‘Do you have any idea when he could have left the room?’
‘Viraat got into bed first. It was another fifteen to twenty minutes till I was changed and joined him. He was fast asleep by then, and it took me a while to doze off, so I would say the earliest he could have got up would have been 3 am. I woke up at 7.30 am and found him gone.’
‘That was before he was discovered on the grounds. Why didn’t you alert anyone?’
‘I had gone downstairs in search of him. The housekeeper told me there had been a murder. I thought he must be out and about, finding out what had happened.’
The flat-on-his-back Viraat I had met hadn’t struck me as a man of action, but it wasn’t an implausible explanation.
‘You weren’t concerned?’
‘Not really. Why should I have been?’
‘There had been a murder and your boyfriend was missing.’
‘As I have said, I didn’t think he was missing. He could have been doing anything. He could have been in the gym, or in the bathroom taking a dump for all I knew.’
‘You don’t seem overly bothered, even now.’
‘I don’t know him that well.’
‘You slept together last night.’
‘So?’
‘Yet you don’t think you know him well?’
Afreen shrugged. Ajay stared her down for a while but when she didn’t betray any emotion, she was dismissed.
Ajay turned to Kimaaya. ‘Is there anyone else – perhaps a member of staff, a security guard – who may have seen Viraat’s activities, or what happened on the grounds?’
‘I really don’t know who was awake at that time.’
‘The service quarters and guards’ rooms are not far from where we found him this morning,’ said Shayak. ‘One of the guards on duty told me that neither he nor his colleague had heard anything. But I am yet to speak to them at length. And there is still the video footage.’
‘I’d like a copy of that.’
‘Of course.’
Kimaaya then summoned some of her key staff members: an elderly lady, a younger woman and a man.
‘That’s Nimisha Shah, Kimaaya’s assistant,’ Shayak said to me softly, pointing to a pleasant-looking woman in her late thirties in skinny jeans and a red top. ‘The other lady is the housekeeper, Clementine Pereira.’ She was spotless, in a grey dress and white apron, like something you might expect to see in a 1950s movie. ‘The man,’ he continued, ‘is Raj Rathore, though it’s safe to assume that’s not his real name. Resident dietician and fitness instructor.’
It was clear from his tone what Shayak thought of Rathore, who was handsome in a lumpy, fair, B-movie sort of a way. He had taken great care with his hair though I noticed, as he ran a hand through it, that he didn’t spend as much time on his ragged nails. He might be an aspiring actor. So might Nimisha, for that matter: she was by no means unattractive but at her age, such aspirations must be a thing of memory.
Ajay started with Rathore. ‘Where were you at the time of the murder?’
‘What time would that be?’
‘How about you tell me everything you did last night instead of asking questions.’
‘It was my day off.’
‘But you were here on the island?’
‘Not till around midnight.’
‘How did you return?’
‘Speedboat.’
‘You have a speedboat?’
Kimaaya stepped in. ‘It is mine.’
‘You let the help use it? What do you do in case there is an emergency here?’
‘Like what?’
‘Say a medical emergency, or a murder.’
‘Really, DCP, it is not like dead bodies turn up every day. And I suppose I would call Shayak if they did.’ She turned her chin up – it seemed she was beginning to enjoy rubbing her closeness with Shayak in the policeman’s face at every opportunity she got. The edge between the two men was palpable, and she was happy to play on it.
‘He is the answer to everything around here?’ It was the first overt show of hostility, and Shayak was as surprised by it as I was.
‘When I agreed to sell my yacht a few months ago, one of the conditions was that he would lend me his whenever I wanted it. It’s part of our contract.’
‘Is it now?’
Ajay turned around to give Shayak a look.
‘That must be a little tedious.’
‘Not really,’ said Kimaaya. ‘I haven’t needed to be rescued so far. And it’s not like I spend all my time here. Only the longer breaks between shooting schedules; and often I come with friends who have their own yachts. The rest of the time I am in the city.’
