NOVEL~*Hiding behind a Stranger*~THREAD 54 - CHAP 59 - Page 127

Originally posted by: Unbeknown

Bindu - awesome review dear and your post to author sahiba on turning Sizzler👍🏼 You are indeed a cute baisa and HBAS has become a home for all of us. Congratulations on turning Sizzler dearie 🤗

'Hey!'

The jailor tapped his spear on the metal bars, before pointing its sharp tip to the plate of food she was holding 'Stop Sahiba!'

'What?' She turned around, her hands tensing up 'H... he was just about to eat...'

'Aha!' The jailor rolled his tongue over his lips, his bushy brow hooked right up 'Worry not Sahiba... he'll get to eat... but, YOU go first...'

'Wh...' She heard his heavy steps cross over into the cell, the blood in her veins running cold. 'What do you mean?'

He knelt on one leg, not too far from her face.

'Mmm... Sahiba of Parnagarh!' The murmurs down the halls were no exaggeration. What a feast this lady made, for a pair of starved eyes! This could be fun - fun enough that he might end up thanking Khalil for it later. 'You see... we need to know... that you haven't mixed anything in it'

'Oh Lord' Heera averted her pupils. The blurry silhouette of this jailor was terrifying enough. She didn't even want to imagine what creed of monster his actual face resembled. 'B... but everything has already been checked...'

'Not in MY presence!'

'Stop...' Akbar wheezed hoarse from the strain of trying to sit up 'Begu... um... Sahiba pl... please leave... leave this place'

She beheld her husband with moistened glances. After having come so far, nothing would get her to give up - not the pitiful pleas of her Sahib, and definitely not such pathetic provocation from a couple of bullies. Coming with the protection of the Shehzaade no less, it wasn't her own safety but her Sahib's safety that truly worried her. And at this point, following the wishes of a jailor would help her cause, far more than defying them ever would. Besides, she'd had an inkling that such hurdles might be littered along her way, and had come prepared.

So, Heera picked up the portion of the coarse rice and lentils that were meant for her husband and pushed it inside her parched mouth.

He stared on, waiting for any shift in the Sahiba's expressions to show up - a nice excuse it was, to leer at those velveteen features while he did so.

Nothing showed up.

'Awww...' he guffawed, triggering a chain of guffaws amongst the rest of their audience 'now... the broth and the bread... go on... EAT IT!''

'Heera... p... just go'

The murmurs from her husband were getting miserably faint - it made her want to rant at fate, the manner in which the pain on him was being needlessly prolonged. However, morphing her heart into stone and masking the depths of her despair with a mild frown, she ate a portion of the broth and bread.

'There... I've done as you asked...'

'Ah! It's MY turn!' He brandished a toothy grin.

'WHATTT? No!' What were these sadists planning to do to his meal? 'Stop...' A cry echoed between her ears 'Please don't'

Alas, however jarring the cries within - on the outside, Heera could do nothing but continue to play a helpless witness, while five dirty fingers were dunked into her plate. 'Please... please... please let him not find out...'

Having messed up the spread, the jailor finally helped himself to a handful of the rice and lentils, and stuffed it into his mouth.

He was in no hurry to finish, chewing each crumb of the morsel, before licking his lips again. 'That seems to be fine... next...'

Her lashes tremored as she tried to focus on what item he was about to pick and check. 'No... no... he shouldn't find out... Ma... I beg you... make him go...'

'Hmmm... THIS one now...' The bread and broth fell prey to his clasp next - the sneers outside growing unrulier as he did so.

Deafened to the ruckus from anxiety, Heera had nothing but a single thought circling in her mind, over and over. 'Ma! Please make him go now... go now... go now... go now... go now...'

'Heyyy men!'

'Whattt?' Her senses were jostled alert by the arrival of another guard - a younger man, going by the agility in his footfall. 'One more guard?' Why did another man have to join in? To add to the leering and jeering with his own spiteful tunes? 'Nooo! Maaa'

'Daroga Sahib...' he chirped, the very next moment 'you are wanted...'

