Chapter 45

Sabari’s heart skipped a beat once he saw Inspector Mahadev outside Shantilal’s residence. His brain struggled and almost exhausted to find a reason to get over the situation. By holding the phone in his hand, he stood silent without uttering a word.

Inspector Mahadev broke the silence.

“Sabari!!! Let us start everything afresh. Let us sit together and can have an open interview once again. I’m gonna ask you a bunch of questions, may be, some might be repeated. I expect you to answer truly and I need ONE AND ONLY THE TRUTH. If you think that is not possible, we might have to sit in a different atmosphere, as a special guest, in the police station. Choose whichever will work for you..”

“Sir… Please… Give me another chance to prove myself. I’m in troubled waters already. I will tell you all…”

“That’s a wise decision. Let us do some talking. I will come over”

Inspector Mahadev disconnected the call. He opened the front gate and walked through the portico. As the door was already opened, he entered in and occupied the couch. At the same time, Sabari and the security ran down the stairs to the hall. Sabari saw Mahadev already in the hall and he occupied the couch opposite to him.

Sabari took a deep breath and said, “Sir… Shall I ??“

“Uhm…. Ok… Go ahead”

Sabari spent a few minutes and narrated all the incidents. Inspector Mahadev was astonished as incidents unfolded and it reflected in his facial reactions. He had a bunch of brow-raising moments. Once Sabari was done, he waited for Mahadev to talk.

Mahadev, with a suspicious look, said, “I’m still doubtful whether I have to believe this version of yours”

“Sir…please…believe me… I’m not lying and this is 100% true”

“So…Here is where you met Prasanna…correct?”

“That’s right…I’m more worried about my wife”

Inspector Mahadev’s attention directed towards the security.

“What is your name?”

“Rangaraj.. Sir”

“Sabari might be innocent enough to believe… But I cannot believe that you were intoxicated by the alcohol for hours together”

Now the panic gripped security Rangaraj.

“Sir???”

“I mean it… I suspect that you might have been paid by Prasanna to let him in…How much were you paid?”

Rangaraj went down his knees in front of Mahadev.

“Sir… The one and only bad habit that I have is the alcohol. Whenever I get drunk, I will be on my sense. When I had my drink today, unusually, it tasted different. It reacted abnormal after having it. “

“Did you remember anything else after you had it?”

“No sir… The moment I had it, I remember as if I was too sleepy.  I think I slept like a pig for a couple of hours…”

“Did you try any new brand today?”

“No sir.. It was the usual one”

“If so, why did it taste different…?”

Rangaraj nodded his head in denial, “I… don’t know sir”

“Where did you buy the drink?”

“From the shop in the next street”

“Do you have the emptied bottle with you?”

“Yes I do”

“Get it for me”

“Sure sir”

Security Rangaraj walked out through the entrance and once he was gone, Mahadev turned to Sabari.

“What do you think about this guy?”

“He is harmless sir. I don’t think he had any role to play here”

“Don’t certify any anonymous guy without knowing the background. This guy was given a huge responsibility of securing this residence by the house owner. Nothing could have happened without his knowledge. I remember that you said that you saw another security fellow when you came here the first time..right?”

“That’s right sir”

“Can you describe him?”

“He was a short fellow in his mid-thirties”

“hmm… ok..now let us come to Vasudharini… She was your wife’s friend..correct?”

“Yes”

“She was in a relationship with Abilash…They were here to get married against their parent’s wish. And they visited your wife in your absence as you were against the love marriage…right?”

“That’s right sir… It is just my belief as couples overdo everything in cheap relationships”

“What could be the motive behind Vasudharini’s murder?”

“There could be a single reason… It could be a honour killing… They both belong to different castes. I heard that both their parents wanted to kill them. When Abilash was admitted in the hospital due to heart attack, Vasudharini was present too. She returned to my home as she saw a doctor in the hospital from her native. Also, she dreaded that he might inform her parents about them. So, my wife Ananya had to go to the hospital to be with Abilash.”

“Hmm.. Vasudharini might have been killed during that time interval…correct?”

“That’s right Inspector. The killer might have followed Vasudharini from the hospital to my home. They might have attacked the security and killed her. I suspect Prasanna”

“Ok… I like to mention something here…Yourself and your wife did a blunder of disposing Vasudharini’s deadbody all by yourself, without informing the cops. As per the procedure, the dead body need to be sent for a post mortem and that might have got us some clue…”

“I’m really sorry about that”

Inspector Mahadev responded with a sarcastic smile and replied, “Your ‘Sorry’ will not save you from the legal action that we are gonna take against you for disposing the body.”

Sabari was speechless and stood silent and Mahadev continued.

“You had mentioned that Vasudharini saw a doctor in the hospital who belongs to her native…Right?”

“Yes”

“Do you know him?”

“Ya.. He is Dr. Balaji and the hospital name is ‘GetWell’ “

Inspector Mahadev stood ready to leave. He said, “Right now, it could be the doctor fella. He might have tipped someone to follow Vasudharini. That person should have followed her to your residence and as she was alone, it would have been quite easy to kill her. Let us go to the hospital right away and nab him.”