Laughter in Darkness
A suspense, romantic and psychological thriller
By
Kotra Siva Rama Krishna
By that time all the others there also understood what Ratnam has said and why Rajesh reacted like that.
“You rascal! What you are talking? Don’t you have any sense in you? How can you say things like that?” going onto him angrily, Vinod said.
“I just told the truth, what’s wrong. I said a lot that grandma was not dead and she should not be cremated. But none of you people heard me then. You all knew very well that grandma was alive at that time.” Without changing his expression and modulation of his voice, Ratnam said.
“Just get out of this place. Don’t dare to come here again. Get out!” Tanuja yelled on him. She has become even more angry on hearing what Ratnam said.
“I have no objection to go away from here. This Rajesh is an ungrateful fellow. He burnt his grandmother while she was all alive.” Ratnam got away from the chair he sat.
Rajesh was shivering with anger and shock and he was not in a position to talk anything at all.
“Move away. Move away from this place first. How dare you are still here?” throwing him with both of her hands, Tanuja once again yelled.
“Please, please. I take him away. You people don’t get excited please.” Raju said and then put his right hand on the right shoulder of Ratnam. “Come, we both go away from here.” he said to him.
“You bastard! Take your hand away from me.” Ratnam strongly slapped Raju on his right cheek with his right hand. His face muscles were tightened and his whole body was shivering.
There was not much surprise in the face of Raju as if he expected it before.
“You ungrateful fellow! You rascal! Grandma never excuses you. The spirits of that Nagaraju and Semanthakam never leave you in peace.” Ratnam started yelling loudly while looking into the face of Rajesh.
Rajesh remained dumbfounded while looking blankly into the face of Ratnam.
“I do take away Ratnam from here. You people close the doors and don’t open them immediately. I take dinner to you people in the night don’t worry.” While the commotion beside him was going on like that, Raju came near to Vinod and said that. Then he went near to Ratnam and put his both hands around him. Without bothering with his protestations, Raju pushed him away from that place using all his force. Once he took him out of the entrance, Anand fast went to the doors, closed them and latched from inside. Even then also they heard Ratnam’s cursing and his thumping loudly on the doors for a long time.
&&&
“My god! What really has taken place I still cannot understand! I did not believe when Raju said. But this Ratnam has become hundred percent mad.” Sunanda said.
“Anyhow Dr.Rose. You observed him this time a lot. Could you find out any reason for Ratnam’s madness?” Rajesh asked her.
“I came to an opinion Rajesh. It can be upto ninety percent true.” Rose said
“Let us hear it then” there came a curious expression in the face of Rajesh.
“Ratnam’s father, Ratnakar also has become mad at his old age. This Ratnam has a close relationship with Ratnakar and he closely observed him also all the time.”
“Hundred percent true.” Rajesh nodded his head.
“Then he is suffering from shared psychotic disorder. It is also called as folie à deux. It is when one person in a close relationship suffers from a psychological disorder the other person in that relationship also shares it. Here, Ratnakar, father of Ratnam suffered from madness like that. Then Ratnam observing his father like that shared his disorder or the delusion with respect to grandma, this house, that Sementhakam and Nagaraju. Our Ratnam also in fact much acquainted with those things. So this shared psychotic disorder easily took place in him.” Rose said
The people there exchanged glances and there were satisfying expressions in their faces with Rose’s explanation.
“I am also of the same opinion.” Vinod said.
“In my opinion, not ninety percent but hundred percent Rose is true.” Neeraja said.
There was silence among them for sometime until it was broken by Rajesh.
“But…but…I just cannot digest what he has said. Malathi and I both thoroughly verified grandma and came to the opinion that she was dead. Not just we both, other people also tested her and confirmed that she was dead. There were all the symptoms of a dead person then. Otherwise why would we cremate her?” with lot of anguish in his face Rajesh said.
“Rajesh are you really considering the words of a mad person? He blurted that while he was completely mad. I am also among those who thoroughly examined grandma and came to the opinion that she was dead.” Vinod said.
“Yes, Dr.Rajesh. What Vinod sir said is absolutely true. There is no necessity to bother about that mad person’s words.” Neeraja said.
“But I just cannot feel normal. He was so good all the time. He behaved so nicely in the morning also. Why he suddenly said like that to me?” the anguish expression in Rajesh’s face was just the same.
“He behaved so nicely? He just devoured the women here with his eyes in the morning. Of course he did not do so this time.” Sunanda said angrily.
“Sunanda is absolutely right.” Sameera nodded her head. “Last time also he and his assistant looked at us so. Only this Raju is appearing as a decent fellow to me.”
