Shedding ROYAL Blood

▪︎7▪︎An Important Lesson

▪︎Sultan Omar Khan▪︎

After searching for her the whole night, my soldiers came back empty handed with an abandoned horse.

I am not giving up so easily because now it is about my ego. I will have her. Not for Malika-e-Jahan, not for these customs but for myself.

"With all due respect, you need to let this go Sultan." My financial advisor, Shah Mubarak Sahab said. "The discussions about taxes, money spent on soldiers are still pending. And your attention is divided which may lead to serious consequences." He completed. "Also if Malika-e-Jahan-"

"Malika-e-Jahan will need to understand this time." I know I am being selfish and disrespecting but I can't help. Just this one time, I will not let anyone tell me what to do. What are you doing to me Amrit?

"Shah Sahab, I know this shouldn't have happened but I won't let it affect my insight. Today in the evening, I will be there."

He nodded and left. I turned to Abubakar, "Abu, get all the information about the family of that maid who died this morning. I'll give you an address... you go there and bring that man to me."

"Jo Hukum." He said and left. I know he understands what's going on but he chose to keep quiet.

The death of that maid gave me an important lesson. That there's no use of strengthening the borders with thousands of soldiers if I let termites devour my Sultanate (Kingdom) from within. This is a grave problem. It brought my attention to a very important topic, the spies. As a Sultan, I should be completely aware of all the activities going on around me which I wasn't.

***

After a while, two soldiers came in holding that man in front of the Sultan.

"I told you the discussion between us was not over." I smirked.

His face held shock as he saw me. "S...Sultan?" He stuttered recognizing me.

"Yes it was me who came to your house that day. Now you tell me straight away where she is?" I was on the edge of losing my calm. He better not push me.

"I... I don't know." He replied, still in shock.

"Well then... be our guest for a while and don't you dare try to kill yourself or I'll make sure your whole family reach there before you do."

He fell on his knees and folded his hands, "Mercy Sultan!"

"Give me the truth and I will give you Mercy."

"I don't know much. All I knew was that... she was supposed to come to me, get some information and go back. I don't know about anything else." I could clearly say from his eyes and body language that he was hiding something.

"Which Kingdom does she belong to?"

"Rajputana capital, Panipat."

"Sure you don't know anything else?"

He shook his head. His eyes were enough to tell that he was lying.

"Hm... what a pity. Soldiers take him to the darkest cell. Maybe then, he will remember some of it. By the evening I want the exact place where she is and the identities of all your allies in Agra."

I went to my Chamber, took the sword and went to practice. This is one thing that I can do to distract myself right now. Exhausting myself. I was doing it very roughly to vent out my anger so I preferred doing it alone.

Abu walked to me but I stopped him with a gesture and he didn't return after that.

Why Amrit? Why did you do all this? What is it that I couldn't give you? Yet you throw all this away? You have hurt me at my worst and I will make sure you feel the same way.

This time when you come back, the chains will be much more severe, the shackles of a relationship. From Which you won't be able to escape ever.

***

I didn't realize when the harsh sunlight turned to the golden glow before sunset. My body ached due to the continuous swishing of the heavy sword. The guard standing there presented a Silk towel and I wiped the sweat off my body and walked to Abubakar for the update on the Prisoner. He shook his head disappointed, "he won't speak a thing."

"Take me to him."

We walked through the dark cells and reached him. He was there, shackled, bruised, wounded.

"So, you didn't remember any of it did you?"

He was half-conscious to reply.

"That's it. Bring it in." The man's eyes followed mine and widened in horror as they saw a bloodstained cloth. He weakly reached his hand, finger it and took it.

"Recognize it? It belongs to your twelve year old son."

"W...Where's my son?"

"He's standing at the entrance of the lion's cage. Now You decide if you have to open your mouth or I should open the bar between them."

He is innocent. Please spare him."

"Only you can save him. You have a few moments to do that."

"I... I will. Am...Amrit lives in the Palace. But she has a house in the village which she visits once or twice in a year. On the westside, near the river. The third house. Have mercy on my family."

"That's the regrettable part. Your family had been living here for around ten years. Ten years of betrayal against one moment of honesty. What should I do now? Abu?"

"Yes Sultan."

"His family had no fault in this. Spare his son, fill his house with gold and execute him before sunrise. There is no forgiveness for treacherous people in my Sultanate."

