Ma, baba does dirty things to me in your absence, she sobbed
It hurts, I feel violated

She didn't believe her daughter
How can a father defile his own blood
You are lying, she rebuked her daughter
Don't tell such filthy lies about your father

Her daughter kept quiet
Never broached the topic again
But somewhere the fear of suspicion kept lingering on her mind
What if, it was true

One day, she didn't go to work
She lingered near her house
After a while she saw her husband enter their hut
Surreptitiously she crept near the window
Then she saw what she dreaded
Her husband violating the terrified child

Rage surged like volcano
She bashed the meager door
Screaming wildly, she took the pankhi and leapt on her husband
She kept attacking till every ounce of her blood cooled

As he lay dead
She wiped away the traces of blood
And walked out of the door
Along with her daughter.
©LR