Chapter 2
Gunjan came towards Balwant and said slowly,
"Sasriyakaal Papaji, mainu pata hai yeh samay sahi nahi hai. Veerji aur Beeji dono udas hain. Par main bhi is ghar ki beti hoon na. Isliye main apni khushi aap logon ke sath batne chali ayi. Papaji, aaj Ranvi Sarparnch ke pad ke liye shapath lene ja raha hai. Aap use ashirwaad dena ki woh is kursi ka sahi samman kar sake." ("Hello father, I know that this is not the right time. Mom and brother are both upset. But I am also the daughter of this house. So I thought of sharing my happiness with you all. Today Ranvi is going to swear in for the sarparnch position. Please bless him so that he can do justice to the post.")
Balwant gently placed his hands on her head and said with a smile,
"Mera ashirwaad hamesha tum dono ke sath hai beti. Mainu maloom hain Ranvi apne Beeji aur is Pind ka naam roshan karega. Bas yeh nalayak bhi Ranvi jaisa ban jata to mainu aur khushi hoti". ("My blessings are always with both of you my dear daughter. I know Ranvi is going to make both his mother and the village proud. Only if my worthless son would have become a bit like Ranvi I would have been much happier.")
Gunjan hugged her father and consoled him. "Veerji ko thoda samay dijiye Papaji, who sambhal jayenge."("Give him some time father. He will surely be all right.")
She knew it was no use of her trying to talk to her mother as she was angry with her because she had not helped Baldev by manipulating Ranvi. So she took Balwant's leave and decided to join her family members who were on their way to the Sarparnch office.
Ranvi's swearing in ceremony went by peacefully. Every person of the village whole heartedly welcomed the new sarparnch. Ratan could not control her tears of joy. Ranvi with the headgear reminded her of her husband and she was overjoyed that she had successfully brought up her son singlehandedly so that he could fulfill his father's dream. Veera was ecstatic about her Veerji's success. She had always knew that only Ranvi was the best candidate who could bring a change in the lives of the village people. Though she was happy for her Veerji, she somehow felt she was missing someone. She scanned the crowd that had gathered there. She knew he would not be there. After all he was not used to losing. But still at the bottom of her heart she had hope against hope she would get a glance of him. She had no news of him since the last three days. He did not even call her once. He must be upset. But somehow her heart wanted to reach out to him. She did not know why. She had always wanted that he ignore her and finally now when he had vanished into thin air she was missing him. Maybe she was missing her fights with him, missing taunting that finally the good had triumphed over the evil. This is what she was constantly kept telling herself.
The concerned person of Veera's thought was keeping a close watch on the crowd of people gathered to welcome the new sarparnch. He sat motionless in his red jeep, his eyes burning with rage at the mere sight of his arch enemy Ranvi and his sister Veera.
"Jo bhi tauhnu mere naal cheena hai Ranvi tauhnu who sab vaij ke saath mainu waapas karna parega. Ab dekhte hain ki tu kaise chelate hai apni sarpanchi." ("Ranvi whatever you have snatched from me, you will have to repay it with interest. Let's see how you continue being a sarparnch.")
When Baldev returned home, he was exhausted. Everybody had gone to sleep as it was almost midnight. He found the main door unlocked. A faint smirk came on his face realizing that it must be his mother who had taken the pains to do so, so that his father doesn't get to know when his worthless son is returning home. He is not afraid of anyone now not even his father. His mother should stop worrying about him and stop doing these silly antics of her. He went up to his room but did not switch on the light. Nowadays he liked it this way, he seemed to find some solace in this darkness. He removed his jacket and lay on his bed contemplating his next move. In these three days he had reconnected with Surjeet Paaji all thanks to Bakhtwar and Surjeet Paaji had been kind enough to forgive him for his past mistakes and had offered him their friendship. Along with Surjeet Paaji he had planned to take care of the factory he had in the village. Since after the solar panel fiasco he was not able to enter the village due to the fear of consequences, he had coaxed Baldev to help him run the factory once again. Baldev having nothing more fruitful to do and so had accepted. In fact he needed to do something in the village so that he could keep a close watch on Ranvi and attack him the moment he is able to see a flaw in his actions. All the things had been settled and from tomorrow he would start his mission. Ranvi would have to lose in front of him and Veera...the pain in his heart grew at mere thought of her name. He quickly sat up on the bed. His face hardened and his eyes started burning with rage. She will have to pay the price for playing with his emotions. He had tried to bare his heart to her and she had played and kicked it like a football. He stood up from the bed and frantically opened his drawer searching for the miniature bottle of whiskey he had kept hidden. He gulped down the bottle and threw the bottle away smashing the mirror on the wall in this process. He staggered towards his bed and fell asleep mumbling
"Veera tere ishq ne mainu barbad kar dita , ab dekh tera ashiq kaise tujhe barbad kar dita..."(" Veera, your love has destroyed me, now see how this lover of yours will destroy you...")