I remembered the bhelpuri-wallah outside Pratap Puri’s house mentioning that Kimaaya was a famous resident of the vicinity, making those two neighbours as well as friends.
‘What about food? I’m sure there’s no local market here.’ I wondered if this sarcasm was a response to Kimaaya’s jibes about Shayak, or part of his method.
‘Are all these questions really necessary?’ asked Kimaaya.
‘Excuse me if I seem inquisitive, but murders aren’t committed on isolated islands every day. I need to know if anyone else comes and goes – vegetable-wallah, dhobi, electrician. No matter how irrelevant it seems to you.’
Mrs Pereira cleared her throat with a discreet cough. ‘Before we come to the island, I stock up on all the essentials. We also grow quite a lot of vegetables here.’
‘I am a vegetarian and only eat organic,’ said Kimaaya.
‘What about arrangements for the party?’
‘As I said, we are well stocked,’ said Mrs Pereira. If need be, trips are made back to the city by speedboat but on this occasion, for such a small group, we had everything we needed.’
Ajay turned his attention back to Raj. ‘What did you do when you got back?’
‘Went to my room and hit the sack.’
‘Alone?’
Raj scowled.
‘Answer the question.’
‘Yes, yes,’ he snapped. ‘Alone.’
‘Did anyone see you?’
He shook his head. ‘I don’t think so.’
‘What about the guard?’
‘I don’t think he was near the jetty when I came in.’
‘Did you see or hear anything?’
‘I heard voices, laughter coming from the pool, but nothing that stands out.’
‘Were you acquainted with the deceased?’
‘No.’
Ajay seemed to have heard enough from Raj, and turned his attention to Mrs Pereira. She spoke with a quiet dignity that even the prickly Ajay did not feel the need to take on. Her monologue was delivered in an even, calm tone.
‘I started my working day in the garden, picking vegetables and herbs for the dinner that had been planned. There were meats to be marinated and vegetables to be grilled. We’ve had a particularly lovely season this year. I got the kitchen started out and then supervised the cleaning of the pool, which had not been used in some days. The rest of the house runs well usually but since we were expecting the first lot of houseguests on this trip, I ensured their rooms were ready, and then got busy with the floral arrangements. By the time the guests arrived, in the evening, the house was looking its best.’
‘And later on?’
‘I ensured that the salads and cold dishes were ready. Madam requested the meats to be left for her guests to barbecue. She mentioned that Mr Puri was handy at the grill. I knew it would be late when they ate, so once the starters had been served, I instructed the kitchen assistant Jana to be at hand to lay out the food and clear up, then I went to bed.’
‘Do you usually go to bed when there is a party on?’ asked Ajay. I saw Nimisha tap her red nails on the table. Impatience? Nerves?
‘There was a time, sir, when I would stay till the last guest had retired, but I am getting on in years and find late nights leave me struggling the morning after. I have been forced to delegate, with Madam’s permission
.’
Finally, Ajay moved on to Nimisha. ‘Please tell me, ma’am,’ he said, sarcasm back. He had seen the tap-tap too, then, and didn’t look upon it kindly.
‘I’m sorry?’ said Nimisha.
‘You seem to be in a rush.’
‘Only because I have a number of calls to make. You do realize the press will be all over this as soon as the news is out.’
‘I am sure the news is already out, Ms Shah.’ For a change, Ajay seemed to sympathize.
‘Then you understand my worry.’
‘The quicker you can answer these questions the faster you can go about your business,’ said Shayak.
She gave a curt nod.
‘Dhingre was your predecessor in Ms Kapoor’s service?’ asked Ajay.
‘You could say that. Though he left a few months before I was hired.’
‘You never crossed paths?’
‘He was already gone by the time I joined. Dhingre was so far out of the scene that there was no way I could have met him otherwise. None of the producers, directors and stars Kimaaya now works with really has anything to do with him.’
