His Unfortunate Bride

I WANT WHAT'S RIGHTFULLY MINE

Having been locked in her room for more than twenty-four hours, Ajay decided it was time to check in on Eshana. He unlocked the door, and slowly entered the room. She remained sitting motionless by the window, dazedly staring out at nothing in particular.

A couple of minutes had passed since her father had entered the room, and she still hadn't given any indication that she was aware of his presence. This started to perturb him. He finally called out to her in an impatient tone,"Well, have you decided yet? Are you marrying Kiaan, or not?"

Eshana turned around to face her father, and immediately noticed Neha standing behind him. She was dressed in a long floral knitted dress. Eshana let out a soft chuckle then flippantly quipped,"Looks like someone's already dressed under the assumption that there's going to be a wedding!" Neha immediately averted her eyes down to the floor hoping to avoid getting into another bantering spat with Eshana.

Ajay curtly retorted,"Enough with the sass, girl! Are you getting married, or not?!" There was a look of resolute determination in her eyes, as Eshana, turned to her father. "Since you're asking me to sacrifice my freedom and marry Kiaan, then I have a request. If you can fulfill it ... I'll agree to be with him."

After Eshana's biological mother passed away, Ajay had been in charge of the company she left behind. With years of experience under his belt, he was pretty well-versed and adept in negotiating terms of conditions.

Sounding like any typical businessman who, of course, has only his best interest in mind ... Ajay aloofly replied,"If your request is something doable within my power, I'm pretty sure that arrangements can be made. Promise to marry Kiaan Shekhawat and I assure you that I'll do everything that I can to fulfill your request."

'Pretty sure that arrangements can be made' ... 'I'll do everything that I can to fulfil your request'.

Eshana thought,"Just as I figured ... nothing but vague, open remarks void of any concrete commitment on his part."

She stared at her father dead in the eyes, with an even more resolutely determined look, and spoke in an unwavering tone,"Tell me something; why is it that when it comes to me, I must promise ... while you only assure to see what you could do? No, not good enough. You'll either promise to do it or the deal's off. Oh! And I want it in writing."

Ajay stood there momentarily with his mouth partially agape. Then, upon recomposing himself, he let out a brief chuckle. "So, you want it down in writing, do you? What's the matter Eshana, tumhe apne khudke papa pe bharosa nhi?" Eshana displayed a deadpan expression as she retorted without hesitation,"No, not really. Par un sab se hatkr, main jise apne samne khada dekh rahi hu vo mere papa nahi hai. You are a businessman ... and I trust businessman even less." He laughed. "Kya esi baat hai? Alright, fair enough. Tell me then, what's your request? Kya chahiye tumhe?"

(So, you want it down in writing, do you? What's the matter Eshana, you don't trust your own father?)

(No, not really. But that aside, what I see standing in front of me isn't my father. You are a businessman... and I trust businessman even less.)

(Is that so? Alright, fair enough. Tell me then, what's your request? What do you want?)

Again, without hesitation ... looking at him straight in the eyes with resolute determination she demanded,"Jo kuch bhi meri Maa mere liye chodkr gayi thi, mujhe vo sab vapis chahiye." Eshana glanced over at Neha,"Sab Kuch!" She turned back to her father,"I want all of it."

(I wan you to give me back everything that my mother left me.)

(Everything!)

Right after they married, Eshana's mother began to suspect Ajay of being unfaithful. It wasn't too long after that that her suspicions of his infidelity were confirmed. Eshana's mother immediately had a will drafted, leaving all of her shares in the company, along with all her as and possesions, to her only daughter.

Unfortunately, Eshana's mother passed away when she was very young. So, in accordance with the law, Ajay become the trustee of Eshana's inheritance. Essentially, her father had control over everything her mother left to her. But since she was now of legal age, and if her parents were going to force her to marry Kiaan, she wanted it all handed back over to her.