Baldev woke up in the morning a bit late. He hurriedly got ready and went downstairs where his mother was busy placing plates on the table for breakfast.
"Puttar, tu uth gaya. Aaja nasta kar le. Sab tere pasand ka banaya hai maine. Chal aaja."("Son, you got up. Come and have some breakfast. I have prepared all your favorite things. Come.")
"Nahi Beeji. Bhook nahi hain mainu. Aap mujhe bas ek cup chai pilado." ("No mom, I am not hungry. Just give me a cup of tea.")
"Kya huya mere puttar nu. Teri tabiyat to thik hain na Baldev. Main tere liye kuch aur halka sa bana do?" ("What happened to you Son? Is your health alright? Shall I prepare something light for you?"
"Nahi Beeji. Bas mere man nahi hain khane ka. Jab bhook lagegi tab aake ke mang lunga." ("No mom, I don't feel like having anything. When I feel hungry I will eat."
"Changa puttar. Tu baith main abhi tere waste chai lati hoon". ("Fine son. You sit down and I will just bring your cup of tea.")
Bansuri returned with a cup of team for her beloved son. Balwant had left early today since he had guide Ranvi regarding the functioning of the village. Bansuri looked at her son and said softly,
" Ek gal das. Teen dino se tu kar ki raha hai? Us Ranvi nu itni asani se jeetne dega?" ("Tell me something. What were you doing for these three days? Will you let Ranvi win over you so easily?")
"Beeji aap to jante hi ho Baldev Singh kabhi kisiko jeetne nahi deta.Woh Ranvi bas do din ka sarparnch hai. Kursi to meri hi rahegi" ("Mom, you know that I never let anyone win over me. Let Ranvi enjoy the power for two days. The post will always remain mine.")
"Tu ki karega Baldev. Jo bhi karna soch samajh ke karna, taki koi siyapa na khada ho jaye. Ab Ranvi sarparnch ban gaya hai, sambhal ke aapne chal chalna." ("What will you do Baldev? Whatever you do, keep in mind that Ranvi is now the sarparnch. So play your moves carefully.")
"Tussi fikar na karo Beeji. Un logo ne mere pit pe chura bhoka hain. Main sher hoon samne se waar karunga."("Don't worry mom. They had backstabbed me. I am a lion of this village. I will not attack them from the back.")
Baldev placed his cup on the table and marched out.
It was afternoon when Baldev was sitting with his dear friends Jaggi and Billa and sipping tea at their usual hangout.
"Paaji, Ranvi sarparnch banne ke bad to saare pind ke log hume izzat dena bhool gaye hai. Waise aap itne dino se the kidhar?" Jaggi enquired.(" Brother, people have stopped giving us respect since Ranvi won the elections. By the way, where were you for past few days?"
"Izzat to hume deni hi paregi. Aise nahi denge to zabardasti hi sahi. Kisi chuha ha shikar karne ke liye tayari kar raha tha. Isliye thoda buzy tha."("They will have to respect us. If they don't we will make them forcefully respect us. For the past few days I was busy preparing to trap a rat.")
Jaggi and Billa were puzzled with Baldev's behavior over the past few days. They had noticed that their "Paaji" had become remarkably quiet and had stopped smiling or cracking jokes as earlier. His seriousness was a sign of the storm that was brewing inside him. Both of them shivered at the very thought of what was in store for the villagers.
Veera was going to the market when she saw Baldev at the tea stall. After having missed him for four days she could not control herself from trying to irritate him. She walked up to him and called out.
"Baldev, ki hoya bighi billi ki tarah chup ke baitha kyun hain. Dekha maine to tujhe pehle hi kaha tha ki jeet mere Veerji ki hi hogi". ("Baldev, what happened, why are hiding like a coward? I told you my brother is going to win.")
Baldev controlled his anger and crushed the paper cup in his hand and threw it away and walked away from there not even throwing a side glance at her. That girl had the audacity to taunt him after so much had happened. He loathed her like anything. Veera stood perplexed. She had expected he would say something even if that meant saying something nasty. But she did not expect him to just walk away. After all this was not the Baldev she knew. Suddenly she felt that maybe she had said a bit too much in her desperation to talk to him and should have not taunt him in such a bad manner. She ran after him thinking she should try to apologize to him. Jaggi and Billa kept staring at the drama that was being unfold in front of their eyes. They knew Veera is about to get the biggest surprise of her life.
"Baldev. Ruk na Baldeva. Mainu tujhse kuch gal karni hai" ("Baldev. Please stop Baldeva. I need to talk to you.") Veera hurriedly ran behind Baldev.
They had almost reached the end of the village. Baldev kept on walking vigorously towards the jungle. Veera had no option but to follow him. But suddenly she lost him in the middle of the jungle. She looked everywhere. Unmindfully she had come to a very secluded place. Suddenly fear gripped her and she started to trace her steps back when a strong pair of hands pulled her up against a tree trunk. She screamed and closed her eyes and when she opened her eyes she was shocked to see the blazing fury in Baldev's eyes and she was transfixed with his gaze. He was looking at her with the so much hate that he could burn her just with his eyes. Suddenly she started feeling uncomfortable with the close proximity and his gaze. She lowered her eyes and realized her wrists were hurting.
