‘Agonising pain shoots through the victim’s body,’ Peters went on. ‘Shock, delirium, terror, and swiftly, death.’ He glanced at de Silva with an apologetic expression. ‘Forgive me. My wife often tells me that I allow my enthusiasm to run away with me.’
De Silva felt a film of sweat coat his face; his uniform shirt had grown damp. He was in complete agreement with Mrs Peters, but the vicar was to be applauded for providing exactly the information he required.
‘If the snake had been allowed to escape,’ he said, ‘what do you think the chances of Kumar recapturing it would have been?’
‘Slim. As I said, the blue coral is shy of people. Its overriding desire would have been to escape as quickly as possible. In any case, I believe that even the most confident snake handler would be satisfied with one successful operation and baulk at risking their life on a second attempt at capture.’
‘And if the snake did escape, where would it go?’
‘By now, I expect it would be somewhere in the jungle. Even if it had spent a considerable portion of its life in captivity, the instinct to return to the wild remains strong in most creatures.’
A wave of relief washed over de Silva. He was glad to think that he was unlikely to meet it roaming free up at the circus.
‘Is there anything else I can do for you?’
Closing the book, de Silva handed it back. ‘Not at present, but many thanks. Your help has been invaluable.’
‘Then I’ll bid you goodbye. Of course, if your theory about Alexei Goncharov’s death is right, it changes the position regarding his burial. But for the moment, would you still like me to speak with the bishop?’
In the excitement, de Silva had almost forgotten the issue of the funeral. His mind was already on the next thing that he needed to do, and as soon as possible: search Kumar’s quarters, and also his collection of snakes. The thought of the latter task made his blood run cold. But if he turned out to be on the wrong track, a decision about the funeral would still need to be made. He could always step in to delay the service if necessary.
‘I’d be obliged if you would and let me know the result.’
‘Very well.’ Peters smiled. ‘I suggested showing you my orchid house before you leave, but I see that you have more urgent matters on your mind. Another time, perhaps.’
De Silva thanked him and returned to the police station.
Chapter 16
By the time he reached the station, it was almost four o’clock. If he and Prasanna left for the circus now, it was possible they’d arrive before Kumar had started to bring the horses in and settle them for the night, which would mean he might still be in his tent. Best to wait a while before setting off.
There was a lingering aroma of curry in the public room; the sounds of the street drifted in through the open window. Prasanna, who looked to have been daydreaming, sprang to attention, hastily fastening the top button of his tunic.
‘Well, that was an extremely useful trip,’ said de Silva, pretending not to notice his sergeant’s disarray. ‘I have a pretty good idea of what kind of snake we are looking for now. It’s called a blue coral. An extremely beautiful creature. Have you ever seen one?’
‘I don’t think so, sir.’
De Silva described it, not leaving out the details of its deadly habits. ‘You don’t seem particularly alarmed, Sergeant,’ he said when he reached the end.
‘I’m not, sir. Since you say that Reverend Peters is an expert on snakes, and he says it will probably be in the jungle by now, I don’t think there’s any need to be.’
De Silva admired his optimism; he hoped it was not going to turn out to be misplaced. He consulted his watch. A leisurely drive before the ordeal might have a calming effect on his nerves.
‘If we set off in half an hour,’ he said, ‘it should get us to the circus a little after five o’clock. With luck, it will be the perfect time to find Kumar safely out of the way. I hope we can find his tent without attracting attention.’
‘It won’t be hard, sir. It was pointed out to me when I was going around with Gordo.’
‘Ah yes, you told me, and I had forgotten. Incidentally, did you find out anything else about Kumar at that time?’
Prasanna pondered for a moment. ‘I remember that quite a few people seemed not to like him. I think there was something about him carrying on as if he was part of the management, just because he was a friend of Alexei’s. I’m afraid I didn’t follow it up though.’
‘That alright. At the time, there was no reason why you would have thought it important.’
De Silva wondered whether another reason for Kumar’s unpopularity might be that the Russians didn’t like to see an Indian doing well, but whether that was the case or not, the information was interesting.
