The Complete Adventures of Feluda: Volume II (55 page)

Inspector Singh stayed on for the next three hours to question everyone. He had a word with Feluda first of all.

‘Did you hear anything suspicious last night?’

‘No. The noise from the river tends to drown every other sound.’

‘Yes, that’s true. That’s an advantage for a criminal, isn’t it? By the way, I haven’t met your companions.’

‘Sorry, let me introduce them. This is Lalmohan Ganguli, he’s a writer; and that’s my cousin, Tapesh.’

Inspector Singh asked us the same questions, then allowed us to go into town. The three of us found a restaurant and ordered tea and omelettes. No one had had the chance to have breakfast.

‘What surprises me,’ said Lalmohan Babu, munching thoughtfully, ‘is that when the culprit couldn’t kill the son, he decided to kill the father.’

‘It may not necessarily be the same man. Someone might have had something against Vijay Mallik, but a totally different person might have attacked his father.’

‘My suspicions have fallen on someone.’

‘Who?’

‘Dr Majumdar. He’s supposed to be a doctor, a man of science; and, at the same time, he’s speaking to the dead. It’s peculiar, don’t you think?’

‘Perhaps. It’s true that he had the best opportunity, since he slept only a few feet away from the deceased. But what motive could he possibly have had? Stealing that diamond ring? If so, he must be in
desperate need of money. But there’s nothing to indicate that he is.’

‘What about Vijay Mallik?’

‘He stands to gain a lot, there’s no doubt about that. Mr Mallik was pretty wealthy, and Vijay will get all his assets—unless, of course, Mr Mallik made a will and left his money to someone else.’

‘But why should Vijay want to kill his father? He’s got a good job, he earns reasonably well. Why should he be in need of a vast amount of money? I mean, killing another human being isn’t child’s play, is it?’

‘No, it most certainly isn’t, and like you, I cannot see what pressing motive Vijay could have had.’

‘Sushant Som? What about him?’

‘Qualified and efficient, a man Mr Mallik used to depend on quite heavily. No discernible motive there, either.’

‘Well then . . . suppose it was a case of revenge? Surely Mr Mallik had loads of enemies?’

‘True. That’s what I’ve been thinking. Just consider the number of people he had sent to the gallows.’

‘But . . . well, revenge can be ruled out at least in his son’s case, I think.’

‘Absolutely, which brings us back to square one.’

After lunch that afternoon, Feluda said he wanted to go for another walk, this time in the main town. Only a long walk would clear his head.

‘Keep your weapon with you, Felu Babu, even if you’re only going into town,’ Lalmohan Babu advised him.

We went and sat by the river again. Mr Som came and joined us. ‘A bolt from the blue, wasn’t it?’ he said, sounding upset.

‘Yes, please sit down,’ I offered him a chair. What he had said was quite true. We were all still feeling dazed.

‘What does the inspector say?’ Lalmohan Babu asked.

‘He seems to think it’s likely that a burglar did it. That ring was very expensive, you see. There was a big diamond, surrounded by emeralds. Although Pahalgam is a small town, burglaries do occur. It’s been on the increase ever since tourists began coming here in large numbers. Even thirty years ago, it was a perfectly peaceful and safe area.’

‘Are you confined to your tents?’

‘No, we are allowed to go into town, but we cannot leave Pahalgam.’

‘When is the funeral?’

‘This evening.’

Feluda returned at five o’clock. I couldn’t help feeling worried while he was gone, but he said now that the police were involved in the case, it was much safer for him to be out and about. Whoever had attacked him wouldn’t dare risk being caught by the police.

‘I am very glad to hear that, Felu Babu, but did your long walk help you?’ Lalmohan Babu asked.

‘Yes, it certainly did. But I need to go back to Srinagar, or I couldn’t really bring this case to a close.’

‘When do you want to go?’

‘Tomorrow.’

‘What about us?’

‘You two should stay on here. I hope to be back in a couple of days. Don’t worry about anything. You couldn’t possibly be in a more beautiful place, could you?’

‘No, but why do you have to rush off to Srinagar? Have you seen the light?’

‘Yes. I really had gone blind, I ought to have seen it before.’

‘But still there is partial darkness, you reckon?’

‘Right, and that’s why I have to go back to Srinagar. But before I go, I have to ask a few questions. Let’s start with Prayag.’

Mr Som returned to his tent and came back with Prayag. We then went to our own tent.

‘Have a seat, Prayag,’ Feluda said. Prayag sat down.

‘I am going to ask you some questions. I want honest and correct answers. All right?’

‘Yes, sir.’

‘How long have you worked for the Malliks?’

‘Five years.’

‘Where were you before?’

‘With Mr Jacob. I was his bearer. He lived in Park Street.’

‘How did Mr Mallik get you?’

