Page 16 of A Shimla Affair
‘I would like to inform you that, unfortunately, the terms of your agreement must be changed. This property, registered originally under your father’s name, must be acquired under government law, or rather reacquired. While at an earlier point, the three of you had been allowed to stay here, the Royal Hotel Shimla, with its envious and prime location as the only holding placed on top of Sunset Hill, is vital to meet the security needs of the British Indian Army, especially with the current situation of the war in Europe. Your cooperation is mandatory.’
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Noor stood up, her chair falling back with a clatter. ‘This can’t be right. What does that even mean? We were given the hotel! It was for us, so we may not be homeless! You took away everything else we had!’
‘An allowance made in grace, and subject to be taken away whenever required by the state! Further,’ Lord Beeson pressed on, ‘in the absence of necessary cooperation, the appropriate authorities will have the right to seize the property by any means deemed imperative.’
‘No!’ shouted Afreen.
‘Miss Mistry, do not forget the proper code of conduct, do not forget who you speak to!’ Beeson banged his hand on the table and the room turned icy.
‘We were promised, that we could stay here, that the hotel would remain, everything else was seized—’
‘The hotel is not being seized. It’s simply being taken back as per law. You will be ordered compensation, Mrs Irani, which is an offer I would consider rather generous! That is just how it works, and you are not in a position to argue. The law clearly stipulates the next course of actions.’
‘We will appeal in court—’
‘Let’s all take a step back here,’ Charles said, apparently confused by the sudden outburst. ‘Lord Beeson, there ought to be a way out … it has been their home for years, the only memory of their father. They should be allowed—’
‘And so they will be, Nayler, don’t you worry about that. We simply wanted to informally tell them beforehand.’
‘It’s impossible,’ Noor said, ‘We don’t agree with it! This is all that we have! It’s our livelihood, the only thing we have left, our only home! We will be on the streets without it, like beggarwomen.’
‘As I have already mentioned, you will be compensated for your loss, even relocated, that’s more than what should be done for the daughters of a political terrorist.’
Silence followed this loaded statement. I looked around, pained by what they had suddenly and unfairly imposed on us, determined to not let them have their way this time. I held my sisters’ hands, pulling at them, trying to stop them from shaking. They sat down again, and a few moments of silence helped us recover.
If there was no hotel in our lives, there would be nothing. Then perhaps there would be no other options left except leaving for America and trying my luck in the blinding lights of the talkies …perhaps this was the only way I could find a home for us again, for my sisters and myself.
‘I had received a letter asking for details about the hotel,’ Noor said. ‘I wonder if it is connected.’
‘It was a basic letter that you are obliged to answer,’ one of the other officers, Hayden, said. There was a definite edge of sourness to his tone.
Noor got up. ‘We apologize. You are still our guests. Please proceed to the salon for some brandy and cigars.’
It was a strange mood with which the men got up to follow her out. Noor went ahead, but Afreen stayed, now staring at her custard. Seeing Afreen, Charles hesitated for a moment but then approached me anyway.
‘I promise, I didn’t know about this,’ he said to me in a quiet voice.
I was acutely aware that Afreen watched us and could probably hear everything. Practical self-preservation kicked in as I answered distantly, ‘Everything is fine, Mr Nayler. I hope you had a nice evening.’
He seemed slightly taken aback by my tone and asked me if I could show him to the salon. I glanced at Afreen before agreeing and asking him to follow me. As soon as we were out of the dining room, he stood in my way.
‘Nalini, you have to trust me—’
I was still afraid of being discovered talking to him in private, very aware of my sisters’ presence close to me. Wanting to end our meeting quickly, I told him the truth. ‘I don’t think it’s appropriate for us to meet anyway, Mr Nayler. In our society, women do not ordinarily meet men who are not family. I am sorry to have misled you.’
He stepped forward, confused and anxious by what I had just said. ‘But Nalini … I feel so wonderful with you. You’re unlike anyone I’ve met, you have these thoughts and ideas about theworld, so unique and independent, working at the hotel with your sisters … I want to spend more time with you.’
My breath caught in my throat, yet my heart rebelled against every instinct to trust him. I wanted to believe him so much, but the voice in the back of my head cautioned me. It took a deep effort to collect myself and ignore what he had said, to stick to my resolve.
‘Charles, I have my reputation to maintain. It’s not as easy for me as it is for you. I can’t be indulging in romance. It’s not a privilege accorded to me. I am a practical, sensible girl, who one day wants to lead a life of honour. I am not a character in a movie. I know my ground, I know my roots and going out with you like this, without honest intentions from either end, doesn’t justify who I am supposed to be.’
‘It doesn’t matter,’ he went on, ‘because I wanted to tell you that I like you very much. And if you would accept it, I would be more forward about my feelings. I don’t mind talking directly to your eldest sister, since I know that’s what it’d take.’
I was scared but wanted him to say more. If only he could hear my insides pounding—I seemed to be at the brink of something, I didn’t know what, and I wondered whether to heed Ratan Babu’s warning, or throw caution to the wind.
‘What does that mean?’ I asked him.
Before he could answer, we were interrupted by Khushilalji, who almost crashed into us in his hurry to get to the dining room.