Before Ajay could even respond, Neha curtly interjected,"Right, as if that is going to happen. Why should we give you those shares back just because you want them? You were a young child when your mom died. She should've never left them to you in the first place. You're father's been managing that company for all these years, so what right do you have to those shares? Why should he turn over something he's been working so hard to build, to you?"

There was resounding indignance in her inflection as Eshana angrily snapped nack at Neha,"And why should I bail out Jaisvi by marrying Kiaan instead of her? What right do you have to tell me I have to marry a disabled person, just so your daughter doesn't have to, huh?"

Eshana paused for a moment glaring at Neha. She continued,"I really don't think I'm being unreasonable here with my request. All I'm asking for is what my mother had left to me in her will. What is rightfully mine in the first place! So, really, this has nothing to do with you. Keep your mouth shut, and butt out of my business!!" Eshana's unfaltering defiance unnerved Neha.

After another brief pause of glaring at Neha, Eshana announced,"Now that you know what I want, you can either return everything back to me, or you can have Jaisvi explain to the Kiaan's family why she isn't marrying him like she was supposed to before his car accident."

A fierce Eshana stood before them ... this was truly a rare anomaly. She had never acted so defiantly, so brazenly bold. Neha was totally flustered. Her face turned pale. With a slightest cracking voice she cried out at Eshana,"Tum abhi tak Mrs. Shekhawat bani bhi nahi ho, aur abhise hame nicha dikha rahi ho?! How could you? You ungrateful little ...."

(You haven't even become Mrs. Shekhawat yet, and you're already looking down on us?!)

"Enough!!" Ajay brusquely cut off Neha. She looked at him with a stunned expression,"But ...?" He cut her off, again. He quickly raised his index finger to his lips, gesturing for Neha to keep quite.

Neha crossed threw her arms across her chest, and let out an exasperated huff. She then stood there pouting. Ajay looked back over at Eshana, whose face was molded into cringe at Neha, and gritted his teeth. "Alright, Eshana. It that's what it will take, you win. I promise to give you the company shares, but the confirmation of the transfer of shares is going to take some time. Of course, I can write you up a receipt if you'd like."

Ajay paused for a moment, briefly averting his eyes down to the floor. He looked back up at Eshana, and sheepishly said,"But, here's the thing. Neha and I already promised the Shekhawat family that you'd marry Kiaan. We can't go back on our words now, can we? So, what do you say ... how about you get married first, then we'll finish up with the transfer?"

Ajay was in quite a predicament ... a real dilemma. The promise of marriage was already made, and he certainly couldn't afford to offend the Shekhawat family. No one who ran their own company could. It would be like 'business suicide' to cross the Shekhawat family. And, besides that, Ajay was hoping that once Eshana married into the family, he would use their in-law ties to his advantage, and receive special favors from them.

Ajay asked Eshana to go downstairs to the living room with him so they could finish discussing the matter. He continued discussing the shares transfer in his best negotiating tone, trying not to let his emotions get the best of him. Neha sat next to him on the couch trying to remain quite. Unlike her husband, she seemed to be unable to keep her emotions from getting the best of her. She displayed a disdainful and infuriating expression on her countenance, as she glared at Eshana, looking as if she wanted to swallow her whole...

Unsatisfied with his business-like rhetoric, Eshana sneered as she curtly cut him off,"Alright, hold on, stop your yammering, already. Listen, Dad, ye mat sochiyega ki mujhe aapke irado ke baarein mein kuch bhi pata nahi hai. Enough with the double-talk and stall tactics. Mujhe vo shares aaj hi transfer krke chahiye." She looked over at Neha,"Aur sirf shares hi nahi, mujhe har vo chiz vapis chahiye jo meri Maa mere liye chodkr gayi thi!"

(Alright, hold on, stop your yammering already. Listen, Dad, don't think that I don't know what you guys are up to. Enough with the double-talk and stall tactics. I want those shares transferred today.)

