by UD Yasha
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Under the same full moon, Naina Rajput shivered; not from feeling cold, but from the terror that quaked inside her. She knew he was back. After months of waiting and observing, she now recognized the sputter of his car’s engine.
For a change, she was feeling awake and alert. He had not injected her with anything for the past four days. She even wondered if it was all a dream; after all, there had been times before when she imagined all kinds of stuff to the point of madness. She had lost track of time on several occasions. She had stopped counting days long ago. Her only reference point to the outside world was a psycho who kept drugging her. He had once given her a newspaper that had a page long story of Zakkal's capture. Her own daughter was responsible for getting him arrested. She had kept that newspaper page with her ever since. It had yellowed, become fragile and even torn wherever it had been folded. But it was her only means of hope. The newspaper article had a photo of Siya. Naina had torn it from the paper and had always kept it close to her, no matter what. At times, she had put it inside her bra just to keep it away from her captor. She did not know how long it had been since Zakkal was arrested but she still carried the hope of meeting her children and husband once again.
She did not know how all of them were. Had her children grown up to become good human beings? She trusted her husband completely to ensure they would have been raised well. She missed him so much. How old would he be now? How old am I?
Her captor told her stories of all kinds. She knew she could not believe anything he told her. But desperation to stay sane can make you place your trust in the most bizarre places. One week ago, he had told her that Siya would begin searching for her again. Then he had cut a lock of her hair and taken it with him. Naina could sense something was changing. It was beyond her to think of anything else then because he had drugged her soon afterwards. She had only come around to her senses in the past two days.
Unlike Zakkal, who used to rape her, the new captor had never touched her, though she was always afraid that could change any moment. He looked at her strangely every time. He smiled with just his mouth. His eyes were the coldest she had seen in humans. She knew he was a monster. But she did not understand why she was still alive.
The car’s engine went silent. She was not even sure if it was a car. It sounded like something bigger. Maybe a tempo. After a spell on silence, heavy footsteps emanated above her. She gulped, thinking about seeing him again. She moved back on the floor, pressing her back against the wall of the small room that had been her home for countless days. She clenched her wrists and became dead still. She was chained and he did not like it when the chains made a sound. The footsteps grew louder as did the beating of her heart.
The door creaked open. Her captor stepped in. He turned on the light inside the room. The bright yellow light was blinding for a few beats. Her hands covered her eyes instinctively for a flash. When she looked up, she saw he was dressed in black like always. He was holding a paper bag. He kept it on the floor and pushed it towards Naina.
‘It’s your favourite food. Murgh Mussallam. Enjoy your meal,’ he said before he exited and locked the door again.
Naina stared at the paper bag. It used to be her favourite food. Until Zakkal gave it to her every time before he raped her. She had grown to hate the smell of it. She had not eaten it since Zakkal had been arrested. Her new captor had stuck to rice and different vegetables and curries while occasionally giving her chicken. She began trembling. She felt like vomiting. Is he going to rape me? Bile rose up her throat. She spit it out next to her. She kicked the paper bag away. There is no way I’m going to eat that.
Naina wondered what was happening. She began to think about why her captor had cut a lock of her hair. What had he done with it? Why had he said Siya would search for me again? Why had she stopped in the first place? Was she okay?
Amid the web of thoughts, she found comfort and solace in only one place—there was still a chance, however minuscule, that she would see her children and husband once again.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
I turned in my bed, covering my face with my quilt, to shield myself from Shadow’s generous licking of my face. For how much I loved him, morning wake up calls from him were never welcome. After a few beats, I realized it was not Shadow but my phone. I had forgotten to keep it on the side table. It was buzzing on my bed, somewhere under me.
I groaned as my hand searched for it. I finally found it. My eyes bulged, seeing the name of the person calling me. Dr. Raghav Barve. I sat up on the bed as fast as lightning. The phone screen told me it was not even five in the morning. This had to be urgent. I answered the call.
‘Siya?’ Dr. Barve’s old voice said. ‘I’ve found the origin of the pollen grain.’
I felt a cool breeze on my neck. My skin quivered. ‘Have you told CID?’
‘Yes, I told Kapil Rathod. He’s coming to your house to get you. You two are supposed to pick me up. The ACP, two CID officers, a SWAT team and crime scene analysts are on their way to the location.’
‘Where’s it?’ I said, getting up and putting the phone on speaker.
‘It’s near an abandoned sugarcane factory outside the city. I don’t know the exact spot but I’m fairly certain that the pollen grain came from somewhere close to it. That’s why a big search party is going there. I’ll tell you how I narrowed down on this place in the car. Get ready. Rathod should reach your house in ten minutes,’ he said and hung up.
This was the moment I had been waiting for. I slipped into a pair of black jeans. I picked up my Glock from the side table and put it in my waist holster. I zipped up my jacket. I broke step for Radha’s bedroom but paused for a beat, wondering if it would be safe to take them with me. ACP Shukla would not be pleased to see them as well. But would they be safe at home? Letting them be on their own would mean a part of my mind would constantly be worried about them. But how safe was the place they were going to?
