"Yes Samantha… if you had asked me such a thing, I mean 'my consent'… I wouldn't have agreed… I would say 'NO' to you… Suppose, if that happened to you before your friends, I'm sure you would never look at my face even…"
Again Samantha attempted to interrupt her, but she kept her pointer against his lips and urged him not to disturb her.
"Now you will ask why we met on our way to school every morning and evening…? Yes… that's also a very good question… Samantha, I was brought up in an environment without a father… It is YOU who became my shadow. I expected that protection from you both day and night… my grandma, who was like a goddess, always advised me not get entangled with anything until I was able to stand on my own feet… She often took my mother as an example. She didn't want to see I get my life ruined like my mother… The word 'happiness' was not in the dictionary of my life… what I saw was the sun rising and setting… nothing else… It was the day when I attained my age; I got to know who my father was… That's because of my appearance… Bernard Hamu took off the necklace he had been wearing and put it around my neck because he identified whose who I was… When I saw Sandra Hamu's face for the first time, I realized she was none other than my father's sister… She did really love me… but my father didn't want to accept me or at least claim that he was my father… He was living in a different world… One day Aunty asked me about you… She said you were a good boy… After that I started thinking of you… but before I wanted to tell it to you, the family disputes broke in and we became enemies… I mean our parents… Now I think everything is clear to you… Samantha…"
Samantha listened to her quietly. He realized the root causes for almost all the problems. He felt really worried about the difficulties and hardships Nanda had to undergo. Stroking her head, he kept his lips on her forehead and kissed with overflowing love.
"What about Bernard Hamu…? How did he react to you…?"
Her conscience didn't allow her to say a single word against him.
"He was like a god visible… but he was not in a proper mood since the day Sandra left him… He went on drinking… he listened to nobody… Finally, it was our Bappa (uncle), who helped him…
"The first few months of your stay at Ulhitiya… You avoided me… I thought you would love Bernard Hamu…"
Nandana Menike was taken aback by that remark. Again she thought how innocent he was as even on the first night of their married life, he did not inquire about the purity of her character. Nandana Menike was shaken by the thought that Samantha was suspicious of Bernard.
"No Nanda… I don't find anything wrong with that…" He again stroked her head understanding her discomfort and tried to console her as he got a comprehensive answer to each and every question he raised.
Nandana Menike leaned against his chest without saying anything.
"It's wrong even to think of him in that way… It took some time for me to realize… you reached your age being late… It is true that it doesn't happen to each and every girl at the same age… Even though I did science subjects, I had been rather conventional in my thinking and suspected Bernard for no reason… However your mine now… I know how much you love me, even in words you do not articulate… But, I have a sense of fear on one thing…"
"Fear…?" loosening the grip she looked at him with a puzzled look.
"Your Sandra aunty went to Australia and stayed there with her ex-boyfriend… I wonder you also one day will follow her footsteps…" Though Samantha's intention was to crack a joke at her; she took the words so seriously and keeping both hands on his lips she tried to stop him.
* * *
To weed the overgrown grass around Samantha's quarters, Kapilasena didn't take much time. His inclination to cultivation for the last few months had made him very familiar with almost all kinds of tools and equipment.
He sat down to relax for some time on the concrete chair, which had been positioned to the left side of the garage. Since he didn't have much work, he enjoyed the cool breeze that blew across the Dumbara valley. He felt very comfortable with the climatic condition there.
"Hmm… looking for you everywhere… here… have this tea…"
Kapilasena didn't see Yasawathi's approach with a cup of tea, as he had been lost in thought.
"What about the kid…? Sleeping…? While sipping tea, he asked Yasawathi with an inquiring look.
"Daughter went out after feeding and making her sleep…"
"Where did they go…?"
"I think they went to see the former residence… last evening, I just overheard that Samantha Putha was suggesting to Nanda to pay a visit to the former village…"
Nandana Menike's keen interest to see the former house and the surroundings was not a secret for Kapilasena.
"If the Victoria Reservoir hadn't come up… we would have been still slaves of Bernard family…"
Yasawathi remarked gazing at the range of mountains in the distance.
"Slaves of Bernard Hamu...? He never regarded and treated us as slaves Yasawathi…"
He expressed his displeasure towards Yasawathi and remembered, with a sense of gratitude, what sort of help he had given to them at difficult times.
"I did not talk about Raja Hamu or Bernard Hamu in that way…"
She heaved a deep sigh looking at Kapilasena.
"No point of talking about what is gone… shall we also go to the Reservoir site to see how the new location is now…?"
"I want to see the place where my mother was buried…"
Yasawathi dreamt of seeing her mother's grave as she could not pay last respect or attend the funeral.
"I think the water level should go down another two or three feet to see that area more clearly… The grave is there further down the farm…"
Even the water level had gone down; Kapilasena guessed that they would not be able to locate the grave as it had been in the lowest part of the area, which was still under water.
"My mother was not lucky enough to see my daughter getting married to Samantha putha… and living with him happily…" Wiping out tears, Yasawathi murmured.
"She was always in favor of that Child… She knew very well that Samantha putha was a very good decent child right from the beginning… But it was you who could not tolerate him…"
Kapilasena, looking at her stealthily, recalled the past.