(And not just the shares, I want everything back that my mom left to me!)

Eshana took a deep breath in an attempt to calm down a little, and recompose herself. "Agar mujhe vo sab kuch vapis nahi mila jo vo mere liye chod gaye the, main ye shaadi nahi karungi. Phir, shayad aapko apne liye koi aur beti dhundni hogi Shekhawat's ko saopne ke liye." An impish little grin emerged on her mouth, as she glanced over at Neha, and saucily remarked,"Wait a minute, no worries, you guys do have another daughter ... Jaisvi, isn't it? I suppose aap logo ko bahar jake apne liye koi dusri beti dhundne ki zarurat hi nahi hai ab. Talk about being lucky!" Neha fiercely scowled at Eshana. Years ago, Neha was merely a lowly, common citizen of an insignificant, small town. Not to mention the fact that she was someone's mistress.

(If I don't get back everything that she left me, I won't get married. Then, you'll just have to find yourselves another daughter to hand over to Shekhawat's.)

(Wait a minute, you guys do have another daughter ... Jaisvi, isn't it? I suppose you won't have to go out looking for another daughter. Talk about being lucky!)

So, over the years, in order to shake off her tarnished reputation and gain enough favor to enter into the circle of classy women, Neha had given away most of the jewelry Eshana's mother left to her daughter. Along with the shares, Eshana wanted all of that back as well. That wouldn't be an easy task for Neha to undertake. Her ire and frustration towards Eshana rapidly rose.

Furthermore, Eshana kept throwing Jaisvi's name in Neha's face, telling them to have her deal with the Shekhawat family mess. Neha's hands trembled from her burgeoning anger, as she vehemently griped,"You've got some nerve! Your father and I have raised you all these years, paying for all your expenses... which believe me, weren't cheap! Do you realize hiw expenit is to raise a family? Well, do you? Your brother still needs money to go to school, too, you know. And look at you, now ... not only haven't you contributed anything monetarily to this family, but now you're looking to take money away from us. Serioualy, Eshana how can you live with yourself?"

These words instantly pierced Eshana's heart, filling it up with total discord and resentment. She immediately thought to herself,"'How can I live with myself?' ... Main batati hu kaise. Bilkul vaise hi jaise tum sab log rehte aa rahe ho itne saalo se ... unn paiso per jo meri Maa piche chod gayi thi mere liye! Vo mera paisa hai jo tum log uda rahe ho! Vo hamesha se tha, so why shouldn't I take it all back?"

('How can I live with myself?' .... I'll tell you how. It's the same way all of you have been living all of these years ... off of the money my mom left behind for me! That's my money you've been spending! It always has been, so why shouldn't I take it all back?)

Eshana was ready to lash back at Neha when Jaisvi, who was eavesdropping on their conversation, suddenly came bursting in from the kitchen, rushjng into the living room. "Eshana, tu itni matlabi kaise ho skti hai?Hamare parents ne hame hamesha acchese treat kiya hai. Meri Maa ne bhi tymhe hamesha apna samjha hai, from day one. How can you treat them so unfairly? Why are you acting this way? Mujhe toh samjh hi nhi aa raha ... unki betiya hone ke naate, hame unse wafadar hona chahiye."

(Eshana, how can you be so selfish? Our parents have always treated us so well. My mother regards you as her own, from day one. How can you treat them so unfairly? Why are you acting this way? I don't understand .... as their daughters, we need to be loyal to them.")

Eshana's jaw dropped. She couldn't believe it. She thought to herself,"Is that spoiled, pampered princess honestly accusing me of being unloyal?!" She was infuriated, and she felt as if she were ready to explode and blow her top. But instead ... She unexpectedly, even unsure why herself, bursted out laughing to the point where tears were pouring out from her eyes, and streaming down her face. They all watched her with confounded expressions etched upon their countenances, wondering if she had finally lost her mind and gone crazy. When Eshana was finally able to cease her hysteria fit, she tried recomposing herself a bit more, as she wiped her dampened face. Then, she looked sternly over at Jaisvi.

