Infatuation leads to death

by Ananda Agalakada

She was in a yellow polka-dotted dress with her two braids of hair hanging on either side of her shoulders. Dayani was peering at the bookshelves filled with books. Books being her first love she loved to read and spend every spare moment reading. Dayani was a comely lass with sharp features. She was beautiful Her almond-shaped eyes were prominent because of the beauty spot on the tip of her chin.

Dayani was moving from shelf to shelf glancing through the books that adorned the shelves. Priyantha happened to go to the book store and his eyes automatically followed Dayani's every movement and then their eyes met. From then on there was no turning back.

They met regularly and exchanged many letters. Their love for each other had grown by leaps and bounds.

Priyantha, however, was not a good looking guy and was comparatively darker than Dayani and had a prominent scar on his forehead which made him look rather sinister although he was not a man who entertained such motives. It was a scar he had got when he was a schoolboy.

The two families approved of the match.

Astrologer

Dayani and Priyantha then decided on a date to get married and looked for an auspicious time from the village astrologer.

He gave them a time in the early morning of a Sunday in September. He was quick to caution them that there was a malefic period shown on Dayani's astrological chart, but this did not dampen their love for each another and their desire to get married. Dayani and Priyantha threw caution to the winds and decided to go ahead with the marriage. Both families gave their blessings and the day dawned for the couple to marry. It was a happy day for the couple and for their families as well.

After marriage the couple moved to Kottawa and lived happily. They had their first child who was a bonny baby boy.

The birth of the baby brought good luck to Priyantha and his income saw a gradual increase to improve their living standard.

Dayani was not extravagant but did everything with aplomb because she was an educated lass and managed with whatever Priyantha earned and saved a little money. When the son was about six months old, she conceived once again. She had a daughter and named her Sithmini. The foursome were quite happy with their lot in life.

Priyantha was rising in his position as he worked hard. There were days when he did not even come home because he was engaged in his work. However, he ensured that he did not neglect his wife.

Dayani was over a period of time feeling rather lonely when Tharaka, a young boy from Aralaganwila came into her life.

He was a handsome guy and he made Dayani happy in every posiible manner in the absence of her husband. Dayani was infatuated with Tharaka.

She neglected her household chores and entertained Tharaka making all types of delicacies for him.

The aroma filled the area. Neighbours were at a loss to understand why Dayani was confined herself to the house and was never to be seen.

Priyantha heard rumours that his wife was entertaining a youth in his absence but he chose to ignore the rumours because whenever he came home Priyantha did not find a change in his wife's attitude. She took great pains to treat Priyantha well so that he would never suspect that something was amiss.

Change

She washed his clothes and ironed them for him and packed it neatly even before he could ask her to do it so he had no reason to grumble.

But one Friday he suddenly decided to return home after work. He usually never came home on Fridays because he had enough work during the weekends and could earn more on overtime.

On that fateful Friday, after returning home, he kept staring at his wife and he saw a visible change in her.

In addition, Dayani was wearing a pair of diamond studded ear studs which glittered even in the dark.

He knew at once it was not the pair of ear studs she used to wear earlier and he ordered her to remove them at once and questioned her as to where she got them from. Dayani stuttered and stammered and doled out an excuse saying that they had been given to her by her mother many years ago. Priyantha ignored the episode and the matter ended for the moment. What had happened was because of Priyantha's sudden arrival Dayani had no time to change ear studs as she was wont to do because she had a tab on the days that Priyantha returned home.

A little later when Dayani was preparing lunch, Priyantha began questioning Dayani again.

Rumours

He confronted her with the rumours he had heard but Dayani denied that she was entertaining another man in his absence.

This drew Priyantha's ire and he began to verbally abuse Dayani. Now instead of keeping quiet, Dayani began exchanging words with Priyantha, a thing she had never resorted to in the past. Priyantha could not control his fury at the thought that Dayani was entertaining another man and was still retorting as if she was a a paragon of virtue.

He took the nearest thing close to him which was the coconut scraper and began bashing her head.

She was screaming and was trying to protect her head by putting both her hands on her head but she could not protect herself from the onslaught of strikes from the scraper.

She then fell in a pool of blood. Blood was streaming down her face and she was screaming in pain. Her daughter ran to Dayani's father who was living nearby and related what had happened to her mother.

Dayani was rushed to hospital but was found dead on admission. Acting OIC of the Kottawa police, Upali Dissanayaka and a police team rushed to the scene of the crime and arrested Priyantha.

(Names are fictitious.)