The Resurrection (MF, rom, inc)

By Peker O' Tool ©

Chapter 4 – The Enigma

     On reaching home, David had his dinner while his mother growled on for no reason at all.  His younger sister Jessica had already gone to bed.  He locked the bedroom door, removed his clothes and plopped down on his bed.  He grabbed his still tumid prick and pressed it gently.  He recollected the incident that took place with Lalitha. 

Did she want him to be her son or her lover?  David was confused; however, it was a pleasant experience.  For the first time in his adulthood, a woman had touched him; caressed him; and kissed him.  He wished he had stayed with Lalitha for some more time. 

     In the morning, Ramesh sought David in College.  “I’m sorry da,” Ramesh said.  “There was a long queue at the dentist.  We came home only around nine-thirty.”

     “It’s okay,” David replied.

     “Amma told me and Anu that she finally got the chance to talk to you alone.  I’m glad that she loves you,” Ramesh said smiling.  David was perturbed.  He saw the twinkle in Ramesh’s eyes and wondered whether he was genuinely happy or whether jealous that his mother had expressed affection for him.  “Aha.  Hereafter you are to be my elder brother as well.  What do you want to be; friend or brother?”

     “Both,” replied David.

     “Dave, my third aunt Bamini came in the morning with her father-in-law and mother-in-law,” Ramesh said.

     “It’s good news!   So, today I’ll be able to meet another member of your family, or rather our family.”

     “That’s where the problem lies,” Ramesh said.

     “What?”

     “Bamini’s in-laws are ultra-orthodox Brahmins.  I suggest that you don’t come to our house till they are gone.”

     David was pensive for a while.  “Did your Ma tell you to convey that to me?”

     “No.  It’s my suggestion only,” Ramesh replied.  “She expects you to come home daily.  However, she told me to tell you not to talk much with Bamini’s in-laws; and you not reveal that you are not a Brahmin.”

     “Then, I’d better not come,” David said.

     “If you don’t come, Amma will be distressed.  She says that she needs to see you at least once a day,” Ramesh chuckled.  “What mantra did you use?”

     “No mantra or tantra.  It’s my personality,” David said feigning arrogance.

     Ramesh laughed.  “Then, you will come home in the evening, won't you?"

     “Yes.  But from the way I speak your aunt Bamini's in-laws are sure to find out that I'm not a Brahmin.”

     “Bamini said that she has a plan.”

     “What plan? She doesn’t even know me!”

     “We don’t know what her plan is.  Bamini is witty and at the same time she is very shrewd.  She said she’ll handle her in-laws, when you come home.  Shall we see what her strategy is?”

     “Okay, da.  I’ll come home in the evening,” said David and walked towards his classroom.

* * * * * *

     That evening, being the month of May, his mother and sister went to church for the novena and subsequent benediction.  After they left David set off to Ramesh’s house.

     Anuradha opened the door with her usual seductive smile.  As David stepped in, he surveyed the room with Anuradha standing beside him as if he belonged to her.  Lalitha was seated on the long sofa, with Bamini on to her right; Bamini's father-in-law was reclining in an easy chair was chewing beetle leaves; Bamini's grungy mother-in-law wearing the saree in Madisaar fashion was seated on the floor near Lalitha, with her legs stretched; Ramesh was seated at his desk.

     Lalitha patted the vacant seat next to her and Dave sat.

     Bamini was a very attractive woman in her.  Ramesh had told him that she was twenty-eight years old now and was given in marriage when she was twenty.  She, like Lalitha, had a cherubic mien and fairer than her two sisters.  She was a bit on the hefty side with chubby cheeks.  Bamini appraised him.   Ah….  So this is David -- the darling of her sisters.  She blushed as the tall, handsome, youngster stared at her ample bosom.

     The old woman turned to Lalitha and asked, “Who is he?”

            Lalitha was speechless.  However, Bamini was quick to answer.  "Amma, do you know Sundararama Iyer of Tiruvannamalai?" she asked her mother-in-law.

            "I think I know him," the ubiquitous old woman said.  Lalitha, Anuradha, Ramesh and David grinned.  It was a fictitious name plucked from the air by Bamini.

            "Well..., this rascal is his prodigal son," Bamini said as if she knew David well.

“What’s your name?” Bamini's father-in-law asked him.

     Before David could answer, Bamini intervened, “His name is Mahadevan, but all call him Dave.”  Lalitha felt agitated when she heard the name Mahadevan.  She stared at David.

     “Dave sounds like a Christian name,” her father-in-law said.

     “Appa, when Dave was twelve he ran away from home and lived with a Christian family,” Bamini bluffed. 

“So, Mahadevan became Dave…, hmmm….” her father-in-law finished for her.

            “Then what happened?” Bamini's mother-in-law asked.

     “He came back to his parents when he was eighteen,” said Bamini. 

