Mr Majumdar’s bedroom was quite large. Lalmohan Babu and I remained standing near the door. Feluda went in with the inspector. The body was covered with a white sheet.
‘I’d like to tell you something,’ Inspector Saha said to Feluda, taking him aside. ‘We’ll carry out our own enquiries in the usual way. But if you want to make an independent investigation, please fee! free. The only thing I’d ask you to do is share your findings with us. If we learn anything useful, I’ll make sure you get to hear of it.’
‘Thank you. You needn’t worry, Mr Saha. You’ll certainly get my full cooperation; and I don’t think I’ll get very far without yours.’
Samiran Majumdar entered the room, looking pale and dishevelled.
‘My sympathies, Mr Majumdar. You were the first to discover the body, weren’t you?’ Feluda asked.
‘Yes. My father set his alarm always at five. Then he used to go and sit on the veranda, where Lokenath used to bring him his tea. Today, when he still hadn’t appeared at quarter past five, I wondered what the matter was. So I came in here to check, and . . . found this!’
‘This must be difficult for you, but do you have any idea who might have done this, and why?’ Feluda continued with his questions pacing in the room, his eagle eyes taking in every detail.
‘No. But I’ve noticed there’s something missing in this room.’
‘What?’
‘A small statue of Krishna, made of ashtadhatu. It was a very old family heirloom and most valuable.’
‘Where was it kept?’
‘On that shelf over there, next to the dagger that was used.’
‘Why did you keep such a valuable object out in the open? Why wasn’t it locked away in a chest?’ Inspector Saha wanted to know.
‘Baba never slept at night. Besides, he always had his revolver with him. So none of us ever thought there was any danger of theft.’
‘Well, now it looks as though robbery was the motive. How much was it worth, do you think?’
‘At least sixty-five thousand. Although there were eight metals, it was chiefly made of gold.’
Feluda picked up a pencil from a bedside table and said, ‘The point is broken, and the broken portion is lying right here.’ There was a small writing pad on the table. Feluda bent over it, and murmured, ‘The top page was torn off, I think.’ Then he began inspecting the floor around the table, kneeling to get a closer look. Only a few seconds later, he said, ‘Got it!’ He rose to his feet again, a small piece of paper in his hand. He quickly read what was written on it, and passed it to the inspector. Mr Saha cast a quick glance at it, and gave an involuntary exclamation. ‘Vish? You mean he was poisoned?’ he asked in profound amazement.
‘That’s what it looks like, doesn’t it? The last two letters are so crooked that it seems he died just as he finished writing them, which explains the broken pencil and this piece of paper that came loose and fell under the table.’
‘But why should he write “poisoned”? It’s so obvious he was stabbed to death.’
‘Hm, I can’t understand it either.’ Feluda frowned, then turned to Samiran Babu. ‘Do you know where your father’s sleeping pills were kept?’
‘In a bottle, in the dining room. Lokenath used to take them out of the aluminium foil and pour them into the bottle as soon as Baba bought a fresh supply.’
‘Could you bring that bottle here, please?’
Samiran Babu left, and took a long time to return. When he finally came back to the room, he was looking even paler and more distressed.
‘That bottle’s gone!’ he whispered through white lips.
Feluda, however, didn’t seem to find this surprising. ‘The day before yesterday,’ he said calmly, ‘your father bought thirty-one of those pills. We saw him. Tell me, Mr Saha, if thirty were mixed in somebody’s drink, wouldn’t that be enough to kill him?’
‘What pills are you talking about?’
‘Trofnil. Anti-depressant pills.’
‘Oh. Yes, that may well be possible.’
‘And if that was the case, it would be quite right to call the pills “poison”, wouldn’t it?’
‘Certainly.’
‘Well, that would at least explain why he wrote that word. But . . .’ Feluda was still frowning, ‘If a dying man wanted to write something before his death, surely he’d want to write the name of his murderer, rather than how he had been murdered?’
‘Yes, you’re right. But obviously Mr Majumdar didn’t do that. Why don’t we speak to the bearer, Lokenath?’
Feluda nodded and looked at Samiran Babu, who left to find Lokenath. I noticed that Feluda hadn’t stopped frowning.