"Those days I was scared of everything that happened around me… Everybody labeled me as a demented ugly character… Even under such labeling, I couldn't stay safe more than seven or eight months after attaining my age… How could I protect my child who is like an angel on this earth…?" Yasawathi swallowed rest of the words.
"If something is destined to happen, no force can stop that Yasawathi… Keep that in mind… you see now… when both of your father and mother were alive, Victor snatched you… Did anything of that sort happen to our Menike…? It is Bernard Hamu, who looked after and protected her in the absence of you and KoinMenika…"
Kapilasena expressed the trust he had placed in Bernard.
"Bernard Hamu knew whose who my daughter was…"
"It is because of Nandana Menike that Bernard Hamu helped us this much…If he hadn't been here, we wouldn't have been anywhere… Yasawathi…"
"Everybody in the estate was given lands in Ulhitiya by Mahaweli Authority… We would not have any block of land, if Mahaweli hadn't started this huge project…"
Yasawathi was aware of the fact that her mother too was able to claim the ownership for a plot of land because of that mega project.
"It is true that we got this land from Mahaweli…but we could build that house in that way because of Bernard Hamu… Don't forget that Yasawathi… Be grateful always…"
"Bernard might have thought to repay the debt for what my father and mother did for them since the day they were born… That's why he helped us to build that house in that way… The other point is that Bernard may have had an intention to distance our daughter from their family circle, despite their awareness of the real relationship… Just think, did they ever take any attempt to see our daughter dead or alive…up to this time…?" There was a hint of accusation in her voice.
Kapilasena released a long breath as he knew that responding to her logic was an utter waste of time. He thought that Yasawathi had developed such negative attitude towards the bungalow and its people owing to the painful bitter experience she had gained from Victor. However, Kapilasena thought of drawing her attention to another direction.
"Whatever it is, because of the reservoir, many homeless people like us, could benefit a lot indeed…"
Yasawathi added a long sigh to it indicating her stance about the people in the bungalow.
"I want to ask Samantha Putha whether I can go to my native place by tomorrow…" Kapilasena changed the topic in a subtle manner.
"Maharawela…?"
Yasawathi again became inquisitive. Her expression implied for what reason he was planning to go to his native place.
"Yes… I can't remember when I saw my family members last… No information of anyone of them after my coming here…"
"What is the point of going there…? Even Loku Amma is not there now…"
Yasawathi thought that visiting his native place was meaningless as his mother was dead and gone. Yasawathi had no such strong bonds with the relatives in Maharawela as all relationships had collapsed after settling down in Nilgala, soon after the marriage between Koinmenike and Justin.
"It is true that my mother is dead and gone… but others are there still… Aren't they… Yasawathi..? I think still they may be involved in the pottery industry there as earlier…"
The Maharawela village was situated on a high land, which had no possibility of getting submerged because of the reservoir or any other construction.
Pottery industry was the chief occupation of most of the villagers here.
"I don't mind you going there… but remember, do not encourage anyone of your relations to trespass here renewing the old relationships… If they start coming here, that may create unnecessary problems for my daughter…"
Yasawathi tried to state that there could be a possibility of establishing new relationships between two parties.
Kapilasena looked away without responding. He didn't want to waste his words to answer such narrow minded thoughts in that way. Koinmenika, when she was alive, never forgot to inquire about her relatives there at Maharawela, though she did not have direct contacts with them.
Kapilasena's thoughtful mood made Yasawathi rather uneasy.
"Were you hurt of what I said…? Feel relaxed and think for a while… If Maharawela people start coming here… will Samantha Putha like it…? I'm sure he won't like those pottery people coming over here claiming all sort of relationships…" Yasawathi was in an attempt to justify what she said.
"I can understand Yasawathi… I'm not a kid… Even the Gunadasa family, though they are not that much well off, they are high caste people… Because of our Menike, our people would call us 'aunty' and 'uncle' and so on… but, Gunadasa and his family will not like to have such bonds with the pottery people…"
That's what I told you... Finally, our child would be in trouble…"
Kapilasena, placing his palms on his knees got up from the sitting position.
"You may be feeling lazy for want of much work here like at Ulhitiya…"
"I don't know whether Andiris would bring leaves for the cows… Somasiri of course may have gone to the paddy field…" Kapilasena's mind flew to Ulhitiya in no time.
"I think, Piyaseeli sister will see to it without delay… She knows how to get the work done by Andiris…"
Kapilasena placed trust in her words as he knew how she helped Piyaseeli when she had difficulties at home.
"Better if I can have a body wash…but this tap is quite visible to the people in the house opposite… Always those people are found outside the house…"
There wasn't a big gap between two quarters in Nilagama. The quarters next to Samantha's one was occupied by a female officer, who worked at the same office.
"You see… there are two attached bathrooms inside… You cannot get a body wash easily from the tap outside… It is fixed at a very low level, just two feet above the ground level… Why don't you trouble yourself filling water into a basin and washing just looking around…?"
The tap outside was used for gardening purposes and washing the vehicle.
"I am not used to having a bath from attached bathrooms…"
"What is used to…? You can have a hot bath from it, if you want… Do you know…? I had a body wash last evening with hot water… Daughter came in and turned something this way and that… and instantly… you see… there was hot water…"
An involuntary smile appeared on Kapilsena's face.
* * *