Authors: Joya Victoria
They all trooped in after him, and Miranda was absolutely enthralled with the décor of the bungalow. The drawing room was out of this world. The furnishings in the room were superb. It looked as if someone with exquisite taste had taken a lot of trouble to choose each and every piece in the room. From the flowing curtains to the chaise lounge in the corner, everything was placed exactly so. There was a grand piano in one corner of the fabulous room. Miranda remembered seeing a piano in Derek’s other bungalow too. She wondered who played.
The ambience was so tranquil and peaceful and so blissfully cool, too.
“Come in, come in,” Derek said again. The rains had started again. “Make yourselves at home. Make yourselves comfortable.”
He called out to an invisible servant to bring in some tea. Miranda still could not get over her shock and neither could Mary.
Admiring the décor, Mary inquired very casually who it was who had such exquisite taste and had decorated the bungalow with such meticulous attention to every detail.
“Oh, it was my mother,” Derek replied in a very nonchalant manner. “My parents liked this bungalow very much, so they spent a lot of time here—that is whenever they were staying in India.”
“I wish I could show you the grounds and the garden, but it will be absolutely sopping wet!” The garden was in full bloom. Flowers were everywhere. Red and pink hibiscus plants covered an entire part of one side of the garden. It was truly breathtaking. The plants were swaying as if dancing to the tune of the orchestrated sound of the monsoon.
“You don’t use this bungalow very much, do you?” Mary asked in her forthright manner.
“No, not for myself,” Derek replied, glancing in Mary’s direction. “I prefer the other bungalow. It is more accessible. And also,” he carried on, “the little airport is nearby, and I can use my plane whenever I want to take off.”
Radhu, his old faithful, came in beaming and to announce that lunch was served.
Miranda smiled at Radhu as he pattered in.
“Radhu is so very happy today,” Derek said to no one in particular. “At long last he can show off his culinary skills.” He stayed at his chotasahib’s side.
Miranda, going into the dining room, realized that each and every room in the house had been decorated by Mrs Chowdhury and that she had the most exquisite taste—and the money to go with it, that had of course enabled her to buy the choicest pieces of furniture and art. Miranda wondered what their Sussex house was like. Apparently it was an estate, according to Mary, who had said so in passing to Miranda when she had come to visit her aunt.
The dining room faced the garden and had a huge hand-carved dining table in the middle with matching chairs. The large windows were adorned with velvet curtains tied on each side with a velvet sash. The room had a marble floor with a hand-carved sideboard on one side matching the dining table. The food was served in silver dishes.
They had planned to return that evening, but Derek would not have it. He insisted that they all stay the night and travel back the next day, as the monsoon was apt to cause havoc on the roads, making the trip unsafe. All the time they were there Derek hardly glanced in Miranda’s direction. He was busy talking to James; Miranda and Mary were left to their own devices.
Evening rolled in, and it was rapidly getting dark. How Miranda wished she could go outside and walk on the soggy grounds, barefooted, and inhale the night air, monsoon or no monsoon!
Wasn’t Derek lucky, she thought to herself. All this beauty, all this property, all this fine garden all his. He could simply choose to stay wherever and whenever he wanted. Lucky, she thought to herself.
“But I shall not give in!” She was determined and slightly vehement in her determination. Who was Hannah to him? That was bothering her and was turning into an obsession. But Miranda was ignoring something else as well, a bigger factor that was very significant in Derek’s life, Rukmini!
She could not or would not see the forest for the trees. She was in absolute denial, despite hearing a few snippets about the Indian girl who was supposed to have been an important part of Derek’s life. Miranda dismissed it all as rumor, completely dispensing with the fact that there could be some substance to the back-handed whispers. She was doggedly pursuing that one individual only, Hannah.
But now all her plans had been dashed, again. She wanted to have a little heart-to-heart with Mary. God only knew when such an opportunity would arise again. Miranda was awfully quiet, lost in her own thoughts, when she was suddenly nudged back to the present by Derek asking her in a very endearing voice if she would prefer to have her favorite gin and tonic or wine. She sat up with a start.
“I’ve startled you, have I?” Derek was asking her.
