The Commissioner now said, ‘Yes, let us announce that the killer was seen around Charminar on 1st April. Let the press and everybody else know. If someone remembers seeing him in Charminar or Begumpet area they will share some details. We will also say that he was seen in the Begumpet Station on 15th April, the day Dr. Renuka Reddy was murdered. To summarise, our killer is a good looking young man and is a travelling salesman selling plastic kitchen storage containers. He was seen in Charminar area around 11 am on 1st April and Begumpet Station area around 5 am on 15th April. We will circulate all these details on radio, newspapers and television along with the sketch. I am sure that we will find our man soon.’
Vikram said, ‘I think that the killer has some link to the Asha foundation. The first victim was an ex-employee of Asha Foundation. Again yesterday’s victim Dr. Amit Pancholi used to work there. If we dig deeper, I am sure we will find that Dr. Renuka also had some link to Asha foundation.’
Reddy nodded excitedly, ‘Good catch Vikram. As Rajagopal had mentioned, the killer dressed as the waiter was a drug addict. Maybe he was treated for addiction in Asha foundation?’
‘Excellent, excellent,’ Sanjay added, rubbing his hands gleefully. ‘But should we make this observation public?’
‘I think we should avoid this as of now.’ Reddy suggested.
‘Sure sure – let us do that.’ Sanjay said impatiently. He wanted his moment of fame as soon as possible.
He turned towards his PA Mr. Syamjith and said, ‘Inform the press. I will give them all the details myself.’
Reddy hid a sour smile. Commissioner Sanjay Kumar had been reluctant to face the press and had sent him in his place when the police were in a sticky situation and everybody had a negative image of the Hyderabad police. His motto in office was “Keep calm and carry on.” Sometimes one just needs to chalk it up to experience and move on. One may not be able to get one’s due, but there'll always be more work to do and he will have more brilliant ideas. Part of any employee's job is to protect their manager when the time is right, and make them look good so the department looks good, Reddy thought philosophically.
The meeting broke up. Reddy nodded to Vikram and they came out with a mutual need for a cup of tea.
While the tea stall owner, who knew them well, was making their favourite masala chai, Vikram said, ‘It might be useful to gather some more information about Dr. Amit Pancholi. We need to understand whether the random killer targeted him specifically or any one of the doctors there. I have sent my assistant Murali to Delhi. Hopefully he will dig out some dirt regarding Dr. Amit soon.’
Reddy looked at Vikram and said grimly, ‘I have a hunch that we will get our killer soon. And then I will teach him a lesson so that he will regret the day he challenged the Hyderabad Police.’
10
DR. AMIT PANCHOLI
Reddy and Vikram wasted no time and went to the Asha Foundation that very day to understand more about Dr. Pancholi and his possible link to his killer. They reached the clinic around noon.
Dr. Kiran Chanchu had gone out on some personal work when they reached the centre. They decided to interview his personal assistant Urmila, who had a small office of her own right next to Dr. Chanchu’s chamber. When they questioned Urmila, she said, ‘Sir, I am new to this office and don’t have much information.’
‘What about the previous assistant?’ Reddy asked.
‘Yes, the previous assistant, Mallika Kompally was with Dr. Chanchu for a long time. I am sure that she can provide with more information than I can.’
‘Do you have her address?’
‘Yes – I do have that. Can you wait for a few minutes?’ Smiling at them Urmila opened a cupboard and took out some files.
Urmila was very pretty and was about Padma’s age. Chanchu sure knew how to recruit pretty women as co-workers Vikram thought, looking at her appreciatively. But she seemed to be decorative as well as efficient as she retrieved Mallika’s address within the next five minutes and jotted it down for them on a piece of paper.
‘Do you have Dr. Amit’s old address?’ Vikram asked her.
Urmila said, ‘Yes, I will get it.’ Then with the same speed and efficiency as before, she searched for some files in her laptop and finding the address, printed it for them.