"Let's get this straight, here and now ... we're step-sisters. And as far as your mother regarding me as her own goes.. the only thing your mother ever regarded as her own was my Maa's money." Eshana briefly paused to take in a breath, then she added,"I've heard enough nonsense spewing out from everyone's mouth today, and quite frankly, I'm tired of it. So, here's what we're going to do ... either you'll give me back everything that's rightfully mine, or I'll sue you all in court. Then, I'll be sure to get back everything my mother left for me, while everyone outside of this family will finally know how despicable you really are."

Neha was furious as she crazedly cried out,"Why you little b***h! I'll....!!" Ajay suddenly slammed the table with his his fist, hollering out,"All of you shut up!!"

Ajay's anger had skyrocketed. His eyes were bulging out of their sockets, and his veins were popping out from his forehead as his face flushed, quickly turning to a crimson shade of red. He was fuming, consumed by his seething anger. He sharply turned to his wife and glared,"Neha... just give her what she wants!"

Totally taken aback by Ajay's outburst, Neha's face instantly turned pale. She, too, was highly infuriated as she angrily thought to herself,"It's bad enough that this little b***h is giving me s**t, but now her father's yelling at me, too? Telling me to hand over my stuff to his demon spawn of a daughter! The nerve!"

But seeing how enraged Ajay was... not to mention the fact that he was the bread-winner of their household, Neha didn't dare refute him. She simply gritted her teeth, while crossly wrapping her arms across her chest, then stomped off to their room.

A few moments later, Neha returned back to the living room with her jewelry box and unceremoniously threw it down in front of Eshana. "There! Are you happy now?!" Neha stomped over to the couch and plopped down on it, while crossly wrapping her arms across her chest. "Humph!!"

Eshana briefly looked at Neha, then opened up the jewelry box and stared into it. She continued doing that for a minute or two, before a curious Neha impatiently snapped,"Well?!"

Eshana slowly closed the jewelry box and looked back over at Neha. Bluntly she said.... "It's nowhere near enough." A befuddled expression quickly overtook Neha's countenance.

"Huh... what do you mean, 'it's nowhere near enough'?" Eshana replied,"It's not all here... actually. A lot of it is missing. This jewelry was my mother's dowry back then, and I want it all back... every single piece of it." Eshana walked over to the couch and placed the jewelry box down beside Neha.

"I don't know if you sold them off, or just gave them away to others to buy their friendship... and I don't really care. All I know is that you better get them back. I want to see them back here by the end of the day." Neha rolled her eyes and indignantly retorted,"Pfft... who's to say it isn't all there? How would you know if anything's missing, or not? Hmm? Like I said before, you were just a little girl when your mother died... so, even if your mother did show you all of the jewelry, how could you possibly remember what was there? It's been so many years. So, tell me Eshana, how can you stand there and tell me that it's not all there, and accuse me of selling and giving the jewelry away, when you have no clue of what was there to begin with? I'm telling you that everything's in there, so just thank your Kanha Ji that your father's making me give it back to you, and take it."

A small grin suddenly emerged on Eshana's mouth,"So, aap kehna chahti hai ki ismein sab kuch hai, is that it?" Neha nodded. Eshana continued grinning as she informed Neha,"Okay, if that's how you want to play this, but just so you know, I have a friend who's uncle deals with the settling of inheritance estates. I'm pretty sure he'd have no problem getting a copy of my mother's will, and checking the iitemized list of every piece of jewelry my mother left me. This way, I can check to make sure every piece of jewelry that's supposed to be in that box is accounted for."

(So, you're telling me it's a there, is that it?)

