Chapter 2: She – The Woman

Palampur, a few weeks later...

Misty dawn broke in the sleepy village of Palampur as a young girl climbed up the terrace wall on the top floor of a three-storied villa. Gazing at the east in wonder, she inhaled the hazy mist deeply, then looked down the terrace. It was an impressive height, nearly thirty feet from here to the paved courtyard below. A fall from here would be her death.

As usual, she considered jumping straight to the bottom. The idea had always filled her with thrill. She had tried it once when she was nine. She had bullied a stable boy to station an old horse under the terrace and jumped on its back straight from the balcony.

It had caused chaos. The horse had bolted the moment she landed on it, then ran amok through their entire yard in panic before coming to halt in front of her furious Dadaji.

What followed was obvious. She was grounded for the next whole week. Well, grounded was a funny word for it considering her room was on the top floor. The poor stable boy was never seen around again.

Her Ma was apoplectic. She was strictly forbidden to try the stunt again. Her Dad had kept mum, though she knew he was thrilled his daughter shared his passion for horses and stunts.

Sitting on the wall now, she swung her legs to the other side and grabbed a jasmine vine. It trailed past the corner post right to the ground. This was Ma’s passion, she loved flowers and had planted these creepers when she came to this house as a new bride almost twenty-five years ago. She would not have done so, had she known at the time her daughter would use them as stairs to the ground.

She started her descent trailing past the scented honeysuckle and half-bloomed jasmines. By the time she touched the ground, she was almost dizzy with the cocktail of heady scents. An impatient nicker fell on her ears and she hurried her steps. Aron was getting restless.

“Hush...be quiet Aron. You’ll wake the whole house.”

She nuzzled the horse’s mane and planted a kiss on his side. Aron returned the gesture by licking her face affectionately. Saddling him she guided him out of the stables towards the vast fields that stretched at the back of her house. Her Dadaji, Balwant Rai Sharma owned thousands of acres, including the hills and forests that stretched for miles.

As they rode towards the hills, her heart was thrilled with anticipation. Wind in her face and speed in her wings, that was all she craved for.

*****

About an hour later, a middle-aged woman knocked on the Oak doors of her mistress’s room on the top floor of the villa. It was 7 AM, the usual time for the young mistress’s pre-breakfast snack. A silver trolley stood next to her laden with food - pancakes, strawberry milkshake, scrambled eggs, and toast. Lots of butter and cream, apricot jam, and chocolate spread. It was enough food for at least three people. But she knew her mistress will polish it clean in a few minutes.

Shaking her head she knocked on the door again. There was no sign of movement from inside.

Making up her mind she pushed the door open and entered. The room was pristine, the huge circular bed in the center already made. A fresh morning breeze swayed the silk curtains hung on the open terrace doors as a young morning sun filled the room with a sparkling golden glow.

The room was empty though, its young occupant, as usual, was already up and about.

“Aditi?” Kanta called in a low voice, afraid to wake up the others at this ungodly hour. 7 AM was early enough for her mistress to be up, but the other members of the household had different ideas. Mansi madam and Ravi Sir liked to sleep in late. Their daughter Nehal was usually up but didn’t like to be disturbed in her yoga sessions. Their son Mohit was late to arrive home last night and would not wake up even if a bomb goes off in his ears. Her master Balwant Sharma though was an old, frail man. He had trouble falling asleep most nights. So whatever little he could catch in the morning was too precious to disturb.

“Aditi...” She called moving to the bathroom, but it was empty. Sighing heavily, she moved to the terrace, just in time to see a young girl climbing up the wall. A clump of trailing vines hung low enough for her to catch a good hold. Practiced and sure-footed, she climbed like a cat, finally jumping over the terrace wall with feline grace.

Aditi Sharma, the granddaughter of Balwant Rai Sharma and the eldest daughter of the house, landed on the marble floor of the terrace with a soft thud. For a moment, Kanta watched her mesmerized, it felt as if the golden sunlight had taken the form of a vibrant young maiden.

“Good morning, Chachi...,” Aditi leaped crushing Kanta in a bone-crunching hug.

“Hrmph...hmmph...aarrgh!” The maid squeaked trying to extricate herself, but she had to endure it for another ten seconds before the girl loosened her hold.