‘Mr Majumdar came to watch the shooting today,’ Lalmohan Babu said, ‘Lokenath came to look for him at around half past one. But Mr Majumdar didn’t go back immediately.’
‘That means his routine today was slightly upset.’
‘Looks like it. I think he was finding it quite interesting to watch us shoot. I saw him talking to both Raina and Verma. He seemed to be asking a lot of questions.’
Samiran Babu returned once more. The expression on his face suggested he hadn’t come back with good news. But none of us were prepared for what he blurted out. ‘Lokenath’s missing!’ he said.
‘Missing?’ Even Feluda couldn’t hide his surprise.
‘Yes. He’s apparently been missing since one-thirty. All our servants have their lunch together at two o’clock every day. Lokenath didn’t even eat with them. No one knows where he’s gone, or what time he left.’
‘Have you spoken to Mr Bose? Maybe he sent him out somewhere?’
‘No. He knew nothing about this. He says he spent half an hour resting in his room straight after lunch, and then went for a walk in the pine wood. He does this almost every day. He doesn’t believe in afternoon siestas.’
I knew this was true, for I had gone for a little walk in the wood myself during the lunch break. I had seen Rajat Bose coming back from there.
‘How long have you had Lokenath?’ Inspector Saha asked. ‘About four years. Our old bearer died after an attack of hepatitis. That’s when Lokenath arrived, with excellent references. Besides, he seemed to be educated and quite intelligent. In fact, he used to help Baba and Mr Bose in keeping the scrapbooks up to date.’
‘Well then, maybe if we can trace this fellow, we can solve this case! May I use your telephone, please?’ Inspector Saha said.
‘Yes, certainly,’ replied Samiran Babu and went out with the inspector.
‘I don’t understand this at all, Felu Babu. Why should anyone stab him if he was dead already?’
‘Difficult to say. It could simply be that the killer wished to make sure. He may have returned to the room after giving him that poisoned drink to steal the statue, and may have seen him move in his sleep. After all, pills do take a few minutes to start working, don’t they? So the killer decided not to take any chances, and finished him with the dagger. Then he slipped away with the statue.’
‘So when do you think he wrote the word vish?’
‘Before he was stabbed. He may have realized his drink had been tampered with, and started to write a message. But he lost consciousness after writing that single word. I cannot think of any other explanation at this moment.’ Feluda sounded distinctly unhappy.
Inspector Saha returned. ‘It makes perfect sense to me,’ he said, having heard Feluda’s explanation. ‘But anyway, I’ve put my men on the job to track down Lokenath. In the meantime, I have to interview the whole film unit as well as every member of this household.’
‘I think I ought to tell you something,’ Lalmohan Babu said. ‘Not everyone had permission to use the bathroom in the northern wing. The only people allowed were Pulak Ghoshal, the cameraman Sudev Ghosh, Raina, Verma and me.’
‘That means not everyone had reason to go there. Very well, I shall interview only the people you just mentioned.’
‘Why-what, even m-me?’ Lalmohan Babu began to look just a little bit u
nsure.
‘Of course,’ said Feluda seriously, ‘you are certainly among the people who had the opportunity.’
‘Who are the people actually living in the house?’ Inspector Saha asked, looking at Samiran Babu.
‘Apart from myself, there’s Rajat Bose, our servant Bahadur and the cook, Jagadish.’
‘Very well. Where should we start?’
Seven
Pulak Ghoshal came to our hotel at half past nine the next morning.
‘Have the police finished asking questions?’ Feluda asked him. ‘Yes. None of us could go home before half past nine last night. Who could ever have imagined something like this would happen? We can’t start shooting until the police give the all-clear. Samiran Babu has said we may go ahead once the police finish their investigation, but who knows how long that might take? I’m trying not even to think about the financial loss we’ll have to suffer because of this.’
Lalmohan Babu clicked his tongue in sympathy.
‘However,’ Pulak Babu added a shade more cheerfully, ‘there’s something I have seen in the past. If the production of a film gets temporarily stopped for some reason, it goes on to become a smash hit. Besides, Laluda, your story is totally unbeatable.’
