Should i love or should i run?

The Retrospection-II

*That afternoon*

The crowd were more in number than I expected.

Rajendran: "Good afternoon to all the crowd that has gathered here, this kid over here is having something which he thinks is very important to the village" 

I brought the undelivered letters and the anklet I took from the keeper.

" 93 days ago, a girl crossed maldevi after sunset for seeking adventure, denying the time old village belief that none should cross the river after sunset.......apparently that is what the entire village believes in...

I only know Siri for a good 15 days, but the bond we shared, the purpose we got closer is strong enough that I dare to speak in front of you. Let me start off by proving the point.

It is neither the beast nor the evil spirit that killed her, I take immense pain in saying that her own stepmother killed her "

*people started murmuring*

"How dare you speak in that way! I'm already in grief after losing my daughter" cried, stepmother.

With the help of the postmaster i managed to get the undelivered letters that she wrote to me. I would want you to read it out for the village....sir" I handed over the letters to rajendran.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

To

Beloved anish,

   Siri here, I hope you are doing good, I'm awaiting for the summer because every step i make, i see you, every breath i take i feel you, not trying to be poetic but i'm not me when you aren't beside me. Adding to this, life at my home became even more tougher, there isn't even a single day where my stepmother didn't hurt or curse me. It is all because of the wedding proposal that i rejected. Yes, my stepmother out of greed forced me to accept the wedding proposal of RK rice mills owner's son, who is a big shot and a very known business person in and around villages. I never agreed to it though. Sorrows apart, i had a dream yesterday that you came to me in a flying unicorn to set me free from the prison, i'm eagerly waiting for this to happen in real too, just kidding :) take good care of yourself and the toy pot. Respond as soon as you receive the letter.

Sincerely

Siri chandana.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Rajendran : "Just because her stepmother treated her in that way, doesn't necessarily prove that she killed her"

"Yes,...sir i know that a single evidence serves no purpose, i will tell you what happened after i received the letter..

I traced out rice mills on the outskirts of the city after reading the letter, to my surprise I have listened to the workers talking, from their conversation what I have understood is that her stepmother killed her accidentally while arguing about her wedding, not knowing what to do, for she might be punished if the villagers knew that she herself killed her daughter, she took the help of RK rice mills owner. They planned it among themselves to safely take the corpse to the other side of the village, for the villagers might think that it was a supernatural act.

Accordingly, the rice mill workers put the dead corpse into a jute bag with a star mark on it and carried it all the way to the other side of the river to throw it there. 

The graveyard keeper on the same night was there picking dried tree branches, he saw a silver anklet falling from the jute bag, which I managed to get it from him-i took out the anklet showing it to all the villagers around.

Rajendran: "Is that true? " 

Keeper: " Yes sir, certainly"

Rajendran: " How would you know that it was a dead corpse, people usually carry rice bags towards the river to dry them, how would I believe the conversation you said between the workers is true?"

" I have only one anklet, the other anklet and a gold chain of her are with the workers, they took them after untying the corpse from the jute bag. And now, Siri's jewellery box will have every ornament except for the pair of anklets and the chain" 

Rajendran then sent one of his assistants to go to Siri's house and check for the jewellery box, and later learnt that the thing I told is evident.

"I know that all these are still not enough to prove this, that is why I myself crossed the river after sunset yesterday to see if there is anything to be afraid of. I stayed there the entire night despite being the coward est human being alive and now I'm still alive in front of you" 

Rajendran: "Son, I know you are desperate to prove something but we are all not ready to listen to the vague clues here, let's disperse "

I fell off to my knees after feeling that I'm losing this, I surely know what has happened, I definitely know what Siri wanted me to do...but I'm now here helpless. 

Just when I thought that this was over, that I'm never going to prove the truth, Sundaramma walked to me staggering with her walking stick, she whispered in my ears

      "Superstitious people believe in superstitious evidence"

I stood up! I know what exactly sundaramma was trying to tell

"Sir......wait!! if only whatever I told is true it will rain hard now! think it as gods own approval" I yelled because I know that her spirit can respond only through the five elements of earth and that she is undoubtedly watching over.

Rajendran turned back.

Rajendran: "Haahaa!, it is like mid-summer now, and the sun is super scorching, anyways if it rains now, I will consider everything about this to be true"

*It started raining heavily*

*Momentary silence*

After few minutes of silence...getting drenched in the rain, Rajendran seemed to have realised that the entire retrospection was true.

Rajendran: "I now completely believe that whatever this kid says is true, after all, who are we to deny the approval of God, it is so sad that her stepmother who raised her had to kill her for the greed of money. I now insist that the people who are responsible for this must be exiled from the village and exempted from whatever businesses they are taking over here...."

I jumped in joy," I made it! I made it !" but punishing the culprits isn't the only goal.

" Thank you, sir, for realising what is the truth..but this isn't over, there is nothing in the name of dark spirits, the only dark spirits are the cruel people among us, we villagers are bound to illogical, mysterious beliefs. we ourselves are destroying us by creating a so-called dark spirit zone. I would want to confess that the other side of the village is not anymore abandoned, it is as precious as the village this side, only the thoughts need to be changed. I'm not half your age, I don't have the eligibility to suggest but that is where I think is the village lagging behind.

" Everyone of us is having a god and an evil within....The good in us is god, the bad in us is evil"