Prithvi...(Vol. 6)

Chapter 142

Sankatmochan peered up the stairs, straining his ears to catch any sound. On hearing his phone ring, he distractedly returned to his room, and his face turned apprehensive on seeing Sumer Singh's name on the screen. Calls between them had been few and far between over the few years, and he was certain that this particular call had to do with Prithvi...

"Namaste, Sumer Singhji," Sankatmochan said courteously.

The polite greeting brought a faint grimace to Sumer Singh's face. The years spent in proximity to the Bharadwaj family had wrought an astounding transformation in Sankatmochan. All of them were for the good, but it was still hard to accept some of the changes, especially the unusually gracious behaviour.

"Namaste," he said grudgingly. "Sankat, where is Prithvi? He's not answering my calls or messages."

Walking back to his post by the stairway, Sankatmochan whispered, "Upstairs. In his room, I think."

"Why are you whispering?" Sumer Singh asked suspiciously.

"Prithvi is very angry about something," Sankatmochan murmured, retreating to his room while keeping a cautious eye on the top of the stairs.

"Angry? Why?" Sumer Singh asked, startled. The young man he'd spoken to some time ago had been miserable, but not angry.

"I don't know," Sankatmochan said haplessly. "I had gone out for a walk and had not carried my phone. Prakash found me and said Prithvi wanted to leave immediately. Everyone in Vrindavan is very sad that he is leaving, particularly Babaji. But apparently, Prithvi placated him and the others by saying that he would return soon. Anyway, I ran back home. Prithvi wasn't around, but I began packing quickly. Then I heard the door slam. I hurried out of my room and saw Prithvi come into the house. He looked so furious...I didn't have the courage to ask him why he was angry. He didn't look at me and just walked up the stairway. And then I heard another door slam. I haven't heard anything else for about twenty minutes now."

Sumer Singh disbelievingly asked, "Prithvi...showed his anger?"

Sankatmochan gave the phone a confused frown before returning it to his ear. "Why do you sound so surprised? Yes, I know he has calmed down a lot over the years," he admitted. "And I've seen it myself since yesterday. But he must surely be losing his temper now and then. I mean...this is Prithvi we are talking about," he said reasonably. Then he hissed, "I think he's coming downstairs. I'll call you up in a short while."

Tensed, Sumer Singh waited with the phone in his hands. Some moments later, his phone emitted a short buzz. It was a terse message from Prithvi, asking him to go ahead with whatever he'd decided regarding the security for the Bharadwaj family, and stating that he would be resuming work tonight itself. A second message arrived within seconds, informing him that the phone was going to be switched off.

Keeping his word, Sankatmochan called him back shortly.

"We are leaving now," he whispered from his spot at the back of the SUV. "Prithvi is saying his goodbyes to the family. I can tell he's like a bomb waiting to explode, but no one else suspects a thing. He looks really cool and relaxed."

"What happened after he came downstairs?" Sumer Singh asked anxiously.

"He was still very angry but he spoke calmly with me, thank God," Sankatmochan adjoined fervently. "He told me to keep my bags in the SUV and asked me to check if Rajeshwari was ready. I went there and learnt two things - Rajeshwari was indeed ready...and Nandini had left the house without informing Sarojini maa or Rajeshwari or Babaji," he said agitatedly. "She had been in the backyard, and then she came into the house and looked at her phone, and she told Prakash she had to meet a friend who needed some help urgently. And she took some money from the box in the drawer of the telephone stand and left. Something happened between her and Prithvi, I'm sure of it," he insisted frantically. "I think if I try to -"