**
Inside the entrance to the racecourse, de Silva did his best to park the Morris in an inconspicuous place. He waited there while Prasanna went over to the stable yard to see if Kumar was about.
‘There are several horses tethered in the yard, sir,’ he said when he returned. ‘And I heard noises from inside. I wanted to be sure it was Kumar, so I chanced a look around the door. He’s on his own.’
‘Well done. We’d better get a move on before he finishes his work. Don’t forget, if anyone asks why we’re here, we’ve come with a message from Reverend Peters for Boris. Once I get into Kumar’s tent, you keep watch outside. Should you think anyone’s coming, alert me, then melt into the background as fast as you can.’
They struck out across the course, Prasanna leading the way. The slanting, late afternoon sun threw bands of dark shadow and deep gold across the grass. With the circus’s main tent gone, the sea of small ones looked forlorn. De Silva was relieved that not many of their inhabitants were about. Doubtless, now that the major packing up of the circus was done, and there were no shows until the circus’s next stop, there was not much work for the circus hands or the performers. An air of lassitude hung over the place, as if in their minds, the circus people had already moved on from Nuala.
‘We’ll approach it from the back,’ he muttered to Prasanna when they reached Kumar’s tent. ‘I may need you to slip through a gap for me and remove a flap of canvas so I can get in.’
Apparently unobserved, they reached the tent and found a suitable place at the back. Prasanna just managed to squeeze inside. The canvas billowed and creaked as, laboriously, he partially freed a section from its fastenings and peeled it back.
‘Is the gap wide enough, sir?’ he asked, poking his head out.
De Silva gave a low chuckle. ‘I’m not as stout as all that, Sergeant.’
‘Sorry, sir.’ Prasanna grinned.
‘Any sign of those snakes?’
Glancing around the tent, Prasanna shook his head. ‘But there are a few photographs of him with them.’
‘Maybe they’re already on one of the trucks, ready for when the circus moves on. Out you come, and I’ll get on with my search.’
Prasanna stepped through the gap and stood aside to let de Silva in. He was glad to see that there was not much in the tent. Searching it should be a reasonably quick job, which was a good thing in the circumstances. Apart from a bed, two canvas chairs and a washstand, there were just a couple of trunks. He started on the first one, taking care to replace the contents as he found them but uncovered nothing out of the ordinary. After he had closed the catch on the second one with the same result, he turned his attention to the bed. The sheets were made of thin cotton with a woollen blanket that felt slightly waxy to the touch laid over them. As he turned it back, he smelled a faint odour of lanolin. Pulling off the sheets, he shook them out, but nothing of interest was hidden there either. He also checked inside the pillowcase and felt the pillow for any suspicious lumps and bumps.
Next, he ran a hand between the mattress and the base of the bed. There was a crackling sound as he felt around, and he let out a muffled curse. Something sharp had jabbed his hand. Gingerly, he removed it and saw beads
of blood that oozed until they became a rivulet. A yellowish-brown splinter had embedded itself in his skin. The mattress must be stuffed with straw and have a hole in the ticking. Carefully, he removed the splinter, causing more blood to flow. Alarmed, he noticed that some of it was on one of the sheets. He took his handkerchief out of his pocket, wrapped it around his bleeding hand and knotted it, then remade the bed as carefully as he could. Luckily, he was able to tuck the bloodstained part of the sheet out of sight beneath the mattress.
Just as he had finished, the sound of voices close to the entrance to the tent made him start; his heartbeat quickened. He must leave before it was too late. With a final glance at the bed to satisfy himself it looked near enough to how he had found it, he hurried to the gap in the canvas. It would be frustrating if Kumar had come back. He would have liked more time to search, so he might have to enlist Boris’s help after all.
Outside, he pulled the canvas back into position as best as he could then waited, praying that no one would come around the corner and find him. Interspersed with laughter, the voices drifted towards him on the sultry air, but he was unable to make out what they were saying.
