PRINCESS

Hidayat Khan had a long talk with his daughter in the study the next day.

He talked at length about his love for the country and how he had

managed to set up the network which now needed someone to take over.

He explained how he couldn’t trust anyone other than her. Sehmat

watched the emotions come and go on her father’s face. She could

literally feel the pain he was going through, and she understood the

gravity of what he had handed over to her. How could she let him down?

How could she walk away from this? She would be risking the entire

operation if she defied the ground rules. Her family’s honour was at

stake. She would have to make the supreme sacrifice and, without

looking back, bury the memories of her true love in the sands of time.

That was how it would be, and she had to decide very quickly.

Sehmat took the entire day to think about her decision. Her parents did

not disturb her or try to influence her but there was anticipation in their

eyes. She was restless during the night too. The next morning, Sehmat

made her way downstairs to tell her parents of her decision. Instead of

servants of the house attending to their chores, she was met by

neighbours and friends of the family assembled in the drawing room. For

a moment she was disoriented. With a sinking feeling, she rushed to her

parents’ room. There she saw Tej kneeling by Hidayat’s side, weeping

softly. Hidayat was lying on his usual side of the bed, with his eyes

closed.

Fearing the worst, Sehmat quickly reached her father’s side. Sensing

what her daughter was thinking, Tej shook her head. ‘He suddenly

developed a complication this morning. The doctor has been in to see

him and has administered some injections. He needs to rest,’ she

whispered. Something was different about Sehmat today. There was no

trace of tears on the young woman’s face whose life had taken such a

drastic turn, without being given a chance to react or recover.

Later, Sehmat talked about her decision. She would do as expected—

get married three months later—but not before making a trip to Delhi.Her parents were relieved but also worried for her. With a heavy heart

they let her go to Delhi, one last time.

The first person Sehmat met was her soulmate. Aby listened to her in

shock and bewilderment as she outlined her destiny. Sehmat trusted him

completely and, against the strict advice of Mir, unveiled the reasons and

secret behind her hurriedly planned marriage to the Pakistani Captain.

‘My father has sacrificed himself for our nation, Aby, and the least I can

do is give him peace as he approaches the last phase of his life. Besides,

it would be an honour to be able to serve our motherland,’ she said,

talking about her decision.

Aby wasn’t convinced. Not only was he going to lose Sehmat to

another man, he also foresaw serious consequences to her personal

safety. ‘Do you realize that you are not cut out for such a dangerous

operation? Are you even remotely aware of how spies are treated if they

are caught?’

Sehmat did not respond. She saw the unbearable pain he felt in his

eyes. Since she had decided to be betrothed to another man, she was

honour-bound to end her relationship with Aby. But her heart was not

responding. It was instead revolting, forcing Sehmat to merge with Aby’s

soul. For the second time in her life, she allowed herself to be led by her

emotions. Moving closer to Aby, she whispered, ‘Please hold me in your

arms. Who knows what will happen tomorrow. I’ll live with the

memories of your love for the rest of my life.’

Their faces streamed with tears as they clung to each other. Aby was

finding it hard to breathe. He could not imagine his life without Sehmat.

Her tinkling laughter, her smile and her sweet fragrance were engraved

in every pore of his being. But now he had to let go. He looked into her

eyes and said, ‘I have loved you, Princess. I always will. Remember, I

am here for you. All you need to do is reach out to me. And no matter

what, I’ll be there.’

Sehmat nodded through her tears. Scared that another moment with

him would weaken her, she pulled away gently, wiped her tears and

walked away from his life, and hers too.

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