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Samarth changed tracks and went to Maarani’s chambers. A whole day had passed. He hoped she was well enough to talk the most important matter.

He knocked, two knocks followed by a single one.

“Kon?”

“Samarth.”

“Come in, Samarth.”

He pushed the door open and found her sitting on the sofa, her face impassive. The room was plunged into darkness, nothing but a small lamp lit in the corner.

“The confirmation came?” She asked, sounding just as lifeless as he felt inside. Hopeless too now.

“It’s coming in trickles. Two more search operations have failed. Everybody keeps hoping the answer will change in the next hour, but it is still the same.”

“What about the… is anything found?”

“Only that which was found in the morning.”

She nodded.

“We need to tell Sharan.”

Her eyes whirled up.

“By government estimate, it happened three days ago. Purohitji needs to be called for Uthamnu. To transfer power completely, the outgoing Rawal must be laid to rest.”

Maarani’s eyes widened, a swallow working down her throat.

“Transfer of power?”

“Indranil Kaka is here.”

She shot to her feet.

“What is he doing here? He has not seen this palace’s face since your father won that court case!”

“He is here. Asked me about Sharan’s Rajyabhishek. You know the implication.”

“Where is Sharan?”

“Harsh has him safe. He was eating dinner last I heard. I think Hira ben will be with him. She won’t leave him.”

“What do you think we should do?”

“Complete all the rituals. Terma nu Havan. We can’t remain in limbo.”

“Hmm…”

“Mummy?” Sharan peeped his face between her open doors. Samarth glanced at Hira ben behind him and raised his eyebrows. She shook her head. Samarth walked up to the doors and opened them fully. “Go in, Sharan.”

As Maarani kneeled down to get to his height, Samarth took steps back.

As she held his shoulders and ran her hands up and down, he crossed the threshold of her chambers.

As she started to tell him that their father was not coming back, Samarth turned and left the chambers.

If he was to function for the next day, week, year, life, he had to keep himself detached.

————————————————————

His phone was buzzing as he entered his bedchamber. He decided to ignore it before he saw who was calling. He bolstered himself and swiped it — “Hi, Ava.”

“Samarth!” She sighed. “Oh god, where are you? Are you ok? Harsh messaged but your phone was with him all day.”

His throat closed up.

“Samarth?”

“Yes?”

“Samarth, what is happening?”

“They haven’t found the body yet but blood samples and flesh samples have been identified.

Two scientists from the team are declared dead.

Their body parts have been found. The water was -4.

Survival chances weren’t there. There was a humpback whale that may have caused their zodiac to capsize.

Even if it did not eat… chances are the storm blowing over… ”

“Samarth, Samarth, Samarth, breathe. Breathe first.”

“I am breathing.”

“No, deep breaths.”

“I am fine, Ava.”

“I booked a ticket for early morning, I’ll be there by tomorrow evening.”

“No, don’t come.”

“But, Samarth…”

“The palace is full of people. They will be here for the next ten days at least. Along with winding up Rawal’s death declaration, there will be rituals every day. Then Sharan’s Rajyabhishek. Don’t come.”

“I am coming to India. To you. You can’t stop me.”

“Please, Ava. Please. Just stay put.”

“Ok… but I am leaving here tomorrow. I’ll go home. I’ll come when you are ready.”

Suddenly Samarth realised what Sharan’s Rajyabhishek would mean.

He wouldn’t be ready for Ava for the next decade at the least. More, if Sharan wasn’t ready. He took a deep breath. No decisions to be made tonight. He was exhausted. He wouldn’t be able to sleep but he had to keep control of his words and his actions during this time.

“What do you need, Samarth?” Her soft voice came.

“Sleep,” he lied.

“Ok. Sleep. I’ll call… or you call when you are feeling better.”

“Alright.”

“Samarth?”

“Hmm?”

“Did you cry?”

“No.”

“Do you want to cry?”

“No. If I cry now I won’t be able to function.”

“Ok. Ok. Sleep. Do you want to FaceTime? I’ll stay here, you sleep.”

It was so tempting to say yes, but Samarth did not know where the end of these ten days would leave them. So he lay down on his bed, in the same clothes from today’s court and closed his eyes — “I am already half asleep.”

“Ok, sleep then. Bye.”

“Bye.”

————————————————————

“Mota Kunwar?” Hira ben’s soft voice made his head turn.

She was walking with Sharan, his hand in hers, his tears flowing down his cheeks.

He was ready in his white kurta-pyjama to match his for the Terma nu Havan, the final thirteenth-day ritual for their father.

The last ten days had passed in a blur. While every minute had seemed difficult to live through, the days had flown by.