At last, the conversation died, and he was debating whether it was safe to go into the tent again when he saw a hand emerge through the gap. His throat went dry and he recoiled, catching his foot in a guy rope and stumbling. As he regained his balance, the gap widened. A familiar face appeared.
‘For goodness’ sake, Sergeant! You nearly gave me a heart attack.’
‘Sorry, sir.’
‘Was it you who was talking just now?’
Prasanna nodded. ‘Gordo came past and struck up a conversation. I gave him the excuse you told me to and said I was strolling around while I waited for you. I didn’t want to make him suspicious by trying to get rid of him too quickly. Shall I go back and keep watch again?’
‘Yes, I haven’t found anything so far. I want a bit more time.’
Back inside, he began to study the photographs. One of them showed a turbaned Kumar, dressed in trousers and tunic made of exotic brocade, with a snake draped over his shoulders for all the world as if it were a scarf.
He studied Kumar’s dark, glittering eyes, and his enigmatic smile. What secrets lay behind them, and where was the evidence that would unlock those secrets? A feeling of frustration grew; he had a good chance of proving that Kumar was tied up with the jewellery thefts, but he was sure there was more to his crimes than that. At the moment though, establishing that he was responsible for the deaths of either or both of Tatiana and Alexei seemed a daunting hill to climb. Gloomily, he faced the prospect of his hunch leading nowhere.
At least his hand had stopped stinging. Untying the knot that secured the handkerchief, he found that the blood had clotted. He cast a final glance around the tent. It was a pity that apart from the photographs, the few pieces of furniture, and his clothes, Kumar seemed to have no possessions. He had hoped for papers or letters; something that would throw light on a link to a gang of jewel thieves, perhaps as he suspected, the Black Lotus gang. Had everything been done by word of mouth? Surely, there had been times when written messages were necessary. It would be feasible to send letters for Kumar to pick up at post offices in towns that the circus was going to visit, but if that was ever the case, he must have destroyed them.
Then an idea came to him: the mattress. He had been too preoccupied with his injured hand to search it thoroughly. What if the hole was big enough to slip papers or letters between the straw and the ticking? It would be a simple solution to the problem of how to conceal such things.
He didn’t want another injury, so he cautiously lifted the mattress and peered underneath; the straw crackled in protest. It was not until he had raised it as high as his strength would allow that he saw the tear. It was several inches wide. Straining to hold the mattress up with one hand, he prodded the grubby, striped ticking around it. More straw spilled out, but he was sure there was something else in there. His arm ached from the weight of the mattress, but with an extra burst of effort, he pushed it higher and reached in with his free hand. He touched something smooth. Carefully, he eased it out and found it was a small pouch made of soft leather.
Lowering the mattress back in place, he tidied the bedding once again then turned his attention to the pouch. There were no letters, but what it did contain was much more interesting. Unfolding the document, he saw that it was an agreement between Kumar and Alexei, written in English and dated a few months previously. It referred to gambling debts and stipulated that if by a certain date Alexei had not repaid a large sum of money that he owed to Kumar for helping him out with them, his share in the circus would become the snake charmer’s property. So, if Kumar was a gambler, as Archie had suggested, he was a successful one. It was Alexei who had been losing more than he could afford. A jolt went through de Silva as he read the repayment date. It was only a week away.
The truth came to him in a rush. Kumar hadn’t killed Alexei because he was an accomplice in thieving whose presence had become inconvenient; he had killed him because time was running out for repayment of the loan. He was afraid that as the date approached and Alexei didn’t repay, he would lose his nerve and appeal to Boris for help. The fact that he hadn’t already done so was probably due to what Nadia had said about their father’s wishes. No doubt Alexei had been hanging on for as long as possible, hoping for a miracle, rather than face his brother and admit what he had done. The consequences would almost certainly have been disastrous for Kumar too. Boris seemed to be an honourable man; no doubt, if the money was due, he would repay it, but Kumar’s career in the circus would be over.
