TRUTH UNTOLD

Parimal woke up surrounded in a fog of gloom...for a minute he was not sure why till he heard the sounds below...his mother-in-law’s penetratingly shrill voice! Wanting to cover his head and pretend that yesterday never happened, when his mother-in-law came to spend the week, Parimal forced himself out of the bed.

Making his way downstairs, his sense of foreboding increased when he saw mom-in-law cooking breakfast. He had started having acute stomach cramps ever since yesterday’s lunch, cooked by her – maybe she was putting the wrong masalas or maybe she wasn’t cooking the food properly, whatever the reason, her cooking just didn’t suit him. Today he must tell Nina, his wife that she should cook his food and not her mother but what reason could he give without hurting her feelings?

Smiling politely, Parimal forced himself to eat the breakfast again, ignoring the incessant chattering between mother and daughter. Excusing himself, he readied himself for work when the acute stomach cramps started yet again. Swallowing medicines just wasn’t working, as he valiantly fought the pains, deciding to go to his childhood doctor friend – Madhav, right away. Calling in sick at work, Parimal drove to Madhav’s clinic and explained the symptoms to him. Examining his stomach and surrounding areas, Madhav took some ultrasound tests and blood tests, seeming perplexed at the normal results from the ultrasounds. “Let’s wait for the blood test results,” said Madhav sending Parimal home with some innocuous anti-cramping medicines. Nina saw him doubled over with pain in the bedroom and immediately called her mother. For a second Parimal was sure he saw an almost malicious gleam of satisfaction in the elderly woman’s eyes but dismissed it almost immediately as an over-working imagination clouded with pain.

Parimal knew his mother-in-law was temperamental and anti-men personality but thinking she would be happy at his suffering was going a bit too far. Mom-in-law had lost her mother almost at birth and had been brought up by a distant, indifferent father who was always immersed in his business and travel. Grief-stricken at losing his wife, he had scarcely paid any attention to his daughter or was always autocratic, dictatorial and denied her any companions or friends. Mother-in-law grew in a lonely, gloomy atmosphere – servants and solitude being her only companions. Pushed into an arranged marriage at the tender age of 18 years, her life was spent looking after a husband who matched her father’s temperament in every way. Bearing him three children – three daughters, Nina was the youngest – further worsened the relationship with her husband and the abusive, unhappy marriage ended with her husband’s death three years ago. Mother-in-law now spent her time in between her daughters’ home – Nina was the only married one and Parimal suspected that he being the only male member in the family did not go down well with her. The sisters-in-law showed equal rigidity and animosity as the mother but Thank God, Nina was different. More outgoing, charming and pretty she had left home for hostel-living very early and had grown up in a more ‘normal’ atmosphere, not witnessing as many domestic violent acts and fights as her sisters had. “Oh well, she will just have to accept that I am a man and Nina loves me, I am sure with time, she will be fine,” thought Parimal fighting another wave of nausea and cramps.

That evening, Madhav called up and said in a very strange voice, “Parimal, I don’t know how to say this but the blood tests showed some very strange results...there are traces of a poisonous substance in your fluids..I will not bother you with the medical terminologies but what I can say is they are harmful and can have very serious consequences if consumed any more, in fact fatal if continued even for a few days. Uh, Parimal are you still there...Parimal talk to me, hello, hello”, shouted Madhav when he heard no voice from the other end. “Yes, I am still here”, said Parimal in a strangulated whisper, his voice sounding as if coming from faraway. “Why will I have poison in my stomach, I have just been eating home cooked food”, he asked puzzled and very disturbed. “Even I am very surprised, the traces are very less so seems to be a recent phenomena but the point is they are there...who has been cooking at home?” asked his friend. “Well it’s mostly Nina but ever since mother-in-law has come, she has been....,”trailed off Parimal.

“You know I never did like your mother-in-law and the doctor in me always thought there was something not right about her mentally”, said Madhav. “But this seems really bizarre even by her standards”, continued Madhav. “I think I will tell Nina to cook for a while, bizarre or not bizarre, I am not taking any chances. She has always hated me for invading her all-woman bastion but this is carrying things too far”, said Parimal in a strong voice. “Do that and come back to me after a week for more tests. Make sure your mother-in-law does not cook”, warned Madhav signing off.

“Are you crazy, you don’t know what you are saying, how can you accuse mother of such horrible deeds”, screamed Nina predictably when Parimal told her his suspicions that night. “You can keep thinking what you want, I don’t care, either you start cooking again for me or I will be eating all my meals out everyday”, declared Parimal and turned over to sleep. The next thing he knew, his wife was shaking him hard and saying soothingly, “Wake up, Parimal, wake up. You are having a bad dream. Please wake up...here, have some water.” Parimal woke up sweating profusely and shaking. “What was I saying, I had the most horrible dream that I was being poisoned,” he admitted in between sips of water. “Well it was all a bad dream, it’s almost morning now and Mama is cooking us a nice breakfast, ummmm, I can smell it”, said Nina sniffing appreciatively.

Parimal got dressed, laughing silently at his silly dream and suspicions, looking forward to the breakfast as he entered the dining room. Wishing his mother-in-law a cheery good morning, he bent his head to eat and so missed the malicious gleam of evil intent in her eyes as she served him more food!