“Yumm... Pancakes!!” Aditi squealed and was about to grab one when Kanta slapped her hand away.

“Wash those grubby hands first.” She chastised rubbing her aching arms. Golden sunlight or not, the girl had the strength of hard rock. “And I told you not to climb out of that terrace every morning. It’s dangerous. Why can’t you use the stairs like a normal person?” Kanta asked even though she knew the reason already. The room was at the back of the vast house. From there it took a long time to climb down the numerous stairs. Longer, if she had to tiptoe, minding her footsteps not to disturb the others. Climbing down the terrace wall was easy. It hardly took a minute.

“Because I am not normal. You should know that by now Chachi.” Aditi winked and ran to the bathroom to wash her hands. Kanta rolled her eyes. Normal, abnormal, semi-normal, she didn’t care. She wanted Aditi to rein in her wildness. One of these days, it would backfire. One of these days, she’d get into trouble.

“Don’t worry Chachi. I’ve been doing it all my life. I won’t fall and break my leg, I promise.” Grinning widely, Avani hugged her again planting a loud smack on her cheek. Kanta wiped it away furiously.

“You can at least wear something decent before jumping out on Aron. What if someone sees? What will people think?” She gave a horrified look to the very short shorts and a very cropped crop top that her young charge was wearing. Really, girls these days had no sense of propriety. In her day, this attire would pass as innerwear. For some girls, it still did, like Nehal in the other room.

“You know these are my favorite pajamas, Chachi. Dad got these for me when...” She stopped mid-sentence as a shadow passed her face.

Kanta nodded wryly. Of course. These pajamas were bought when the girl was fourteen. At the time, they were too big for her, so had lain in the cupboard unused. Now she lived in them.

“So how far did you go this morning?” Kanta asked, trying to shrug the images of two beautiful people that floated in her mind.

“Just around the field. The usual,” the girl answered casually.

Which meant she’d gone to the hills, Kanta pursed her lips. It was reckless, she wanted to snap but controlled her urge.

“Why can’t one of the grooms take Aron?” Kanta asked in irritation and glanced at the bandage covering the girl’s left thigh. The wound was healing too slowly, some days she could see red dots on the girl’s trousers. “That wound will open up again if you keep riding like this. You need to rest. What’s the point of being a doctor if you can’t even take care of yourself?”

Aditi shook her head. “It will heal when it does Chachi,” she answered gulping her milkshake. “And Aron wouldn’t let anyone else touch him. He prefers me.”

Yeah, right, Kanta sighed as she watched as the girl kept shifting her leg. Clearly, she was in pain. Her wounds took their own time to heal. Some didn’t heal at all. Some left ugly scars. Kanta knew there was no way around it, doctor or not.

“So what’s the plan for the day?” She asked placing a couple of painkillers next to Aditi's plate. Her mistress was an odd one. Some days she spent out in the fields or at the racing club riding Aron from dawn till dusk. Some days her city friends descended on her and she was swamped with a string of parties and picnics. Some days she was just reclusive and stayed in her room. Kanta wondered what she did on those days. She would see her medical books scattered around the room and old photos of her parents littering the place.

Aditi shrugged. “The Raisinghs have got some new horses. Grandpa Raisingh wants me to have a look at them.”

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Kanta sighed. It was just as she expected. Aron had had his day’s exercise but her mistress's day had just begun. And it was clear she was looking forward to more horseplay.

***** 

It was past mid-morning when Aditi parked her jeep in front of the Royal Equestrian Club of Palampur. There were not many cars here today; patrons usually came towards the end of the week when most of the races were scheduled. Walking in, she waved at some jockeys and trainers sitting in the cafeteria. The stands which were usually full of viewers and racegoers were completely empty. The day was already unbearably hot and Aditi, despite wearing only a light t-shirt and jodhpurs, was already drenched in sweat.

Walking towards the track behind, she emerged in the hot sun. There, in an enclosure a few meters away, were the Raisingh horses. A groom stood attention waiting for her, she noticed it was not Grandpa Raisingh's usual groom.

"Good morning, Balbir," she wished the young man. "What are you doing here today? And where is Ratan Chacha?"

"Good morning, Di," he answered smiling. "Father's unwell, so I am filling in for some time."

"Is it his arthritis again?" Aditi asked wondering. "Has he been taking his regular medicines?"