Miranda felt all their eyes on her. “I would like a gin and tonic, please, Derek,” she replied. The evening passed very pleasantly indeed, what with the drinks and Derek’s wonderful cook who had taken the trouble to prepare fried spicy meatballs to accompany the drinks. Miranda noticed that the old man, Derek’s Radhu, was always hovering within earshot as usual. Nothing escaped him! Miranda was sure he listened to everything they said and understood, pretending not to know or understand English. Derek did not seem to mind. Derek was well looked after by Radhu, who accompanied him wherever he went in India, which he mentioned quite often.
It was a pleasant evening. Miranda, for the moment, had decided to shelve Hannah. She even forgot her previous acrimonious feeling
toward Derek. She settled down to enjoy herself. The time passed too quickly. Dinner was served in the magnificent dining room. The room was brightly lit by the beautiful chandelier hanging from the ceiling. The room was meant for the big dinner parties that were often hosted by the Chowdhury family in the past. The torrential rain carried on nonstop. There did not seem to be any letting up.
“What a magnificent room,” Miranda exclaimed ecstatically. “How beautiful,” she added. The room looked more beautiful and elegant in the evening, bright and glowing, the light of the chandelier bouncing off the large grandiose mirrors hung on all the walls.
“My mother used to throw her dinner parties here,” Derek said. After a very tasty and sumptuous meal they all trooped back to the drawing room, and dutifully a servant decked out in all his finery brought in the liquor and the glasses. This was his special duty to serve the liquor after dinner. This time Radhu seemed to have disappeared. Maybe he had gone for dinner. She was missing his presence in a funny way. He had become a fixture.
“Where is Radhu?” she asked, surprised at herself. The words seemed to have escaped her mind; it was a thought she hadn’t intended to speak out loud.
“He is a trifle disappointed,” Derek said. “Usually he serves the drinks after dinner, but this evening I have asked him to leave us and to have his meal in peace and relax. He is getting old and tries to do too much!”
Then to no one in particular he said, “Even when I am on my own, this ritual is performed.” Derek stood up to pour the liquor. “We do not have many visitors nowadays, not like the days when my parents used to come from England, or even when my father used to be here on his own. He, Radhu, misses all that.” Derek himself sounded a trifle melancholy, as if he himself was missing the so-called “old days.”
James and Mary were soon ready for bed and wearily got up to their feet.
“Thank God,” James said in a very sleepy voice, “I don’t have to drive!” He laughed a happy, contented laughter.
“Good night, old boy,” he said to Derek. “See you in the morning.”
“Good night,” Mary said and gave Miranda a peck on the cheek with a very knowing look.
She wanted to say so much more to this innocent girl, but it could not be done at the moment.
Derek and Miranda were left alone not for long! As soon as Mary and James left the room who should appear but Radhu! He was lurking around, listening. He would not, simply would not, leave them alone! Chota sahib could ask him to go and relax, could ask him until he was blue in the face, but Radhu had to look after him. He was busy clearing away the glasses and the remnants of the evening’s after-dinner drinks. He removed the glasses and plates with very slow deliberation, taking his time. At last, his task accomplished, he bid goodnight to Derek and then Miranda as an afterthought. He at last left the room. Miranda burst out laughing.
“Why did he take so long?” she asked. “He took ages!”
Derek followed the servant out, and Miranda could hear him speaking to him in a very hushed voice. What he was saying she could not understand.
“I asked him to go to his quarters and not to wait for us.” With that he went and sat beside Miranda on the sofa and pulled her toward him. She struggled just a bit but quickly gave in.
“How I have missed you,” he said in a very soft and passionate voice, his lips searching for hers. He held her in a very tight embrace and kissed her long and hard.
She returned the kiss, at first a bit reluctantly, but who could resist Derek? All her resolutions were blown to the wind.
Again he mumbled, “How I have missed you,” his arms encircling her in a tight embrace. Then as abruptly as he had embraced her he suddenly stood up and pulled her to her feet. “Let’s go to bed. Let me show you to your room.”
“Come,” he said, pulling her gently by her hand and leading her to her bedroom. It was another exquisite room. The huge king-size mahogany bed occupied the middle of the room, facing one of the large windows. It was draped with silk covers and had a number of silk cushions strewn on it. Huge windows with heavy silk drapes looked
onto the marble-floored balcony. The balcony had a very wild look as the entire length of it was covered with various types of orchids. Derek was a collector of orchids; that was another one of his exotic hobbies that Miranda had discovered in time and that had quite surprised her. He had a few hidden qualities that surprised Miranda.
