The Murder Suspect

by Rani Ramakrishnan

  These private moments of togetherness snatched between commitments made to others— they were special. ‘Our time’, we liked to call them. Having been together for years, we found companionship in each other’s silence. Being in the other’s presence was as satisfying as a million words of love. Strange, I thought, how our relationship had evolved. I wondered if things would have been any different had we married. I doubted it.

  Chapter 3

  ‘Nalini!’ eight voices declared in unison.

  Startled, I stared at the others and then peered hard at the screen. We were in the conference room of the Jade Wing with the projector on. The picture of a lone parrotfish filled the screen before us. We had encountered many members of this species, easily distinguishable by their dentures, during our dive in the Arabian Sea that afternoon. Until I laid eyes on scores of their blue-green population, I had never imagined that small fish could have such prominent teeth.

  Attractively set on their jawbone, the fused teeth resembled a parrot’s beak and added glamour to their already well-endowed appearance. But the image on the screen was neither blue nor green. Covered with dull yellow scales and golden fins to match and displaying a pink mouth with even teeth, the fish looked resplendent. ‘Beautiful’ was the first word that came to mind on seeing it.

  We were busy reviewing the results of the task that Piyush had given us as part of our snorkelling adventure that afternoon. Aboard the boat hired to take us to the coral reefs, the safety instructions had been drilled deep into our minds. After that we were told to draw lots for a teammate’s name. ‘Keep that name a secret,’ Piyush had said. We also received a high-tech, lightweight camera each to click pictures underwater.

  The task was simple. Each member was to take a photograph of something underwater that reminded him or her of the teammate whose name they had drawn. In the evening, we were to display that picture for the others to guess the teammate’s name. The photo that was matched to the correct person by the maximum number of people would be the winning entry.

  I drew Sukhbir’s name, reaffirming my theory that our fates were linked one way or the other during this weekend getaway!

  Getting the hang of the snorkelling gear consumed precious time and took several deep breaths, literally! At last, even Chirag met the instructors’ high standards, and we were good to go.

  The entire experience was so fantastic that I almost forgot to complete my undersea assignment. The schools of fish—including butterflyfish, damselfish, parrotfish—dashing about, the multi-coloured corals—I spotted branching corals, digitate ones, table corals, elkhorn, foliage corals, and mushroom corals—and other sea creatures like snails, sponges, crabs, anemones, starfish, lobster, sea lilies... all waiting for me to touch and marvel at their beauty. I was mesmerised.

  In the Jade Wing that evening, we agreed to keep the names of our respective teammates a secret until we had reviewed all the photos. Piyush volunteered to go first, and he put up the photograph he had shot as part of the task.

  The others stared wide-eyed at the chic creature as though it was unreal. None of us had spotted this fish during our dive. When had he clicked it? And the others thought I offered worthy competition to this beauty! A soft warmth spread through me at this realisation. Nine eager pairs of eyes turned to Piyush for confirmation. He gave us a sheepish grin, and I don’t know why but I blushed. Claps and hoots rang across the room.

  The next image showed a blurred bunch of digitate corals that resembled a cluster of soft green fingers swaying in the water, with tiny fish darting about. The picture was hazy and confusing.

  ‘Was the photographer drunk?’ someone commented with a grin. ‘Or am I drunk?’

  ‘Both!’ a cheeky voice replied.

  ‘Did he get a good camera?’ Devyani’s concerned voice said.

  ‘Do you know how to use the camera, Sukhbir?’ Chirag asked, surprising everyone.

  ‘Would you like to see the other pictures I took?’ Sukhbir responded, offended and defensive.

  ‘I say fuzzy logic... Stanley Dubey?’ I suggested, to calm the fraying tempers. My deduction stunned Stanley.

  ‘Confused and colourful, I say Chirag,’ Piyush added, smiling at Chirag, who immediately put on a confused expression and grinned.

  The guessing and ribbing continued until ten pictures were viewed, and then the verdict was declared. Piyush won. He had drawn my name, and everybody had guessed as much from his photograph.

