They
forced their attention on the proceedings as the King loudly said, “Now all of
you may enjoy the feast in the pavilion outside.” Everyone gathered there made
a bee-line towards the gilded throne on which Juan and Sara were ensconced to
wish them a long and married happy life and give them beautiful gifts. Then
they proceeded towards the pavilion where every conceivable food items were
displayed tastefully in a buffet. The salad decorations were splendid and
eye-catching. Peacocks and elephants were carved out of radish and pumpkins, exotic-looking
flowers were made of strawberry, grapes, tomatoes and cucumbers.
Then
there were night-long celebrations at the palace, in the midst of which the new
King and Queen of Regina slowly made their exit into their private chambers.
Roses, lilies and jasmine invited them with their enticing and heavenly fragrance
into their boudoir.
Sara
waited with bated breath on the canopied bed for her husband to make the first
move. As he moved towards her, she closed her eyes and her soft pink lips
parted for a sweet kiss, expectantly. When she didn’t feel his lips on hers,
she opened her eyes and looked at him strangely. “What’s wrong with you Juan?
Haven’t we waited for this divine moment all our lives? Why are you so reticent?
I’ve noticed that you appeared very pensive and lost today.”
Gently,
she told him, “Please confide in me, Juan. I am your soul-mate. At least, I
hope to be one.” A small sigh escaped her lips as he maintained a stony
silence. When she couldn’t bear his brooding any longer, she started sobbing
quietly.
“Sara,
I’m sorry, but you’ve married an impotent man!” with great difficulty he
revealed the heart-rending truth to her. He was relieved after he got it off
his heavy chest. He could breathe easier now! Seeing the shocked look on her
beautiful face, he said, “Believe me, it is the truth. I was rendered impotent
at the shrine by my Master as he was angry that I had dared to disobey him and attempted
leaving the shrine with Myara.”
Angrily, Sara retorted, “But couldn’t you have informed the King or me
about this important information before the wedding, Juan? What will we tell
everyone when in a few months; a successor to the throne is not born? Can we
really live a platonic life, even if we tried really hard?” Juan had no answer.
Then he tried. “Sara you were desperate to marry me and the King was hell-bent
on our union. My mother was also hankering after our wedding. What choice did I
really have?"
Sara’s lips pursed into a thin line when
she noted the full import of his statement. He had married her as an obligation
and not out of true love! She was chilled to the bone. She went to sleep on a
couch near the bed leaving Juan staring at the full moon that reflected Myara’s
enchanting face.
The
next morning he saw that Sara lay on the couch with blood streaming in a
rivulet from the side of her beautiful, bow-shaped lips. He looked urgently at
her ring-finger. She had swallowed the huge diamond from her wedding ring and
taken her precious life. He let out a loud wail. The tears wouldn’t stop even
as everyone in the palace streamed in to look at what had prompted that wail.
They stopped short in their tracks on seeing the newly-wedded Queen, dressed in
all her bridal finery, lying prone on a couch, looking ethereal even in death.
The newly anointed King was crying like a baby.
The King
and Queen looked accusingly at Juan’s bent head and then at the Minister. “So
you ultimately proved that you are just a worthless scumbag!” the King
thundered. “I want an immediate explanation, Juan. Why did our beloved daughter
commit suicide?” Then as a suspicion reared its ugly head in his mind, he
added, “I hope that you didn’t force my Sara to commit suicide. In that case
you will be responsible for murdering her!”
Juan
sorrowfully raised his head to look at the King. He could see that everyone
there was crying their hearts out. What a
dreadful end to such a beautiful occasion in Regina! they were surely
wondering. Just what had egged the new Queen to take such a drastic step? She
had looked so beautiful and so much in love with her husband the previous day!
All of them waited with bated breaths to hear his reply.
Juan
was looking mutely at all of them. His throat was choked with emotion and his
heart was as heavy as lead. Quietly he said, “Yes Your Highness, I’m
responsible for your daughter’s death, though I swear that I didn’t kill her.
However I can tell only you, the Queen and my mother about the reason that led
to her taking her precious life. Oh, how I wish that she could’ve taken my
worthless life instead!”
Without much ado, the congregation, including
the Minister, left the boudoir and went away, leaving only the trio with Juan.
“Come on lad, speak up now. My blood is boiling with rage now. Speak before I
strangle you to death.” His eyes were streaming with tears, as were the Queen’s
and his mother’s. The Queen especially was looking at him with vengeance
flaming from her eyes. His mother was also very distraught as she could see that her
grand dream of her son ruling Regina and living in lavish luxury was vanishing
from her eyes. In fact, she feared the King’s wrath that would surely destroy
her only son Juan’s; and her lives in one fatal stroke.
To be continued....
The copyright of this novel is with Mrs. Priya Ramesh Swaminathan.