‘Could you tell me why he is so out of favour?’ The question was addressed to Kimaaya as well as Nimisha, and the actress answered with a little shrug.
‘As I said, it has been years since we met. You should ask these questions to people who know him now.’
‘We are talking about a time when you did know him. Why was he so irrelevant?’
‘Speaking for myself,’ said Kimaaya, ‘as my career matured, I was working more and more with people who had become my friends. There simply was no need.’
‘But some young star trying to make a name should have been happy to hire him.’
‘My best guess is that fresh talent wouldn’t want to work with him because he was close to an old crop of filmmakers. With new blood coming in and more corporate houses, things have changed, grown more professional,’ said Nimisha. ‘But who knows?’
‘If you have nothing to do with him, as you claim, what was he doing on your island?’
‘That, DCP Shankaran, is what I was hoping you could tell me.’
After the interrogation, we split ways with Ajay. Shayak spoke to the guards and took stock at the construction site, instructing the exceedingly contrite supervisor Kaustav Arora – a Titanium employee – to make a list of all the workers. Once time of death was more specifically established, questioning would start.
Arora apologized for just about everything he could think of – for not preventing the murder, for not hearing anything, for not knowing where all the employees were in the dead of the night, though he was certain none of them had left the workers’ compound.
‘Kaustav, don’t worry. We’ll have a look at the surveillance video and then we’ll get back to you,’ Shayak said. ‘You didn’t touch the body when you discovered it, did you?’
‘No. Unfortunately, I have seen my fair share of bodies in the construction business, sir, and I know a dead man when I see one. I also know better than to get too close.’
And then Shayak said it was time for us to go back to the city. We hadn’t met Shiv, Sandhya or Carol yet, or any of the other staff.
‘You don’t want me to stay here?’ I asked.
‘The DCP has the island in lockdown. None of the guests are leaving right now. We need some answers before we can ask the right questions.’
Shayak called Kimaaya to tell her we’d be leaving, and then we headed back towards the boat. Another vessel had arrived at the makeshift jetty: a woman and a man carrying a camera bag were disembarking.
‘Who are these people?’ Shayak asked the guard.
‘Sir, I don’t know. They wouldn’t tell me.’
Shayak intercepted them before they got very far.
‘May I know who you are?’
The woman looked flustered. ‘Meera Verma,’ she said.
‘And you?’ he said, addressing the man.
‘Srini V. K.,’ he replied.
‘You are here for …’
‘Work. We need to meet Kimaaya Kapoor.’
‘You are journalists?’
The woman gave a reluctant nod.
‘Ms Kapoor does not receive uninvited guests on her private island.’
‘But sir, please, if you could let me pass. If she refuses to meet me, I’ll leave.’
‘I’m sorry that you took the trouble to come all the way, but you have to go back now. When Ms Kapoor wishes to address the media, you will hear from her. In future, I’d advise that you make an appointment.’
I felt almost sorry for her. She seemed shattered, unable to say a word in the face of Shayak’s firm yet polite stand. I had been on her side of the fence, and I could imagine her trying to explain to her editor why she had come back empty-handed. She should at least be satisfied at having got farther than any of her colleagues were likely to get in the future. As soon as Shayak saw them safely on the water again, he turned to the guard.
‘Never again should a journalist get on land. I want a barricade of some sort put up around here. Find bamboo, wood or anything else and get the men from the construction site to help you put it up, and also to be on standby in case anyone tries to force themselves through. From now on, two of you are always to remain on duty. One of you must be at the jetty, and must communicate names of all visitors before letting anyone disembark. I’ll send a list of people allowed to pass as soon as I am back in office. Another team will be arriving soon to help.’
The guard looked crestfallen.
‘Don’t worry,’ said Shayak. ‘This was not your fault. But it will only get worse from here, so be prepared.’