"Baldev mera haath chaadh mainu dard ho raha hain."("Baldev leave my hand. You are hurting me.")
"Kyun ab pata chala dard ki honda hai. Jo dard jo taklif tune mainu diya hai uske samne to yeh kuch bhi nahi hain."("So now you understood what pain is. It is nothing compared to the pain you have given me.")
He pressed his hand more firmly on her wrist. Veera started sobbing and unsuccessfully tried to free herself from his clutches.
"Baldev yeh mazaak nahi hai. Mujhe saach main dard ho raha hai. Aur maine tujhe koi dard nahi diya hai. Jo bhi huya who sab tere karmo ka faal hai. Mainu iske bare main kuch nahi pata". ("Baldev this is not funny. I am really getting hurt. And I have not given you any pain. Whatever happened, you have been solely responsible for the consequences. I don't know anything about it")
"Faal to ab tujhe aur tere Veer nu bhugatna parega. Mere sath huya har ek dhoka ka badla lunga main. Baldev Singh hoon main, Pind ka Sher. Aur Sher jab ghayal hota hai to kuch bhi kar sakta hain. Ab tak maine dushmani main bhi had nahi par ki thi, par ab tu dekh yeh dushmani main kaise nibhata hoon." ("Your brother will have to face the consequences now. I will take revenge for each and every deceit you all have done to me. I am Baldev Singh, the lion of the village. And a wounded lion is very dangerous. I had always maintained my limits even when we were enemies. Now you see how I fulfill my enmity.")
"Yeh kya bake ja raha hai pagol ki tarah. Aur kaida dhoka? Bakwaas band kar aur mera haath chad". ("What are you saying like a mad person? And what deceit? Stop your crap and leave my hand.")
Baldev left her hand with a jerk and pushed her away.
"Aapna bhala chahti hain to yahan se chali ja Veera. Aur khabardar mere raaste main ane ki koshish mat karna warna main bhool jayunga ki maine kabhi tujhe py..." He could not complete the sentence and walked away vigorously and disappeared in the jungles. ("Go away from here. And never dare to come in my way, else I will forget I had ever lo... ".)
Veera kept looking at the retreating figure with her one hand caressing her wrists which now bore the marks of the struggle they had just had. Tears rolled down her cheeks. She could not believe that Baldev had changed so much. And what did he say in the end? Was he trying to say that he had loved her? But he had never confessed that to her. She had always thought he was joking whenever he said he wanted to get married to her. She thought it was just one of his obsessions and that is the reason she had decided to apply the "How to lose a guy in 5 days" trick.
She slowly started retreating her steps towards the village. She felt her heart heavy and did not know why but she wanted to cry out loud. She left like she had lost a part of heart forever.
Back at home, Veera sat on her bed blankly staring at the bangles that he had gifted her when they had gone on their so called date'. He had been such a sweetheart that day. His smile, his touch, his words still sent a shiver through her whenever she recollected them. But today she had seen a completely different side of his. Something which puzzled her. She did not know why she was affected so much. She remembered the hug he had given her unknowingly when she had gatecrashed his party which he had thrown for the men of the village as part of the campaign in a sardar's get up. He had given her a hug presuming her to be Dalveer's cousin Manjeet but to her his close proximity had made her go weak in the knees. She had become so nervous that she had begun stammering after breaking the hug. Luckily he did not recognize her and though she had intended to spoil his party, her plan did not work out as expected and she had to leave party sulking. During the four day that she had played her How to lose a guy' trick he had behaved like such an understanding boyfriend, fulfilling all her demands how odd they may be. In fact sometimes she was amazed at the patience with which he had listened to all her foolish demands. But that was past. Baldev would turn a deaf ear to her now. She should be happy. That is what she wanted. But why was it that she felt something had changed inside her and she wanted that old Baldev back? It cannot be that she had fallen for him. Fallen!!!! Is she insane? How can she fall for a stupid guy like Baldev? How can her heart even think of such a thing? Never. She can never fall in love with him. She vigorously nodded her head. It was just that she had been so worked up with election campaigning and irritating Baldev for the past few days that her mind was hallucinating. There is nothing which should puzzle her. After all she had always knew Baldev was mean to her since childhood. Only for the last few months his attitude towards her had changed, and he had started acting so strange. Else she had always understood him better than anyone. He was a mean spoilt brat. And he had manhandled her today just because he was upset and nothing more than that. She needed to put her mind to sleep. All this was driving her crazy and she was imagining things. She pulled up the bed sheet and switched of the lights. Suddenly her wrists began hurting again. So this was pain which was disturbing her and she felt her heart was bleeding. She has really gone crazy. She feel into a deep slumber thinking tomorrow everything will be fine, when the pain in her wrists subsided she would she never feel like this again.
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