'Oh?' Heera sat back slowly. She'd gotten a whiff of the young guard's tune - and it was not filled with spite as feared. 'Let him go... go now'

'A brawl has erupted...' the young guard continued to chirp 'between inmates in the last three cells of the dungeons!'

'Ugggh... tell me something new!'

The jailor took his own sweet time before he eventually stood, after washing his hands in a bowl - a scowl rampant on his face.

'It HAS been nice... dining with you... I hope I get to see you later... 'Sahiba'... Khuda Hafiz!'

'My God!' The tension in her hands eased off. This wasn't merely good news for the lone woman. This was GREAT news! The unthinkable had happened. An unexpected tide had swept in - a favourable tide - clearing away her woes, leaving her awash with a sense of relief. 'Finally!'

And it didn't stop there. After those filthy boots left the cell, the leers and jeers from the remaining guards seemed to ease off too, into a bout of chatter and chuckles at some random news that the not-so-spiteful guard had apparently brought with him.

'Go on... go on... Sahiba...' the young guard tapped his stick a few beats thereon, as if to yank her out of that trance 'you have only a short while left!'

'Yes... yes... thank you... thankyou Ma...' She exhaled, immediately turning around to return to what she'd been doing - not wanting anyone's wary eyes lingering on the plate, not wishing to draw their attention to the pinches of 'salt' that had so far escaped their sight. After all, it was those rocky grains of salt that were concealing the medicine in it. Heera had taken a calculated risk when she imagined that a little pinch of salt in the corner of a plate would go unnoticed - which is why she'd had the concoction heated to a crystalline white. And that risk had just paid off!

Had the jailor decided to taste the salt, she would not have survived the test - the sedatives in it so strong that he would have sensed it effects instantaneously.

'Here you go, Khan Sahib...'

She pushed the first salt-mixed morsel in, through his lips.

His taste buds were dead - beyond the point of differentiating sweet from sour and bitter from bland. Even so, he could tell that the bits of food in his mouth were unpalatable. 'What was in the rice?' Why did it taste so horribly putrid? Was it delirium or was it the disease? 'Arghhh...' With the physical torment from sitting up having made him weaker since, and with his insides having pushed pools of bile up to his throat twice already, he couldn't do this much longer. 'Heera... arrrg... gghhh... I...'

'Shhh! Trust me... hardly three morsels more... and you shall stop feeling the pain...'

When it became obvious that his mind was beginning to sink again, down to the world of unconsciousness, Heera placed the plate on her lap and stretched a hand out to clasp his face. Pulling his chin up till his gazes were in line of sight with her hazel eyes, she entranced him with the one thing that was as potent as her medicines. 'Look at me... at my eyes, Khan Sahib... and you will find your strength, your 'will' to fight, therein'

She continued to embrace his face with one hand - moulding the tender valleys of her palm around the rugged contours of his profile, continuing to share her powers with him. Her clasp was not a mere clasp then. It was an imprint, a silent message that this blind woman was leaving behind for her husband. It was an armour, a reminder that his wife would fight to protect him as fiercely as he always did for her. It wasn't a mere clasp. It was a union of two forms, a spell rousing him to shed this skin of tragic past and rise with strength anew. It was haven, a promise that she'd take him to a place far from pain. It was home, a gesture meant to make him reclaim his lost identity.

So, Akbar let his features willingly succumb to her, letting her touch leave its imprints, letting her fingers make love to him in ways she knew best, letting himself surrender to the armours of her protection, letting her keep him afloat - so he could be fed the next morsel and the ones thereafter.

And as promised, she was apparently leading him away, to a place far from the pain, riding towards home. With every stride they rode, the sordid reminders on his back faded further and further - as if he was indeed shedding this skin of tragic past, and rediscovering himself anew!

'Wait... pain fading... am I...' His head was light - yet, it was the first time he was thinking straight 'I... I am hallucinating... H... Heera... what have you added to this?'