‘Dr. Amit used to live with his brother Saurav at Road Number 12 Banjara Hills.’ Vikram murmured to Reddy after looking at the address.
It was a posh residential area.
Vikram now asked, ‘Since how long you have been working here?’
‘Sir – I have been here for three months only,’ Urmila said with a grimace.
‘So you are not happy here?’
‘I am trying to adjust. Question of happiness or unhappiness does not arise at this point of time. This is a well-paying job. After all Mallika was quite experienced in her job – so obviously I will have a tough time replacing her. But I am sure in another 2-3 months I will adjust.’
‘Do you know why Mallika quit?’
A look of surprise passed over Urmila’s face. ‘Mallika was asked to quit I believe,’ she blurted out before stopping abruptly and flushing. The door of the chamber had suddenly opened and Dr. Kiran Chanchu walked in. Though he was smiling, he looked ill at ease as if he was wondering what secrets Urmila had let out to the police in his absence. Chanchu first shook Reddy’s hands and then Vikram’s. His hand was clammy. Vikram had a notion that Chanchu was trying to control himself. Urmila had also turned tense. It was like a shutter had been drawn over her expression.
He looked at Urmila and said in his soft voice, ‘Everything okay?’ His face was turned away from the two men in such a way that they could not see his expression.
‘Yes Doctor,’ Urmila said warily, as if she was not very sure whether she had said too much.
Dr. Chanchu turned back to the two men and said, ‘You were looking for me?’
Reddy said, ‘Yes, we wanted to ask you a few more questions.’
Dr. Chanchu turned towards Urmila and said with cold politeness, ‘Have you completed printing those letters yet?’
Urmila looked flustered, ‘I was just about to print them,’ she said, shuffling the papers on her desk.
‘Can you get them signed by me and send them off by end of today?’ he asked in an even colder voice, as if he doubted her ability to do this simple job.
Without waiting for her reply, he turned to Vikram and Reddy and in a more affable voice asked them to step into his office.
But talking to Dr. Chanchu did not yield any result. He just repeated whatever he had told them on the day of the murder.
Before leaving, Reddy cautioned, ‘We feel that the killer might be specifically targeting this centre. I would request that you inform all the staff so that they take adequate precautions. Please do inform them.’
After they came out of the centre Vikram said, ‘Did you feel that Dr. Chanchu was less cooperative today than he was on the day of the murder?’
‘Yes – it was as if he was suppressing some information. In fact he looked a bit tense, as if he was apprehensive about the information given out by Urmila.’
‘Did you notice how badly he was treating Urmila?’
‘Yes…,’ Reddy responded.
‘If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals as I read somewhere, ’ Vikram responded.
Reddy nodded in agreement. ‘Well, they all do suppress information and sometimes it has nothing to do with the murder.’
‘True enough. He was probably tense that she might have given some information about Mallika who may be able to give us a lot of juicy information which might hurt the image of the centre, especially as she had been fired. Nothing like a disgruntled employee to spill the beans,’ Vikram added with a gleeful expression.
‘Very probable, Vikram. I have no faith in these so called rehabilitation centres and I know that you also don’t.’
‘Right. Let us go to Mallika’s hou
se and quiz her a bit if she is at home.’
11
SATYA’S NARRATIVE
SATURDAY, 30TH APRIL 2016
MORNING
I reach the function hall at 8 am sharp. I have enough drugs available for my mind to remain calm and collected. The caterer has put me in charge of drinks. I make sure I do the job properly. I follow instructions exactly as my contact told me to do. Finally, the guests start leaving gradually. I serve the last round of drinks to a few of the special guests, as per the instructions. Suddenly, I see that one of the guests has become sick after taking his drink. A crowd has gathered around the guest. I watch along with them for a few minutes. Suddenly, I panic in case anyone blames me. I quickly change out of my uniform and make my exit before anyone notices. As my contact got me the job, I do not think that the caterer knows much about me. Still, I feel safe only after I reach home.
