chapter 3

“Adira?” Chetana said aloud, “Anant’s secretary!”Chetana closed the handkerchief in her fist and leaned against the wall.“Adira and Anant…no…no!” Chetana placed the handkerchief in the cabinet and locked it. “I shouldn’t accuse a man like Anant of cheating on me. It’s a sin. He would never do such things and that I am sure of. He is not that kind of man.”Chetana kept blabbering in order to assure herself of her husband’s loyalty towards her. She returned to the laundry basket but the word engraved on the tiny piece of cloth kept flashing in front of her eyes despite her desperate attempts to hold on to the threads of faith that bound her to her husband. But then her eyes caught something that made them turn cold and stony. One of his shirts had lipstick marks on it. She brought the shirt close and sniffed it. The shirt smelt of the same tantalizing perfume that was on the handkerchief.“No…that can’t be!” The shirt fell from her shivering hands and she slid down on the floor.   The blow was too much for Chetana. Disdained by her daughter and deceived by her husband, Chetana felt as if she were some kind of old, rusty crap that was not of no use to anyone in her family and was only a burden to others. She got up and walked towards her bedroom like a lost soul. She stood in front of her dresser and untied her hair.      She tried to find the flaws in her body that had made her husband slip away. She was slender and quite in shape for her 40 years. Apart from a few strands of grey and some fine wrinkles on her face, she was still the same. She compared her image in the mirror with the mind- picture of her husband’s mistress. Adira was in her early thirties, much younger than Chetana.      She sadly accepted that Adira was everything that a man would fall for – an attractive physique, charming personality, smart, vivacious and intelligent. While she was only a good-for-nothing housewife who had spent a lion’s share of her life toiling for her family.‘But is it necessary for every man to fall for a charismatic woman like Adira and forget about a devout wife like Chetana?’ She thought as her eyes slid through the plain saree and unruly hair of her image in the mirror.She turned away from the mirror as she realized that she would never be able to compete with a ravishing, younger woman and win her man back. She raised her head towards the ceiling fan. A strong urge compelled her to hang herself and end her life.“Would that be a solution to all this?” She asked the fan. “I am standing at the crossroads in life and have no idea about which way to take. It seems better to end the journey right away.”    With the speed of lightning, she climbed upon the bed. The fan was at a distance of one arm above her. All she had to do was tie one end of the saree she was wearing to the fan and the other end around her neck and jump down the bed. It seemed so easy to hang herself rather than hanging on to a life that was as barren as a desert.     She brought her saree down her shoulder and was about to pull it out from her waist when her phone rang. She was startled for a moment but then instantly wrapped the saree around her shoulders and stepped down the bed. She trod with heavy steps towards the bedside table from where her mobile phone was beckoning her. Her shaking hands picked it up and her teary eyes read the name on the screen – ‘Eliza’She picked up the call and whispered a gloomy ‘hello’ that sounded more like a grievance than a greeting.“Hey, what were you doing?” Eliza’s bubbly voice filled her ears. “The phone was ringing for so long.”“I was planning to end my life.”“That’s a pretty good idea! Do let me know if you need my help.”Eliza remarked and burst out laughing.“Hello…Chetana?” Eliza asked after waiting for a reply from her friend. “Are you there?”A minute later, Eliza realized that it was not a joke as she had assumed when she heard her friend sobbing bitterly over the phone. *      *     Elizabeth Thomas looked up at her friend from the cup of tea she was sipping while sitting in the palatial hall of Chetana’s bungalow. Her eyes which usually glinted with confidence, were a bit subdued today. A fraction of agony that her friend was suffering reflected in her eyes too. Chetana sat on a sofa opposite Eliza and kept her bloodshot swollen eyes glued to the exquisite teapot placed on the table between them.“Do you even remember when you went to a beauty salon for the last time?” Eliza finally asked.“Do you think that’s why my husband is having an affair with another woman?”“You are getting it all wrong, Chithu,” Eliza rolled her eyes. “I am asking you to take care of yourself. Now, it’s time to start living for yourself.”“How can I live only for myself?” Chetana’s anxious eyes wandered throughout the room, “I can’t even imagine a life without Anant and Richa in it.”“That’s the problem,” Eliza pointed a finger at Chetana, “You don’t even have an existence of your own.”“Nobody in this world can live only for himself,” Chetana argued. “We all need a family and that’s what makes our life worth living. Otherwise, it would only be a meaningless existence.”“I am living for myself,” Eliza looked straight into Chetana’s eyes, “and I am alive in every sense.”Chetana’s surprised eyes turned towards Eliza to see whether she was saying all this only to console her or if she really meant it. She turned her face away when she saw Eliza’s face glowing with a mysterious sheen that told Chetana she meant every word of it. Eliza smirked when she understood that Chetana had accepted defeat.“A decade ago, I was also standing at a crossroads in my life, just like you are now.” Eliza crossed her fingers as memories turned her face pale. “I took a dozen sleeping pills when I discovered that the real purpose behind my husband’s official trips to Dubai was to visit his girlfriend. But my loyal servants didn’t let me die.      While recovering in the hospital, I realized how foolish it was to end my life for a man who never cared for me. The next thought that crossed my mind was to snap all ties with him. But then I thought of my son Sharon who was only 10 at that time. He needed both of us and I had to stick to Thomas for his sake.”Chetana could see tears brimming in Eliza’s eyes. She never did realize that the bold and resilient Eliza was harbouring so much pain within her.Dear readers,We can not simply guess what a person is going through by just looking at them. But let me tell you Chetana and Elizbeth are going to plan something. Stay tuned to know what their plan is. And please do leave a review or star rating or stickers for this part of the story.  Thank you.Â