In response, his Begum gave him a few sips of water, wiped his lips with a cloth and lay him down.

'Lord...' What was happening? 'Strange' wouldn't even begin to describe it. The water was still around. But he wasn't drowning under, with tides belting at him. He was being gently tossed about near the shores, lapped by bubbly surfs - the cell bars and mossy stones floating like driftwood and shells. 'Strange' it was, but it was wondrously strange. 'I... I...' He tried to say something to the precious one hovering by his side, but her hot breath was beginning to stroke his face on and off, lulling him into a slumber. The caress of her skin was a blanket, her fading smile a dimming light - and with that serene image on his pupils, his eyelids finally drew down to a shut.

A stillness followed. A poignant stillness.

Heera sat back up, unleashing some of the heaviness within through a long breath. 'Finally... thank you, Ma!'

She'd met her beloved, wished him on his birth anniversary, ensure he'd had a meal and given him his medicines. And now, as he lay asleep, with no hint of pain, she realised that the Goddess had fulfilled another wish of hers today.

'Have always wanted to watch you peacefully fall asleep... at least once'

A salty droplet rushed down her face, betraying the guilt her heart carried.

'I apologise, Khan Sahib... when you wake up a new man... if you choose not to forgive me thereafter, I shall understand... but I had to do what I had to do...'

Yes, it was the first time she had lied to her soulmate, tricked him into following her wishes without his knowledge. The young wife had added an ingredient in the medicine that he'd wilfully vowed never to partake in - since his beliefs considered it Haram and his steadfast principles forbade it. 'Opium' She hadn't merely laced the medicine with opium, she'd added a good strong pinch of it. But there was no other drug as capable of numbing the sort of pain he suffered. And unless that pain was numbed, he wouldn't recover. The healer in her, had done it for his sake, and she could only hope the lover in him would understand when he awoke.

'I love you...'

Heera placed a soft kiss on her Sahib's forehead. And then, during a moment when she sensed they weren't being watched, slid down to plant a softer kiss on his lips - while picturing him, in a place of deep deep peace. If this moment were to be her last living memory of him, the image in her mind's vision would forever be a serene one at least. With that thought for comfort, Heera gently tore herself off from her husband.

'May the Goddess give you her strength... may you be victorious... and may the legend of the Ustaad live on'

Outside the dungeons

'Sahiba...'

Splitting her attention away from the mesh of cobbled floors that'd been a backdrop for a myriad of words in her head, she looked up to find an onrushing shadow blocking her path.

'The agile footfall' It was the young guard!

'Sahiba... Sahiba...'

It was the second time that his voice had yanked her out of a trance. And somehow, the interruption left her awash with a sense of relief this time too.

She turned towards the Khwaja Seras. 'Please allow me to express a few words of gratitude to this man... if it were not for him, I would not have been able to meet with Khan Sahib in peace' she swiftly added a crafty clause 'even though I did have our Huzoor's explicit permission to do so... as you are aware'

Flustered, the Khwaja Seras exchanged a hard glare. 'A few words!'

'Thank you for understanding'

Heera returned to face the young guard, taking a sly step forth while doing so, to ensure they would be out of earshot.

'Adab' Her greeting came hush as the summer's air, but warm as its yellow sky 'Thank you for what you've done for me... and for EVERYTHING that you've been doing for Khan Sahib...'

'Oh' So, she'd guessed about the 'EVERYTHING' that he had done for them! His eyebrows rose right up to his hairline 'How?'

'Well' Heera shrugged a light shrug - she just knew!

Of course, it could all have been a mere coincidence too. Coincidence that his earlier interruption had brought a welcome end to her sufferings at the dirty hands of the jailor. Coincidence that his chatter had put a smooth stop to the unstoppable leers and jeers that were being hurled at her. And coincidence that while some noble soul had been caring well for Khan Sahib in this hell hole, this young guard seemed to be carrying a strip of white cloth in his hands that resembled bandages!

But a trusted whisperer called 'instincts' had told her that it couldn't all be mere coincidence.