  ◆◆◆

  Dinner was another elaborate affair, and the drinks that had been flowing throughout the guessing session in the conference room continued into the meal. The result was a very tipsy and slightly unruly mob unwilling to disperse and too willing to jest. When we wound up, it was well past 11:00 p.m.

  I had abstained from drinking, and even Piyush’s raised eyebrow had done nothing to change my mind. Chirag, who had never drunk alcohol before, was the worst off. After the first glass his speech slurred, and after the third or fourth glass he was a complete wreck. Piyush and I had to support him to his room. The others managed to stay on their own feet and reached their respective rooms unaided.

  By the time we reached Chirag’s room, I was furious at Piyush for allowing things to get so much out of hand. I left him to assist Chirag and stormed to my room.

  I had purchased brand new lingerie from Victoria’s Secret for this weekend, but last night exhaustion had got the better of me, and tonight I was too furious to care for extracurricular activities. To hell with Piyush, I fumed. Trust him to put a damper on my best-laid plans. Whose loss was it anyway? I seethed, ripping off my clothes and getting into a comfortable tee. Later, when Piyush walked in, I began without waiting for him to say anything.

  ‘Is Chirag okay?’ I asked, as if I cared.

  ‘Yep.’

  ‘What were you thinking?’

  ‘What do you mean? What did I do?’

  ‘You only plied the one five-year-old we brought along with drinks!’

  ‘He is closer to forty.’

  ‘Really? I recall a conversation to the contrary, from eight years ago.’

  ‘Nalini, I don’t want to talk about that. Anyway, everything worked out didn’t it?’

  ‘Everything did not just work out, you moron. I had to sweat blood to make things okay. How convenient of you to forget!’

  ‘I have not forgotten...’ he began, but I interrupted him.

  ‘He is your dowry, is he not? The deal clincher because of whom I had to rearrange the entire organisation of the company!’

  ‘Nalini, darling, a few drinks will not kill him.’

  ‘No, but if he gets so much as a scratch on him we will all have to embrace death, won’t we?’

  ‘You are overreacting,’ said Piyush, becoming angry.

  ‘I am overreacting. I am overreacting. This is rich! You are getting sloppy, Mr Piyush Gokhle. Marriage and fat bank balances have made you less cautious of consequences. Do you even remember all that we have risked for IndeGen or is all that just part of history now?’

  ‘I am here, aren’t I? How can you say I have forgotten anything?’

  ‘Your behaviour, that’s what!’

  ‘Stop making a mountain out of a molehill, Nalini. We have only two days, don’t ruin it.’

  ‘You don’t ruin our future, Piyush. Remember that Chirag Desai is not just another employee. He is your father-in-law’s mentally retarded son. His mental age might be below ten, and he cannot drink because he is underage. Remember that your father-in-law has put his hard-earned money in this business and allowed you to marry and sleep with his daughter on the condition that you involve his only son in IndeGen. You get careless with him, his rich and powerful father will pull the carpet from under you, and then what will you do?

  ‘Do you remember Chirag’s first day in the office? He knew nothing. Today he is here for outstanding performance. He didn’t do that by himself. It was me. Each time he did something wrong, I rescued him. Every time an employee lost
his cool with him, I played middleman. I built his confidence. I discovered his strengths and weaknesses. I created a profile that made him look good and suited his minimal skills. All this I did... and what did you do, you got him drunk. Something his entire family frowns upon.’

  ‘A few drinks will not kill him.’

  ‘No, but his dad will kill you if he hears that you allowed his sick son to drink. Who do you think he will choose—his least favourite son-in-law or his only son?’

  ‘I can’t believe you’re making a fuss about this baseless issue.’

  ‘I can’t believe you’re taking things so casually. This is your problem, Piyush. Success has gone to your head. You’ve never before done anything reckless like getting Chirag drunk. Mark my words, you’ll pay for this. The sad thing is I’m stuck with you, and when you sink, I will too.’

  I burst out crying. I never cried. Not even in the most stressful situations. The worst part was I had no idea why I was crying.

