RAABTA

Pratap was surprised to find that instead of the stable, Patta was at the gates waiting for him. He was about to ask when the boy grinned at him saying “Baisa Hukum told us to wait here. We are going on a tour of the NGO with her.” “We?” Pratap frowned at Patta’s words as the boy nodded and jumped on the back of his bike. “She is getting ready. The driver and Chundawat will go with her in that big car.” He pointed at a maroon-coloured Rolls Royce vintage edition with Surajgarh’s emblem on it. Pratap shook his head. As much as he was eager to see her accepting her duties, he was not ready to neglect Chetak for it. “But she was supposed to start riding and...” “I gave Chetak his balm and fodder.” Patta spoke, “And Baisa said one day’s rest won’t harm him.”  Pratap shook his head slightly and stared at the porch where Chundawat appeared, waving his hand at the driver, cleaning the car, to bring it up on the porch. Another figure appeared behind Chundawat, as Pratap’s e...

6AMs was now a daily routine for Ajabdeh. She dressed up and waited to be at the stable. She had learnt to make a balm and even tried to apply it to Chetak. He neighed every time she called his name making her love him even more. She had never had pets in her life and suddenly Chetak seemed dearer to her than anyone else in her entire life. She could not imagine how she would leave Surajgarh with this attachment. It would be a lie to say Chetak was her only attachment here. She had slowly started liking the place. In a week, she had attended one of Meera Ma’s gatherings, offered prayers with the villagers at a temple, roamed the whole palace, and got quite used to having Chundawat, Patta and Pratap around at her beck and call.  When in a week Chetak’s wound showed slow signs of improvement Pratap smiled like he had been successful in a mission. “Only if we knew what caused his wound” She had heard him murmur “He would perhaps heal better.” All she saw from behind the ...