16-12-2022, 05:00 PM
After the night shift, Apara usually went to bed at 6 and woke up by around 10. 4-5 hours of sleep is the most we could get in this job on busy days. Right on schedule, she walked to the front desk at 10:15, after having showered. But she was wearing a salwar kameez, which was rare these days.
"Has the plumber come yet?"
Just as she asked, the guy walked in with his tool box. He barely nodded at me and started talking to Apara. He was laughing and talking rapidly as usual. I was surprised to note that Apara wasn't being as chatty or giggly as usual. She was being inert and matter-of-fact, no smile on her face. I guess even he noticed because he stopped chattering too much as well. In rapid Spanish, I heard Apara list down the room numbers, and from a few words here and there, I could make out she was describing the plumbing problems. He nodded quietly.
She turned around and silently started walking away. The plumber ran behind her and throwing a quick glance in my direction, said something in a questioning tone that stuck in my head.
"Marido deskon fyado?"
"Si. Vamos." Apara quickly responded. And the two turned the corner and walked away.
Instantly, a red flag went up in my head. I did not know too much Spanish, but had heard the maids talk enough to figure out a few words. One of those words was marido, which I knew meant husband. So from what I heard, I thought the guy was asking Apara if her husband would be at the desk. Why would he ask that unless they were planning some hanky-panky and he wanted to be sure I would not disturb them.
I bided my time, and looked at the work sheet. Noted what rooms he was going to be working in. And then after about twenty minutes, tiptoed towards the first room. I wasn't sure what to expect or what to do. What if the room was locked? Could I just walk in and catch them in the act? Or maybe I should run outside and look in from the window. But what if the curtains were closed. Uncertain I walked down the corridor towards the first room.
And was surprised to see the door was wide open. I peeked in. The plumber was there alone, working on the bathroom sink. Apara was nowhere to be seen. Maybe she had to take care of something else. As I walked back, I saw her in another corridor. She was with the laundry cart and her back turned towards me. Going to the laundry room. So no hanky panky yet.
That's when I heard the bell ring, which meant someone was at the front desk. I ran there, checked the guest in. Stayed there a little longer. Then went on another stroll. Again, nothing untoward. The plumber was working diligently. Apara was somewhere else. I started wondering if I was being paranoid after all. Maybe this was all in my head. Maybe I was making mountains out of molehills. I felt happy for a while, thinking all this was a misunderstanding.
One thing kept bothering me though. The way he had looked at me and asked her if I would be at the desk. Why would he ask that for no reason?
On a whim, I opened google on the front desk computer and typed in.
"Deskon fyado"
The search results said
"Showing results for desconfiado"
I clicked on the first result, which was a dictionary site. And it listed the meaning of the word
Mistrustful, Distrustful, Suspicious.
And my heart sank again. He had not asked her if her husband would be at the desk. He had asked her, probably judging by the way she was suddenly acting so aloof in front of me, if her husband had gotten suspicious. And she had replied si, which meant yes.
So my wife knew I was suspicious. And she was being careful.
"Has the plumber come yet?"
Just as she asked, the guy walked in with his tool box. He barely nodded at me and started talking to Apara. He was laughing and talking rapidly as usual. I was surprised to note that Apara wasn't being as chatty or giggly as usual. She was being inert and matter-of-fact, no smile on her face. I guess even he noticed because he stopped chattering too much as well. In rapid Spanish, I heard Apara list down the room numbers, and from a few words here and there, I could make out she was describing the plumbing problems. He nodded quietly.
She turned around and silently started walking away. The plumber ran behind her and throwing a quick glance in my direction, said something in a questioning tone that stuck in my head.
"Marido deskon fyado?"
"Si. Vamos." Apara quickly responded. And the two turned the corner and walked away.
Instantly, a red flag went up in my head. I did not know too much Spanish, but had heard the maids talk enough to figure out a few words. One of those words was marido, which I knew meant husband. So from what I heard, I thought the guy was asking Apara if her husband would be at the desk. Why would he ask that unless they were planning some hanky-panky and he wanted to be sure I would not disturb them.
I bided my time, and looked at the work sheet. Noted what rooms he was going to be working in. And then after about twenty minutes, tiptoed towards the first room. I wasn't sure what to expect or what to do. What if the room was locked? Could I just walk in and catch them in the act? Or maybe I should run outside and look in from the window. But what if the curtains were closed. Uncertain I walked down the corridor towards the first room.
And was surprised to see the door was wide open. I peeked in. The plumber was there alone, working on the bathroom sink. Apara was nowhere to be seen. Maybe she had to take care of something else. As I walked back, I saw her in another corridor. She was with the laundry cart and her back turned towards me. Going to the laundry room. So no hanky panky yet.
That's when I heard the bell ring, which meant someone was at the front desk. I ran there, checked the guest in. Stayed there a little longer. Then went on another stroll. Again, nothing untoward. The plumber was working diligently. Apara was somewhere else. I started wondering if I was being paranoid after all. Maybe this was all in my head. Maybe I was making mountains out of molehills. I felt happy for a while, thinking all this was a misunderstanding.
One thing kept bothering me though. The way he had looked at me and asked her if I would be at the desk. Why would he ask that for no reason?
On a whim, I opened google on the front desk computer and typed in.
"Deskon fyado"
The search results said
"Showing results for desconfiado"
I clicked on the first result, which was a dictionary site. And it listed the meaning of the word
Mistrustful, Distrustful, Suspicious.
And my heart sank again. He had not asked her if her husband would be at the desk. He had asked her, probably judging by the way she was suddenly acting so aloof in front of me, if her husband had gotten suspicious. And she had replied si, which meant yes.
So my wife knew I was suspicious. And she was being careful.
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