"Raka...that devil was called. One of your father's best friends in the village where we lived. But I never liked his roving eyes for me. The only thing that made me bare his behavior was because his wife was my dear friend. We were not neighbours though. Your father was never influenced by Raka's bad ways. 

Soon Mr. Janardhan Raput came into our lives when he came to the village for his research and became best of friends with your father, Raka being an occasional visitor. It was during this time that Raka's demure changed. Raka came to our house often and one day visited when your father was not in the house. He inquired about your father's parents and how we met, but my answers were not to his satisfaction. Every time he came he tried to touch me in some way or the other, but since I knew of his intentions, I was always alert. I told your father about it and then he stopped coming and their friendship grew sour,"

She paused and Bandu quickly came near the bed and had her a glass of water. She took a sip from it and handed it back.

"One day Raka's wife came knocking at the door in the middle of the night to inform that her husband had not returned home. On inquiring with her, your father had an idea where he could be found. He sends her back home promising to bring him back.

Your father left even without telling me and returned back the next day with the news that Raka was in the hospital with burns. Your father refused to comment further on what happened. Raka was in the hospital for over a month in a serious condition. He was a changed man both physically and mentally. He looked horrible and had ugly blisters everywhere in his body including his face.

No one could look at him and not scream or turn away their face. That seemed to transform him into a brutal man. He was the richest man in the village but now wanted more. No one spoke against him as he had a troupe of goons with him to carry out whatever orders he gave.

Now your father and Mr. Rajput were his greatest enemies. At that time I didn't know the reason, but the extent of his animosity was evident to me when my neighbor came knocking at my door one afternoon, alerting me that there was a bitter fight happening in the field between your father and Raka. As I rushed towards the scene, your father was returning back and he lead me back to the house. We had a fight that day, our first and it was decided that we shall leave that village for good. This was just a week before that unfateful day.

That day your father left with you to go to his home town as he told me then. He had to return back by 3 in the afternoon as we had attended a wedding in the next village and every family in the neighborhood was going to attend it.

I was asleep with Sukhi beside me when Raka and his goons entered the house and after silencing me with his hands over my mouth, dragged me out of the room locking Sukhi inside. I couldn't scream as they had then stuffed a cloth into my mouth. They then...then"

Bandu was listening to everything standing by the chair looking out straight ahead out of the balcony. As she paused he held on to the chair his knuckles standing out, he knew the way, she didn't have to tell him. his heart broke, and dared not to look back, as his body shivered and gritted his teeth.

"Stop it maa...stop it...I can't hear it," he bellowed, his hands closing over his ears. Hearing his voice Sukhi dashed into the room.

"What's the noise? Why are you screaming brother," she had fear in her eyes.

Bandu too felt his cheeks wet. He rubbed them away and turned around to look at his mother as she sat leaning on the headrest, with her head lowered, silently letting the storm take over her.

"Mother, why are you crying? What has happened here? Is there any bad news?" Sukhi kept asking questions and kept darting looks from mother to son.

"No nothing like that happened Sukhi" Bandu replied and received a perplexed look from her.

"Why were you crying, brother?"

Bandu could not reply to her questions and nor did her mother make any attempts to explain. Their silence bothered her, but she read something into it.

"I will look in at the children," she said and left the room.

Bandu came and sat on the bed near his mother's feet. He touched her feet which seemed to wake her from the stupor.

"I am sorry, mother, I should not have asked you to remember this horrible past," he said as tears flowed down his cheeks.

"I had to get that thorn out someday, son. All these years it was inside me like a wound to my soul with searing pain "

"I will heal it, maa,"

"No son, such wounds never heal, even if it heals there is always a scar to remind you of its existence, and whenever you feel that scar it always hurts,"

"That monster should be killed for this. He even tried to burn you alive,"

"Maybe that was his intention. To take revenge,"

"How did you escape?"

"He had left locking us inside the room all tied up. We could not even scream. Sukhi was terrified and that was how she got her first asthma attack. I could do nothing but watch her till she fell unconscious. I was sure your father would come by the afternoon, but he was getting late. Later when the door opened, I saw Champa standing at the door with Mr. Rajput. They quickly untied us and lead us out of the house. Mr. Rajput bundled us into his waiting car parked at a distance away from the house and Champa returned home,"

"Who was this Champa?"

"She was my dear friend and that monster, Raka's wife. She overheard him discussing his plan to burn down the house, with his rookies, while drinking away to their deeds. She quietly left the house, as she realized that she had time to save us, while the goons waited for the supply of the needed kerosene for their crime. She approached Mr. Rajput and narrated the incident to him, who without losing any time came to our rescue. I fear that the worst must have come down on her because I heard her scream as soon as we turned round the corner. Mr. Rajput had decided that he would come back for his friend and child later after he had us attend to a doctor first," she paused as a fresh set of tears flowed down and she tried to mop them away. She was getting weak by the moment.

"Enough maa, enough, you are getting sick. I can't bear to see you suffering like this," he pleaded.

"Maan let me continue. These need to come out," she said, "Sun had set on us by the time we reached our destination in Beeda. The next morning he left for the village again to bring you and your father. Before leaving he left me a set of instructions to follow in case he did not return in three days. Dread was what entered my heart when I heard that. For four days after that, I waited for him to return and when there was no sign of him I followed his instructions to move away to a safer place in Khiri. His manservant arranged for my travel. Mr. Rajput had already entrusted me with money in case of emergency. I took Sukhi to Khiri to begin our new life and waited at Khiri for over a year, but had to flee that place when one day I spotted Raka's men. We traveled constantly over many places for five years before finally settling at Guntak for good. So thus my life continued with ups and downs in the hope to see your father and you return someday searching for us," she paused and when Bandu looked at her she had gone limp with unconsciousness.