Upon hearing that, Neha's jaw dropped. Once again, her face quickly turned pale. She sharply looked to Eshana with beseeching eyes. Ajay turned his head off to the side and averted his eyes down towards he floor. It a obvious that she wasn't going to receive any help from him from the look of his actions. He evidently had no intention of standing by her side on this matter.

Neha had no choice, she was busted. All she could do was to start calling up all the rich wives that she had given the jewelry to over the years, and hope that they'd be willing to return it back to her. Neha continued the arduous task throughout the afternoon, calling up each 'friend' one by one... repeatedly explaining the dire situation that she was in, as she secretly hoped and prayed that they would agree to return the jewelry after hearing the circumstances. Some of them empathized with Neha's predicament, and graciously agreed to give the items back. Other more unreasonable wives couldn't care less about what Neha was going through, and refused to give the jewelry back. Some of them even went as far as to scold her, leaving her with no choice but to humbly apologize to them.

While Neha made those calls, Ajay had a lawyer from the company's legal department bring over the shares transfer contract for Eshana. And, after both of them read over and reviewed the contract, Ajay reluctantly signed over the shares to her.

After the lawyer signed off, and stamped the contract legally finalizing the transaction, he handed the contract over into Eshana's anxiously awaiting, trembling hands. She read over the contract again; this time seeing it with all the required signatures on it. For the first time in nearly two days; Eshana exuded a huge smile of satisfaction.

Reveling and basking in the afterthought that she had just successfully gotten back part of what her mother had intended her to receive, and the biggest part at that, Eshana tightly held the contract in her arms up against her heart. She headed off back to her room. Upon passing Neha, who was still making calls to the wives, a giddy Eshana goadingly quipped,"You may want to pick up the pace there, before those wealthy, old ladies turn in for the night." After saying that, Eshana merrily skipped off along her way, leaving her fuming parents derisively glaring at her as she went upstairs.

Seeting in anger, Ajay stormed off to his study leaving behind a disgruntled Neha. With her resentment also festering, in a frustrated state, she wildly swept a decorative vase off the leaving room table. It came crashing down onto the floor, smashing into pieces. This immediately drew Jaisvi's attention, who was eating in the kitchen at the time. She came running out to see what happened. "Maa, aap thik hai? Kya ho gaya?" An agitated Neha desperately clenched onto her daughter's hand. "Jaisvi, abhi tak Eshana Shekhawat pariwar ki bahu bani bhi nahi hai, par vo abhi se abhinay kar rahi hai, aur behad kharab ravaiya dikha rahi hai. Mujhe toh pura yakeen hai ki ye bhavishya mein hamare liye chize mushkil kar degi."

(Mom, are you okay? What's wrong?)

(Jaisvi, Eshana hasn't even married into Shekhawat family yet, She's already acting up, and displaying an extremely bad attitude. I'm certain she's going to make things difficult for us in the future.)

A malevolent smirk slowly etched its way across Jaisvi's mouth, then she ominously assured Neha,"Aap bilkul bhi chinta na kijiye, Maa. Fact is, Kiaan ab apahij hai. Aapko kya lgta hai ki unhe 'Raaja ko gaddi se hataane' ka nirnay lene mein kitna samay lagega? Sooner or later, Shekhawat parivaar ka pramukh adhikaari Kiyaan ka chota bhai, Medhansh Shekhawat hoga. It's only inevitable. Aur, jab aisa hoga, toh Eshana ek apaahij aadmi ki patni se jyada kuch nhi rah jayegi. Dekhte hai ki tab vo itna ghamandi hone ki himmat kaise karti hai."

(Mom, don't worry! Fact is, Kiaan is a cripple now. How long do you think it'll be before they decide to 'dethrone the king'? Sooner or later, the leading authority of the Shekhawat family will be Medhansh Shekhawat, Kiaan's younger brother. It's only inevitable. And, when that happens, Eshana will be nothing more than a crippled man's wife. Let's see if she dares to be that arrogant then.)