Page 166 of The Circle of Exile
“Understood?”
They continued to blink, solemn and lost.
“I said, understood?” She gripped his hair tighter.
He nodded.
“Say it.”
“Understood,” he let go in a quiet breath.
“Understood what?”
His tight mouth curled on one side. Just a smidge.
“That my wife will make sure I find another peak in life.”
“No,” Iram pushed him back and onto the nearest wall. She pinned him there with one hand on his chest — “Nobody will make sure youfinda peak. Whatever you do, whatever comes to you, you will give it so much that you will rise to its peak. You are Atharva. You will rise. There is no other way for you.”
He nodded, the dying spark slowly lighting to life in his eyes.
“Now stand straight under the shower. Let me wash you.”
He laughed quietly, following her under the pelt of the shower and standing straight as she reached for the soap.
“Do I get the spa treatment every day now since I am free?”
“Just shut up.”
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He didn’t eat much. Iram knew he wouldn’t eat much. He hadn’t been eating much these last few months. Thankfully, he was eating right, which hadn’t caused much physical deterioration for him. She sat beside him on their dining table as he finished the small portion of rice on his plate and began to scrape the last of the dal from his bowl. He never wasted food.
“Did you speak to Qureshi?”
“No. I have tendered my resignation to the Governor today. It will be made public tomorrow morning. I will be at the party meeting to choose the next CM then. I’ll see him there.”
She frowned — “You do not run from confrontation, Atharva…”
And it clicked.
“He has been running away from you?”
Atharva nodded, reaching for his water.
“Let me call Sarah…”
“No. Don’t bring this between you two for now. Let us deal with this like two professionals. He can be a coward and stage a coup behind my back. I will not bring our wives into this just to get him to talk.”
“Will you two… fight?”
Atharva gaped at her. Then broke into a chuckle — “No. No, myani zuv. What gives you the impression that the two of us, at almost 40 and 50, will get into a fistfight?”
“You fought with Samar when he tried this.”
“I fought with him for entirely different reasons, the top of them being you.”
“This is also because of me only. Have I ever given you anything good?”
