Chapter 32

Vrushali hung up the call gloomily. The caller wasn't pleased with whatever news she had provided and for that she received quite an earful. She sighed audibly and looked around the room wondering how long she would have to continue this charade in an unknown place. Pursing her lips she stood in front of the mirror and removed the tight bun that she had donned when she went to deliver the car. Taking a hair brush from the dresser she ran it over her long tresses. This was her usual method of relieving stress and it worked perfectly every time except now. Today she was feeling quite restless.

Since early morning she was bombarded with calls. Numerous times from the Maharaj and five times from the person who had sent her. In addition she had to look after the general affairs of the place as well. She flung the hair brush on the dresser and gathered her hair in a pony tail. As no one from the family was present this would suffice she decided. She surveyed herself once again in the mirror and breathed out forcefully. Her face looked tired and showed a hint of tan but she did not mind it as long as she could fulfill what she had come here for. Now she had second thoughts!

With a huff she walked out of her room and headed toward the direction of the kitchen. It was almost lunchtime but she desperately wanted a cup of tea, a habit that she had cultivated at her grandparents' place. The staff present there bowed in greeting which she grimly acknowledged.

"Madam shall I arrange for lunch?" asked the butler.

"No, not yet. I am just here for tea. I will have it later," she said.

"Of course madam," he said and moved backwards.

She poured herself a cup of tea from the tea pot and was about to leave the kitchen when she heard the sound of a throat clearing. She turned toward the staff and found their faces bursting with thousands of questions.

Oh shoot! "Yes?" she questioned knowing full well what was to follow.

"Madam . . ." the butler started to say, "I am sorry to ask you like this but t-the staff here would like to know when the princess will be back."

Vrushali placed the cup back on the countertop and crossed her arms. "Only the staff want to know? What about you? Aren't you curious?"

The butler smiled sheepishly shifting from one foot to another. "Err. . . even I had the same question madam," he said scratching his head.

She looked around at the handful of people gathered in the kitchen. She had expected questions to arise but not so early though. Taking a deep breath she said "The princess has some work outside and as soon as she finishes it she would come."

The others nodded solemnly except the butler who looked at her in suspicion. The look wasn't lost on her but she decided to keep quiet about it. Anyways it was not his place to question what the family did or didn't do.

"Now if there are no more questions I will be in the lawn," she said and picked up the cup of tea. One look from her sent the staff scurrying about with their tasks.

Seated on one of the comfortable wicker chairs in the lawn, she slowly took a sip of the tea and continued her musings. She should have a word with Nandini, she decided. It would be difficult to explain the continued absence of the princess and in worst case reports might go to the Maharaj too and that would put then both in serious trouble. She shuddered thinking what her family would do if they ever got a wind of what she was doing in Mumbai. The things you do for friendship, she sighed. What a fool she was to extend her services in the first place. Though at that time it did not seem like a bad idea. She thought it would be a mere week's work. Get to Mumbai. Know all the secrets about Nandini. Relay them to her sender so that they can be revealed to Abhimanyu soon and get back. She however did not think that Nandini would stay in some other place nor that she would have to play middleman between father and daughter.

Vrushali tried to pick out a reason for why Nandini would choose to live in a small apartment away from the luxuries of Jaypore House. She hadn't given any sort of explanations but just that she would be away for a period of time during which Vrushali would have to take care of all matters. She wondered if Nandini was forced or blackmailed into doing something by someone. Hadn't she heard the princess sobbing after the Maharaj had left?

What and why?

It would be such a scandal for the royal family if the press got a wind of it. Then again she could clearly use this news to create a wedge between Abhimanyu and Nandini. Vrushali shook her head striking off that option. She couldn't and wouldn't do that when the party seemed innocent. The reason she undertook the job in the first place was because she had heard quite a few distasteful things about Nandini. Now, she knew all of that were myths. The few days she had spent with the princess was more than enough to realize that Nandini was a nice person who was not capable of doing anything that can mar her family's name.

