Rising to a seated position beside her, I took her hand, wove my fingers through her own. “Instead, their own words created the stressor.”
“I was so mad at them,” Diya whispered. “I was so mad, Tavi.”
The wind chimes danced in on a seaward breeze, a ghost flitting in and out of my vision as Diya fell into nightmare.
Chapter 80
Diya
Tears blurring her vision, Diya pushed at her dad, never imagining that he’d do anything but grunt. He was so much bigger than her, her father who had always been there, so strong and solid.
But somehow, his balance was off.
When she pushed…he fell.
The crack of sound was loud, too loud, too wet. “Daddy?” she whimpered, staring at his crumpled form on the edge of the solid stone hearth.
“Rajesh!” Diya’s mother ran to her husband. “Rajesh!” Chest heaving, she checked his pulse, looked desperately at his face, searched for any hint of life.
But when she turned back to Diya, Diya knew. “No,” she said, backing away. “No, I didn’t mean it.”
Shaking, white-faced, Sarita gripped her dead husband’s hand. “I knew I should’ve had you put away after you hurt Ani.” A harsh denunciation. “But I loved you so much. You were my little girl, my baby.”
A hard shake of her head. “I won’t make that same mistake again, won’t let you hurt anyone else.”
Cracks inside Diya, an expanding spiderweb of fracture. “Mum, I didn’t mean it,” she said on a sob. “I’m so sorry.”
But her mother wasn’t listening, was pulling out her phone.
“No one is taking Diya away!” Shumi ran out from around the kitchen counter where she’d been chopping up fruit for a platter.
The knife in her hand dripped fruit juice onto the carpet.
Diya stared at the red droplets. Her mum would get mad soon, she thought dully. She loved that carpet, liked to keep it crazy clean.
“It’s necessary, Shumi beta.” Sarita turned to cup her husband’s cheek with one hand. “What will I do without you, my love?”
Diya’s mind was fuzzy, her legs trembling, but she knew Shumi shouldn’t be running at her mother with a knife. “Shumi, stop!” But she was too late, Sarita already screaming as Shumi punched the knife into her neck hard before pulling it out.
Red sprayed onto the ceiling as Sarita grabbed at her neck.
“Shumi, no!” Diya lunged for the knife, tried to get it away from her sister-in-law.
“This is for you, Diya!” Shumi refused to let go of the blade, her face speckled with Sarita’s blood as she managed to break Diya’s grip long enough to stab Diya’s mother one more time.
Sarita collapsed onto the floor, but she wasn’t out. She started to crawl to the open patio doors.
Desperate to help her mother escape, Diya went to grab the knife from Shumi again…and Shumi slipped.
The knife was curiously painless going into Diya’s abdomen.
“Diya!” Sliding the blade free, Shumi looked from her to Sarita and seemed to come to a decision. “It’s fine, it’s fine, we’ll call an ambulance,” she said as Diya clutched at her stomach. “I just need to finish this.”
Turning, she stalked toward Sarita with murderous intent.
Shumi was too strong. Diya couldn’t beat her on strength alone.
She ran to the kitchen. Her flight left a dark red trail on the carpet, her fingers wet on the handle of the knife sitting in the block on the counter. Wrenching it out, she ran at Shumi, who was crouched over Sarita, stabbing her over and over.
