विक्रम चरित (उज्जैन सम्राट् विक्रमादित्य - पराक्रम, न्याय एवं ३२ पुतलियों की कथा सटीक)

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Gowrihar, where she might possibly have fallen asleep.
She was not there! It was soon known throughout the
palace that the princess had disappeared, and each person
ran in a different direction to search for her. Every apart-
ment in the palace, every neighbouring house, every quar-
ter of the city, and even the wells and ponds, into which
they thought she might possibly, in the darkness of the
night, have fallen, were all by turns examined with lighted
torches; but nothing, not even the slightest trace, could be
found. The king now remembered that Prince Soomunt
had not appeared among the assembled nobles at the
palace, 'and he therefore enquired of his sister Shoodhamutty
where her son was. She replied that she had not seen
him since that morning. They then began to search for
him, but this proved equally unsuccessful. At this stage
the queen informed the king that for some time past Prince
Soomunt and the Princess Malattee had been so intimate
that they were scarcely or ever seen apart, and if Soomunt
happened to be out, Malattee became uneasy and impatient
for his return; that she would not even eat unless he shared
her meal; and that they had been in the daily habit of
sitting in discourse together for a long time, although
everybody was ignorant of the nature of their conversation.
"The king regretted exceedingly this unexpected mis-
fortune, and suspected that the elopement, of which he was
now fully convinced, could not have taken place without
the cognisance of his sister Shoodhamutty. The latter
declared solemnly, however, that she knew nothing of the
flight, and said that if she was in any way concerned in it
she hoped the Almighty would punish her. She felt so
greatly hurt at the unjust suspicions of her brother that she
wept aloud. 'Alas!' sighed she, 'here have I passed my
early days of widowhood, with my only son, in the bosom
of my brother's family, earnestly hoping to meet with that
happiness which, it would now appear, is denied to me,
perhaps on account of my sins. I see I an doomed to
suffer much grief and trouble in this world : I am even now