I switch on the television. The random killer has struck again. What is happening? The victim is the man to whom I served the drink. Am I hallucinating? Police are on the lookout of a man who seems to match my description.
Did I really poison that person who they are calling as Dr. Amit? But why should I? I cannot recall how the morning passed as I was high on drugs. Can I deliberately poison a person under the influence of drugs?
They are saying that Dr. Renuka was also killed. Oh my God! She had delivered my daughter. I remember she had been rather nasty to me. She used to look at me as if I was a cockroach that got into her food. I am sure my wife must have talked about my drug addiction to her. I stopped visiting my wife because the doctor and the nurses used to look at me with contempt whenever I went there.
Again I feel a surge of rage against my wife. She always used to play the victim card and antagonise people against me. I hate her and I had hated Dr. Renuka and the nurses. Good riddance…. I think. But I have to admit that she treated my mother very well and she was very happy working as a nurse in Dr. Renuka’s hospital. It was Dr. Renuka who had suggested that I be treated at Asha Foundation.
She had even helped my maternal uncle get a huge discount for my treatment. He had gone to meet her after my mother’s death to ask for monetary support for me. She did not give any money – instead, got the discount. What a waste of money. The rehabilitation centre was full of quacks. Their method of treatment was to lock me up and give me food and water periodically. They used toF even beat me up if I made too much of a racket. I went back to drugs within a year of coming out of Asha Foundation. It was around four years ago that I had the treatment. But those terrifying days are still fresh in my mind. Their method of treatment was so brutal. I will never go back to that centre for treatment.
I switch my attention back to the news. They say Padma was killed on 1st April in her home in Charminar. I go and grab the list which has the dates, places, and customer names I have to visit. I find that I had been to Charminar on 1st April. I had actually gone to Padma’s house on the day of the murder. Did I kill her then under the influence of drugs? Oh dear God. Oh Ma! What have I done? Why did I ruin my life like this? I sob to myself.
According to the news, Dr. Renuka was killed on 15th April. I particularly recall 15th April as I slept on an over bridge of Begumpet Station on that day. In fact again I was within two minutes from the place where she was murdered. Did I kill her as well? I know I had been abusive to my wife under the influence of drugs before. Have I now started killing people under influence of drugs?
So far in my life I have always managed to find my way back to my home for the night. This was the first time I was so drunk that I passed out in a public place. I remember the blood spatters on my shirt. How did they fall on my shirt? Was it my hands that had bludgeoned Dr. Renuka to death?
No… I am sure I did not… I try to remember exactly what I had been doing, but the familiar black fog descends on me once more.
I am shivering. What is happening to me? I seek solace in the only way I know – by taking more drugs. All fear and doubts leave me and I float into a world of my own.
I wake up around 10 am next day. All the memories rush back and panic sets in once more. I feel like a trapped animal.
I repeatedly try to recall if I had really murdered all these people. But why should I kill Padma? Because she had rejected my advances when I had been a patient there? No…. no, I am not a killer. I may be a drug addict, I may be weak and irresponsible, but I am certainly not a killer. But then how did my shirt have the blood spatters? I ask myself. I delve deep into my mind trying desperately to remember – but my mind stubbornly remains blank.
I must get help. I am being wrongly accused – I am sure. But who will help me. I turn to my only friend – my contact. I call him. He answers at the first ring – was he expecting my call? He seems to be going out of his way to help – I think suspiciously. But then I can’t afford to be suspicious. He is the only person willing to help me right now. I start speaking to him explaining everything that has happened so far.
Oh! I think I will be saved. My contact has promised to help me. He is sending a car for me. He will hide me in a place where no one can find me. He has also promised to keep me supplied with enough drugs till I can come out of hiding. He asked me to pack a few clothes and wait for the car. As I lock my door, I get the feeling I have forgotten something. It is at the edges of my memory but I can’t grasp it.
