Something Alive

‘Dowry Death!’ exclaimed the front page of all major newspapers on a weekend morning.

‘Do these things still happen?’ wondered a reader.

‘Shameful to know people still ask for and give dowries’ tsk’ed another.

‘Imagine killing someone for money and materialistic things!’ discussed two of them.

As they read further reactions changed. Some looked smug, others stifled a smirk, many looked scared and a few were plain stunned.

For, the article informed, the ‘Dowry Death’ wasn’t a conventional one where yet another daughter-in-law was burnt at the stake of greed.

In this case, years of taunts, torture, demands, character assassination, maligning and creating misunderstandings galore had brought something alive in the daughter-in-law.

A monster, who murdered her in-laws when they tried to kill her.