‘What is the Lord doing in there?’ asked Nandi. ‘He is taking too long.’
‘I don’t know,’ said Veerbhadra. ‘All I know is that if Shiva says he needs to do something, I
accept it.’
‘Why do you call the Lord by his name?’
‘Because that is his name!’
Nandi smiled at the simple answer and turned to look at the temple.
‘Tell me Captain,’ said Veerbhadra coming close to Nandi. ‘Is Krittika spoken for?’
‘Spoken for?’
‘I mean,’ continued Veerbhadra. ‘Is she off limits?’
‘Off limits?’
‘You know what I mean,’ said Veerbhadra turning beet red. ‘She is a widow,’ said Nandi.
‘Her husband died fifteen years back.’
‘Oh, that’s terrible!’
‘Yes, it is,’ said Nandi, as he smiled at Veerbhadra. ‘But to answer your question, she is “not
spoken for” right now.’
‘My Lady, may I say something?’ asked Krittika.
Sati turned from the guest-room window to look at Krittika with a surprised frown. ‘Have I
ever stopped you from speaking your mind? A true Suryavanshi always speaks her mind.’
‘Well,’ said Krittika. ‘Sometimes, it may not be that harmful to lose control of yourself.’
Sati frowned even more.
Krittika spoke quickly, before her courage deserted her. ‘Forget about him being the
Neelkanth, my Lady. Just as a man, I think he is the finest I have seen. He is intelligent and
brave, funny and kind, and worships the ground you walk on. Is that really so bad?’
Sati glared at Krittika; she didn’t know if she was more upset at Krittika for what she was
saying or at herself for having feelings which were apparently so evident.
Krittika continued, ‘Maybe, just maybe, breaking the rules can lead to happiness.’
‘I am a Suryavanshi,’ said Sati, her voice dropping. ‘Rules are all that I live by. What have I
got to do with happiness? Don’t ever dare to speak to me about this again!’
‘Yes, there is this particular vikarma,’ admitted Shiva. ‘But that is not why I think the vikarma
law is unfair.’
‘I know that,’ said the Pandit. ‘But I also know that what troubles you right now is your
relationship with that one in particular. You don’t want her to think that you would change the
law, however justified, just to get her. Because if Sati believes that, she will never come to you.’
‘How do you know her name?’ asked Shiva, flabbergasted.