An untellable secret
(Some secrets may better remain secrets for ever)
Kotra Siva Rama Krishna
Menaka laughed. “I too know hypnotizing. If you want I sure can hypnotize you.”
“Really! Then once we have finished with our work here, you are going to hypnotize me into sleep.” Nirmala said.
“I love it” Menaka said.
With difficulty Menaka managed to help Nirmala in cutting vegetables and other simple works in the kitchen. Menaka found out that Nirmala was very much skilled in preparing dishes. In half an hour or so, the cooking work was completed.
By then Nirmala was exhausted and went onto the sofa and laid herself on it and without any necessity of hypnotizing she fall asleep.
Menaka smiled and went upstairs.
***
Menaka stood in front of their house and a boy in the opposite house was looking at her strangely. He might be aged fifteen or so and Menka felt that he wanted to speak something. She beckoned to him to come to her.
“Why are you looking at me so?” she asked him straight suppressing a smile.
“Why are you in this house? Are you a relative to these people?” instead of answering her question he asked her.
“Yes, I am” Menaka nodded her head.
“Then why did not I see you ever before in this house?”
“I am living in a very faraway place. So I could not come here for all these days.” Looking into his face straight Menaka said.
“Do you know Nirupama well?” he asked her.
“Yes, I know Nirupama well.” Menaka knitted her brows. What this boy wanted to say after all?
His face grimaced. “I still cannot understand why she committed suiside.” He said.
“None of us could understand.” Menaka said. “Do you know Nirupama well?”
“Yes. She is very intelligent. She used to help me in my maths and other subjects.” He said “It is indeed a big loss that she died like that.”
“Will you come into my home? We talk in our home. I am feeling like talking with Nirupama while talking with you.” That boy said again.
“Sure, why not?” then they both went into the house of that boy.
“Sit. My parents went out. They don’t come back until one hour or so.”
Menaka nodded her head and slumped herself in the chair there. That boy dragged a stool near to the chair and sat on that.
“What is your name?” looking at him interestingly Menaka asked him.
“Nagesh” he said. “But my pet name is Bittoo. I am having a feeling looking at you that I am looking at Nirupama. She was like my own sister. My parents also loved her a lot.”
“Many people loved her a lot.” Her heart cringed on hearing that. “I don’t know if you want to say anything to me or not but I want to say something to you.”
“What it is?” there was surprise in his eyes.
Then Menaka explained to him why she was there.
“Is it is so? Ranganath uncle really wants to know why she has committed suicide?” He knitted his brows together.
“Yes. To assist my uncle in his assignment I am staying here.” Menaka said. “So far I have not got much success in this.”
He remained silent. It appeared that the whole thing was still unbelievable to him.
“If you can say anything unusual in her before she committed suicide, you are welcome. I am here to hear that.”
He closed his eyes for some seconds and then opened them. “I don’t know whether it is significant or not. But it happened seven months or so back. That means fifteen days or so before she committed suicide.”
“Go on. I decide whether it is significant or not.” Suddenly interest picked up in Menaka.
“She came home on that day at eleven a.m. or so. I sat just here. I was suffering from fever so I took leave on that day. I was doing some maths anyhow. She greeted me jovially and went inside. Half an hour or so passed. She came out.” He stopped for a moment.
“Tell me. What happened then?”
“She was so different. I called her. I wanted to get cleared some of my maths doubts by her. But she did not look at me at all. She walked so fast and went away. I never have seen her walked fast like that.”
“I see.” Menaka nodded her head. “When she returned to her home then?’
“I don’t know. After half an hour or so I went inside. I did not think about that much but it appeared a little odd then. Nirupama never behaved in such a way before.”
“Have you talked with her after that day and before she committed suicide?”
“I think two or three times.” He knitted his brows and said.
“Have you found any difference in her then?”
“No. I could not see any difference.”
“Did you ask her why she has gone like that on that day?”
“No I did not ask her about that. Even it appeared a little odd I have forgotten about that day until you asked.”
Menaka nodded her head again. “Did you look into her face while she was going like that?”
“”I think I did.” He said with a small voice. “Her face was cloudy. I cannot say for sure but she might be weeping. I am not sure but I have seen tears flowing down. Completely distraught! I thought about that a lot on that day but I have forgotten everything from the next moment I found her in her usual way. She solved my maths doubts and talked with me cheerfully without any difference from the next day itself. It may be surprising but I did not remember about that until you ask now.”
Menaka wondered, what this means? Tears flowing down, completely distraught. Finding her cheerful again would not change anything. She might be forced herself to behave like that.
Then they heard sounds and looked at the entrance. Two elderly people one man and woman entered into the house. Menaka understood they were the parents of that boy and stood up.
“I think you are that girl staying in Ranganath’s house?” the woman asked while looking at Menaka.
“Yes,” Menaka nodded her head.
“Are you a relative to those people?” the man asked.