Inspector Saha turned up half an hour after Pulak Babu left. ‘No sign of Lokenath,’ he said, ‘but we’re still looking for him. My men are working even in Siliguri. I think it’s just a matter of time before we find him. He may be hiding in a tribal colony at the moment, but he’s bound to be caught sooner or later. I am positive he’ll try to go to Calcutta and sell the statue there. It’s strange, isn’t it, what greed can do to an otherwise simple man?’
‘I believe you’ve finished interviewing people in the house.’
‘Yes. It proved one thing: everyone, without a single exception, was avidly curious to see how a film is shot. All of them admitted to having spent considerable time watching the shooting. Even Mr Majumdar changed his routine. That is most remarkable, for his life ran with clockwork precision.’
‘How many people would have had the opportunity, do you think? Let’s not worry about the motive as yet.’
‘Well, there are two things to be considered here. One, pouring poison into the victim’s glass of milk; and then stabbing him to steal the statue. Lokenath got the glass of milk ready at around half past one and went to call Mr Majumdar. He could have dropped the remaining thirty pills into the glass; or, in his absence, someone else might have slipped in and done that. Rajat Bose says he was reading in his room at that time. Samiran Majumdar also says he was in his own room. Neither can prove it. Bahadur and Jagadish were watching the shooting. This happens to be true.’
‘What did your surgeon say about the time of murder?’
‘According to him, the victim was stabbed between 2.30 and 4 p.m. There is no doubt that the cause of death was stabbing, or there wouldn’t have been so much bleeding.’
‘Could anyone say anything about Lokenath?’
‘No. Everyone was engrossed with the shooting.’
Lalmohan Babu cleared his throat. ‘If I must be questioned, why don’t you ask your questions now? Let’s get it over with.’
‘Very well. Technically, I should have interviewed you last night, along with the others, but I didn’t insist as you’re a friend of Mr Mitter’s. Anyway, let’s hear from you what happened yesterday.’
‘I got there at nine o’clock,’ Lalmohan Babu began. ‘It took me an hour to finish my make-up. There is a veranda right next to the room where the shooting is taking place. All the actors normally wait on that veranda to be called to the set. While we were waiting there, something happened, at about half past ten. Mr Majumdar arrived and asked Raina and Verma to go with him. They were back in five minutes. Raina told me Mr Majumdar had shown them an old family heirloom. Now I know it was that statue of Krishna.’
‘I see. What happened next?’
‘At eleven o’clock, Verma and I were called. Pulak started taking the shot in just ten minutes. Four shots were taken before lunch. I had to go to the bathroom after the second one. It must have been around half past twelve.’
‘Did you see anyone on the way?’
‘No. I was called back to the set within minutes of my return. The third shot was taken half-an-hour later, after a rehearsal. After that, I had a few minutes’ rest. I spent that time sitting on the veranda.’
‘Alone?’
‘No. Raina and Verma were both with me. Mr Majumdar came back for a while. It was during this time that I saw Lokenath come and tell him his milk was ready. Mr Majumdar left after another five minutes. At quarter to two, Pulak took the fourth shot, with just me in it. We broke for lunch at half past two, and I went back to the bathroom to wash my hands. Raina and Verma followed me.’
‘Who went to the bathroom first?’
‘I did. Then I returned straight to the southern side. It took us twenty minutes or so to finish eating. After that I just sat on the veranda. Tapesh was with me.’ I nodded in agreement.
Lalmohan Babu continued, ‘I couldn’t tell you where Raina and Verma were at this time. We resumed working at around three o’clock. My fifth shot was over at half past three, after which there was a break for thirty-five minutes to get the lights ready.’
‘What did you do during that time?’
‘I chatted with Raina and Verma on the veranda. Tapesh sat with us.’ I nodded again.
‘Verma has travelled a lot, all over the country. He was telling us about his experiences.’
‘You mean the three of you were together throughout, until the lights were ready?’
Lalmohan Babu frowned. Then he said, ‘I’m not sure. I think Verma got up and left for about five minutes. Raina was regaling us with gossip from the film world, and then—’
‘That’ll do, thank you,’ Inspector Saha interrupted him. ‘I think I’ve got everything I needed to know. But do you remember having seen Lokenath at all after half past one?’