"As you command. Take him."

"The Palace must be secure. Send men to Wait for her at the other house he mentioned."

▪︎Amrit ▪︎

Should I go and ask him why he did this to me? But again, does an inferior being like me deserve an explanation? Did he ever promise me anything? It was just me... loving him, caring for him, respecting him unconditionally and expecting the same from him. He never told me I was special. He never told me he loved me. But still, my hopes had to do this to me.

I feel so used, exploited, betrayed but this is the price I am willing to pay for my parents to live a respectable life. I gave them what a son couldn't. My parents... how I have been neglecting them. Staying away from them. Now I desperately wanted to go to them. To throw myself in their arms and tell them they were right about the Royals. How I shouted at my mother when she tried to show me the result of my dreams. How was I ever going to face them? What will I say? I don't know but for now I just have to be around someone who loves me selflessly; to know that there is one person in this world whom I can live for. I walked back inside the Palace and asked the maid where Kunwar Sa was. I just have to get permission to go to my parents for a few days.

She told me she had seen him walking around the corridor of the left wing. I nodded and went to search for him. He was standing against the railing talking to Maharani Sa Chandrika. My steps halted seeing her there. This might not be the right time to talk but it would be inappropriate to leave just like that and I did not want to stay here for one more moment. I gathered some courage and kept walking towards them and was just a pillar away when I heard Chandrika's amused voice, "Really Kunwar Sa, for a moment I thought you were stupid enough to do this... Declare that slave-girl your future wife? That would have triggered such a revolt. Such a shame."

I know Kunwar Sa would defend me here. Or so I thought but maybe God had intended for me to hear this. "What are you saying Chandrika? It is true that Amrit is really special to me but even if a dagger is made of gold and studded with diamonds, you don't stab yourself. Amrit knows it as well. That we're different and I have no such intentions. If I had to do that, I would have done it long ago."

"Kunwar Sa you didn't see in her eyes what I saw. When you announced about Rajkumari Sanyogita, you should have seen her face."

"I don't need to worry about her Chandrika. She has no such dreams and ambitions. She is happy with who she is."

'Was everything between us a lie Kunwar Sa?'

"And the truth is this... My new bride. Who has an honorable Family name, lineage, and our way of living. She will bring me forts, horses, elephants and palaces in dowry. What can Amrit give me?"

'My heart and soul.'

"Her feelings won't buy me political power Chandrika. Before she makes such a claim, I would want her to put herself in my position and see... look at me and then look at herself."

I closed my eyes and leaned back on the pillar hiding myself from them.

God, why wasn't I born in a Royal family? Why don't I have Royal blood in my veins? Are they entitled to these luxuries and have the right to insult and degrade other people just because God gave them the privilege of birth in a higher family?

Why God? Even if you did this, why did you send Kunwar Sa in my life to keep reminding me of it? I cannot do this. I cannot get my heart broken over and over again. I gave him my everything and it wasn't enough. I've no more to give you Kunwar Sa. I am done.

All I wanted was your name so that other men don't look at me the way they do now. I never wanted to be a Queen.

***

I walked away from them not wanting to hear anymore derogatory things about myself. I informed a trusted maid to inform about my departure to Kunwar Sa. I know this is not the right time to leave... in the middle of the night but who should I stay for? I packed almost nothing to take with me and walked towards the horse stable. The strongest urge to get away from this place, from these sick people overpowered everything. I asked a charioteer to drive me to my parents place in the middle of the village. He knew I was Kunwar Sa's special maid and so he didn't argue and agreed to take me.

As we travelled through the small lanes, I could feel a sense of relief when the chariot stopped. I climbed down the Chariot and it felt home. Home is where the heart is, where the people love you. I slowly walked inside with a sea of emotions gushing inside me.

On one side of the hut, a bed sheet was laid on the floor, on which my parents were having a peaceful sleep. Why wouldn't they? They have no remorse, regrets, burden of unfulfilled dreams or broken hopes in their life. They accept life as it is and never ask for more. My mother's eyes opened a little and they shot open when she saw me.

"Amu? Is that you my child?" She asked, increasing the flame of the lamp to see clearly. My father woke up from her voice as well. I slowly walked to them. I had no speech prepared to tell them... only sincere apologies. I clutched my mother tight and cried out loud in her arms. My mother was shocked but my father rubbed my back and stopped my mother from asking anything.

I am Home.

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