I pulled out my phone and checked the security camera application. It was working fine. I could monitor the house while I was away. Plus, Shadow would be home as well so he could alert Radha and Rahul if he smelled anything odd. I knocked on their room’s door two times. I heard Radha get up and walk to the door.
‘Is everything okay?’ she said, squinting her eyes.
‘I need to head out. Dr. Barve found the location of the pollen grain. Rathod is coming to get me.’
‘Do you want us to come?’
‘It’s up to you. I don’t know how safe it would be where we’re going. I think it’ll be better if you stay home.’
Radha thought for a beat. She nodded. ‘I’ll lock the door after you. The ankle trackers you gave us are on. Don’t worry.’
‘I’ll change the settings of the app on your phones. Please check in on it every thirty minutes now.’
We walked down together just when we heard Rathod’s SUV approach the gate. As I stepped out, Radha hugged me.
‘Stay safe, sister,’ she said.
‘You too,’ I said and turned away, wondering if it was the right decision to leave them behind.
Rathod lowered the car window and beckoned me inside. He leaned forward and sideways and saw Radha close the main door.
‘Are you sure?' he said. ‘They can stay in the car. There's enough space. The windows are bulletproof. And we can lock it from outside so no one can come in when we're out.'
My stomach sank again. I rushed out and rang the doorbell. I saw Radha peep out from the window of her bedroom. She opened the door in the next minute.
‘I cannot leave you all here. Get in. Stay in the car at the back,’ I said, somehow finding the words between my heavy heaves.
Everyone, including Shadow and a half-asleep Rahul, was inside the car in the next five minutes. Rahul sat in the front. I was in the middle row while Radha and Shadow were at the back. We drove to Dr. Barve's house. He was already outside waiting for us. He was wearing a long coat, a flat cap and carrying a br
own suitcase. A sense of calm spread through me on seeing him. He had been the first person to have helped me get a clue in catching Zakkal. Now, five years later, we were together again, still trying to figure out the actions of the same monster.
He joined me in the middle row. He flashed me a warm smile that reassured me further. I had noticed Dr. Barve having that effect on not just me, but many other people.
‘Thank you,’ I said. ‘I really appreciate everything you do.’
‘Cut it with the formalities. You know I’ll always help you,’ he said. ‘Let’s just hope that my analysis is correct. I was surprised at how quickly I could figure out its location. The pollen grain was well preserved. There was hardly any contamination as well.’
‘That goes on to tell us Zakkal wanted us to find the place.’
‘Indeed. There's more. This will blow away your mind. Normally, identification of an area from pollen takes at least a week, mostly more. As you know, pollens attract other pollens and microscopic objects floating in the air. Our pollen grain was buried in the ground for about a year before it was taken out. There's enough interaction with microbes present only in the soil to prove that. I also observed another microbe present in molasses left behind while manufacturing sugar. What directed me to find the location was another type of pollen that had stuck to the big pollen grain. Extracting it took almost all of yesterday. But it was worth the effort. The pollens were a direct match to one location we have in the data. It surprised me as the central pollen fingerprint data set is no better today than what it was five years ago when we had first met. I noticed that the location that matched to the pollen was added five years back.’
‘Zakkal was arrested then,’ I said.
‘Exactly. In fact, I had added it myself during his investigation. It was one of the places the pollen that led to Zakkal’s arrest had travelled.
‘That’s more than a coincidence.’
‘He knew we would find a match.’
‘Who all would’ve known about the pollen data set?’
‘Anyone who had access to the case files. There were many leaks during Zakkal’s trial. I don’t think the original case file was leaked though.’
‘His lawyer would’ve had a copy.’
‘Certainly.’
The neurons in my mind scuttled. Zakkal would have known his case very well. He could have easily told the Bedroom Strangler about the pollen’s location. It had been underground for about a year according to Dr. Barve.
I said, ‘Where was the pollen grain before it was underground?’
‘The pollen grain itself is new. It’s young. Part of the reason there’s almost no contamination.’
Rathod said, ‘What had you found out about the place where we’re going when Zakkal was arrested?’
‘Just that the pollen grain had been there. Even back then, the place was deserted. We didn’t know then why Zakkal had been there,’ Dr. Barve said.
‘It’s certainly special to him because he’s directing us there again,’ I said and turned to Dr. Barve. ‘We should look at the other places you had found back then. Maybe even they are special for Zakkal. They could lead us to maa or the Bedroom Strangler.’
‘Good point. I’ll share them with you two and Rathod,’ Dr. Barve said.
We reached our destination in thirty-five minutes. It was to the east of Pune in an area yet to be concretized. Rathod, Dr. Barve and I stepped out of the car. The area was cordoned off with yellow police tape. The ACP saw us and broke step towards us. Three police vans were already present. I could count at least ten officers and two sniffer dogs; both were German Shepherds. I recognized four others from the CID office. Dr. Sonia Joshi and her forensic team were also present. One light tower had been erected at the sight. The place was flat and empty. A sugarcane factory stood three kilometres away. We could see its silhouette against the faint early morning glow of the sun.
‘The two of them are with me,’ Rathod said to a police officer manning the tape and ducked under it.