So, realistically, Kumar was faced with a choice between giving Alexei more time to pay or taking over his share in the circus and, for the time being at least, keeping quiet about it. But what good would that do him? Money? Admittedly he would be able to extract more from Alexei, but Prasanna had suggested, and it seemed plausible, that Kumar might want total control of the circus to enable him to take it to the places that best suited the jewel thieves. How would that be possible if he had to work through Alexei? Boris appeared to be the stronger character and would surely have the last word on destinations.
Suddenly, everything became clear. If the plan was to work, Kumar would also need to get rid of Boris. And best of all, do it quickly, so that he could take control while the circus was already reeling from the loss of Alexei and Tatiana. Kumar must have some fate in mind for Boris, which, like Tatiana’s “accident” and Alexei’s “suicide” did not point the finger immediately at himself. De Silva stuffed the agreement in his pocket, but returned the leather pouch to its hiding place, then hurried out of the tent.
Outside, darkness was rapidly extinguishing a blood-red sky. He went to the corner and called to Prasanna in a low, urgent voice.
‘Did you find anything, sir?’ his sergeant asked.
‘Yes. We need to find Boris as soon as possible. I believe his life is in danger.’
**
Boris wasn’t in his tent, and he was not with Nadia either.
‘I’ll come back,’ said de Silva. ‘If you see him, tell him to wait here for me. I have something I need to speak to him about as soon as possible.’
Nadia looked bemused, but she nodded.
‘We’d better keep moving,’ he muttered to Prasanna. ‘The racecourse is a big area. We may not have much time left to find him before it’s too late. We’ll try the tented camp. Perhaps he’s talking with some of the circus people there.’
At the camp, small fires had already been lit. Firelight bathed the faces of the people sitting around them, throwing their features into eerily sharp relief. The cooks had already served up the evening meal, and mostly in silence, people were eating. As de Silva and Prasanna circled the camp, hostile eyes watched them over the rims of bowls of food. One man gave them a sour look as he gnawed the last shreds of greasy meat from a chicken bone then tossed it into his fire.
They had rea
ched the edge of the camp when a genial voice at his elbow made de Silva swing around.
‘Good evening. You need help?’ Gordo grinned at them. At least someone didn’t regard them as unwelcome interlopers.
‘We’re looking for Boris,’ said de Silva hastily. ‘Do you have any idea where he is?’
‘Maybe at the stables. I saw him walking in that direction earlier.’
A chill ran down de Silva’s spine. ‘What about Kumar?’
Gordo shrugged. ‘Sorry, I do not know.’
He frowned as Prasanna pushed past him and broke into a run. ‘Hey! What is hurry?’
De Silva grabbed his arm and jerked him around. ‘No time to explain. Just come with us.’
**
Beyond the light of the campfires, only starlight showed the way. Tussocks of grass snatched at de Silva’s feet as he ran, and specks of red and green danced before his eyes. His lungs felt ready to burst. As the stable area came closer, he smelled smoke. Racing into the yard, he saw Prasanna disappear into the office building where they had found Alexei’s body.
The first room was filled with black smoke, and it was hard to see through it, but he heard blows and managed to make out that Prasanna was kicking at the door to the room at the far end. It gave way, and a wave of heat rolled out accompanied by an even denser cloud of smoke. Prasanna was already inside; de Silva’s eyes streamed as he crossed the threshold after him, pulling up the lapel of his jacket to cover as much of his face as possible, and trying to hold his breath. Papers and straw looked to have been liberally scattered around. Much of it was already ablaze. His foot knocked against something, and he saw that it was a lantern lying on its side. The smell of oil was so powerful that he was sure it was a stronger one than would be made by the fuel from a single lantern.
Prasanna was backing towards the door, dragging a man by the feet. De Silva hurried to help him and realised that it was Boris. Between them, they hauled him out to the yard. De Silva straightened up and gulped a lungful of air. It was like nectar to his parched throat. ‘Let’s get him onto the grass. Gordo, find some water.’ The clown, who had been standing by helplessly, rallied and hurried away.
[Inspector de Silva 09] - High Wire in Nuala Page 16