30-09-2019, 09:08 PM
# 12
The ganja that he smoked helped him into a state of oblivion for most of his waking moments. It was his only recourse against the terrors in his mind. Briefly though, in fleeting moments of lucidity, he would be able to collect his thoughts.
Last night he had been dreaming of the ruins …
‘No, no! It was Mona’, he asserted, unsure of himself.
‘Or was it Shefali?’
He had almost banished Shefali, his wife dead since long long back.
He clutched his head. A headache was coming, and he knew that the trembling would follow soon. Urgently, he needed another fix. He took out the chillum and searched for the packet of weed. It was not to be found. He panicked. Looking around the cave, he detected the packet at a corner and immediately pounced on it. Moments later, he was taking deep drags … … ‘Aahh, the relief … … at last … ‘, he muttered to himself as he watched smoke curling to the ceiling …
He felt calm. Memories wouldn’t hurt him now … he let the kaleidoscopic thoughts flow … the past … it wouldn’t hurt … it was all taken care of … as it had been on that night which had changed his existence – from the very normal archeologist that he used to be … to the chillum smoking wastrel at present …
“Eeeeeeh, eeeeeeh, eeeeeeh”, Shefali was tossing from side to side …moaning in pain … her eyes focused on nothing … registering nothing … her limbs thrashing violently as blood gushed out from the open wounds …
“Shefaliii”, an anguished cry rose from his chest as he rushed to her and held her … “It’s me”, he tried to shake her. There was no response from her … only her moans continued …
Angered, he turned around. That damn thing was grinning behind him.
“What have you done to her?”, he shouted.
“Nothing, but, only what you wanted”, the mass of flesh replied, “You wanted her and there she is.”
“Do something. Do something now”, he shouted urgently.
“Why should I?”, the thing asked back.
All of a sudden, he became aware of the steely voice of that creature. What had he done? In his grief stricken state of mind, he had taken the offer of this monstrous being to bring his dead wife back to life? What a mess! Every moan that issued from the body that looked exactly like his wife only served to send a dagger into his heart. How was he to end her sufferings?
“Please, please”, he sobbed, “take her back”.
“Ah! Now you understand boy”, the vile thing had chuckled, “never ask for the dead”.
It had chuckled again and vanished. So had Shefali. There remained no trace of her in the room.
That was the last memory that Dr. Amitabh Jha held of the encounter with the being. Later, when he had woken up in a hospital bed; he had been told that it had been six months since the demise of his wife and that he had been very sick – only that much they would tell him. It was upon his discharge and as he was coming out of the security manned gates of the hospital, that he realized that he had been an inmate at a place that treated the mentally ill.
His friends and colleagues weren’t exactly thrilled to receive him back. In fact most of them avoided him. That he understood and was even grateful that he was left alone. Neither did he feel like getting back into his profession. What he wanted was to be away from everyone and everything that reminded him of the past. He moved away from his old house and a couple of months later the memories of Shefali had become manageable. He thought he could start on a fresh project and had in fact corresponded with some old associates who were carrying out excavation work in other states. Life was beginning to get back on tread.
Until he had the second encounter with the being …
“Ahh, I see you have returned in good health”, that unmistakable voice spoke from behind.
The hairs stood up at the back of his neck. He whirled around.
“You don’t wish to see her this time”, the thing chuckled … “Or maybe you do!”
He went numb.
“No please no!”, he pleaded frantically, “I didn’t call for you …”
“You don’t have to”, the voice was icy now, “I come at my wish …”
“What do you want from me?” His voice was desperate.
“That is more like what I want to hear.” Again came the evil chuckle. He saw the glint in those round eyes of that thing. “It is in fact very simple. You help to bring me back to this world … … or I bring back Shefali to you” the thing whispered.
Dr. Jha stared transfixed. Unlikely and most improbable as that sounded - a part of his brain told him that the threat could be very real.
“Tomorrow, I give you instructions”, the thing said and was then gone.
