The Marriage Expedient

ni's

ailed," I said to myself as I stoo

s all

e lived within and everyone wanted to keep their distance. My father's Volkswagen was still parked under the long blue canopy

n, day after day? What had we done wrong? How had my father's flourishing business

a hand on my right shoulder. I turned to see the fam

Roshni. Ar

ll, father," as I

t here staring into sp

se, but I chose not to. What was the poi

aid, pointing at the

or, my dear?" he asked,

or. Do you remember what u

strength ebb out of him. My fa

cess. Pull out a copy of the latest bo

re any of our w

were none. Those we

f those authors actually got

rs and all. He used to be a tall elderly man, then it felt like his shoulders stooped low even though he was still in his early sixties. He

I asked. "Do not tell me that the supposed authors we

rs, my dear. It was just as if God hit the stop button

You have made good friends all these years, credit

for help to come and meet us? You know I cannot

. He didn't like getting something he couldn't afford at that moment. If he didn't have the compl

nt. We are at a disadvantage. And it does

rst to crash this way, my

ack his staff, but that was out of the question. No one would com

sked, "So you

I have something in mind, my dear. But I

t if this last resort of your

both of his and squeezed it. "I do not plan to fail you, my

for me alone, father. Do it for those who have looked up to

is turn

can do to help, father, yo

med more comforting than the morose look he had on a w

the way, I had a hand in the success of your publishing com

one at the gate any longer because my father even had to lay off the low

"Let's see if these friends of yours you t

he building. I had never taken anything for granted before. My father taught me that in business. So, when I saw that none of