     Anuradha took the thread over from Bamini.  “His father is the head-priest in one of the temples in Tiruvannamalai.  Dave wanted to study Engineering but his father wanted him to study the Vedas, and continue the family tradition,” said Anuradha without batting an eyelid.  “After an altercation with his father, Dave left his house for the second time.”

     “And then what happened?” asked the nosy old woman. 

     Ramesh took over from Anuradha and said, “The Christian family he was living with earlier came forward to help him.  They are providing for his studies and upkeep.” 

     “Poor boy,” said the old woman in a sympathetic tone. 

     “Are you staying in the hostel?” asked the old man anxiously.

     “No.  He’s staying in a lodge with three of his classmates,” Ramesh said.

     “Lalitha, don’t you have a spare room upstairs?” the old man asked.

     “Yes,” replied Lalitha.

      “Why don’t you give that room to this young fellow?” said the old man.  “A gate to heaven will be opened for you if you lodge and feed him.”

     Now it was Lalitha’s turn to con and she said, “Appa, I’ve asked this rascal many times to come and stay with us.  And each time he refused.  He says that our neighbours might gossip since we have an unmarried girl in the house.”

     “To hell with your neighbours,” the old man shouted.

     David was staggered by the bluffing centring on him.  He was enjoying the drama.  He looked at Bamini and wondered how he could thank her.

The old man turned towards Lalitha.  "Do you know that your grandfather had two wives?”

“Yes.  I do.”

“And that his first wife had a son named Mahadevan?"

            "Yes," Lalitha replied.  "I have heard his name being mentioned.  But I don't know where he is now.  Appa, can you tell us what you know about him?"

            Ramesh was astonished.  No one had ever mentioned that he had a grand uncle; not even his mother.

            "Yes.  I've seen him when I was a little boy.  He was a handsome young man."  He pointed his finger at David.  "This young fellow made me remember him because he somewhat resembles your uncle Mahadevan.  I liked him very much; and this Dave's presence has rekindled the memories of your uncle."

            Everyone in the room stared at David; Lalitha in particular.  Something triggered her memory.  "Do you know where he is now?"  Lalitha asked.

"Lalitha, you are the oldest living member in your family.  So, don't think that I intend to throw a blemish on your family by what I'm about to tell you now."

"Please carry on," Lalitha said.  "What you have told so far has kindled my curiosity."

            “When Mahadevan was around seventeen, his mother, that is your first grandmother, died.  And your grandfather Harihara Iyer married a young woman -- your grandmother.  She was twenty-seven at the time of her marriage.  She somewhat resembled Lalitha.”

            Lalitha looked at David nervously.  She then turned to the old man.  “Since my grandmother was afflicted by Mars, like my sister Anuradha, her parents were not able to find a suitable groom.  Therefore, she was forced to marry my grandfather who was about twenty years older than her,” Lalitha said.

“Your grandfather was born a year after her marriage.  So, your father is about eleven years younger to me.”  The old man paused.  He coughed, took the spittoon and spat into it.  "Well then….  One fine day, Mahadevan was no more to be seen in the village; suddenly he disappeared.  My father, our relatives and friends were sore with Harihara Iyer.”

"Why?" Bamini asked.

"He never lifted his finger to search for his son!  Harihara Iyer was the richest man in our area.  But he was also an arrogant man.   Please pardon me for saying so," the old man said.

"How old was my grand uncle Mahadevan, when he disappeared?" Ramesh asked.

            "Must be around twenty-two," the old man replied.

"Appa, please carry on," Bamini said.

"Your grandpa was a well known womaniser."  The ladies blushed.  "He had many kept-women."

 Lalitha looked agitated and out of breath.  "Lalitha you don't seem to be well.  Let me stop with this," he said.

"Please don't stop," Ramesh said.  "We want to know more about my great grandfather."  Everyone in the room nodded their agreement with him.

The old man looked at Lalitha.  "A month after Mahadevan disappeared, your grandmother died.  She acted crazy after her stepson disappeared."

"Naturally," his wife retorted.  "Any woman who loses her son, whether he be her own or her stepson would naturally become crazy.”

"Yes.  That's natural; but what intrigued most was that she committed suicide a month after Mahadevan disappeared; she had taken poison."

"What!"  Ramesh cried out.

The old man turned to Ramesh.  "The police arrested your great grandfather alleging that he must have poisoned his wife."

"What happened to him," Bamini asked.

"He came out on bail to cremate his wife's body.  Everyone in the village sympathised with him for all knew that his wife went crazy after her stepson disappeared.  But two days later he was arrested once again."

"Why this time?" Ramesh asked.

The old man looked at Ramesh and said gravely, "A young woman named Rajeswari, also disappeared from the village about three days before your great grandmother died."

Lalitha gasped.  David felt agitated on hearing the name Rajeswari.  Both stared at each other.

"Why arrest our grandfather for this woman's disappearance?" Anuradha asked.

"It was rumoured that he had an eye on Rajeswari and that she had thwarted his advances."

"Who was she?" Bamini asked.