The next morning he had gone to the bank and made the necessary arrangements. Later he was on a plane. By the time, it had become night; he was well over two thousand kilometers away. A private excavation work was going on at an old palace and he arrived there to join the team. He immersed himself completely in the work and slept exhausted every night … there were no longer any dreams … or nightmares … no further appearance from the evil creature …
He had completed the rituals for the first anniversary of Shefali’s death. Rarely, he would remember her face – sweet and serene – as she used to be when she was alive. The pain of her loss was almost gone. Life had limped back to normalcy …
Until the day a bunch of university students arrived on a field study to the site.
The workers had recently cleared the lime plaster covering the wall of the old temple inside the palace and the stone work inside shone. He had been working inside the worship hall, transferring the inscriptions on the wall to pencil sketches on his note book – on which he would work later to decipher. So absorbed was he in his work that he failed to notice that a young woman had walked inside…
“Hello”, said the woman nervously as he had turned around, “I am Monalisa.”
For a moment he was stunned. Recovering himself he nodded at her and introduced himself.
“Dr. Jha! Oh my god!”, her hand flew to her mouth.
He was puzzled. “Do I know you from somewhere?”
“Oh no, no”, she stammered in confusion and blushed. He became aware that she was very young – hardly a woman – maybe nineteen or twenty.
“Actually, my summer project is largely based on your work you did at Amaravati”, she continued, “You see, I have studied your research papers.”
He nodded.
“Fancy running into here – my god, I can hardly believe this”, she exclaimed.
Before he could say anything, a bunch of young people had come inside.
“Mona, you are here. Come, the bus is about to leave.”
She had introduced him to the others, who were equally and suitably impressed. Then she had taken leave.
After she left, he recollected having been informed that a group of visiting scholars were to arrive there on a field trip and that they would be putting up in the nearby university. The scholars were to visit the site from time to time to gain hands on experience.
When he returned to his camp quarter, he discovered that he could scarce concentrate on anything other than the slim and shapely figure of Monalisa …
A week later …
They were together in the mango orchard – she resting her head in his lap. She was trying to tickle him in the face with a blade of grass. He smiled.
“Mona, I will miss you when you leave”, his voice was heavy.
“Liar! Bet you say that to every female who comes to you for help with her project work”, she had teased him.
A shadow crossed his face which she noticed immediately. She drew his face down towards her and kissed him…
A fortnight had passed…
Most of the scholars had left but she had stayed back. She had entered his room surreptitiously and he had clasped her tight, showering her face with kisses. Then nature had taken its own course. Later, when they lay together still naked, waiting for their breathing to become normal after the tumultuous sex, he had cradled her head and kissed her gently.
“Mona, You are so so hot … … just like a tigress”, he had said fumbling for the words.
She punched him lightly on his chest. “Shut up, you scoundrel.”
“Is your brother like you as well – how will I talk with him – about marriage – I mean?”
She had laughed. “Deepakbhai – you don’t have to bother at all about – he hardly finds any time outside of his business. It is Ketakibhabi that you should concern about. But don’t worry”, she pinched his chin, “Ketakibhabi is the most beautiful and most understanding sister-in-law one could ever have.”
He had fallen silent, playing out mentally the scenes of his future meeting with Mona’s family.
“Hey, where are you lost?”, she shook him back to reality. “Lets’ do it again.”
With that she had straddled him…
After a respectable gap of time - as she had advised him, he had been to the address in Navi Mumbai that Monalisa had given before her departure to home. He had written beforehand of course to her, but wasn’t sure if she had received his letter. There was of course, no mobile network at the remote excavation site and the nearest town was some thirty miles away – talking to her was not possible. So he came unannounced. A moment before entering the premises, he surveyed the neatly laid out lawn around the duplex and nodded in appreciation. Entering inside he pressed the buzzer…
A strikingly handsome lady wearing a saree opened the door and looked at him questioningly.