Having said that, there WAS one fact she did not know. 'Why?' A faint sigh slipped her lips 'Why have you been caring for him? Are you an acquaintance, of his?'

'Nah!' The guard cracked into a smirk 'He's not as much trouble as the rest of the slimy men we have in the dungeons... sits in a corner... doesn't taunt me much... so... I don't mind helping him occasionally'

'I see...' The young lady could almost picture the smirk on his face as he conjured up those wisecracks about her Khan Sahib. Prankster! 'You remind me of someone we know...' a blink later, she dropped the mildness from her frowns 'now... want to tell me the REAL reason you're helping us out?' A quiet pause followed 'I cannot pay you back otherwise...'

'Hmmm' The guard rolled his sheepish glimpses down to the floor 'I've grown up hearing tales of the Ustaad... have always been an admirer... had dreams of joining him one day... and then, this happened...' he clicked his tongue 'but, please... don't tell him that... and anyhow the rest is true too! He hardly talks!'

'That story sounds believable'. Heera felt compelled to let a soft smile show through. She wouldn't deny - it was refreshing to meet a soul who could still force a smile out of her amidst all that'd transpired.

Nevertheless, now that she could trust him, HE would be the man they'd been on the lookout for.

Slipping her fingers tactfully underneath her shawl, she removed the second and the third pouches that sat nested inside her braid. Keeping her ears peeled for the sounds of any movement from the Khwaja Seras behind her, she blinked at the outline of his hand. 'Your palm'

And when he took the cue to stick his palm out, she slipped the parcel forward tactfully.

'Oh my... oh my' His pupils sparkled like a little boy at a fairground, witnessing the tricks she'd just performed 'what's this?'

'I've given him the first dosage, with strong sedatives... should keep him pain-free for a couple of days...' she whispered with a nod 'the blue pouch in your hand holds an ointment... apply it with oil, till the wounds scab... the red one has the rest of his medicines... in the meanwhile, please ensure he gets to eat whatever healthy food you can get your hands on... maybe milk and porridge now... meat and bread when he is conscious?' Her attention was momentarily caught by the shifting sandals of the Khwaja Seras - they were getting restless 'The stitches are healing... so... I take it, you are aware of what you're doing with the bandages'

'My uncle is a Hakim... I've worked as his apprentice for few months'

'Oh...'

Her lips hadn't given up their smile - yet, her eyes had decided to nudge out a balmy tear just then. Maybe, after having come to expect misery on misery on misery, kindness from strangers had become a phenomenon she'd forgotten did exist in the world. 'B... but' how was she meant to pay this stranger back? She owed him not only for all he'd done and was doing, but also for what he was about to do. And she had nothing of value left on her to give.

Thump! Thump! The Khwaja Seras thumping their spears from behind came as a caution - she had to go.

'I... I...' Her palms fidgeted, her conscience refusing to sit still, when her fingertips struck something. With a soft moan, she glanced down. 'The diamond ring' Jiji's diamond ring! But, how could she possibly part with such a memoir? An irreplaceable memoir?

'Then again...' The life of Khan Sahib that he'd help save was irreplaceable too. And Jiji's memories would continue to live on in her mind, forever - with or without this diamond ring as a reminder.

'Here' Sliding off the ring that'd never left its home thus far, Heera gifted it to the young guard 'for your troubles... I have nothing else on me to give you but, my sister's ring... Durga Bai's ring... it is the most precious possession I have left on me!'

'A diamond ring?' His jaw dropped as he gaped at the shiny stone - that too, it was the one that belonged to Durga Sahiba? The illustrious Sahiba whose name has been creating a storm in the capital? The legendary warrior-woman who'd given up her life fighting Khalil? 'Merciful Lord...' The very fact alone would fetch him a price ten times the value of that diamond!

'But' His perky features fell as he took a semi-willing peek at the lone Sahiba in front, and at how there were no remnants of regrets on her features 'Damn it'

It'd fetch him a good price - but to HER this was priceless, wasn't it?