  Piyush swore and took a step towards me. His phone buzzed, and, from his expression, I knew it was Candy Floss. Jealousy gripped me. I had never felt jealous of her before. We were separate individuals, and I was an independent woman comfortable in my own skin. But today, for some unknown reason, I was jealous. I looked at Piyush, tears rolling down my cheeks, waiting for him to decide—my eyes imploring him to choose me. But he picked her.

  He gestured that he would be back in a moment and walked into his room to take the call. He chose her. That broke something in me. In all the years that we had been lovers and friends, I had never felt insecure, until now. He had chosen her, making me second in his priorities.

  A sharp knife stabbed deep into my gut and my head reeled. Mustering all the energy I could, I walked to the connecting door, glared at him long and hard with tears still tumbling down my eyes, and waited for him to see me. He turned around, spotted me, mouthed an apology, and blew a kiss my way.

  The room began to swim, and he became blurred. Gripping the door firmly, I banged it shut and groped for the bolt.

  Around me, everything was growing dark and black. I ignored my nausea and focussed on what I had to do. I heard Piyush curse and cut the call. I found the bolt. I heard him stride to the door. I drew the bolt hard, as hard as I could. He turned the handle. The door stayed shut. Piyush cursed again. I turned away.

  ‘Nalini, darling, please open the door. I am sorry. Let me through, please,’ his voice drifted from the other side.

  Everything was becoming fuzzier and hazier by the second. My stomach was doing funny things as well. Gathering my wits, I rushed forward blindly, fumbling and searching for the bathroom. I found the light switch first, then the door, and at last I was inside clutching a washbasin and throwing up. Retching noisily, I brought forth everything I had consumed.

  Slowly the black darkness surrounding me faded, and the bits of light grew stronger and bigger. I could hear steady bangs in the distance and Piyush’s concerned voice. I ignored them both. The entire episode left a bad taste in my mouth. The giddiness passed, and the bright bathroom lights blinded me, making me squint. Hastily, I washed up and left, switching off the annoying light. Only the bedside lamp in my room was on, and the semi-darkness was a welcome change to the sharp brightness of the bathroom.

  My head was pounding and so was Piyush. His voice oozed concern. Then I remembered—he had chosen Candy Floss. Jealousy once again wrenched my insides, and a wave of nausea hit me again. I rushed back to the toilet but left the lights off this time. After throwing up once more, I felt weak and drained. With great effort, I returned to my room.

  I could hear Piyush again. This time I muttered in the boldest voice I could muster, ‘Please go away, Piyush. I’m off to sleep. I’m fine.’ It came out as a feeble whisper, but he must have heard me because he replied. Ignoring his voice, I hastily found my bed and crashed into it, shutting my eyes so the room would stop spinning.

  The room continued to rock unabated, and Piyush kept saying something unintelligible the whole time, but I finally dozed off.

  Chapter 4

  If things weren’t bad already, I awoke in the dead of night to find a frightened Cyrus Daruwala outside my door. His blanched face and trembling form should have warned me, but my normally sharp brain hadn’t woken up with me.

  The various grumblings of discomfort within my body distracted me, and I wanted to ask him to shut up and leave. He must have sensed my animosity because he immediately mentioned Chirag. All the cells inside me woke with a start. Even after probing, all I could extract from him was that Chirag wasn’t in his room.

  That was bad news, but I could think of worse. My thoughts bordered on attacking him for disturbing my sleep over trivial matters when he found the courage to admit in a shaking voice that Chirag’s room was smeared in blood.

  ‘Blood?’ It was my turn to shudder.

  ‘Blood,’ he nodded. ‘On the floor tiles, on the walls, even the mirror...’ He stopped abruptly.

  ‘Did you check the balcony?’

  ‘Yes. I found bloody footprints between the bathroom and the balcony so I peeped over there.’

  ‘And?’

  ‘Nothing, just blood everywhere.’

  ‘We should wake Piyush! Did you tell anyone else?’

  ‘No, I came straight here. I banged on his door too, but he didn’t respond. He must be out cold.’