Samarth extended one hand and Sharan ran the rest of the way to him, throwing his body into his stomach. Samarth embraced him, his wiry bones shaking under his flesh. He had lost so much weight in the last week, if that was even possible.

“Alright,” Samarth ran a hand through his hair and cupped his nape, like Papa would. “Alright, Sharan. It’s going to be over soon. You have to be strong and not cry there, ok?”

He shook his head.

“Yes,” Samarth tapped the back of his head, injecting some humour into his voice and feeling none of it.

Sharan shook his head again. Samarth chuckled, pulling him back and pushing his hair off his forehead.

His eyes were red and he looked like he would fall again.

But kids were strong. They were resilient.

He had seen that with Sharan as a baby too.

Samarth smiled down at him, cupped his cheeks and pushed his tears off his eyes — “Papa went but I am here. I will always be here. Hmm?” He nodded.

Sharan nodded back.

“Now walk with me, Nana Kunwar.”

Sharan pushed off, rubbed his hands down his cheeks and inhaled his hiccuping sobs. Samarth glanced back at Hira ben. She smiled at him, nodding. She was the only elder left for him now. Everybody was gone. Samarth nodded back, not ready to go down that rabbit hole yet.

Jai Dwarkadhish.

He nodded at the guards and they let out their war cry.

He began to march, Sharan beside him. And as he crossed the alleys, their palace guards began to fall in step behind them — protocol multiplying the beats of their footsteps until the thundering inside him quieted and only the chants coming from the Durbar Hall remained.

————————————————————

Samarth folded his hands to Purohitji as the final rites were concluded. The fire of the havan was dimming as he stood to his feet with Sharan.

“Keep the court here, Kaka,” he instructed Ajatshatru Kaka. “I will be back.”

He patted Sharan’s shoulder, got to his feet and walked out of the court. Palace guards fell in step behind him.

“Wait here,” he commanded. They stopped in their tracks and fell back.

Samarth kept marching, taking that familiar route to his father’s…

Rawal’s office. He reached the door and grabbed the handle.

His feet stalled for a second. This was it.

Final. Samarth took a deep breath and depressed the handle.

He did not wait to inhale the familiar scent of his Papa still lingering in this room.

Even after weeks of working here in his absence, it refused to go.

He shut the door and locked it. Then walked around the table.

He opened his Papa’s secret drawer, the one that was hidden in plain sight.

The keys of the palace’s treasury, armoury and temple.

The symbolic device of power. He set them on the table and kneeled down under it to pull open the safe built in there.

He slotted the safe key, pressed his thumb into the digital reader and typed in his Papa’s password until it beeped opened.

He pulled the safe and fisted the seal of Nawanagar — their Raj Sinh Mohar.

The heavy golden seal fit into his fist — the literal object of power.

He changed the safe password and erased all previous fingerprints as per Papa’s orders.

Then locked it all shut. He tugged the top drawer open and pulled the papers he had gotten the lawyers to prepare, for Sharan’s official accession to the throne of Nawanagar and by extension as the steward of all properties and businesses owned by the throne.

Grabbing the papers, keys and Raj Sinh Mohar, Samarth marched out of the office. Harsh was waiting for him.

Sharan is gone.

“Where?”

He ran away from court.

Samarth changed tracks and marched towards Maarani’s chambers. He reached the doors and could hear loud noises from inside. He nodded at the guard.

“Kunwar Samarth padharya chhe!” He announced.

More noises, loud voices.

“Aava do,” Maarani’s echo came.

Samarth pushed the door open and strode in to find Maarani, her mother, Giriraj Hukum and Hira gathered in the sitting area.

“Maarani. I need Sharan.”

“Why?” Her mother demanded. She looked haggard.

“I need to take him to court. We need to secure the throne now that Terma nu Havan is over. I should have done this that first day, but the confirmation hadn’t come…”

“What kind of son are you?” She accused. “You are not even grieving fully? Just thinking about throne and kingdom?!”

Samarth took a deep breath, letting that pass.

“These were Rawal’s orders. I have to take Sharan to court and declare him Rawal. Maarani, where is he?”

“I am not going!” Sharan cried from her bedchamber. Samarth turned in that direction and strode in. He was lying face-down on his mother’s bed, body shaking.

“Sharan, get up,” he asserted.

“No!”

“Sharan, we have to go, come on, just ten minutes, come…” Samarth reached for his arm.

He shirked it off — “No! No! No!”

“Sharan you better get up now.”

“No!”

“Sharan!” Samarth yelled. Sharan’s crying intensified. Samarth reached down and physically pulled him to his feet kicking and crying.