“Mrs. Ketaki?”, he asked politely.
“Yes?”, the lady replied, giving him a quizzical look.
“I am here”, he fumbled for words, “Mona – I mean Monalisa. We had met …” he looked down and shuffled his feet.
The woman looked at him for a full second and then asked him inside. He dropped down on the sofa with an audible sigh.
The lady had gone inside and he heard her calling Mona. He heard someone coming down the stairs beyond the room and whispered questions being exchanged. Then the curtains parted and Monalisa appeared.
“Yes?”, she asked, looking him directly in the eye.
He was in shock!
“Mona, its’ me, Amit … Amitabh Jha”, he said weakly.
She looked at him for a full five seconds and then without saying turned and went back inside.
He was shattered! Her look had said everything – she had no idea who he was … no recollection of the happenings of the summer … he was just a complete stranger to her…
By the time, Mrs. Ketaki reappeared, he was already up on his feet and profusely apologizing to her for having arrived at the wrong address and had immediately seen himself out. Back in his hotel, he had collapsed on the bed and wept …
That night the vile creature had visited him … he wasn’t surprised this time … in fact he anticipated the visit. Nor did he feel the taunts when the creature boasted about Mona being his handiwork and had laughed uproariously.
“Give me back Mona”, he had said simply.
“I will”, it had said, “but later on – maybe a couple of years later- just to teach you not to act smart with me – and that’s your punishment. From now on, you do exactly what I say or what happened with your wife would seem like a sweet dream compared to what I will let your Monalisa endure – and all before your own eyes. Lets’ agree on that. And do not ever dream of defying what I say. You can have your girlfriend – I have no interest in her except to ensure your obedience. The only one I am interested in is the other woman in her house…”
The next moment the creature had vanished.
He stood in a daze afterwards – unable to fathom anything – for nothing made any sense. What did it mean?
Then the realization crept in slowly …
The only other woman in Mona’s house was her sister-in-law Ketaki.
The ganja that he smoked helped him into a state of oblivion for most of his waking moments. It was his only recourse against the terrors in his mind. Briefly though, in fleeting moments of lucidity, he would be able to collect his thoughts.
Last night he had been dreaming of the ruins …
‘No, no! It was Mona’, he asserted, unsure of himself.
‘Or was it Shefali?’
He had almost banished Shefali, his wife dead since long long back.
He clutched his head. A headache was coming, and he knew that the trembling would follow soon. Urgently, he needed another fix. He took out the chillum and searched for the packet of weed. It was not to be found. He panicked. Looking around the cave, he detected the packet at a corner and immediately pounced on it. Moments later, he was taking deep drags … … ‘Aahh, the relief … … at last … ‘, he muttered to himself as he watched smoke curling to the ceiling …
He felt calm. Memories wouldn’t hurt him now … he let the kaleidoscopic thoughts flow … the past … it wouldn’t hurt … it was all taken care of … as it had been on that night which had changed his existence – from the very normal archeologist that he used to be … to the chillum smoking wastrel at present …
“Eeeeeeh, eeeeeeh, eeeeeeh”, Shefali was tossing from side to side …moaning in pain … her eyes focused on nothing … registering nothing … her limbs thrashing violently as blood gushed out from the open wounds …
“Shefaliii”, an anguished cry rose from his chest as he rushed to her and held her … “It’s me”, he tried to shake her. There was no response from her … only her moans continued …
Angered, he turned around. That damn thing was grinning behind him.
“What have you done to her?”, he shouted.
“Nothing, but, only what you wanted”, the mass of flesh replied, “You wanted her and there she is.”
“Do something. Do something now”, he shouted urgently.
“Why should I?”, the thing asked back.
All of a sudden, he became aware of the steely voice of that creature. What had he done? In his grief stricken state of mind, he had taken the offer of this monstrous being to bring his dead wife back to life? What a mess! Every moan that issued from the body that looked exactly like his wife only served to send a dagger into his heart. How was he to end her sufferings?
