"YOU KNEW!" shouted Pruthvi, completely enraged, "YOU KNEW YOU HAVE A SISTER?"
"Pruthvi, leave it," suggested Celina, trying to calm him down.
Only two hours ago Doctor had helped us use the Gates to safely enter into the Sharad's court. King Aghasthya made all the arrangements to send rest of the men to their respective homes.
Doctor then came back later in a while, and began mending all of us one by one. He tied a bandage on Pruthvi's head, he provided a hot eucalyptus oil to Celina asking her to apply on her soar shoulder. He provided me and Tyrell with a few medicinal herbs to chew that was extremely bitter and burned our throats, stating that it might relax our muscles. Unable to bare it's crappy taste Tyrell shoved it out right as soon as Doctor turned around to mend Leena. He applied a gel on her ankle that somehow reverted it back to it's normal shape within a few minutes and strictly ordered her to rest for atleast a day. He then walked away out of Lithika's room where we were resting to check up on his son.
When five of us were discussing about everything that had happened on Uilani hill, Leena suddenly dropped a bombshell that she always knew she had a sister, and that was when Pruthvi went ballistic on her.
"Sorry but I can't," he snapped at Celina, who was gently wiping Leena's ankle, "How many time have I asked her, if there was any sister her parents didn't tell her about. But every time she scolded me that I was stupid to even think of it."
"I am sorry," Leena said, with a suppressed cry, "But I didn't want to believe I have one."
"Why not?" Pruthvi asked, flinging his hands, "As soon as I came to know I have a sister, I was so excited that I decided to do anything to find her. How come you never felt anything like that?"
"Because if I feel anything like that, that means I have to accept the fact that my parents lied to me."
Pruthvi frowned. "What?"
Leena opened her mouth but before she said anything she was interrupted.
"I'll tell you what she meant."
King Aghasthya with Princess Lithika slowly walked inside the room, their eyes fixed on the person resting on the bed. Leena looked up as they walked nearer to her, she and Princess Lithika sharing an awkward stare. Watching them together in one room, was somehow making my stomach churn.
Tyrell and I were sitting quiet away from them, leaving them to deal with this sensitive topic alone. As Aghasthya stood beside the bed, Tyrell leaned towards me and said, "Something is going to blast."
I sniggered at his way of speech.
Silence surfaced between them for a few minutes, each of them thinking their own ways to bring up the topic. Finally it was Lithika who began showering her complaints.
"I didn't quite believe when Pruthvi and others told me there is a girl who looks exactly like me," she said, setting her bangles straight.
"Yeah me too," Leena said angrily, "May be you should ask your grandfather about it."
Aghasthya sighed when Leena snapped a look at him. Lithika turned around at her grandfather and began blaming him. "You told me my parents are dead. You told my parents that I was dead. Have you ever thought of telling me the truth? Or simply now that I was already dying, it didn't important to tell me at all?"
Tyrell and I exchanged nervous glances. Pruthvi and Celina walked away from them, finding seats at the other end of the room.
"Stop it, both of you," said Aghasthya, showing his palms, "Lithika, you have been living with me the whole life. How can you believe whatever I did was on purpose? And Leena, doctor has always been telling me that you are grown into a most positive and strong willed girl. How can you say something mean to me like that?"
"So tell us," Leena demanded, "Tell us everything. Why did you separate us?"
He pressed his eyes shut uncomfortably an licked his upper lip. Taking a long breath, he began, "You both deserve to know. Yes, I'll tell you everything and I want you to trust me, whatever I am going to tell you is the truth."
He pulled up a posh chair and sat beside Leena. Lithika sank herself on the bed.
King Aghasthya continued, "You do know that your father was meant to be a Samagraha. Shashi was already in verge of searching for each of them. Harsh, me and doctor had already took the decision to send every suspected Samagraha to the other country. Viraj was against the idea. He was too dearest to his mother. He couldn't leave her behind and so he didn't obey me when I asked him to leave the kingdom. Instead, he insisted to stay here his whole life as a prince of Sharad no matter what.
But I was resilient too. I had to think of something before doctor ended this Yajna. I was afraid Shashi might kill Viraj before my eyes that in no way I could let it happen. Viraj had always been very egoistic. The only way to send him away was by abandoning him or by hurting his self-respect to an extent that he leaves the kingdom by himself. Only problem was I didn't know how to.
