It was with a sense of relief that I went into the office on Monday morning. I was sitting at my desk, just staring out of the window, when Sonali walked in.

"Okay, Sunil. What's the problem? I know you well enough to know when's something's gnawing at you. Talk to me, pl."

I looked at her fondly. What a terrific girl. She's been with the firm for over 8 years now and I thanked our lucky stars that we had the good sense to hire her. Now, due to her work ethic and intelligence she had made partner. Of course, I was the first to admit, her good looks and great body didn't hurt either. She was in her mid 40s and had divorced a short while before starting work here.

I thought for a few moments and wondered if I should confide in her. You see, over the past few years Sonali had become rather close to Menka, they had become very good friends. They even managed to get together every couple of weeks for lunch or shopping. Despite, or maybe because of that, I went ahead. Maybe, in this case, two heads would be better than one.

"Menka's having an affair and I think that it's been going on for awhile now."

Sonali's mouth had dropped open. She looked kind of funny sitting there like that. Her mouth snapped shut and she then said, "Okay, Sunil. Why do you think that"? The lawyer in her had taken over.

So I gave her everything that I had. How our relationship had slowly gone downhill, my discoveries on Friday of, but not what I had done to, the little purple pills. I don't know why I didn't tell her about that, but kept that a secret for the time being.

Sonali sat, thoughtful, for awhile. " What are you going to do, Sunil? I would urge you to give yourself sometime before taking any drastic action. Get yourself together, this is still very fresh so make sure that you act sensibly." Then, with a puzzled look in her eyes, she said, "Tell me again about her medical condition,"

Her mobile went off and she muttered, "Shit, my client is here. I have to go. But Sunil, keep me informed. Let me help however I can. I'll stop by later, I want to ask you a question."

I nodded and thanked her as she sped off. I knew what my next step was going to be and I pulled the phone over and punched in a number.

"Good morning, Sarkar's" a female voice answered.

"Hi, Aditi. It's Sunil Choudhury. Is Tarun in?"

"Oh, hi Mr. Chudhury. I'll ring him for you." she replied.

In a few seconds, Tarun Sarkar came on the line. "Hi Sunil, how are you/"

"Not wonderful, Tarun. I need your services and sooner rather then later. Can you come over now?"

He heard the tension in my voice. "I'll see you in around 30 minutes, Sunil."

True to his word, Tarun Sarkar was sitting in a chair in my office as promised. I felt better just having him near. He was the head of a private investigation service that the office used quite frequently. Tarun was efficient, discreet and very ethical, or as ethical as you can be considering his profession. I gave Tarun all of the facts and my suspicions, again not mentioning what I had done to the birth control pills, and I wondered to myself why I was not sharing this. What the hell, it had no bearing on what I would eventually do anyway, I rationalized.

Tarun sat and only interrupted to ask a few questions occasionally. When I had finished, he just shook his head. "Damn, Sunil. I'm really sorry; I don't know what else to say, but that's neither here or there. I'm assuming that you want definitive evidence of any infidelity, right?"
I just nodded, unable to speak. This was now heading into another phase, a rather sordid and unsavory phase.

"Based on what you've told me, the weekends, from Saturday afternoon until Monday morning, are not in question." Tarun continued. "So we have to monitor your wife's activities from Monday until she leaves for Muzaffarnagar on Friday morning. Let's see if there's anything out of the ordinary during those days. You realize, of course, that it's her time in Muzaffarnagar that we have to examine very carefully. What Guest House does she use?"

I gave him that information about her company guest house and he seemed pleased. "Very good, Sunil. I know the house keeping manager there and I'm sure that we'll be able to cover everything that happens during the time that she's there. I'll be getting back to you as soon as I have anything."

He rose and turned to leave, then stopped and looked at me with sympathy in his gaze. "Look, Sunil. Just hang in, don't do anything out of the ordinary. Can you do that?"

