Princess of the dawn

Chapter 38

Amer

She rode slowly through the forest. She was almost at her destination. A cave that she discovered with Sujamal on one of her rides. She'd swiped supplies from the kitchen for a few days. Nobody would find her here. She could rely on Sujamal. He would certainly not betray her. Jodha had reached the cave. She dismounted and led Lathika inside. There she settled down and left the cave again to collect wood. She walked slowly through the undergrowth, collecting dry twigs and branches. Suddenly she screamed. She had stepped one leg in a hidden crevice at a root! She dropped the collected wood and groaned in pain. She tried to pull her foot out of the crevice. Vain. Again and again she tried to free her foot. By now her ankle was swollen and the more she tried to break free, the more pain she felt. In the meantime, tears were streaming down her face in pain. She sat on the floor and stared at her foot. She was stuck! What should she do? The root could not be moved and she had no idea how to get out of the predicament. She had drawn up her knees and her head buried in them. Her tears began to flow again. "How could I be so clumsy!" She tried again to free her foot. Nothing! Suddenly her left hand began to tingle and the ring became warm. The familiar calming feeling spreads inside her, as if to say, „don't worry, everything will be fine!" „Jalal! Is he thinking of me right now?"  She gave in to the thought and immediately felt calmer. It was a comforting thought that he was thinking of her right now. "Kanha, help me out of my predicament! Show me a way!"

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Bikaner

"Rao Sa!"

"What is happening? Kalyan Singh asked his wife.

"I received a letter from Amer. As you know, I am friends with Padmavati, one of Raja Bharmal's wive."

"Yes, yes. And what is she writing?" he asked, bored. He was not in the mood for chattering women.

"It's very interesting what she writes!"

"Now tell me!" He replied annoyed.

"Rajkumari Jodha Bai ran away after Raja Bharmal accepted your proposal to marry our son! What an insult!" she said indignantly. "She should consider herself lucky to have our son as a husband."

"Interesting!" Kalyan Singh rubbed his chin thoughtfully. This provided the opportunity to withdraw the application without any problems. The Rajkumari had played into their hands. A fine smile played on his lips.

"How can you laugh about it?"

"Let me do that!" He had not yet told her about her son's rejection. He would talk to him again whether he really didn't want to marry the Rajkumari. Then he would use the escape of the Rajkumari in his favor. He wanted to see hiss on happy. Perhaps the confident rajkumari really wasn't for him. Satisfied, he went to look for Rai Singh.

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Amer

Suddenly she heard the clatter of hooves and she raised her head. A rider approached. The clatter stopped. A moment later she heard her name calling.

"Jodha! Jodha, where are you?"

She began to sob again with relief.

"Bhai, bhai, I'm here, below the cave. I got my foot trapped."

Sujamal followed her calls and was with her shortly afterwards.

"What kind of things are you doing Jodha!" he scolded her good-naturedly.

"Don't scold me!" pouted Jodha. "Better help me with the root. I can't move it an inch."

Sujamal looked at her dilemma.

"Close your eyes. It will hurt again for a moment, then you will be free again! Let your foot relaxed and turn a little to the right."

She closed her eyes trustingly and did as she was told. Sujamal carefully turned her ankle and jerked it something. She screamed as the pain daggered into her ankle. Then she was free!

"Thank you bhai," she called and fell around Sujamal's neck. "How did you find me?"

"When we found the caves, you said back then that it was a good place to hide. My idea was correct! Can you tread on your foot?" He helped her get up.

"If you support me, it works!"

"Well, I'll take you to the cave. Then you tell me everything!"

In the cave he helped Jodha sit down.

"Do you have something I can bandage your ankle with?"

"There are strips of linen in my saddlebag!" He went to the small spring in the back of the cave and soaked one of the strips of cloth with water. He wound it around Jodha's ankle.

"I'm going to collect some wood now. You rest."

After he came back and started a fire, he sat down across from her.

"So! And now tell! From the beginning!"

Jodha told him why she did not want to marry Rai Singh. How she tried to persuade her father to refuse the application. She saw no other way out than to flee when her father had publicly announced the acceptance of the application. She fell silent.

"So you don't like him. But that doesn't give you the right to just run away. You know that?"

"Yes," she said contrite. But I don't want to marry him!" she looked defiantly at him.

"What do I do with you now? Your father sent Bhagwant Das and me to look for you. Fortunately, Bhagwant Das had the idea to look for you at your Guruji. So we broke up and I rode here!"

"Just leave me here for a few days! I have to think about it calmly! Just say you didn't find me!" she pleaded.

"Jodha, that won't work. I can't leave you here alone! Your father will punish me if it comes out that I know where you are and leave you here!"

"Mhh, then ride back and say you know where I am. Then you come back and we both stay here for a few days! I really need a few days to think about it. Please bhaisa!" She looked pleadingly at him from her hazel eyes. A tear trickled down her cheek. Sujamal wiped it gently with his thumb.

"Oh Jodha! I want that you are happy. Do not cry please! All right, I'll ride back and say I found you. I hope I can convince him that you need a few days to think it over. Can I leave you alone?"

"Ji! Now ride back and then come back here." He got up and stroked her head.

"Sujamal, did you find her?" Asked Raja Bharmal worried. "She is not with her guruji. Bhagwant Das came back shortly before you."

"Yes, chaachasa, I found her!"

"Thank Kanha, you found her! Where is she, did you bring her with you?" Champavati called out.

"No, chaacheesa, she asked for a few days to think about it. I should tell you. With your permission, I will ride back to her and keep her company."

"it's unbelievable what liberties this girl takes" interfered Padmavati. "She just has no manners! This time she has to be punished harshly!"

"I'm glad you found her!" said the Raja, relieved. "But there is no time to think about it allowed! Acceptance of the proposal has long been on the way. It's late afternoon. You will ride back to her now and tomorrow morning you will come back with her! She can't just run away! That is not worthy of a rajkumari! You will tell her that this is a command of the Raja and not the request of her father!"

"Raja Sa, you can't just let that go by!" hissed Padmavati again.

"Padmavati, spray your poison elsewhere. Raja Sa has decided! We'll see what happens when she comes back!" said Champavati angrily. Padmavati snorted and ran away.

To be continued...