Prithvi... [Volume 4]

Chapter 83

Kedar began to speak, but dithered as he met Prithvi’s direct gaze. “You’ll have to hear unpleasant truths about the people you loved,” he said awkwardly, gazing over Prithvi’s shoulder.

Nandini’s queasiness doubled. From the palpable nervousness in her father’s friend, it seemed he had some harsh truths lined up regarding –

Please let it not be about Priyamvada, she prayed fervently. Prithvi had endured too many shocks in a short span, and he had just gotten a modicum of peace on learning his father’s truth…

 “You can relax. I don’t intend to rip your throat out in front of so many witnesses,” Prithvi assured. “But watch your back while travelling in the dark,” he advised seriously.

“Don’t make fun of him. Please,” Nandini protested faintly, inwardly stunned by his ability to make light of the situation.

“Okay,” Prithvi muttered, and he looked at Kedar. “Look, the only illusions I had were about the people I hated. Whatever you have to say, I may not find it as shocking as you think,” he shrugged.

His words appeared to calm Kedar down. In a more confident voice, the older man said, “Aditya was dead and gone for a while before Siddharth heard about the accident. One of Aditya’s drivers was passing via Shamli, and he visited Siddharth to share the sad news. Siddharth was more worried about you than your mother. He was sure Rajyavardhan’s rage would be directed towards you, not Priyamvada. But he didn’t have any means to find out if you were okay. So he took two days leave from his office and travelled to Devgarh. The guards didn’t let him step inside the grounds. Siddharth wasn’t willing return without some answers… so he befriended a villager who was a servant in the palace, and got the truth out of him.”

“They told him that Priyamvada had gone into severe shock after Aditya’s death. She’d become lifeless. Totally numb. Rajyavardhan assumed it was the result of the continuous trauma she’d undergone after the marriage. He spent huge amounts on her treatment. Brought famous doctors from across the world. Her condition improved gradually, but she – I guess she wasn’t in a state to pay any attention to you,” Kedar said warily. “You must have been just three months old at the time, but your care was left entirely to the servants. Most of them were scared to be seen looking after you because they didn’t want to invite their king’s rage. Only one of them…a cook, I think - ”

“Kadambari,” Prithvi said absently.

“Yes…yes…that was her name. If it wasn’t for that lady, you would have died in the cradle. Siddharth wanted to meet her but couldn’t. He couldn’t do anything to help you at the time. He was struggling financially and had his own family to think of. But he requested a villager to keep him informed about you via letters. And it was from those letters that he learnt that you were being completely neglected by Priyamvada even after she’d recovered considerably. It upset Siddharth, but he couldn’t budge from Shamli because his wife was pregnant at the time.”

“Shortly after, Priyamvada started making visits to the old temple in Shamli with you in tow. She would be dressed impeccably....your clothes used to be shabby and old. And you usually had big bruises on your face and arms. But Priyamvada wouldn’t admit that you were being ill-treated by her family. When Siddharth asked about the injuries, he would be told that you had tripped and fallen down the stairs…..you got hurt while playing with your friends…you ran into a door by mistake….”