On the night of the day when Annada Babu discussed with his daughter about her marriage proposal with Nalinaksha and she showed her diffidence to it he had recurrence of the severe pain which had attacked him in Calcutta. He spent the night in agony, but the morning brought some relief. Hemamalini attributed his relapse to disappointment to her rejection of the proposed marriage, and her conscience was troubled by the reflection that mental worry had aggravated the old man's bodily weakness. The problem of finding some means of alleviating his distress dominated all others in her thoughts, but she was totally unable to solve it.
The sudden appearance of Akshay and Uncle took her by surprise, and Akshay introduced the old gentleman as Chakrabarttiof Ghazipur, a worthy fellow-countryman whose name was well known throughout the province and he had something very important to tell. They seated beside Annada Babu and Uncle proceeded to explain their errand.
"I am informed ," he began, "that you are old friends of Ramesh Babu, so I have come to ask you if you can give me any tidings of his wife."
Surprise at this opening deprived Annada Babuof breath. "Ramesh's wife !" he exclaimed.
Hemamalini dropped her eyes, and Chakrabartti resumed : "You must think me very old-fashioned and ill-mannered, but if you will have patience and hear me out I think you will be convinced that I haven't come all the way from Ghazipur simply to discuss other people's affairs with you ! It was during the Puja holidays that I met Ramesh Babu ; I made his acquaintance on the steamer in which he was travelling up-country with his wife. You know yourselves that no one can meet Kamala without succumbing to her charm. I am an old man and sorrow and affliction have toughened my fibre, but I can never forget that dear little woman. On the steamer Ramesh Babu was still undecided about a destination, but we had known each other only a couple of days. Kamala became so attached to my old self that she persuaded her husband to disembark at Ghazipur and put up with us. My second daughter Saila loved her more than her own sister. I can't bear to speak of what happened after that. Why the dear girl should suddenly disappear, leaving us heart-broken, I have never yet been able to conceive. Saila's eyes have never been dry since we lost her" ; and Uncle completely broke down at the recollection.
"What happened to her, where did she go ?" asked Annada Babu in great concern.
"Akshay Babu," said Uncle, "you have heard everything ; you tell him. It breaks my heart to think of it."
Akshay recounted the whole story in detail. Without adding any comment of his own he succeeded in depicting Ramesh's behavior in the blackest colors.
At the conclusion of the recital Annada Babu said emphatically, "This is all new to us, I assure you. From the day that Ramesh left Calcutta we have not had a single line from him."
"Yes," chimed in Akshay, "we were so far in the dark that we didn't even know for certain that he had married Kamala. Let me ask you one question, sir. Are you certain that Kamala is his wife ? She couldn't be his sister or some such relation ?"
"What on earth do you mean, Akshay Babu ?" exclaimed Uncle. "Certainly she was his wife, and the best wife that man ever had."
"It is a curious thing, " commented Akshay, "that the more virtuous a wife is, the worse treatment she receives. Heaven reserves the hardest trials for the most deserving !" and he heaved a portentous sigh.
"It is certainly a most tragic story," said Annada Babu, "but nothing can be done now, so why waste tears over it ?"
"Well, the fact is," returned Akshay, "that I was by no means fully convinced that Kamala had committed suicide. It seemed to me possible that she had merely run away from home and consequently this gentleman and I have come to Benares to prosecute a thorough search. It is quite evident that you can throw no light on the subject. However, we shall spend a few days making inquiries here."
"Where is Ramesh now ?" asked Annada Babu.
"He left us without giving any address," replied Uncle ; while Akshay said in turn, "I haven't seen him, but I am informed that he has returned to Calcutta and I presume he will rejoin the Alipore bar. We'll go and make thorough inquiries in the city."
"Will you stay with us, Akshay ?" asked Annad Babu.
"I'm afraid I can't give you definite answer," said Akshay ; "I've taken this affair so much to heart, I'll have to devote all my time in Benares to this search. All my concern is about the position of delicately-nurtured girl like Hemamalini. Ramesh may be indifferent to her fate, but I'm not built that way."
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