In her festive attire and her new-awakened self-consciousness Kamala seemed to Ramesh a new being. Beholding her suddenly in this guise he was thrown off his guard and succumbed to her charm. He slowly approached and paused for a moment or two before he addressed her softly. "Did you send for me, Kamala ?"
Kamala winced at his words. "Most certainly not ! I did nothing of the kind. Why should I send for you ?" she answered with unnecessary vehemence.
"Well, if you had sent for me it wouldn't have been a crime, Kamala."
"I never sent for you !" repeated Kamala with redoubled emphasis.
"Very well then, I have come without being invited. You won't surely send me away in disgrace on that account ?"
"They'll all know that you've come and they'll be angry. Please go away at once. I didn't send for you."
"All right," said Ramesh, taking her by the hand, "you come to my room instead ; there's no one else there,"
Trembling in her limb Kamala tore her hand from his grasp, fled into the adjoining room, and shut the door.
Ramesh understood now what had happened ; the whole thing had been a scheme concocted by one of the womenfolk. With all his nerves on edge he returned to the outer room. One perturbing thought after another coursed through his mind like clouds scurrying before the wind.
Sailaja knocked at the door that Kamala had bolted, but there was no response. She thrust her hand through the venetians, pulled back the bolt, and entered the room. To her astonishment she found Kamala prostrate on the floor, her face buried in her hands, weeping. Unable to conceive what had reduced Kamala to this pass Saila plumped down beside her and murmured gently, "What is it, dear ? What's the matter ? Why are you crying ?"
"Oh, why did you send for him ? It was very wrong of you !"
Kamala, no more than any one else, could assign a reason for her sudden and violent outburst of grief. No one knew of the hidden sorrow that she had been cherishing for days past.
Kamala had been building for herself castles in the air and had just put the finishing touches when Ramesh entered. Had he broken in more gently upon her vision all might have been well, but at his supposition that she had sent for him her castles crumbled to earth. His attempt to keep her a prisoner at school during the holidays, his indifference to her on the steamer, these and other memories crowded in upon her. Spontaneous intimacy was one thing, mere obedience to a summons was quite another. It was only since coming to Ghazipur that she had realised the world of difference between the two.
But Sailaja would never be able to understand. That there could be a real barrier between Ramesh and Kamala was beyond her powers of comprehension.
With an effort she lifted Kamala's head on to her lap, exclaiming, "Tell me, dear, did Ramesh Babu say anything unkind to you ? Perhaps he was annoyed because my husband went to fetch him. You should have told him it was all my doing."
"No, no, he said nothing about that ! but why did you send for him ?"
"It was wrong of me," said Sailaja contritely, you must forgive me."
Kamala sat up at once and threw her arms round Saila's neck. "Run away now, dear," she said, "Bipin Babu will be getting impatient."
Meanwhile Ramesh went to deep thinking and at last he roused himself, "Enough of this," he said to himself ; "I'll go to Calcutta to-morrow and get through my business there. The longer I delay to make Kamala my wife the more of a scoundrel I feel !"
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