FIVE
Back on the yacht, Shayak handed me a pill and a bottle of water from the cooler. With my stomach drugged preemptively into submission, I found my body calm but my mind troubled.
‘How did the guards not hear anything at all?’
‘There is just too much ground to cover, and the two of them have been horribly overextended as it is. There are usually four guards working shifts but, with Kimaaya’s unscheduled return, this was the best I could do on no notice. Reinforcements would have arrived in a couple of days.’
‘You are blaming yourself even though Kimaaya doesn’t see it that way?’
‘She insisted on coming here despite the reduced staff, against my advice. But it is my job to protect the island, regardless of the idiosyncrasies of the owner.’
I shook my head. ‘You want to tell me what I am getting into here?’
Shayak sighed. ‘Where would you like me to start?’
‘How about India’s most successful actress of her generation, the Kimaaya Kapoor, being your ex-wife?’
‘If you think it is relevant.’
‘You don’t?’
‘As far as I am concerned, she is a client in trouble thanks to a security breach Titanium should have prevented.’
‘That’s it?’
‘What are you implying?’
‘No need to get so defensive. Just pointing out that perhaps you are too close to this.’
‘Just as you were when your ex-boyfriend’s wife got kidnapped in Calcutta. Didn’t stop you from solving that case.’
‘This is not the same thing!’ I was appalled that Shayak had brought that messy business up now.
‘Why?’
‘Because my relationship with Amit was in the open. As was the fact that it was over. Here, your entire marriage is under wraps, which makes it far more loaded.’
‘Loaded? Sorry,’ he said. ‘I just don’t see why my prior relationship should be a problem. While it gives me extra insight into her life, there is no evidence so far that this crime has anything to do with her.’
‘The murder was committed on her private island.’
‘Where there are over thirty other people at the moment.’
‘None of whom appear to have anything to do with Ashutosh Dhingre.’
‘With a suspect being found uncon
scious in the hedges not 500 feet from the crime scene, that might be a premature conclusion to draw.’
‘Maybe so, but I think your deliberately obtuse attitude right now makes it especially important to know the backstory.’
Despite himself, Shayak cracked a smile. ‘Deliberately obtuse? That’s what you call your boss on the third week at work?’
I shrugged. ‘If the shoe fits.’
He drew a deep breath and then began. ‘I have known Kimaaya since we were both about five years old. We were in school together. We were friends till high school, after which we decided, stupidly, as teenagers often do, that we were in love. When we were still too young to know any better, we married. Within two years we were separated, and soon after that, divorced.’
‘The separation was, what, fifteen years ago?’
‘Give or take.’
‘And no one knows about it?’
‘It is a well-kept secret.’
‘Why?’
‘You may have noticed that movie stars – especially female ones, in our country – usually wait till their time has more or less come and gone to tie the knot.’
‘That is why your marriage ended?’
‘That is why our marriage ended quietly. In the industry, no one knew that we were married in the first place. Very few did outside it, either.’
‘Oh, come on. Something like that must have been hard to hide.’
‘It was a different time. It all happened before Kimaaya’s first hit, in an era well before the twenty-four-hour news cycle and paparazzi. When I was away from Mumbai forty-five weeks of the year.’
‘Doing what?’
‘I was in the armed forces. Don’t tell me my brightest young detective didn’t know that?’
If his praise was an attempt to distract me, I wasn’t about to let it succeed. ‘There still must have been some people who knew – after all, friends and family must have found out about it. These things have a way of getting out.’
‘Friends and family, yes. But only close ones. Some others probably did at least suspect a relationship of some sort. But information about our marriage was not in the public domain. And you forget – at the time it happened, we were not in the public domain.’
‘Why was it such a secret then?’
‘I was leaving on a mission; I suppose we were both afraid that I might not make it back. It was practically decided overnight. Then I was gone a long time, almost a year. By the time I returned for any significant period, and our families were planning to have a reception to make the marriage public, both of us realized we had made a mistake.’
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