Crossroads

Chapter 10

Chapter 10

"You love me, right?"

My heart broke when I heard the pain filled voice of Aaditya as I was leaving his room after putting him to bed. It has been nearly three hours since my hell beast, she-devil, bitch of an aunt traumatised both of her grandchildren. Since then, Aadi and Amy hasn't stopped crying. It took all of our combined efforts to calm the kids down. And by all I actually do mean all of us- me, Sakshit, Rahul, Manyata, and, surprisingly, Lucas.

I turned and walked towards the bed. I could see him clutching his quilt with a tight grip and though he tried to put on a brave face, his eyes were shining and a tear slipped from the corner of his eye.

"I should give you a tight slap," I said and sat right next him, "for even asking me such a silly question. There is nothing and no one I love more than you two, you know that. And if you're worried because of your grandmother, then don't be. She will not touch a single hair on your head and I will make sure of that. That's my promise."

A small hand came out of the quilt with the little finger extended towards me. "Pinky promise?"

"Pinky promise." I looped my little finger around his and smiled at him. Giving him a kiss on his forehead I asked. "By the way, why do we call it pinky promise?"

"Because this is what girls do." Came the reply.

"But you are not a girl." I said trying to lighten the situation.

Aadi looked at me for some time and then he leaned in close and said in a hushed voice, "don't tell this to Amy." And I couldn't control myself. I had to laugh at the innocence of that answer.

Hugging him tightly I told him to go off to sleep as he has to go to school tomorrow. He kissed me on my cheek and closed his eyes. I stayed in his room, beside him, until he was breathing steadily and I was sure that he was sleeping peacefully. Then, I got up and walked out of his room.

Shutting the door quietly, I walked to the living room where my cousins and, surprisingly still, Lucas were sitting discussing something. The moment they saw me they stopped talking. Seething with anger, I walked to the liqueur cabinet and poured a single malt whiskey into a glass. I polished it off in two swallows.

"Nayu-" Manyata begins but stops when I raised a finger at her.

After knocking back another glass of scotch, I turned around and faced my audience. If I wasn't so angry and if the situation wasn't so tense, I would have laughed at the expressions on everyone's face. Sakshit was as angry as me and his face was, still, thunderous; Manyata had worry etched onto her face; Rahul was calm but don't be fooled, he's probably thinking of a way to get even with our aunt Ramya. Lucas, however, was bubbling with curiosity, you could see him eating everyone up and accessing their reaction.

I rolled my eyes and poured another drink. Drowning this one down, I looked straight at Sakshit.

"I am gonna kill her." I tell him in a very normal, everyday kind of tone. "And you three-" I wave my finger at Sakshit, Manyata and Rahul, "are going to defend me in court. Whereas you-" this time I point my finger at Lucas, "you are going to be my ironclad alibi."

I looked at everyone and asked, "Got it?"

"Oh, thank God!" Manyata exclaimed. "I was beginning to worry about her."

"Finally I get to kill some, if not all, psycho's of our family. My dream has finally come true." Rahul exclaimed. Then looked at Sakshit with a wary expression on his face. "No offense, bro."

"None taken." Sakshit waved his hand in I-don't-give-a-fuck way and then looked at me. "You do know that she is going to contest the adoption, right?"