"Mr. Malhotra, What are you doing?
Leave my hand"
I requested as he was grabbing my arms forcibly and dragging me from the corridor to his room.
He's drunk! as always...
but this is the first time he's using physical force on me. His grip is so strong that... it hurts.
After entering the room and locking it behind, he left my hand with a push that I bang my head on the cupboard and hissed in pain.
With my teary eyes, I turned my head only to meet his red, angered, dark eyes...
But the question is still the same; why is he doing this all of a sudden when he was not at all acknowledging my presence until this evening?
"Why are you doing this?"
I managed to ask as he again grabbed me by my shoulders caging me between him and the cupboard.
"Why am I doing?
YOU are asking me when you're the bloody reason!" He growled coming dangerously close to my face that his nose is touching mine.
I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion.
What did I do wrong this time?
"You all girls are the same; the filthy gold-diggers who can stoop any low for just money... bloody money!" he shouted pushing me back and got away.
The smell of alcohol is so strong that I feel like puking my stomach out.
Thank god my Adi is not here!
Well, it hurt less now...being called a gold digger as I knew since the very wedding night of ours... that this is what he thinks of me:
A gold-digger!
Flashback
My dad, who is my everything, told me to get married & I did, even without meeting the groom before. I got to know who is he, The Manik Malhotra, CEO of Malhotra Industries which is now No.1 in India & among the top five in the world.
I used to live in the U.S after my mom's death as dad got a job there and we settled there only. Dad works as a trusted employee of Mr. Raj Malhotra, my Father-in-law, who resides in the U.S. only, with my Mother-in-law. While their son is in-charge of the Indian branch and lives here.
So, after marriage, I've to get shifted to Malhotra Mansion, New Delhi. It is a very huge house with well-designed large rooms...
I'm sitting in the middle of the king-sized bed with a veil on my head covering the face like a newly wedded bride which I am!
I'm hell nervous & excited to get to know my husband who is now my life-partner, my everything!
And he came in locking the door behind...
With his every single step my heartbeat is increasing so much that I feared it might be audible to him...
He stopped at the edge of the bed and I could feel him staring at me to which I lowered my head...
That's it!
Until this moment was my happiness.
My dream of prince charming, fairy tale husband... All went to gutter after this moment.
"Get off my bed!" he sounded cold and rude. I couldn't get what he meant by 'My bed'.
"Can't you hear?
Get the hell out of my bed and take that couch."
This time I looked up and could see upto his sherwani as I had not removed my veil yet.
"Manik?-" I tried speaking but he cut me...
"Oh! Seems like you don't get words easily... Then let me explain!" He took a short pause before resuming.
"You are married to me only for the world.
In this house, never ever dare to impose your rights on me... You're only suppose to be a good mother to my child & care for him.
Don't, I repeat, Don't talk to me unless it is about Aditya; Don't touch my things; don't even try to get close to me...
In return, you'll get whatever you want; all facilities, as much as money you need!
But don't you dare disobey me.
Now move!" He yelled making me jump and I silently walked out of 'his' bed...
"And ya! It's Mr. Malhotra for you, not Manik" he ordered before covering the duvet on himself and slipping into slumber.
I sat on the couch with a slow thump! looking at his back turned at me amidst moonlight lighting the dark room... with only his words playing in my mind.
He don't want any relation of husband-wife between us... he'll give me money instead! Am I a gold digger?
He only wants me to babysit his child!
Wait-What?... What child? and who is Aditya?
Does he have a kid already?
I never knew!!!
Flashback Ends
It broke my trance when I felt him deadly close to me & trying to kiss me harshly on my cleavage...
"What are you doing?" I tried asking while pushing him off from me.
Even though he is my husband; he's not in sense nor did he think me as his wife.
"Giving you what you want!"
He said making me more confused.
Firstly his harness, his proximity and then the reeking smell of alcohol from him is making me disgusted and weak.
"This is what you wanted, right?
You want men to spend night with you, pleasure you and also you make money out of it... Toh, I'll give you all this & even money too..."
He said bitting on my neck but his words hurt more than his action... I pushed him with all my might and he trembled back due to alcohol.
"You think this low of me?" Tears has already started making their way out of my eyes when I muttered my voice.
"You think of me as a slut; a bed-warmer?"
I shouted with tears running down vigorously. I withstood when he called me gold-digger but this...
This is too much!
"Yes, you're!" He too yelled looking up at me with his red eyes.
"See this!... this!. This!!! all this!"
he quickly slid out some photographs from his pant pockets and threw them on my face... It hit hard and fell on the floor.
I bend down to pick some of them to see what proof did he get to justify my character!
There are pictures of me sitting with 3-4 men in a cafe. Some pictures of handshakes & few of mine hugging one of the men, who is my boss, my best friend.
I looked up from the photos to his face to see him trembling here and there like a drunkard. I shook my head in disbelief and disgust that he could conclude something like that with these mere pictures...
"You disgust me, Mr. Malhotra! Your thoughts disgust me.
And I regret being called as your wife for 4 years"
I shouted in anger & dashed out of the room roughly wiping the continuous saline water flow with the back of my hand.
I entered into Adi's room slowly without making any sound as he's sleeping peacefully... He just came from his '2-days 1-night' study trip this evening.
I silently walked to the balcony as I don't want to wake him up with my whimpering.
I recall my life...
5 years ago, I, Nandini Murty started my dream job of a language interpreter, lying to my dad as he wanted me to keep an easy desk-table management job which I don't want.
It always fascinated me to meet new people with different languages, different cultures & cuisine... I had learned 12 international demanding languages like Spanish, Mandarin Chinese, German, Arabic, Polish, Russian, Turkish, French, Japanese, Korean and of course, Hindi, my mother tongue and American English too.
But before I could surprise dad with my success, I had to get married to Mr. Malhotra and got shifted to India leaving my job. I thought I'll talk to my husband and will get a job here with my qualifications...
But, I got a more difficult job of handling Aditya Manik Malhotra, son of Mr. Malhotra with his long time girlfriend.
He was, at that time, only 6 months old... So, I had to keep my career at halt for one year to take good care of Adi... I loved and cared for him like my own child as I'm very fond of kids.
Even I got my love back from him... he loves me a lot and cares too, he is protective for me in times & possessive too when I give my attention to his friends, he didn't like it!
So cute he is!
Apart from my Adi, I get care from Rema kaki, our servant, a lady in her late 50s who has been working here since Mr. Malhotra was a child.
Other this these two, none of the Fab5 ever care for me, not even my so-called husband.
I always got ignorance and hatred.
Mostly they behave as if I don't exist in this house but if I dare spoke or care for them, they insult me.
Rema Kaki is the one who told me about Mr. Malhotra's past and Adi's birth-mother's truth.