“Yes.” Menaka felt uneasy.
He deeply breathed and hissed out. “Very sad. Their daughter died like that.”
Menaka nodded her head. “You are right.”
“I just cannot look at them. I don’t know why but I am having a guilty feeling whenever I looked at that couple.”
“Never feel like that. What they both do want now is all of our support. Please try to talk with them, be friendly with them.” Menaka pleaded.
“You are right.” That woman said. “Even you are so young, you put it right. Now what they do want is our support as you said. I go and talk to that old woman. Suhash, you go and talk with that Ranganath. They must not be left like that at all.”
“Oh, sure. I do it.” He said.
“Thank you very much auntie. I come again.” Menaka said.
“Take some coffee. For the first time you have come to our house.” That woman said.
“Not now. When the next time I come I sure take it.”
Saying bye to Bittoo also she left that home.
***
“I just have no time pass sitting all the time in that house, so I have come.” After entering into the house of Sukanya, Menaka said.
“Indeed my pleasure. Please sit.” Sukanya’s smile was really warming
“Are you busy in something? Am I disturbing you?” with a frown Menaka asked her.
“Not at all. This is Sunday and I just don’t know how to pass my time.” Sukanya once again laughed.
As they both were talking like that Sukanya’s mother came there.
“Oh, you came! This time you must take your lunch with us.” She said.
“Alright then.” Menaka nodded her head.
Then that woman went inside.
“Tell me. How the life is going inside that house for you? How long you have planned to stay there?”
“Twenty days from now on. Ten days passed without much progress. My uncle gave promise to solve this mystery in one month.”
“I see.” Sukanya nodded her head.
“Now I have to answer your first question. Not very much happy. I am feeling so sad whenever I looked at that Ranganath. My heart is cringing whenever I looked at that old woman.”
“Your feelings are understandable.” Sukanya said.
“Auntie’s madness is surprising to me! She is perfect in all other things but imagining her daughter as still alive.”
Sukanya breathed deeply and hissed out. “I too cannot understand that.” She said
“You have not come there even for once after I came into that house. Have you gone to that house after Nirupama’s death?”
“I came there only on one or two occasions. I just cannot bear the feeling in that house without Nirupama.”
“I can understand. But that old couple needs all our support now. How can you leave them so?”
Immediately there was a change in Sukanya. “You are right. Why don’t I think like that?” she paused for a moment and then said. “I come there on this day evening itself.”
“Please do that.”
“What about your uncle? What he exactly does?”
“Detection. He has been doing that quite successfully for the last twenty years or so.” Menaka paused for a moment. It was so that she wanted to tell something more and Sukanya remained silent expectantly.
“Just twenty years or so back his wife died in a road accident. She was three months’ pregnant at that time.”
“How horrible!” Sukanya exclaimed. “I did not expect this at all.”
“My uncle used to work as an Inspector in police department. He resigned to his job then.”
“But why?” Sukanya frowned.
“I don’t know. After that, he started this detective agency. It is going successfully.”
“I am very sorry. No one can think that your uncle has such a past.” Sukanya paused for a moment and then asked. “Why did not your uncle chose to marry again?”
“My mother compelled him a lot for that, she said to me. But he chose that strongly not to marry again.”
“Great. Indeed great.” Sukanya mumbled.
Time went unnoticed. They both were involved in talking like that. They both enjoyed talking and listening to the other. It was the ringing of the cell phone of Menaka that took her into this world. “Ranganath. He may be looking for me in the home. I have to go.”
“Come again. I really liked talking to you like this.” Sukanya said.
“Sure. You too do come there. You must not leave the old couple like that.” Menaka said.
“I shall come very soon.” With firmness in her voice Sukanya said.
***
“Where did you go?” Ranganath asked Menaka.
“I went to Sukanya’s home.” Menaka smiled. “She became a friend to me recently.”
“Very nice girl indeed.” Ranganath nodded his head.
“What aunt is doing now?”
“Preparing dinner. If you want to talk with her go straight into the kitchen.”
Menaka did just like that. She went into the kitchen and put her hands around Nirmala’s shoulders. “Oh! You came! Just like Nirupama. She too does not know time if she goes to Sukanya’s house.”
“Is it is so?” Menaka said. By then she accustomed to hear about Nirupama from Nirmala.
“If you want to take rest go and take it. I can manage with the work here myself.”Nirmala said.
“No. I want to help you. Tell me how can I help you here?” hugging her even more closely Menaka asked.
Nirmala looked into the eyes of Menaka and smiled. “There is not much to do now here. If you are much interested I make you do the whole cooking in the morning.”
“I really do love doing it like that.” Menaka laughed. “But you must guide me all through.”
As they were talking like that Nirmala finished her work. “Come” she said and both of them entered into the hall there.
(I hope that you enjoyed upto here. I shall publish the next chapter as soon as possible. Please don’t forget to rate and review.)
