She opened the door, all shiny and smelling of sandalwood, and whatever Zen-like feelings she was able to muster appeared to vanish the moment she saw me.

“What?” she barked, though for once she used her brains and kept her voice low.

“Can I come inside?”

I didn’t wait for her to answer and pushed my way in.

“What’s all this now?” she asked again, crossing her arms in front of her.

“I need your help, Amma, okay?”

“Why don’t you go and ask your father?” Her voice was full of sarcasm. The only thing my mother did better than throwing parties was hold a grudge.

“Look, I’m sorry, okay? I promise I didn’t know.”

She didn’t say anything.

“I swear! Why the fuck—” She gave me a glare. “Why on earth,” I adjusted, “would I agree to marry someone from a background like that? It’s clear now that he’s using me for my money. For our money. There’s no way he could live a life like this in the US.”

“Are you sure it’s just money he’s after?”

“What makes you think that?”

“Because if he joins this family, he gets more than just money. He gets security. He gets support. He gets an entire new life. And normally, people who are in search of a new life do that because they’ve done some bad in their old one.”

Just great.

“So if you feel this way, why did you encourage me to marry him?”

“I didn’t—”

“Oh, come on, Amma. You welcomed him with open arms. I’d have been married off the same day he proposed if it were up to you. You didn’t even care that we weren’t dating!”

“You weren’t dating? But you spent so much time together. And he told me he had been in love with you since university.”

“That’s bullshit, Amma. Just because we worked together on the charity it doesn’t mean we were involved. I mean, come on. I know you grew up in the Dark Ages, but even you can’t be that dumb.”

She faced me then, anger dancing in her eyes.

“Now here, you listen to me. When you chose your university, did you ask me? When you applied for jobs, did you think to ask, even for a moment, what I thought? You work, you run your charity, you travel around the world, and not once did you ask—Amma, what do you think? I’m just here to throw parties, and entertain the wives of the men your father does business with, and clean up everyone’s mistakes. To clean up all your mistakes. So, no, Kaavi. I didn’t know you weren’t in a relationship with him, because it’s not like you ever tell me anything anyway. And now you come and ask me for my help? No, you got yourself into this mess, now you get yourself out of it. And don’t think, for one second, that I’ll let you run out on this wedding and destroy all the years I’ve spent holding this family’s place in this society. You think it’s been easy, with the rumors and the whispers and the jealousy? But I’ve held it together. For the sake of this family. And now it’s your turn to do the same.”