"Rajeswari’s mother was a devadassi -- a divine whore.  She had slept with Harihara Iyer and was his favourite concubine.   But Rajeswari was a different type of person.  It was told that she had never consorted with anyone in the village or with any outsiders.  The day after the cremation of Harihara Iyer's wife, a bloated decomposed body of a woman was found floating in the river.  It was the body of Rajeswari.  Though the body was in a devastating state, her mother identified the body by pointing out to a mole.”

“On her left breast,” David said suddenly.

All looked up at David.  He appeared to be in a trance.

“Yes.  The mole was on her left breast,” the old man said.

“Dave, how do you know where the mole was?” Anuradha asked shaking his shoulder.

“I don’t know.  It just came to my mouth.  I must have read about this incident somewhere,” David replied.

Bamini turned towards her father-in-law.  "Appa, have you seen her…, the woman Rajeswari?" she asked eagerly.

"Yes.  I have seen her," the old man replied.  "I was a little boy, about fourteen years old.  She was very fair and beautiful; the most beautiful woman I ever set my eyes on."  The old man looked at his wife's wry face.

"Can you remember what this Rajeswari looked like?" Bamini asked.

"Yes.  As I said before, she was very beautiful.  Unfortunately, I haven't come across any woman who resembled her, and therefore, I can't compare her to anyone you would know."

"How old was she when she died… murdered?" Lalitha asked.

"She must have been around twenty or so," the old man replied.

David saw Lalitha breathe heavily, rise from the sofa and stagger towards him.   And then she swooned.  David caught her before she fell to the ground.  Anuradha ran to the kitchen and was back with a tumbler of water.  Bamini dipped her fingers into the tumbler and sprayed the water on Lalitha's face.  After a minute or so, Lalitha opened her eyes and felt the warm embrace of David. 

"Lalitha are you alright?" Bamini asked.

Lalitha reluctantly extricated herself from David's warm embrace and sat up.  "I'm okay."

"Amma, shall I take you to the doctor?" Ramesh asked.  His voice showed concern for his mother.

"No.  I'm alright now," Lalitha replied.  "I must be having low BP.  If this happens again, then we'll go and see the doctor tomorrow."  She slowly got up and sat on the sofa.  The room was silent.  Lalitha broke the ice.  "Appa, please continue with the story," she said.

The old man continued, "After stabbing her repeatedly and killing her, the murderer had tied her body to a huge rock and drowned the body in the deepest part of the river.  Police arrived from Kalakad and took custody of the body. 

"Later they came to your house.  He was dead drunk.  They arrested him and took him to Kalakad.  Being rich, he had influence everywhere; and he came out on bail.  The case was a sensation at that time.  After six months, your grandpa was released for lack of evidence against him."

"And then what happened?" Ramesh asked.

"A few days after his release, your great grandfather was murdered in his rice mill."

"Who would have killed him?" Ramesh asked.

"No one knows for sure.  It was case of unsolved mystery.  Rajeswari's younger sister Shanthi was missing from that day of the murder.  Shanthi was born to your grandfather; she studied in the same school where I studied -- in Kalakad."

"Was she killed too?" Ramesh asked.

"I don't know.  What I'm going to tell you now is just hearsay.  So, don't place much weight on it."

"What's it?" Anuradha asked.

"Some say that Shanthi ran away from the village and a Catholic Christian family adopted her."

"Is she still alive?"

"The same source I'm quoting now said that she became a Catholic nun."

"Then I can check with the nuns in the convent I studied in Palayamkottai," Bamini said.

"Wait a minute.  Hear what I heard from another source. "

"What's that?" Anuradha asked.

"That she's now married and settled in Sri Lanka."

"Both the sources are contradictory," David said.  He spoke for the first time.

"That's why I said at the start that what I heard was hearsay," the old man replied.  "And I didn’t have the time or inclination to verify whether what I heard was true or not."

After that everyone in the room was silent, each assimilating the story they had heard from Bamini's father-in-law.  He got up from the easy-chair and his wife followed to the room allotted to them.  Bamini, Anuradha and Ramesh went to the kitchen.

David got up from his seat and sat next to Lalitha.  He fondled her cheeks.  "Are you alright?" he asked her.

"Yes, darling," Lalitha said placing her head on his shoulder.

"The story the old man told agitated me too.  Though I hadn't heard this before, it sounds too familiar," David said.

"Yes.  It greatly disturbs me and I think I swooned because of that."

"Now take rest, dear."

"By the way, I wanted to discuss a serious issue with you.  It is urgent," Lalitha said.

"You are not feeling well now.  Discussing it now will only aggravate your health.  How about discussing it tomorrow?"

"Okay," she said.  "Will you come tomorrow?"

"Certainly, I will"

"In the meantime, I'll discuss this matter with my sisters and then talk to you."

"Okay.  It's fine with me."

"Dave, kiss me, before the others come."

David pressed his lips on hers and rose up to go home.

* * * * * *

© Peker O' Tool, 2003

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