Her thoughts then shifted to Abhimanyu. She had escaped his notice for now but what if he comes to know who she is and why she has come. Abhimanyu was a person who did not like anyone meddling in his matters. I have to stay undetected as long as possible¸ she told herself, for she could not afford to go back now. There was some sort of mystery surrounding the princess and Abhimanyu and she wanted to find out everything in detail before giving her verdict. She leaned back on the chair with her mind all made up. Yes! That is what I will do. I will wait and watch. If Nandini is guilty then I will do all in my power to save Abhimanyu from her.

And what if Abhimanyu is guilty. The thought came out of nowhere which made her almost jump up from the chair. No! That is impossible! Abhimanyu can never ever be guilty!

Nandini took a few steps back and admired her handiwork and smiled in satisfaction. The serving dishes with food sat on the kitchen counter. She had poured all her anger, frustration, humiliation she faced and hate into the food that she cooked and it had come out to be wonderful – disastrously wonderful. She had spent almost half an hour jogging her memory to provide her information about the type of food Abhimanyu liked and had carefully planned her menu accordingly. She walked to the counter again and lifted the covers off the dishes. "Just like you asked for hukum," she spoke out loud. Now, all that was needed was the one to relish it.

The ringing of her cell phone distracted her. She glanced at the screen, seeing that it was Vrushali picked up the call quickly.

"Yes Vrushali," she said with a merry ring to her tone.

"I received a call from His Highness not once but thrice. He said he couldn't reach your phone. Even I tired to call you some time ago."

"Yes, yes" said Nandini absently rubbing her forehead. "The phone was unreachable, but I called father. He won't bother you today."

Vrushali went on to tell her about the suspicions of the staff which Nandini listened to patiently.

"I will try to come today. If not today at least tomorrow. Just hold on okay."

"Okay you have a nice day."

Nandini stood thinking for a bit on the informality of Vrushali's tone. There was definitely something strange about that girl, she mused. Glancing briefly at her watch she saw that it was close to one. Without anymore delay she sent a message to Abhimanyu not waiting to see if he would reply. She then scrolled through the old messages and saw the one from Uday. She was eternally grateful to him for deciding to come to Mumbai. Well, her behavior toward him hadn't been all rosy either. It would be good to have Uday as a support and the faster she meets the doctor the faster things would clear up. Giving to her habit she sent a quick blunt response wanting to make him squirm. She was about to put the phone away when it rang. Thinking it to be Uday she picked it up immediately, not paying attention to the number on the screen.

"I am not going to accept an apology from you even if you grovel at my feet," she said in the most serious tone that she could muster.

There was silence for a second. "And who might the unlucky human be?" Abhimanyu's rough voice sounded in her ears.

Nandini quickly removed the phone from her ears and glanced at the screen. She balled her fists and hit her forehead a number of times with it. "I thought it was someone else."

"Really? You have a someone who can grovel at your feet? I would like to meet that unfortunate person," he drawled sarcastically.

Nandini gritted her teeth. She did not want to parry words with him again. The earlier confrontation had already sapped all of her energy "What did you call me for?" she asked.

"I called to personally inform you that I am having lunch at the hotel. It was fixed yesterday."

Nandini's mouth quivered with fury. "If you knew you were to have lunch elsewhere, why did you tell me to cook?" she yelled into the phone.

"Well, you are my employee and whatever I say you do – simple. You don't have the right to question my decisions," he calmly explained.

"B-but, but t-the food . . ."

Before she could say any more he hung the call. Nandini gripped her phone in rage. She glanced at the dishes and had a good mind to throw the whole lot into the bin but, wasting food was not a sensible thing to do. He had beaten her yet again! The happiness she felt just moments ago fizzed away. There was no way she would be able to see his reaction to the food she cooked. Sighing, she grabbed her bag and stormed out of the kitchen.