Derek started to undress her, but then he stopped with great suddenness. Was there a noise coming from somewhere? He abruptly left the room.
Was there some whispering in the corridor? Was Miranda hearing correctly? She could not understand what was being said, but she heard a door being shut quite forcefully down the corridor. The mysteries of the night! It wasn’t long before it was absolutely quiet. Derek did not return. She fell into a deep sleep after such a big day.
Miranda was awakened by a light tap on the door. “Come in,” she said and sat up. Radhu entered with her morning tea and a few biscuits. This was a luxury that Miranda was getting quite used to.
Giving her a wide smile, Radhu laid the tray on the polished bedside table and asked her in broken English if she wanted the curtains drawn. She nodded her head, and Radhu, after finishing his task, withdrew as silently as he had entered.
His main intention had been to find out if they had slept together, and he was happy that that situation had been averted!
His welcome in the other room was not as congenial.
“Go away,” Derek said. “I don’t want any tea,” he said with suppressed fury, his indignation at seeing Radhu clear.
The morning was very humid, as it was prone to be during monsoon. At least there was a respite from the rains for a little while at least, and James wanted to take advantage of the break in the weather for God only knew, he thought to himself, how long it would last.
“James, old chap,” Derek pulled him to one side after breakfast, “I’ll take Miranda home.”
Derek took her for a ride in his jeep and drove around the garden, old Radhu in tow, sitting in the back. Miranda giggled when she saw him waiting patiently by the vehicle.
“He seems to think that you need a chaperone!” she said.
“My father’s orders,” Derek replied with a smile. “He feels responsible when my father is not around.” The jeep ride was extremely pleasant. Miranda felt that Radhu merely tolerated her, hoping against hope that she would go away. He was chatting away to Derek in a language that she could not understand, and she felt that Derek was in his element talking to him. They had such a lot to discuss.
Neither Derek nor Radhu even once felt worried that she might be feeling excluded or ignored. Once she turned to look at Radhu, and he smiled a big broad smile.
Miranda felt so exasperated. She wanted to leave there and then, but how and where was she to go? She decided to admire the scenery instead and let them talk.
The garden was huge, and green. The tea bushes lined the paths, and the road beyond the garden was hilly. The road started to meander uphill. As they continued to drive, the road had sharper bends. It was an uphill climb. Derek stopped the jeep at one of the turns and asked Miranda to step out of the jeep and look down; it was very steep from where they were standing, and looking down, it was a sheer drop. They were quite high up, and a cool breeze was blowing softly. Where was the rain? It had disappeared! It was a pleasant feeling after the heat.
Suddenly, as if by magic, the fog started to descend from nowhere. The entire area was submerged in the fog, and it even felt a little chilly. Miranda suddenly felt cold. Her jeans and her thin top were not able to keep the sudden chill out. Derek asked her to look ahead down into the valley. It was breathtakingly beautiful. The sun was shimmering down in the valley, and all was very bright. It was so strange; it was foggy where they were, and it was so very bright far away in the distant valley. From nowhere tea appeared. Radhu apparently always carried provisions in the jeep. And this time instead of two cups he had three! The hot tea was very welcoming, and Miranda
thanked him profusely. She was presented with a big salute and a broad grin in return.
Miranda was absolutely awestruck at the natural beauty. She was a city girl, never having experienced or seen nature like this. After the welcome tea they all trooped back into the jeep, and Derek turned the jeep around with such dexterity on that small and narrow road with a huge drop on one side and a high hill on the other. The fog was lifting. It was disappearing almost as soon as it had appeared. And a ray of sun was desperately trying to peep through! Only a driver with special skills could drive in conditions like this. At first she was terrified, and looking sideways at Derek she noticed that he was grinning. Radhu noticed Miranda’s discomfiture and fear and volunteered to supply her with what he thought was some very vital information in his broken English. He told her that Derek had won many trophies in car rallies and driving fast cars, and off-roading was a passion of his. And of course he was always with his sahib, looking after him, which he had done from the sahib’s childhood whenever he was in India. But now his sahib seemed to be more here than there, and he was very happy about it.