Manjha A String of Complicated Relations

When The Truth Came Out

The next two weeks were a flurry of activities, The classes and drills got more rigorous everywhere you turned Cadets were studying or quizzing each other. Some others were spending more on their drills and weaponry training as well.

Shambhavi was no different. Any ideas of her impending doom at the hands of her grandfather were gone from her head as she threw herself in her studies. That was what she had worked for so hard. She was not letting anything in between her and her dream, no matter what.

But somewhere deep inside her heart, a dread had set in that something was going to happen, something bad. She had learned to not listen to that part of herself but that day she just could not get the feeling away from her mind.

It was a normal day, by all means. They had their morning drills and were eating breakfast when Aniket was called to Major Khan's office. He looked worried after the meeting. Shambhavi would have gone to ask him had they not been in the mess, she thought later.


Another 10 days passed and every senior cadet looked ready to drop dead. Shambhavi had not gotten a chance to ask Aniket what his meeting with Major Khan was about. Though she had noticed that it was something that was troubling him, she just could not get the time to have a proper conversation with him.

With just three days left for the final exams, Anant invited Anisha and Shambhavi to go to his home for dinner that evening. While the girls had protested, they had been shut up when Advith had come to them with a phone call from a very angry Sanyukta Ma'am.

They had wrapped up the day and went with Anant to the Rathore house and had a lovely time with Sanyukta Ma'am. They had been stressing so much and frankly, they needed the little break from all the tension.

Later, they were joined by Advith, Aniket and Major General Rathore. The dinner was as always cooked by the gentlemen while the ladies and Anant bonded. In all this stress, Shambhavi, Anisha and Anant had forgotten the strength that their friendship gave them.

The dinner went smoothly and as always Aniket took Shambhavi and Advith took Anisha. Anant opted to take his bike back to the Academy.

Aniket knew he had to tell Shambhavi, and Shambhavi had finally gotten the chance to ask him about what was troubling him but before she could formulate a question, he answered.

"I have to go to Leh. A serious situation has been going on in the LAC front and they are calling in more troops. So, I have to be there the day your exams start," Aniket told her with a sadness in his voice that mirrored on Shambhavi's face.

Leh. The LAC. Shambhavi knew the situation that had been going on at the front there, with the Galwan Valley incident only a few days ago. It was a tense situation. She knew it was a good move to call in more troops. She was just not expecting Aniket to be called.

"I was also not expecting it. Major Khan said it was an order from someone higher up. It could be a coincidence or it could be planned, I need you to be careful till I get back, Yash sir is also stuck with his department in psychological warfare and has been called to Delhi to be on an advisory committee. So, it's just you," Aniket told her, confirming that this might well be Narayan's work but no one knew for sure. He must have pulled some serious strings.

"Alright," Shambhavi said, trying to process everything. She could not offer more assurance, nor could Aniket.

They reached the Academy and went to the parking lot. Advith and Anisha were already there and waited for the other two. They were walking towards the dorms when an orderly gave Shambhavi a package and told her it was urgent.

She was surprised and started opening it, thinking it might be something important sent by her youngest sister. The contents of the parcel left Shambhavi breathless. She felt the world shift on its axis and felt her heart was in her mouth.

That could not be true. It simply could not be. Shambhavi refused to believe it.

When Shambhavi stopped walking with them, Anisha and Aniket also turned to look at what the hold up was. Shambhavi read the papers and her face lost all its color. She just stared at the papers before Anisha got impatient and walked towards her before taking the papers to read them himself.

Anisha was also shocked. There must be some kind of a misunderstanding, she thought. She looked up to Aniket, the question clear on her face.

Aniket knew if the look Shambhavi's face was not enough of an indicator then Anisha's questioning face was. He knew something had just been revealed. He just did not know what had been revealed. He had planned many things.

"This... this is not true, right?" Shambhavi asked, showing the papers to Aniket.

Aniket looked at the papers. They were legal documents that stated the need for a marriage license to be sanctioned three days after the last exam the girls had to give.

A marriage license between Shambhavi Vyas and Aniket Chauhan.

"It can't be true because we never applied for this. Because it would need both our signatures for this sort of thing. Signatures that neither one of us gave on any legal notice, certainly not in front of witnesses. Right, Aniket?" Shambhavi asked with her hands trembling, voice shaking, eyes wide and filled with questions.

Aniket just looked at Shambhavi with a plea in his eyes, plea of forgiveness.

"Answer me, Aniket. This is some sick joke, right?" Shambhavi asked again, waving the papers in front of him, her voice a bit higher.

Yet again, Aniket just looked at her and stayed silent. It was Advith who answered saying, "Of course, it's a joke. It can not be true."

He also came forward, took the paper and looked through them and looked and Aniket, "Aniket, tell her it's not true," he said with such ferociousness in his voice that Aniket flinched.

Aniket did not say anything. His silence was much more an answer than words could ever say.

Shambhavi took a sharp breath. Losing her footing, she stumbled and Aniket came forward to steady Shambhavi but moved away from him. She looked at him, really looked, and saw all the answers she needed. She kept a hand on her stomach, bile was rising in her and she wanted to vomit the contents of her dinner right there.

The one person she had trusted most in her life after her sisters had betrayed her. Shambhavi kept playing all their conversation, all their interactions, and encounters, every little moment, thinking 'Was all of it a lie?'

She was reminiscing the past few days and then it hit her. The day Nitya had called her and asked her to sign some papers along with some legal papers came to the fore.

"Did Nitya know?" Shambhavi voiced her thoughts in a whisper. She looked at Aniket who nodded.

Shambhavi was shattered. Her sister had also betrayed her trust. She looked at Aniket and begged him for an explanation, anything, anything was better than this silence. But that was all she got. Silence.

She was, for a lack of better word, crippled. Two people who she had trusted more than herself had broken that trust in the most unimaginable way. Who else knew? she thought.

"Who else?" Shambhavi voiced this question, "Adhya?" Aniket shook his head.

Shmabhavi went through everybody who could have known if not Adhya because the paper would have needed at least two witnesses, "Baba Sa? Raghav?" and Aniket shook his head.

"Choti Ma?" Shambhavi whispered and Aniket closed his eyes shut, the pain was tangible in her voice.

Shambhavi knew. Nitya and Choti Ma had helped Aniket.

Shambhavi moved away from Aniket and walked towards her room. She could faintly hear Advith shouting something at Aniket and then maybe punching him but all of it sounded so far away. She slid down the side of her bed and sat on the ground. She took deep breaths, trying to root herself. She had a thousand questions but after this revelation, all the voices in her head shut up. Her mind was just silent.

Shambhavi did not know what to do, or what to think. She knew she should yell, be angry, and demand explanation. But all Shambhavi felt was a strange numbness.