Balbir shook his head. "He takes when he remembers. And he usually forgets when he is in Badari."

Aditi frowned. Badari was Ratan Chacha's native, a distant hamlet on their land tucked up in the mountains that surrounded Palampur. She'd visited it with her parents when she was little. There was no electricity or water supply forget about a doctor or pharmacy. Ratan chacha couldn't have chosen a worse place to be at this time.

"Why is he there if he is ill?" she asked a little irritated.

"They are setting a new government school there. They needed someone old to convince people to send their kids." Balbir shrugged and picked a saddle.

Aditi hummed. A new school, now that was interesting! Maybe a visit to Badari was due soon. But for now, she had some new blood to taste. Turning to the enclosure she surveyed the horses with interest. A dappled grey mare, a chestnut bay, a black gelding. Aditi smiled. Grandpa Raisingh was more for show than substance, anyone could tell. The horses looked majestic. But even from this distance, she could tell not all were racehorse material.

Soon she got busy, checking their hooves, coats, manes, tails, and finally teeth. Then she put on her helmet and took one out to the track.

*****

Dalpat Raisingh watched from the executive viewing gallery as Aditi took his grey mare for a ride. The horse looked a bit surly, being ridden by an unknown rider but Aditi was doing an excellent job of controlling it.

He shook his head in wonder. The girl never failed to amaze him. He had been there when she was born twenty-three years ago, it was a day to remember. The first daughter in the Sharma family in generations, her birth was celebrated like never before. She was the apple of Balwant's eye. And after her parent's tragic death, her status was automatically elevated to that of the most valuable person in the household. The girl had thrived with the attention hardly missing her parents. Or if she missed them, she hid it well.

He was surprised when somewhere along the way she had also taken her medical degree. No one expected academic excellence from her, and neither did anyone expect her to make a career. But the girl had done it anyway. It might be something about the way her parents died that propelled her forward, Dalpat mused.

"She's grown into a stunning young woman," he said to Balwant, his childhood friend, who stood next to him watching his granddaughter proudly.

"Yes," Balwant answered smiling. "Beautiful like her mother. Raucous and vivacious, like her father."

Dalpat chuckled. Meera and Susheel couldn't have been more different from each other. He still remembered them from years ago. Beautiful, shy, elegant Meera, the only daughter of an industrialist had fallen in love with Balwant's rowdy elder son. They complemented each other perfectly. He had served to open her up and she toned him down. Then came Aditi and their happiness was complete. But alas, fate had planned something else for them.

"I think it's time to act on our earlier agreement. What do you say?" Dalpat asked thoughtfully.

His friend didn't answer immediately. He seemed to be lost in thoughts. "I don't know, Dalpat. It was our understanding. But kids nowadays have their own ideas...especially about marriage and stuff." His eyes followed Aditi on the track, it looked like she was having some trouble with the bay horse. "She's just finished her graduation. I don't know if she wants to do a post-graduation."

Dalpat scoffed. "She doesn't want to pursue studies Balwant. I have asked her already. It's that hospital she's obsessed with currently."

Both the old men fell silent. It was a pregnant silence, a guilty one. The deaths of Susheel and Meera hung in the air awkwardly.

"We need a hospital here. We should have set it up ages ago, but we never cared enough." Balwant said tiredly.

"Yes, yes. There is no point in crying over spilled milk," Dalpat waved off impatiently. "And she can set up her hospital after marriage, what's the big deal? Ladies of her stature are supposed to have some philanthropic past-times. A hospital for the poor and needy would be perfect. And I am sure Vivaan wouldn't mind."

Balwant stiffened. He loved his friend, but it was statements like this that made him wish he'd never agreed to the match. It was in a moment of wine-induced bonhomie when he'd agreed to marry Aditi with Vivaan. She was six and he was ten. He'd pulled her hair and she'd pushed him into the pool. Both grandfathers had laughed heartily at their antics while watching from the poolside. It was then that the idea struck.

"I don't know Dalpat," he replied stiffly. "I won't force her. It has to be her decision."

"And she'd say yes," Dalpat replied serenely. "She likes Vivaan. And he is crazy for her. I don't see a problem."

"We'll see," Balwant replied turning his eyes back to the track.

"We will, indeed." his friend answered confidently.

***** *****

 

 

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