“Please, please”, he sobbed, “take her back”.
“Ah! Now you understand boy”, the vile thing had chuckled, “never ask for the dead”.
It had chuckled again and vanished. So had Shefali. There remained no trace of her in the room.
That was the last memory that Dr. Amitabh Jha held of the encounter with the being. Later, when he had woken up in a hospital bed; he had been told that it had been six months since the demise of his wife and that he had been very sick – only that much they would tell him. It was upon his discharge and as he was coming out of the security manned gates of the hospital, that he realized that he had been an inmate at a place that treated the mentally ill.
His friends and colleagues weren’t exactly thrilled to receive him back. In fact most of them avoided him. That he understood and was even grateful that he was left alone. Neither did he feel like getting back into his profession. What he wanted was to be away from everyone and everything that reminded him of the past. He moved away from his old house and a couple of months later the memories of Shefali had become manageable. He thought he could start on a fresh project and had in fact corresponded with some old associates who were carrying out excavation work in other states. Life was beginning to get back on tread.
Until he had the second encounter with the being …
“Ahh, I see you have returned in good health”, that unmistakable voice spoke from behind.
The hairs stood up at the back of his neck. He whirled around.
“You don’t wish to see her this time”, the thing chuckled … “Or maybe you do!”
He went numb.
“No please no!”, he pleaded frantically, “I didn’t call for you …”
“You don’t have to”, the voice was icy now, “I come at my wish …”
“What do you want from me?” His voice was desperate.
“That is more like what I want to hear.” Again came the evil chuckle. He saw the glint in those round eyes of that thing. “It is in fact very simple. You help to bring me back to this world … … or I bring back Shefali to you” the thing whispered.
Dr. Jha stared transfixed. Unlikely and most improbable as that sounded - a part of his brain told him that the threat could be very real.
“Tomorrow, I give you instructions”, the thing said and was then gone.
The next morning he had gone to the bank and made the necessary arrangements. Later he was on a plane. By the time, it had become night; he was well over two thousand kilometers away. A private excavation work was going on at an old palace and he arrived there to join the team. He immersed himself completely in the work and slept exhausted every night … there were no longer any dreams … or nightmares … no further appearance from the evil creature …
He had completed the rituals for the first anniversary of Shefali’s death. Rarely, he would remember her face – sweet and serene – as she used to be when she was alive. The pain of her loss was almost gone. Life had limped back to normalcy …
Until the day a bunch of university students arrived on a field study to the site.
The workers had recently cleared the lime plaster covering the wall of the old temple inside the palace and the stone work inside shone. He had been working inside the worship hall, transferring the inscriptions on the wall to pencil sketches on his note book – on which he would work later to decipher. So absorbed was he in his work that he failed to notice that a young woman had walked inside…
“Hello”, said the woman nervously as he had turned around, “I am Monalisa.”
For a moment he was stunned. Recovering himself he nodded at her and introduced himself.
“Dr. Jha! Oh my god!”, her hand flew to her mouth.
He was puzzled. “Do I know you from somewhere?”
“Oh no, no”, she stammered in confusion and blushed. He became aware that she was very young – hardly a woman – maybe nineteen or twenty.
“Actually, my summer project is largely based on your work you did at Amaravati”, she continued, “You see, I have studied your research papers.”
He nodded.
“Fancy running into here – my god, I can hardly believe this”, she exclaimed.
Before he could say anything, a bunch of young people had come inside.
“Mona, you are here. Come, the bus is about to leave.”
She had introduced him to the others, who were equally and suitably impressed. Then she had taken leave.
After she left, he recollected having been informed that a group of visiting scholars were to arrive there on a field trip and that they would be putting up in the nearby university. The scholars were to visit the site from time to time to gain hands on experience.
When he returned to his camp quarter, he discovered that he could scarce concentrate on anything other than the slim and shapely figure of Monalisa …
A week later …
They were together in the mango orchard – she resting her head in his lap. She was trying to tickle him in the face with a blade of grass. He smiled.