I again nodded. He shook his head and walked out of my office. I sat there, a little shaken. This thing was now taking on a life of it's own. I had lost a bit of control and I felt a bit lost. I tried to examine my feelings for Menka. I found that I loved her, but I also hated her. I hated what she was doing and I hated her betrayal and her infidelity. I wondered if I would be able to forgive her. Forgive her fucking someone else. Forgive her for betraying our marriage vows. Forgive her for the humiliation I felt. Forgive her for the lies and contempt she has shown for our marriage. I smiled bitterly, I would miss the PapaaJi’s cake

The week was difficult at the office and at home. It seemed that I couldn't keep my mind on the things that needed my attention at work. At home it took everything I had to maintain a semblance of normality. Actually, it wasn't all that difficult. As usual, Menka seemed preoccupied. I'm not sure she would have even noticed if I had a heart attack and died in bed.

Tarun called me in the office on Friday morning. "Sunil, I have nothing for you at the present. Menka's activities have been entirely normal, nothing out of the ordinary. We're now going to concentrate on what she does in the Muzaffarnagar. I have spoken to my contact in the Guest house and everything is covered. I'll get back to you Monday morning. I have your cell phone number and I'll call you on Saturday with a preliminary report. Is that ok?" he asked.

I indicated that that would be fine. I dropped the phone on its base and swallowed. This was coming to a head now and I was frightened, frightened of the future. I realized that I would have to make decisions. I had been putting it off. I realized that I would have to begin giving my future some thought, but first I wanted to hear from Tarun.



I was in the garage Saturday afternoon putting a garden spade away when my cell phone vibrated in my pocket. I looked out and saw Menka in the kitchen. I answered it - it was Tarun.

"Hi, Sunil. It's not good news. Let me give you some information, you'll get a DVD and two copies and our complete report plus two copies Monday morning in your office. Is that okay?"

I muttered an assent and found my hand trembling a bit. He paused and continued.

"Menka checked into the Guest House around 10 a.m. Friday morning. A Guest house worker took her bag up to her room. She visited two large medical practices and then had lunch around 12. After lunch she visited a dental supply house where she spent about an hour and a half. She returned to the Guest House around 3, went up to her room, undressed and showered. She did not dress after her shower, she just threw on a lightweight Nighti. She called down for a coffee which was delivered about 20 minutes later. A guy showed up around 4"

Tarun cleared his throat. "The guy's name is Prakash Mathoor. He's an MD and lives not far from you. I assume you know him." Tarun stated more than asked.

"Okay, Tarun. Make sure to send over to me everything you have on Monday. I'll take it from there, and Tarun, thanks, I appreciate your help." I managed to get out.

We said our goodbyes and I clicked the phone off. I was not surprised, I had already figured out who she was fucking. My first clue were the little purple pills. I knew that she needed a Rx for them and I also knew that Prakash was her gynecologist. The clincher was the bullshit about her vaginitis. Sonali had clued me in about that and I had checked the Internet. Getting over that condition seldom took over a week, and never 6 months. So it wasn't too difficult to put two and two together and I sure wasn't getting five.

They must have gotten a real laugh about cutting me off. The poor schmuck of a husband not getting any loving from his devoted wife while she's screwing another guy's brains out. A light suddenly went on in my head. I was finally aware of why I had not shared what I had done to Menka's birth control pills. I was ashamed of myself. After all, that really was a rotten thing to do. But guess what, I was no longer ashamed. The shame was gone - fuck her, fuck them both.

The anger had taken hold now and was keeping my sorrow and grief at bay. But the anger I now felt was not the rage that had consumed me. This was a cold, calculated and bitter fury. I wanted to strike out at both of them, I wanted them to hurt as I now hurt. Menka had proved to be a betrayer and her lover no better. He had a wife and a profession - he risked much for an illicit piece of ass.

I am by nature not a devious man and I made no devious plans. Whatever action I would take would be straightforward and direct. I had no need to be devious. My plan was simplicity itself and would prove to be as devastating as the most nefarious plot. Now the trick was to act as if I suspected nothing. I just had to be my usual pleasant and unsuspecting fool of a husband. I think I may have gotten a Film fare awards for how I controlled myself during that weekend.
(TO BE CONTINUED)