“I just don’t know what to do or what to think.” Suddenly Rajesh slumped himself in the chair there. He preferred to stand till then after Ratnam and Raju went away from that place. “If I could foresee that something like this took place here, I would not have preferred to come here at all.” he took his head into both of his hands.
“Raj, what is this?” Tanuja also sat beside him in another chair and put her right hand around his shoulders. “Everyone knows that grandma was hundred percent dead at that time. You did not do a mistake at all in her regard. Just be relaxed.”
Then all the others there as well remembered that they were standing and one after one sat themselves in the chairs there. They were all feeling a lot looking at the distressing Rajesh and they did not know what to say or do.
“Dad, take some rest. That sets everything.” Putting her both hands on his shoulders, Sameera said.
“No dear. I cannot take rest now. If I try to rake rest leaving the mind on its own, these thoughts do torture me even more.” Rubbing the sides of his head with the fingers of his both hands, Rajesh said.
Sameera sighed heavily as she did not know what to say to it then. Ominous thick silence ensued until it was broken by Vinod.
“The only thing that we need is mind diversion. Aravind why don’t you make arrangements for your planned séance?” Vinod said looking into the face of Aravind.
At once there came new enthusiasm in the people there. It has got some change in Rajesh also and he looked at Aravind.
“Why not, I am ready. But all you people also are ready for this? No one of you wants to take any rest now?” looking into the faces of the people there, Aravind asked them.
“None of us need any rest. As Vinod said what all we need is a violent mind diversion from what that bastard Ratnam said. Start that séance Aravind.” Tanuja said.
“Then this verandah is the best place for it. It can accommodate all of us. This place has to be made free of these chairs.”
As soon as Aravind said like that, the people there freed the chairs, Anand, Sameera and Sunanda took the chairs from that place and put them in the middle room there.
“I sit near to you people keeping Arjun and Madhuri with me.” Neeraja said.
“What these people are going to do now?” Madhuri asked her.
“We are all going to participate in a séance now.” Emily who was near to her said.
“Yes, you said about this séance in the upstairs room. You people are going to talk with spirits now.” Arjun said.
“Yes, you remembered it right.” Emily laughed.
“Then we both also participate in it. Why don’t we?” Arjun asked her angrily.
“Children below six years should not participate in this. You both are just five years aged.” Emily said.
Then they both looked into the face of Neeraja there. “What Emily said is true.” Neeraja confirmed that.
“I don’t believe it. I want a confirmation from my mother herself.” Arjun ran towards Sameera who stood there hearing the conversation of the other people and he pulled her right arm holding it with his both hands. “Whatever you people are going to do now, I also participate in that.” He said.
Sameera took him on her hip and kissed on his right cheek. “No dear. Small children should not participate in it.” she put him down once again.
Then she heard Madhuri’s voice and looked aside. Sunanda also was trying to convince her daughter that it was not something that small children could participate.
“Now I am thinking something.” Sameera said suddenly to be heard clearly to Madhuri and Arjun.
“What is it?” looking curiously into her face, Madhuri asked her.
“I am afraid that black snake may come here while we are all in séance. Who would protect us if we all in séance?” with a worrying expression in her face, she asked.
“You said that you have not seen a snake at all there. You just imagined it.” knitting his brows together, Arjun said.
“I did not say I have imagined it. You people made me to believe that I imagined it. I think I saw a real snake there and I am afraid it may come here while we are all in séance here.” she said.
“Is seeing a snake would be more thrilling rather than participating in a séance?” with gathered frowns, Madhuri asked.
“Hundred percent it would be.” Neeraja who came there said. “We can arrange this séance at any time we want but snakes would not come to us every now and then like that.”
“But what is the guarantee that snake comes here now?” now there were frowns on Arjun’s forehead also.
“Where people sit without movement, snakes do come there. As the people here do sit in a circle here without moving at all, I think more than one snake comes.” Neeraja said again.
“Then we do prefer not to participate in this séance but wait for the snakes to see.” Arjun has come to a settlement.
“I also do the same.” Madhuri also nodded her head.
“But you both also need to be sit still and watch. If you make movement no snakes do come.” Looking cautiously into their faces, Neeraja said.
“Alright” Madhuri and Arjun said at once and nodded their heads.
&&&
“I think all you people remembered the rules we need to follow. Anyhow I tell them once again. We all sit in a circle and each person holds the hands of the persons either side to him with both his hands. We have to keep our spines straight, close our eyes and breathe evenly. In our minds we all have to say that he or she is ready to be the medium of the spirits want to communicate us. On behalf of us all I in the circle invite the spirits openly to come onto any one of us to communicate with us. Spirits do prefer to come into those bodies which are more amicable to them. Any of you can ask the questions also if you want if you are not the medium but no commotion or disturbance should be made. That would lead to abrupt ending of séance.”
(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.)