“Mona, I will miss you when you leave”, his voice was heavy.
“Liar! Bet you say that to every female who comes to you for help with her project work”, she had teased him.
A shadow crossed his face which she noticed immediately. She drew his face down towards her and kissed him…
A fortnight had passed…
Most of the scholars had left but she had stayed back. She had entered his room surreptitiously and he had clasped her tight, showering her face with kisses. Then nature had taken its own course. Later, when they lay together still naked, waiting for their breathing to become normal after the tumultuous sex, he had cradled her head and kissed her gently.
“Mona, You are so so hot … … just like a tigress”, he had said fumbling for the words.
She punched him lightly on his chest. “Shut up, you scoundrel.”
“Is your brother like you as well – how will I talk with him – about marriage – I mean?”
She had laughed. “Deepakbhai – you don’t have to bother at all about – he hardly finds any time outside of his business. It is Ketakibhabi that you should concern about. But don’t worry”, she pinched his chin, “Ketakibhabi is the most beautiful and most understanding sister-in-law one could ever have.”
He had fallen silent, playing out mentally the scenes of his future meeting with Mona’s family.
“Hey, where are you lost?”, she shook him back to reality. “Lets’ do it again.”
With that she had straddled him…
After a respectable gap of time - as she had advised him, he had been to the address in Navi Mumbai that Monalisa had given before her departure to home. He had written beforehand of course to her, but wasn’t sure if she had received his letter. There was of course, no mobile network at the remote excavation site and the nearest town was some thirty miles away – talking to her was not possible. So he came unannounced. A moment before entering the premises, he surveyed the neatly laid out lawn around the duplex and nodded in appreciation. Entering inside he pressed the buzzer…
A strikingly handsome lady wearing a saree opened the door and looked at him questioningly.
“Mrs. Ketaki?”, he asked politely.
“Yes?”, the lady replied, giving him a quizzical look.
“I am here”, he fumbled for words, “Mona – I mean Monalisa. We had met …” he looked down and shuffled his feet.
The woman looked at him for a full second and then asked him inside. He dropped down on the sofa with an audible sigh.
The lady had gone inside and he heard her calling Mona. He heard someone coming down the stairs beyond the room and whispered questions being exchanged. Then the curtains parted and Monalisa appeared.
“Yes?”, she asked, looking him directly in the eye.
He was in shock!
“Mona, its’ me, Amit … Amitabh Jha”, he said weakly.
She looked at him for a full five seconds and then without saying turned and went back inside.
He was shattered! Her look had said everything – she had no idea who he was … no recollection of the happenings of the summer … he was just a complete stranger to her…
By the time, Mrs. Ketaki reappeared, he was already up on his feet and profusely apologizing to her for having arrived at the wrong address and had immediately seen himself out. Back in his hotel, he had collapsed on the bed and wept …
That night the vile creature had visited him … he wasn’t surprised this time … in fact he anticipated the visit. Nor did he feel the taunts when the creature boasted about Mona being his handiwork and had laughed uproariously.
“Give me back Mona”, he had said simply.
“I will”, it had said, “but later on – maybe a couple of years later- just to teach you not to act smart with me – and that’s your punishment. From now on, you do exactly what I say or what happened with your wife would seem like a sweet dream compared to what I will let your Monalisa endure – and all before your own eyes. Lets’ agree on that. And do not ever dream of defying what I say. You can have your girlfriend – I have no interest in her except to ensure your obedience. The only one I am interested in is the other woman in her house…”
The next moment the creature had vanished.
He stood in a daze afterwards – unable to fathom anything – for nothing made any sense. What did it mean?
Then the realization crept in slowly …
The only other woman in Mona’s house was her sister-in-law Ketaki.
![[+]](https://xossipy.com/themes/sharepoint/collapse_collapsed.png)