‘We reached five minutes back,’ Shukla said to Barve. ‘We’ve got the lights in place. We’ve ten officers here. All are trained in operations like these. The dogs will lead the search.’
‘Good. Because we don’t know what we’re dealing with. This could be a ploy for all you know,’ Barve said.
I knew killers like Zakkal always loved to show how smart they were. There could be anything waiting for us. I imagined Zakkal laughing his gut off if this was some sort of a plot to kill more. But something told me this had a deeper meaning. Everything had all led up to this moment.
‘Any specific instructions doctor?’ ACP Shukla said.
‘We need to search this entire area. It’s could be a stiff task because it covers about ten square kilometres. The good part is that the land is flat. Just that the grass is high in some areas. We’re looking for anything that comes off as suspicious. Look for signs of freshly dug soil. Ask your men to be careful,’ Raghav said and pulled out a box from a pocket in his coat. ‘This has the pollen. The dogs can use this for a reference smell.’
‘Noted. We'll split up in two teams if need be. In that case, five search ops officers and one dog will be with each team.' He turned to his team. ‘We'll split up amongst the two teams. Dr. Barve and I will go with one. Rathod, take Siya.' Shukla paused and turned to me. ‘Be alert,' he said and crossed to his van. He came back with three bulletproof vests and gave them to us.
‘Let’s find what this moron has hidden,’ he said.
I pulled out my Glock. Both the dogs headed east, towards the rising sun. We followed them with torches. ACP Shukla led the way. We had walked for fifteen minutes when the dogs began to get excited. Their leash stretched and they egged their handlers to move faster. They pushed through grass that got progressively higher. Strobes of light zigzagged ahead of us. The grass got waist high. At that point of time, we were worried about snakes and animals than any other human. The dogs began to bark.
The land cleared.
The clear land was circular. It was surrounded by tall grass. There was a small lamp in the centre of the clear patch. We could not make out anything else in the sparse light. We walked closer to the centre.
Trepidation grew with every step. Our eyes got adjusted to the low light gradually. Finally, we were finally close enough to realize what had been placed around the small lamp. My hands went cold and shivers spiked through my body when I realized what it was.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
The arrangement around the lamp was chilling. Ten glass jars were placed in a circle around a lamp. They were placed on a red silk cloth. There was something inside the jars. I could not yet make it out. The lamp's light glistened on it, adding to the theatrics while throwing light on the ten jars around it.
Sonia raised her hand. She had a crime scene to protect. ‘Stand back, everyone,’ she said and turned her wrist to check the time. ‘I need to secure this area.’
She beckoned to her team to start searching and taking pictures of the area. There could be footprints or something else left behind. Her team searched the area for the next ten minutes by which time the sun rose. Everyone else watching the proceedings from a distance. Tense silence resounded.
I walked closer to the arrangement. I felt a knot in my neck that kept getting bigger when I realized what lay in the jars. It looked like a human organ. Just thinking about it made me quiver. A cool breeze brushed my neck. Sweat flocked my forehead. The beating of my heart rose. I could not recognize the organ but it had been pushed inside and it somehow fit inside the box. I wondered what else would be present in other jars.
Sonia's team moved quickly once the sun rose. Another ten minutes went by before Sonia cleared the area for us. She went to the jar nearest to us and picked it up. She gazed at it through the transparent walls.
‘It’s a heart,’ she said, her voice soft and low.
Several gasps escaped in unison. Uneasiness spread across. My fingers and toes tingled. Everyon
e turned to each other, wondering what the hell they were seeing.
‘An actual freaking human heart?’ Shukla said.
‘Yes, the jars are airtight. Probably to preserve the heart.'
Silence.
‘Wait, there’s something under the jar,’ Sonia said, raising it higher to look below it. ‘There’s a paper stuck to it. There’s a name written on it. Madhuri.’ She paused. ‘And there’s a heart next to it.’
‘That’s one of the women who Zakkal had abducted,’ I said.
All eyes turned to me.
‘Madhuri Kenjale,’ I said. ‘She’s one of the seven he admitted to taking.’
All eyes moved away from me as Sonia crossed to the next jar. She picked it up and examined it.
‘This one…this one also has a heart,’ she said, her voice trailing off. She turned it around and looked below it. ‘There’s a name once again. Kanaka Madhavan.’
I said, ‘That’s another woman he admitted to taking.’
Sonia was at the next jar. ‘This one isn’t an organ,’ she said. ‘It’s a lock of hair.’ She looked under the jar. She looked up at me, nodding her head. ‘It’s your mother. Naina Rajput.’
My eyes welled. I did not know why the thought of maa dying cropped up. I fought the tears. This was not the time to cry. Not now. The sadness made way for anger. My fists clenched. Zakkal’s face from the day before came to my mind. I love the way your mom smells. It enriches me. I cannot wait to hold her close again. I was going to get that son of a bitch.
I had not realized Sonia was at the next jar until she spoke. I snapped out of my daze.
‘There’s more hair in this. It’s a different shade than the previous one,’ she said, holding the box up for everyone to see. ‘The name under this is Swapna Kiran.’
‘Swapna?’ I said. ‘She wasn’t among the ones Zakkal had taken. At least according to him.’
