was intact and I was more happy than I had ever been before. I don't know what life will hold for me in the future but it will definitely be on my terms. I will no more dance on someone else's tune. Be an unwilling puppet, the strings being held by someone else. My love had given me the strength and the will to fight.
Brrrr...... Feeling the cold wind touching through the blanket and definitely not dressed for the outdoor, just now I would really welcome a warm room and a warm bath. A warm toasty fire would have been more than welcome too, but this too was not an option since it would act like a beacon for anyone to see.
Time was passing ever so slowly. Looking around everything was at peace. Chandan was still not back. Manu had left us once he had guided us to the edge of the thicket. On reaching the edge he had shown from where we could cross the road over to the other side. Thanking him for a favour I could never pay him back for, I was forever in his debt. If not for him we would never have gotten out of the forest. He was a goatherd, who got his goats for grazing to the hill. He knew the forest well, his goats often wandered into the thicket , and he had to go into rescue them. Chandan had sought him out a few days ago. When I had initially thought of escaping I hadn't realised it would be so difficult. Ranisa fearing I would  get wind of her evil plan and thus would try and escape, had put a stop to my leaving the palace. All the gates had double the guards and from the palace itself there was no way I could have fled. The only way we realised that I could escape and buy enough time so that I wouldn't get caught was if, I, could some how reach the Goddess Durga temple then, through the back of temple I could get to the thicket and from there, then escape was possible. I knew the layout of the temple well, having come here every week for years. I knew it's every door and window. I knew that the height between the window of the last room and the ground was the least there. At other places the height was too much. From there although there was no clear path I could still manage to make my way down to where I knew Manu would be waiting for me. But however, it was easier said than done. Making a plan was one thing and executing it another.

The thicket forest was just behind, to the south of the temple, while the palace was up in the north. There was a cross junction just after the forest with one road coming into Ujjangarh. The thicket was a natural defence against the enemy, it was a thick thorny wall of trees, so thick that most of it was impassable. Nothing ever grew here, except for more thorny plants. Only small wild animals could survive in this wilderness. Being the way it was, it was next to impossible to cross on an animal, walking it, was only possible if one knew the way. In some places one had to crawl through even. If a person was not sure then, it was easy to miss the hidden cuts and turn. You could end up stuck inside this maze, with no way out. It was an extremely dangerous place. If I were to reach this thicket then with Manu's help we could cross it. Once the thicket was crossed then there was a wasteland to the other side of the road. It was equally treacherous but it was more navigable. By the time the guards realise that I was attempting to escape, I will have the wall of the thicket between us. Then I can make a bid for the border and beyond. For all this to happen we first needed someone who knew this area well, and  thank God!! I had thought of Manu. I had mentioned him to Daimaa and she had asked Chandan to come and find him. Since I knew him and had befriended him, he was more than willing to help me. It had been a slim chance that all of us taken but if I could get away in the night then with the Goddess Durga's blessing I know I will make it to where Abhi hopefully will be waiting for me. It was a very big step that I was contemplating but my feet seemed adamant on flying. For I could see my destiny Abhi waiting for me. Once Manu had left to go back home, we had gone back into the thicket and waited in its safety till the sundown. With the dark offering us coverage we had made for the spot where we were to meet the man who would be taking to my destination.