‘Mr Jacob was leaving for England. He did not need me any more. So he wrote a letter to Mr Mallik and I took it to him.’

‘How did Jacob and Mallik know each other?’

‘They went to the same club.’

‘What’s your full name?’

‘Prayag Mishir.’

‘Who else is there in your family?’

‘No one. My wife is dead. I have two daughters, but they’re married. I live alone.’

‘I see. Didn’t you hear any noise last night?’

‘No, sir.’

‘Who could have killed your master?’

‘I have no idea, sir. I could never have imagined this might happen.’

‘Very well, you may go now.’

Prayag left. Feluda got Mr Som to call Dr Majumdar.

‘Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?’

‘No, go ahead.’

‘You are a doctor. Did you really approve of the way Mr Mallik tried to contact the dead?’ Dr Majumdar shook his head. ‘No, I certainly did not. I told him many times not to meddle in these matters. I also pointed out that a judge was only a human being. If he made an error in passing a verdict, there was really no need to torture himself with it. What was done was done.’

‘That’s true. But when did
you
realize you had this special power to act as a medium?’

‘Many years ago, at least twenty-five years back.’

‘Do you have any idea who might have killed him?’

‘No, none at all.’

‘What do you think of his son?’

‘Vijay? He got into a lot of trouble when he was younger—drugs and all that, you see. But later—whether under the influence of a sadhu or something else, I do not know—he recovered and is now leading a perfectly normal life.’

‘Isn’t gambling one of his weaknesses?’

‘I couldn’t really comment on that, Mr Mitter. I have never gambled in my life. I know nothing about it.’

‘Very well. Where does Vijay work?’

‘Chatterjee & Co., import and export.’

‘I see. Thank you, Dr Majumdar. That’s all for now.’

Dr Majumdar returned to his tent. Mr Som looked enquiringly at Feluda.

‘I’d like to speak to Mr Sarkar now,’ Feluda said. Mr Som looked profoundly startled.

‘Mr Sarkar?’

‘Why do you find that surprising?’

‘Well, he’s an outsider, isn’t he? I mean, he just happened to be with us. He didn’t know Mr Mallik or any of us earlier.’

‘That may be so. But how do you know he isn’t in need of money? Anyone can kill anywhere if they need money urgently and desperately.’

‘All right, I will go and get him.’

Mr Sarkar arrived in a few minutes.

‘Please take a seat,’ Feluda said to him.

‘I had come here on holiday,’ Mr Sarkar remarked, taking the chair he was offered, ‘simply to have a good time. Who knew such a terrible tragedy was in store?’

‘True. But there’s nothing to be done, is there, except to try to accept what’s happened?’

‘You’re right. What would you like me to tell you?’

‘How old were you when you left Kashmir?’

‘Twelve.’

‘You went straight to Calcutta?’

‘Yes.’

‘Did your father work as a hotel manager in Calcutta also?’

‘Yes.’

‘Which hotel?’

‘The Calcutta Hotel.’

‘Are you a graduate?’

‘B Com.’

‘What do you do for a living?’

‘I work in an insurance company—Universal Insurance. The office is at 5 Pollock Street in Calcutta.’

‘Did you know Mr Mallik before?’

‘Oh no. I came to know him only after reaching Kashmir. I met Vijay on the plane from Delhi, and discovered we had many things in common. So we quickly became friends.’

‘Are you fond of gambling?’

‘Yes, you could say that, but it isn’t a passion with me. Not like Vijay.’

‘Why did you decide to come to Kashmir?’

‘To see how much it had changed. To compare it with my childhood memories.’

‘How long did you intend spending here?’

‘Ten days originally. But now God knows how long we’ll have to
stay here.’

‘May I see the ring you’re wearing?’

‘Certainly.’

Mr Sarkar took his ring off and passed it to Feluda. It was made of gold. A blue hexagonal shape was engraved on it and, in the middle of it, was the letter ‘S’, inscribed in white. Feluda thanked him and returned the ring.

‘I have no more questions for you, Mr Sarkar.’

‘Thank you.’

Feluda took a taxi to Srinagar the next day, soon after breakfast. ‘I think I’ll be back the day after tomorrow, but I may be delayed by a couple of days. So don’t worry,’ he said.

Inspector Singh arrived at nine o’clock in his jeep and went to have a word with the others. Then he walked into our tent.

‘Where is Mr Holmes?’ he asked with a smile.

‘He just left for Srinagar,’ I told him.

‘To work on this case?’

‘Yes.’

‘But why? This case is easy, clear as crystal.’

‘How?’

‘It’s that bearer who did it. He had the opportunity. He was sleeping in the same tent, wasn’t he? That diamond ring must have tempted him. After all, how much does a bearer earn?’

‘Are you going to arrest him?’ Lalmohan Babu asked.

