C11 Where Is She?

Sri Latha woke up from her reverie afraid that her mother will scold her looking around fearfully. She blinked in surprise for a minute before she realized she was no longer the five-year-old kid and that she was now in the professor’s house – or should she call it a mansion? It certainly didn’t fit in with any current description for a house.

She took a deep breath and started stripping off her clothes. She needed a hot bath badly to calm her nerves and to plan her future now that she had graduated with a doctor's degree. Even in the most advanced society that was Sourabha Rajyam, opportunities for history graduates were less when compared to the offers graduates from other disciplines received.

She adjusted the knobs till she got the right temperature cherishing the refreshing showers falling on her face soothing her taut nerves. “A bath is the best way to calm your nerves.” The last time she had had this effect was when her mother had still been alive. She let her hair loose and let it cover the front part of her body. The hair was still too long and thick and reached her ankles.

“Mom!!!!! I am a big girl now!” ten-year-old Sri Latha protested as her mother followed her into the bathroom. It was her birthday, and she was supposed to take a head bath that day. She already had waist length hair that was usually woven into two beautiful plaits bouncing off her shoulders merrily. All her friends, neighbors and relatives had been jealous of her extremely long hair.

“You are still my child young lady, no matter how big you are!” her mother would then proceed to untie her hair and wash it so well it sparkled with health and fragrance. She would then proceed to dry her hair and use dhoop smoke to ward off any evil. That was what she said but she wondered now whether it had any healing properties. She had wanted to ask someone, but she was afraid she would be laughed at.

She desperately longed for the warmth of her mother, the scent of her mother’s body, the reassuring security of her mother’s lap that no amount of wealth could buy.

“Mom, why did you have to die? Who will take care of me? Who will wash my hair and scold me and sing me to sleep? I wish I could go back in time and save you. Why did you leave me alone mother?” Sri Latha broke into tears, her grief flowing into the drain with the water falling on her body.

Sarala knocked on the door twice but got no response. She knocked again, waited for a minute and gingerly pushed the door. She was surprised that it opened easily, an indication that it had not been locked. “Ma’am?” she called out trying to find her master’s guest. Finding her nowhere in sight, Sarala’s heart raced like a jet engine, her mind rapidly assessing the situation and threats to her charge. Professor Kumar was a terror when it came to the safety of his loved ones and this young lady was one of those.

A deep chill ran down her spine as she tried to imagine what he would do with her if he found out that she had let her charge go missing. She tried not to remember the cries of agony of her predecessor when she had been pronounced guilty of abandoning her post while on duty. That woman had been literally skinned alive. She did not need a creative brain to know what he would do if he found out that his guest was missing. The thought made her knees shake in terror.

“Oh God! Please have mercy on me. Let nothing happen to the young guest. Take my life but keep her safe please.” She started praying fervently and stopped. “Oh My God! Why am I panicking? She must be somewhere here. Calm down, Sarala. No need to panic. Everything will be ok.” She started checking each and every corner of the room.

The closet was empty, the walk-in wardrobe was empty, the bed had not been slept in nor was anyone under the bed. She even tried the revolving wall mounted mirror in vain. It was as if the guest had vanished into thin air. “No, no, no! This can’t happen. This can’t be right. Search Sarala, search.” She muttered to herself as she kept looking in places where even a child would not fit. It showed how desperate she was to locate the missing guest.

Finally, she sat on the floor in despair unable to think, her mind telling her of the numerous ways her master would torture her for failing to keep an eye on her charge. “God! Why are you doing this to me? Please, please give me a heart attack. Please, please, please!”

She tried to imagine how it would be to get a heart attack. Would her master let it go or would he target her family? “What have I done? Oh, what have i done? Why did I go away for so long? What will I tell my master now?” she was about to start sobbing when she heard the sound of water.

Was she imagining things or was it really water? Was the shower on? She checked to see if her master was approaching. Finding the coast clear, she sprang up and ran towards the bathroom, her heart in her palm. She placed her ear to the door and almost laughed out loud in relief. The shower was on and that meant the guest might be bathing. She knocked on the door and received no response.

Her heart and brain went into overdrive again turning her insides into a paste with anxiety about what might have happened to her master’s cousin. Her fears choking her, she pushed the door and was shocked that it was open. “Had her guest escaped? Was her guest ill? Did she require assistance? Had she fainted? Why was she not responding?” she entered fearing the worst and let out the breath she had been holding till then. Sri Latha was sobbing her heart out under the shower totally naked.