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Uday re-read the message that Nandini sent and his lips curved in a smile. The message meant to make him cringe, was purely Nandini in every sense. He did deserve it though. He shouldn't have taken out his frustration and anger on her especially when he knew how much she had gone through. The landing announcement by the stewardess filled the air followed by the request to fasten the seat belts. The decision to come to Mumbai was taken rather abruptly. He had confided the plan with his mother and according to her advice – that is good works shouldn't be delayed – packed his bags in a jiffy and left for the airport before his father could raise an objection.

After collecting his luggage from the baggage carousel he called his mother to find out where she had arranged his accommodation. Usually, he stayed at his father's guest house but now he couldn't as the whole place was filled with his father's spies and he did not want any unnecessary headaches.

"A driver will meet you with a placard that has your name. I have arranged your accommodation in an apartment complex in Bandra. The flat belongs to a friend of mine who is currently vacationing in Europe. And . . ."

Uday waited to hear the rest of the rather long message from his mother. " . . . please take of yourself. You are our only son and I don't want anything bad happening to you."

"I will be careful maa, and thank you . . . for everything," he said looking around for the driver holding his name card. Spotting the man he swiftly walked in that direction still holding the phone to his ears. "What are you going to tell pops?" he asked as he reached the driver and handed over the bags to him.

"Leave that to me. Anyways he will not try to pry too much as he is quite busy these days. Give my love and blessings to Nandini and try to get back as soon as possible to Jaypore okay."

Uday looked out of the back seat window taking in the sights and sounds of Mumbai. He was quite familiar with the place and it also held a lot of memories. He pulled out his wallet and stared at a photograph which was of him and Uttara. He ran a finger on her face that was lit up with laughter at something silly that he had said. He recalled each and every detail of that day they had spent together. It was also the day they had shared their first kiss. . . . He quickly put the photograph back in his wallet and the wallet into his backpack. There was no use of going over things that couldn't be undone. He will always love her and cherish their memories but this time Uttara needed to understand that things would not always go as she wanted. She needed to distinguish facts from misunderstandings. As of now his relationship with Uttara was - complicated.

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Nandini was in the cafeteria sitting in one corner pushing her food around her plate. Geeta who sat opposite to her was chatting away merrily not bothering to see whether Nandini was paying attention to her.

"So how was your fist day?" asked Geeta. "I hope you did not get any more fainting spells?"

Nandini was about to answer when Mala spoke from the other table to a group who was sitting with her. "So you guys know, someone here fainted on her first day into the arms of Abhimanyu sir. How convenient right? The perfect way to get his attention."

The group that consisted on men and women alike started whispering amongst themselves.

"Oh! Is that so? So that was why she rushed off to meet Abhimanyu sir when Aakash sir was telling her to wait in the meeting room," a woman quipped.

"Mala . . . " yet another spoke out loudly. " . . . Why do you have to say such things? A girl can dream can't she? Are you feeling jealous you did not get the chance?"

The group including Mala laughed. "Me and jealous of her?" she pointed in Nandini's direction. "She might be pretty but that is not enough for someone like Abhimanyu sir. You all know that he is from the royal family of Vilaspore! No one can stand a chance especially not some wannabe like her. Royals can only marry royals and especially when one is the heir to the whole fortune of Vilaspore. It must be in crores and crores," said Mala with a dreamy look. "But, he can also make an exception," she stressed blushing furiously. The others laughed again at the preposterousness of the thought.

Nandini pressed her lips into a straight line. Fools! she said to herself. Look at how they dream so foolishly!  she thought in anger. What did they know about Abhimanyu or Vilaspore or about royals! They think all is hunky dory, that we swim in riches and luxury. They all have no idea what they are talking about! The reality is beyond anyone's comprehension.

"Don't mind them Nandini. They are all senseless. Most of them have been trying to catch Abhimanyu sir's eye and have terribly failed," said Geeta trying to pacify her.

"I don't get worked up by these talks. They and their silly talks are all beyond me."

Geeta nodded in approval. "Good for you."

The others went back to discussing various matters fit for a lunch room discussion. Nandini pushed her plate away and got engrossed with her phone.