'Oh whatever'

With a chuckle, he eventually brought an end to what'd been the toughest battle his conscience had ever fought in his young life 'You see... I am no noble chap... my house runs on the bribes I collect from around here... but even the sinner that I am, wouldn't be able to sleep at night if I took this memoir from you! I will collect my dues later... worry not...'

Offering her a lively bow, he then sauntered off, disappearing into the dungeons underground. 'All will be fine, Harka Sahiba! Khuda Hafiz!'

'All will be fine...'

'All will be fine...'

'Will all be fine?'

'Really?'

'Yes!' Broke down she did like a girl, right in the centre of the prison fort square.

Heera looked up at the Heavens above, breathless, tearing her heart out. 'Finally... you've shown us some mercy!'

The campsite.

Under the open blanket of a star studded sky, the campfire danced brightly, waving her flaming arms in four directions.

But all of that vivid display sadly went unnoticed by the scores of spectators squatting around her.

After having made miraculous gallops in finding those rare herbs that their baisa needed, they'd come up against the stark stone walls of the Imperial prison - abruptly. And with their youngest warrior lost to this mission, they had no news of the situation on the other side of those stony walls either. Had their baisa managed to retrieve the herbs? Was there ever a possibility of Khan Sahib being treated? Why was it that everytime they managed to celebrate a feast of hope, the next night ended up being a famine of doom?

Mohan Banna gathered his crutches in one hand, and in another, the scrolls that they'd been working on all day - scrolls containing Harka bai's inflammatory message that was meant to be distributed across the lands. In his head he knew that these scrolls were nothing beyond a few threads of lifeline when the entire ground beneath them was shakier than quicksand. But when he held those scrolls out in plain view, he ensured that the tune of his tone changed 'We still have a lot work to do tomorrow... more copies of this letter have to be made... and distributed around the streets... so let us catch up on some rest now'

His glances then made a tired search of the ebony shadows surrounding him 'where are Daya and Bajrang? Haven't spotted them in a while'

'I haven't seen them...'

'Hope they're safe... they'd gone to purchase extra scroll and ink... how could they have not found what they were looking for?'

'We DID find what we were looking for, banna!'

Boomed voices from the other end of the grounds, as a volley of footsteps squelched across its muggy Earth.

'Wh... who?' The crowd of men stood up - their expressions wary as they stared through the dimness at five unfamiliar silhouettes following Bajrang and Daya.

'Wh... who?'

'Who are these men?'

'What are they doing here?'

Mohan banna and Ibrahim put their hands up to quieten the crowds, waiting for the five silhouettes to approach.

Soon, the unfamiliar group was in their midst - the man at their centre pulling the cloak off his face to introduce himself. 'Khamma Ghani...'

'Oh my...' Ratan kaka cupped his mouth, his ageing sight the first to recognise this visitor. 'Kunwarsa Tejraj?'

A shocked sheet of silence enveloped the crowd!

'Kunwarsa Tejraj? You're here... amongst us!'

'But we heard neither horses nor wheels...'

'We travelled by foot... I did not want to draw attention... my cousin has been looking for me!' He signalled at the scrolls in the banna's hand 'Want to show me their contents?'

When many-an-unblinking stare was exchanged while not a single muscle moved, the Kunwar heaved restlessly 'Alright... I am familiar with most of the paragraphs from Harka Bai's original scroll... that is why I am here... to help you spread the message... your Sahib had detailed it all out to me... you know... before... the...'

'WHAT?'

'You met with our Sahib?'

'Our Khan Sahib left you instructions?'

'Then... why didn't you come to us, Kunwarsa?'

'Where have you been?'

'Fighting my own demons, I guess...'

His conscience was sitting heavy on his shoulders as it is - the questions in their continued glares only adding weight to it. It was time he offloaded some of that burden. 'Men... shall I have a look at those scrolls?'

'At this hour, Kunwarsa?'