  Shit! All that booze he’d consumed last night was to blame, no doubt. Maybe he drank even more after our fight. I contemplated opening the connecting door, then changed my mind. For almost nine years now, we had been in a relationship and had kept it a secret from the office. There was no need to change the status quo on that matter. I would have to sort out this situation without Piyush’s help. Pulling on a robe, I told Cyrus to lead the way.

  ◆◆◆

  With my mobile gripped in my hand, I followed him to the elevator and from there to Chirag’s room on the first floor. Along the way, I glanced at my mobile more than once to confirm signal availability. Why had Cyrus been roaming the corridors in the middle of the night, I wondered. I turned to ask him, but by then we had arrived at Chirag’s door and the moment passed.

  A disturbing sight welcomed us. The bed with its crumpled linen dominated the centre of the room. Opposite the bed, the light above the dresser was on. Beyond the bed was the bathroom and, further down, French doors and then the balcony.

  Bloody footprints covered the floor, faint inside the room and darker outside the bathroom and in the space leading to the balcony. I peeped into the bathroom and my stomach heaved at the sight. On the walls, the shower curtain, the mirror, the closet—bloody fingerprints were everywhere, and blood-stained footprints marked the floor tiles.

  Somebody had washed blood from his or her hands and forgotten to turn off the tap. The gushing water splashing onto the white ceramic washbasin dotted with dull pink droplets was the only noise in the room. The shower curtain also bore the stains of someone’s unsuccessful attempt to wipe off blood.

  Cool air swept in through the French windows left ajar by somebody. Red fingerprints on the latch and on the fluttering curtains indicated that the door had been opened from the inside. Each crimson streak reeked of grave injury.

  There was no sign of Chirag anywhere. Where had he gone? Why? Was this his blood? What had happened here?

  Taking care not to step on any bloodstain, I forced myself to check the balcony. A single set of bloody footprints moved haphazardly to the boundary, stopped, reappeared on the railing, and then vanished. Peeping over, I saw the blood trail continue. Turning around, I rushed out and Cy followed. While he watched, I dialled Chirag’s mobile number. A mechanical voice replied that the number was unreachable. I tried again. Same answer! I had to act, but what was I supposed to do?

  ‘Please find the duty manager and tell him to alert emergency services. We may need an ambulance, the police, and... I don’t know. He’ll know what to do in an emergency like this,’ I instructed Cy.


  ‘Okay,’ he said and dashed off, visibly relieved that someone else was taking charge.

  Standing in the corridor alone, shivering with fear, I dialled Piyush. No answer. Damn him. I had warned him that the kid shouldn’t be drinking. Now we were all doomed. Dialling the others one by one, I checked if Chirag was with any of them. Six sleepy, surprised voices replied in the negative.

  They asked what was wrong, but I brushed off their concerns and told them to go back to sleep, praying that they would not call each other—or worse—check with Cyrus and learn the truth before I could get hold of Chirag, alive or dead. The thought of him dead brought back the giddiness, and I had to lean against the wall to keep standing.

  ◆◆◆

  That is how the duty manager found me. Phone in hand, dialling Piyush, left hand gripping my middle, my left shoulder resting on the wall, and taking deep breaths. Seeing him, a wave of relief and fright swept through me. The horror of the reality before us struck home, my knees buckled, and I collapsed to the floor.

  ‘Oh, thank God you are here,’ I heard myself tell him. I was sitting with my legs stretched out, still taking deep breaths to stop myself from blacking out. My voice sounded hoarse, weak, and alien to my ears. I could taste bile in my mouth and was grateful for the glass of water Cy handed me. I sipped the water. It was something to do to keep my mind off frightening thoughts. While I sat, the manager notified the concerned departments. Then he crouched down beside me and spoke. I tried to forget the taste of bile and focussed on his words.

  ‘How are you feeling, ma'am?’

  ‘I’m okay.’

  ‘A doctor is on his way. Since your missing colleague appears to be injured, we thought it best to have a physician ready. He can prescribe medication for you too.’

  ‘I’m fine. I need a cigarette, that’s all.’

  He nodded. ‘We’ll see about that. But you cannot smoke indoors, the alarms will go off.’