Mala looked at Nandini with eyes full of hatred. The girl had no shame whatsoever, she thought. Any person with a tiny ounce of shame would have got up and left but this one had a thick hide. She took a spoonful of flavored rice chewing it slowly. Mala decided not to leave Nandini until she got fed up and left the company of her own accord. O God! Please open a way for me to drive this witch away, she prayed. Her day would come, surely her day would come.

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Aakash nodded appreciatively at the bowls full of food arranged on the counter. He came to the conclusion that Nandini did in fact know how to cook but he did not agree with her appointment which he still considered unnecessary. Now for the issue at hand. His boss had sent him to find out if Nandini had indeed done what he said and it was time to give report.

"Sir, Ms. Singh has indeed cooked," he reported diligently. There was a slight pause wherein something was said from the other end.

After listening to whatever was said Aakash replied. "Oh! Okay. Sure sir," he said quickly opening the lids. "Er.... there is baingan ka bharta, kaali dal . . . erm . . . lauki ki sabji and brown rice? . . . Sir I think she . . ."

Baingan ka bharta, kaali dal, lauki ki sabji and brown rice?

The moment Nandini called Abhimanyu he had decided that something was fishy. That was the reason he sent Aakash and his guess was one hundred percent correct. But, instead of being angry he was surprised. How had she known and that too after so many years? Not many knew about his eating preferences because his tastes were so erratic, changing daily but the things he hated remained the same. There was no change to that. Nandini had carefully avoided to make things that he liked which proved that she remember his likes and dislikes. A flush of pleasure filled his heart puffing it up. Then a thought appeared. Was she really responsible for his mother's death?

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Bhim rang the door bell outside the flat that housed Roopa Singh. His guards had been tracking her every move but it was unfortunate that they did not receive any substantial evidence. Either she must have gotten new directives or, that no good Suraj would have thrown her away. Whatever the reason he needed to be on guard especially now that Maharaj Chandra Raj Singh was housed at Taurus.

The door opened and Roopa stood in front of Bhim with a surly look on her face. Before Bhim could say anything she launched into a volley of complaints.

"I have been asked to come to Mumbai to work but I am stuck here all day doing nothing. Why did Abhimanyu sir bring me here then? Am I under house arrest? Why should I be stuck in this place? I need to meet the Yuvraj immediately!"

Bhim listened calmly waiting for her rant to get over. "Ms. Sharma please pack your bags because you are being shifted elsewhere."

Roopa looked at Bhim in suspicion. "Where to?" she asked.

"I have been given orders by hukum to fetch you and take you to the new place. You will get further instructions by evening. Please hurry up as this is not the only work I have."

Roopa disappeared inside and packed her belongings as quickly as possible. Then she appeared again and quietly left with Bhim who tarried for a moment to lock the door.

"Where is this new place?" she questioned.

Bhim opened the doors of the lift and held it for Roopa to enter. Later he entered himself and closed the doors pressing the button to the ground floor.

"Where is this new place?" she repeated.

"Close by," replied Bhim.

"Can you be more specific? How do I know that you are not going to harm me?"

Bhim turned sharply in irritation. "I have never behaved in a vulgar manner toward any females no matter how annoying they are."

Roopa pursed her lips miffed by what he said. Annoying! Wait till I become the Queen of Vilaspore! I will throw your sorry ass outside!

They reached the ground floor where Bhim led Roopa toward a waiting car. Seated inside she once again implored him to tell her where they were going. Bhim relented at last.

"You will be staying at Rainbow Apartment, Purushotham Nagar, Thane East," then as an afterthought added. "Don't garner unnecessary dreams. I will never leave Vilaspore and you will never get what you want."

A/N: Sorry sorry dears I was caught up that is why the delay. Well, all the pieces are gathered at one place now. I am going to move at a faster pace because if I keep writing like this surely it will never finish. I am wanting to get to the puzzles which needs to be unraveled one by one.

Thanks for all your support.