'I've wasted days covering up for my cousin... being a coward...' it was a difficult admission to make amongst an assembly of warriors - but he admitted it without stumbling for words 'I'm not wasting an hour more...'

'May we ask what made you change your mind?'

'I... I have... I...' his jowl clenched from guilt 'Durga Bai sacrificed everything, fearlessly fighting for her cause... Harka Bai does the same... and now... I heard that a common maid, a little older than my own children showed such strength in the face of evils to protect good... as a prince, trained in warfare... I... should... have... earlier...' his pitch withered 'anyhow, the scrolls... please...'

'Do come by the campfire, Kunwarsa...'

It was half-an-hour later, by the time the good Kunwar had finished giving the scrolls in Marwari and Brij a thorough read. 'Hmmm...' he turban tilted to a side, as he dipped a quill in ink. These letters were good - but somehow its phrases lacked the soul-blazing trail that the one penned by Harka Bai had. So, he went about making the corrections, to try and bring it closer to the original.

'There...' he eventually pointed out the changes to the plethora of faces peeking over his shoulder 'if the messages read, in THIS fashion... don't you think they would have greater impact on the common folk?'

Receiving the amended parchments, Mohan banna gave it a quick study. And it didn't take long for his mouth to part in awe 'I... I... I agree...'

'Fine... make copies of these letters... have your people distribute them to merchants... lords... everyone and anyone in and around the capital who'd have a voice at the duel!' His suggestions succumbed to a pensive pause 'You work your way outside the palace, while I work my way inside it...'

Sayyid stepped forward. 'H... how do you mean?'

'I shall work as an invisible messenger within the palace grounds... spreading these messages to nobleman and ministers, who might appear an easy target to get to our side... thus garnering greater support for Harka Bai...'

'Our side?'

Hearing that phrase from the Kunwar sent a wave of genteel smiles across the faces of both - the Men of Ustaad and Parnagarhis. 'Our side?' They had a solid ally in him hereon, didn't they?

'Daya...' Ratan kaka batted away the blur forming over his pupils 'fetch our Kunwar a fresh set of parchments...'

'No! No! Not parchments. You don't know the way the minds of these ministers work'

The prince flicked a finger sideways at his own assistant, who took the cue to unstring a large bag and spread forth a bundle of regal stationery from within - scrolls of rich purple silk edged with golden embroidery and a silver quill with the finest tip. 'If we want aristocrats to take us seriously, we'd have to communicate in the language they speak...'

Not long thereafter, Kunwar Tejraj was beginning to compose the first line of the letter - using a plank for support, and his princely instincts to script its wording.

Curious, Ratan kaka and Mohan banna bent forth, to take a closer peep at the words being composed.

'Those haughty aristocrats in court ought to take our cause seriously now... Ma Bhavani... thank you...'

Suddenly, the strands of threads had somehow corded into thicker ropes - lifelines strong enough to hoist them all up to safety from this quicksand...

Originally posted by: Heeralicious

Thanks sweetie😆 trust me, "coolness" slowly goes away when you don't get much time outside laboratories. 😡😆 kidding, any field is good as long as you've interest!😊

Originally posted by: Heeralicious

Wow just saw this post of yours!!! EXCELLENT Wishu ⭐️⭐️⭐️ so so so beautiful. What an artist you are ❤️ 1st one though ❤️ steals the show totally!

Originally posted by: Unbeknown

finished lotta HW...proud of myself 😆

Wishu - beautiful paintings dear (old & new ones). Do continue 😊

Thank you so much my dear Appu di🤗

Nams - breast & prostate cancer...I worked with ovarian and bladder cancer...that's what happens with research bosses...endless postponings😆 Good luck with research😊University or a company, you work for?

Wow Appu di you are also a researcher😲

Originally posted by: binduprasad41

Good morning, everyone! 🤗

Originally posted by: karkuzhali

Hiding Behind

A

STRANGER

A Historical Romance by Lashy

(Abridged)

Part IV The Thunderstorm

Chapter 16.

A Silver Lining...

In the Dungeon..

'

[Journey Continues]