Akshay was the first to speak. "I beg your pardon, Ramesh Babu. I thought we should find you alone. Jogen, we shouldn't have dropped in on him like this without warning. Come along, we'll go and wait downstairs." Kamala leapt to her feet and left the room. Jogendra's eyes ,however, set on her face and stared fixedly at her. Kamala fled in confusion into an adjoining room.
"Ramesh, who is that girl ?" demanded Jogendra.
"A relation of mine," answered Ramesh.
"What is the relationship ?" asked Jogendra ; "she's not one of your elders, and I presume the tie has not been created by affection. You've told me about all your relatives, yet I never heard any thing about this one."
"Steady on, Jogen," broke in Akshay. "Surely there are things that a man likes to keep secret even from his friends."
"Well, Ramesh," said Jogendra, "is this such a great secret then ?"
Ramesh turned red. "Yes, it is a secret," he said. "I should prefer not to discuss this girl with you."
"But unfortunately," retorted Jogendra, "I perticularly want to discuss her with you. If you hadn't been engaged to Hemamalini there would be no need to investigate the ramifications of your family tree ; you might have kept your own secrets."
"This much I can say," said Ramesh ; "there is no one in the world with whom I have formed such a connection as would be a bar to my marrying Hemamalini with a clear conscience."
"There may be no bar from your point of view, but there may be one from the standpoint of Hemamalini's relations. I'll merely ask you this much-whether you're related to her or not, why do you keep her hidden away here ?" asked Jogendra.
" If I tell you my reason the secret will be out. Can't you take my word for it without asking for reasons ?", replied Ramesh. The further enquiry went on :
"Is this girl's name Kamala or not ?" asked Jogen.
"It is ," came the reply.
"Have you or have you not passed her off as your wife ?", added Jogen.
"I have," was the answer.
"Do you expect me to believe you then ? You want to tell us she isn't your wife. You've told every one else that she is. You don't set a very good example of veracity," said Jogen to put Ramesh at guilt.
" You mean, it's is hardly the sort of instance that one would use in college lecture on truthfulness. But after all, my dear Jogen, it may be necessary in practice to tell two different stories to two different sets of people when the circumstances are exceptional. The probabilities are that one or other of the stories is correct.
Perhaps what Ramesh Babu told you is true after all," Akshay added his fuel.
Ramesh gave his final reply. "I'm not going to tell you people anything at all. I only say this much, that I am doing Hemamalini no wrong in marrying her. I have a very good reason for refusing to discuss Kamala's affairs with you. It would be wrong for me to do so, however suspicious you may think my conduct. If it were only a question of my happiness and reputation I should keep nothing from you. But I decline to say anything, when by doing so I may jeopardise another's future. I'll tell Hemamalini everything after we're married. If she likes, I'll tell her even now."
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