You mother was already carrying both of you, and you were enter into our life anytime soon. That seemed to be my only chance and I came up with this plan. I strictly declared to Viraj that he could stay in this kingdom only if his wife delivered a boy and make possible to carry on the legacy after him. Since then Viraj started to abhor me. We began having huge fights almost every other day. In a next few days, as if my prayers were accepted, your mother gave birth to two beautiful girls. My happiness was unable to find its limits. But then it was the matter of your father leaving. Even before I told him to leave, he decided leave by himself and accepted to go anywhere I wanted to send him. That is how he left Dakshinpur."
"What about me?" asked Lithika, a tear falling down her cheek, "Why didn't you sent me with my parents?"
Aghasthya took her hand and said, "I had to take this decision for your grandmother. As soon as I told her our son was in danger, Urmila, did nothing except crying all day. Even though she was happy that our son was going to be a Samagraha, she hated to part ways with him. She begged me to atleast keep one of the girls behind. She cried a lot and I was afraid she might kill herself. I couldn't do anything but to accept her wish.
There was still time for doctor to finish the Yajna. I was waiting for this one chance and one day when your parents were out of the court, I stole one of you and sent you far away for few days. When your parents came back I told them you were dead and that I cremated you before they arrived home. Your father didn't believe me first. But only after watching me pretend that I didn't care about his children at all, he had to. He loathed me for being so cruel. He swore never to see me again and that was the last day we were together as a family."
"How could he believe I was dead?" said Lithika, slightly shocked taking her hand away from her grandfather.
"Because of my traits," he replied, in a low voice, "I made him believe you were dead. Lithika you have to trust me. It was just to keep your grandmother alive and happy."
Silence fell around. Watching King Aghasthya narrating his part of the story was making me to shout and ask him about me and King Harsh. I didn't know if Celina's uncle was telling the truth or it was just one of the cheap tricks Shashi was playing. He was the one who impelled Celina's uncle to kill himself. He could easily have asked him to lie to me about it.
"Leena, how did you know about you sister?" Celina asked making everyone turn towards her, "How did you know you were having one?"
Pruthvi looked at his girlfriend, still fuming. Leena sniffed, wiped her tear and revealed her side of the story.
"It was just because of few incidents that had happened to me. I wasn't sure then but now I am.
When I was ten, I found a painting in my mother's closet. It was our family portrait- my mother, my father and they were holding on to not one but two babies. I asked my mom who the other one was but she didn't tell me anything. She scolded me instead for looking into her closet. Since then I didn't ask her anything about it. Then after my parents died, I didn't know why but I checked her closet again. I found the same painting making me realize that she was still keeping it. I also found something else that made me a lot suspicious. Birthday presents, gift cards, dresses, all completely hidden, the same one that my parents had given me on each of my birthdays. I understood they were buying two identical gifts every year. That gave me my first clue.
Later on when Tyrell came and took me to the academy, I was happy that I was different and I got immersed in all the training. I forgot everything about the painting, the presents everything. Two months ago Pruthvi told me about a girl who looks just like me. He made me remember about the painting that my mother hid inside her closet. Then I was almost sure that my parents have been lying to me all those years. But still I wasn't able to accept the fact that they could do something like that, that they could lie to me about me being their only child."
"Your mother was very caring, Leena," said Aghasthya, when Leena was done, "She obeyed each and every demand that came from me."
"But abandoning them was certainly not the right thing to do," she said, letting out a sob.
"I had no other choice."
"That doesn't make things okay," she said quickly.
"Grandpa," Lithika interrupted, "You have been more than a guardian to me all these years. I understand that you had no choice. But this is about me separating me from my parents."
"What do you want me to do?" Aghasthya asked her, his face turning stern, "Tell me. I'll do anything for you."
"I know you can't get my parents back. But I am only asking you for some time. Please leave me alone till I myself come and talk to you again."
She stood and walked out of the room. To my surprise Aghasthya didn't even stop her. He turned around to face Leena. Swallowing hard, he said, "You have to forgive me for what I did. I know, one day you will."
"I wish so," Leena whispered, "Believe me, I wish so."
-x-