Lalmohan Babu shook his head. ‘No, I don’t think I did.’
‘Very well. Thank you very much.’ Then he looked at me. ‘Tapesh, you were there as well, weren’t you? Do you have anything to say?’
‘I agree with everything Lalmohan Babu has just told you. At half past two, I went for a walk in the pine wood behind the house. I saw Rajat Bose returning from there. He appeared to be slightly out of breath.’
‘He told me the same thing. Apparently, he often goes for a walk in the pine wood soon after lunch. By the way, when you had your lunch, did anyone from the Majumdar household ever join you?’
‘No. Pulak asked Samiran Majumdar and Rajat Bose to have lunch with us, but both declined.’
‘I see. That reminds me, we didn’t find any fingerprints on the handle of that dagger.’
‘No, I didn’t think you would,’ said Feluda. ‘I need to ask you something, Mr Saha. It’s about the time of the murder. Isn’t it far more likely to be half past two rather than half past four?’
‘Why do you say that?’
‘If Lokenath is the culprit, surely he’d have mixed all the pills—there would have been twenty-nine, not thirty—in Mr Majumdar’s glass of milk as soon as he could? I mean, if he did that at half past one, why should he wait for another three hours before trying to steal the statue, and then stabbing his victim? He’d have wanted to clear out right away, don’t you think?’
‘Yes, that’s a good point. But if he did kill at half past two that still fits in with the surgeon’s report.’
Inspector Saha rose. ‘Thank you very much for your help,’ he said, ‘I must go now. I have more work in Nayanpur Villa. Goodbye.’ But he stopped at the door and turned around. ‘Mr Mitter, why are you still frowning?’ he asked.
‘Oh, that’s nothing!’ Feluda tried to dismiss it with a wave of his hand. ‘You see, I am so used to handling complex cases that this one is striking me as far too simple. This is a totally new experience for me. I am finding it difficult to accept.’
>
‘You must be mad. We in the police are always immensely relieved if a case turns out to be easy and simple. Perhaps that’s the difference between a police officer and an amateur private detective!’
Inspector Saha left. Feluda continued to look worried, but finally shook his head and said, ‘The inspector’s right. I shouldn’t worry so much. They’ll find Lokenath, and that will be that. Let’s go for a walk down the Mall.’
There weren’t many people about in the Mall. It was cold and misty. We found an empty bench. The mist got thicker in a few minutes. It became difficult to see anything beyond a few yards. If anyone came out of the mist, it seemed as though he had appeared out of nowhere. So we were considerably startled when the figure of an elderly gentleman emerged suddenly from the haze, and stopped before us.
‘Namaskar,’ he said, looking at Feluda.
Eight
‘Namaskar,’ Feluda replied, returning his greeting.
‘Yesterday, we met briefly at Keventer’s, if you remember.’
‘Yes, of course. You are Harinarayan Mukherjee, aren’t you?’
‘That’s right. I must say you have a sharp memory. May I sit here with you for a few minutes?’
‘Certainly.’
Feluda moved aside to make room for him on the bench. He sat down between Feluda and Lalmohan Babu.
‘You live near Nayanpur Villa, don’t you?’
‘Yes. I’ve lived here for eleven years.’
‘I see. You must have heard of the tragedy, so close to your house.’
‘I have indeed. It’s all very sad, but not totally unexpected, is it?’
‘Is that what you think?’
‘I say this because I had known Birupaksha Majumdar a long time. I cannot say we were intimate friends, for he was somewhat reserved by nature; but I had heard a lot about him.’
‘How?’
‘I spent nearly ten years in a place called Neelkanthapur in Madhya Pradesh. I was a geologist, working on the local rocks. Mr Majumdar once came to Neelkanthapur, at the invitation of Raja Prithvi Singh, to go tiger hunting on his estate. They had known each other for some time. Mr Majumdar was then in his mid-thirties, I think. Both men had one thing in common. Neither liked to shoot from a high machaan, or even from an elephant. They wanted to go on foot, without taking the help of beaters, and shoot a tiger at close range from the ground. That’s what led to that terrible accident.’