It’s only when I am nearing the safe address given to me by my contact, I recall that I have left behind the blood spattered shirt which I had hidden in the corner of the cupboard. I call my contact and tell him that I must go back and collect the shirt. But he asks me not to worry too much about it. He will collect the keys from me tomorrow and get rid of the shirt. I give a sigh of relief. I am safe. The police cannot touch me now.
12
MALLIKA KOMPALLY
It was after 1 pm when Vikram and Reddy reached Himayatnagar where Mallika lived in a small apartment. She herself opened the door. She looked at Vikram and Reddy with raised eyebrows and said a bit impatiently. ‘What can I do for you?’
Reddy showed her his badge in response, ‘I hope that I am not disturbing you at this lunch hour. But you must have read about the critical random killer case in the newspapers. We need to talk to you regarding that. We promise you that we will not take more than half an hour of your time.’
After inspecting the badge carefully, she ushered them into her tiny drawing room, saying, ‘Yes, it is all over the newspapers and the TV channels are broadcasting the news hourly. Padma, the first victim, was a good friend of mine. I also knew Dr. Amit. In fact I was debating to myself whether I should call the hotline and offer to help. But you have come over yourself so it makes things easier I guess.’
Mallika was a beautiful young woman in her late twenties. Her movements were elegant, flexible and graceful. The small drawing room was artistically decorated. None of the furnishing was expensive, yet the effect was extremely chic. It was evident that Mallika had used her artistic talent to create a beautiful and warm living room. One shelf in the room was full of trophies that she had won. It was also filled with her photographs in various dancing poses.
Mallika now said, ‘Is it true that Padma was strangled and Amit was poisoned?’ She had a very expressive face and had a habit of raising one eyebrow when she was asking questions.
‘Yes, Dr. Amit died quite painfully.’ Vikram said abruptly.
Mallika looked upset at this news. After sitting silently for a few minutes she said, ‘Dr. Amit wasn’t a particularly nice or kind man. Still I would not wish his life to end in such a violent way. And Padma was such a sweet young lady. How could anyone kill a lovely childlike person like her?’
Abruptly she asked, ‘Would you gentlemen like some tea, coffee? I am afraid – but I do not have anything else.’
Refusing her offer of tea, Reddy asked, ‘For how long did you work in Asha Foundation?’
‘I worked in Asha Foundation for five years.’
‘Where are you wo
rking now?’
‘I have decided to quit this field and am now focussing full time on my dancing. I have opened a dance academy.’ She was twisting and untwisting her two hands together as if she was trying to decide how frankly she should talk to the two men.
Reddy said, ‘We wanted to know more about Dr. Amit Pancholi.’
Mallika stiffened her shoulders and pursed her lips. She clearly disapproved of Amit. She said, ‘I should not speak ill of the dead. But do you remember the character of the boss in the Shahrukh Khan movie in “Yes Boss”?’
Vikram was a Hindi movie buff. He replied eagerly, ‘Yes, he was that horrible womanising man who wanted to have Juhi Chawla as his mistress and had married his current wife only for her money. His main aim in life was to have as many women as possible while living off his rich wife.’
Mallika clapped her hand delightedly and said, ‘Bingo, and you have Dr. Amit in a nutshell. He was of course, not married, but he would run after any pretty young woman in skirts. You know Padma, the first victim of the random killer? He pursued her relentlessly till she gave in. Well, I do not blame Dr. Amit in this case. Any man would fall for her - she was so lovely. The poor girl was madly in love with Amit. He was way above her class and she was very aware of this. Then she got pregnant and he dumped her.’
‘How was your relation with Dr. Kiran Chanchu?’
‘He is such a creep. He is mentally and physically ugly. He tried to make advances towards me. When I refused him, his ego was hurt terribly. He started to treat me very unpleasantly. I was forced to quit in the end. I believe that he tried to make advances at Padma also, but she had managed to dodge him as she was not working directly with him.’ Clearly Mallika was not a person to mince her words.
A Season for Dying: A Vikram Rana Mystery (Vikram Rana Series Book 2) Page 7