‘Right now, I am simply taking him to the police station for further questions. I know now that he’s left-handed. I asked him to write his name. He used his left hand. Even so, he’s still denying having killed his master. So I am taking him away.’

‘That ring has to be recovered as well,’ Lalmohan Babu commented.

‘Yes, I am sure he’ll tell us where he’s hidden it once we’ve had the chance to speak to him properly.’

Was Feluda’s visit to Srinagar purely unnecessary? A complete waste of time? I couldn’t bring myself to believe the case was as simple as Inspector Singh had made it out to be. If it was, Feluda would not have gone to so much trouble. I knew he had gone to
Srinagar simply to call Calcutta from there. He knew lots of people in Calcutta who’d get him any information he wanted.

At the same time, didn’t the inspector say Prayag was left-handed? But could he really have been stupid enough to think he could get away with it? Didn’t he know he’d fall under suspicion immediately?

Inspector Singh left in a few minutes, taking Prayag with him. I felt quite sorry for the man for he was looking frightened and had tears in his eyes. I knew only too well what the police could do to get a confession from a suspect. I had heard Feluda express regret on this matter more than once. ‘The police are often very good in their work, very committed,’ he had said to me, ‘but they are devoid of mercy.’ But then, sometimes they have no choice. If stern action was necessary to get a vital piece of information, how could anyone blame them for being ruthless? Certainly, under specific circumstances, the police could act far more effectively than a private detective.

Mr Som paid us another visit. ‘Mr Mitter has gone to Srinagar, I believe,’ he said.

‘Yes,’ I replied.

‘I must say I am surprised to see how much he’s prepared to do for us, even without being asked.’

‘He wouldn’t wait to be asked. He’s taken the whole thing as a challenge, you see. He cannot stand being confronted by an unsolved mystery and will do anything to get to the bottom of it.’

Mr Som nodded. After a while, Lalmohan Babu asked, ‘Had you started writing Mr Mallik’s biography?’

‘Yes. Mr Mallik was checking and correcting what I was writing, and we were making very good progress. It would have been a most interesting book.’

‘Now the whole project is going to be shelved?’

‘Yes, I can’t see what else can be done.’

‘Tell me, do you think Prayag did it?’

‘No, I would never have thought he’d have the nerve. But the police . . .’

‘Did you know about the attack on Mr Mitter?’

‘What! No, I had no idea. What happened?’

‘Someone hit him with a heavy object, perhaps a stone. Luckily, he wasn’t badly hurt. But it’s clear that someone has objections to his presence here, and would like him out of the way.’

‘Why doesn’t he ask for police protection?’

‘No, he’d rather die than do that, although he’d always be prepared to help the police.’

‘Are you still playing poker?’ Lalmohan Babu asked.

‘Oh no. None of us can think of anything but Mr Mallik’s death. Cards have been forgotten.’

Feluda did not return the next day. Lalmohan Babu and I took ourselves off to see Shikargah Lake and an old Shiv temple. Both of us felt it was better to stay away from our tent. Mr Mallik’s death was still casting a shadow over everyone’s thoughts. We felt suffocated in such a sombre atmosphere.

On the third day, just as I was wondering what we should do to keep ourselves occupied, Feluda arrived in a taxi at about ten o’clock. Lalmohan Babu and I went out eagerly to greet him, both of us asking questions. He raised a hand and said, ‘Patience, patience. You will be duly rewarded, I assure you.’

‘Just tell me if your head feels clear,’ Lalmohan Babu implored. ‘It does, but it wasn’t easy to unravel the tangled mess. It’s a very complex case.’

‘When will you tell us everything?’

‘I have to speak to the inspector first.’

‘He has already caught the murderer.’

‘What! Who’s been arrested?’

‘Prayag.’

‘Oh God! I mustn’t waste another second. I’m off to the police station now.’

Feluda left at once. By the time he got back, it was almost time for lunch.

‘We’re having a meeting at three o’clock, in the other tent,’ he announced. My heart skipped a beat. Feluda’s revelations at the end of a case were always incredibly dramatic. Only those who had seen him do it before would understand why I reacted like that.

A police jeep arrived soon after three. Inspector Singh got out of it and found Feluda.

‘Can you believe that a police inspector might be interested in crime stories?’

‘You mean
you
read them?’ Feluda laughed.

‘Yes, I am passionately fond of detective novels. I am now reminded of quite a few famous stories, Mr Mitter, though I have no
idea what you’re going to reveal in a few minutes.’

‘You shall learn soon enough.’

We went into the other bigger tent. Everyone else was already gathered there. Vijay Mallik, Mr Som, Mr Sarkar and Dr Majumdar were seated on chairs. Prayag was standing in a corner. He looked exhausted. The police had obviously been thorough in their questioning.