The person who was hit by the bullet was none other than Karthik. He got hit on his left shoulder. He was admitted to Krishna hospital by the management of the cafe. Karan came to the crash site as soon as I had called him. Together we took the car to the police station for further investigations. It was an unlicensed red coloured Volvo S6, the same as was in the Chirathu Vilas. We found another blue button and more blood smears inside the car. I asked Karan to check with all the car dealers and brokers to get information on the purchase of red-coloured Volvo S6 cars in and around Jaipur. Then I left for Krishna hospital because the manager of the cafe told me over the phone that he was waiting for me to get the bills cleared. I also had to check on Karthik's condition and interrogate him.
*****
I reached the hospital around 3:30 PM. Karthik was admitted to the common ward. He was unconscious and was wearing a hospital gown. He had his shoulders wrapped in an off-white bandage. A tall and dark-skinned man wearing a yellow shirt and black formal pants sat on a stool beside Karthik. He was Ahimadabul Arzul, the manager of the cafe. I approached him and greeted him. "Hi, sir. I'm Bibbitha. I was with him at the time of the incident. I was keener on finding the attacker that I forgot to attend to him. Thank you so much for admitting him on time. It means a lot", I told him with gratitude. He nodded and said, "It's alright. You were just doing your duty."
"By the way, did you inform his family?", he asked anxiously. "Yes, I informed them via phone. They are living in Lucknow. I don't think they will be able to come. I promised them to get him on the phone when he wakes up. And regarding the payment, please give me your bank details and I'll make sure that you get it all back", I told him convincingly. He smiled and sent me the bank details via email.
The doctor arrived once the manager left. The doctor told that Karthik was hit in the shoulder and there was nothing to worry about. The doctor submitted the bullet to me in a plastic sachet. He also gave me his clothes which were stained with blood. I placed it on a table beside Karthik's bed. I noticed that the buttons on the shirt were similar to the ones we had found in the car. I pulled one button from the shirt and put it in the same plastic sachet where the bullet was and I put them in my sling bag.
Karthik did not get hurt neither did I catch the culprit. Was he trying to outsmart me if he was involved in the crime? He was at Nishanthi Villa at the time Arpitha was murdered in the highway forest. So it would have taken him at least about 15 minutes of travel even at 120 kmph speed to reach the spot. So it was impossible for him to kill Arpitha. Either he would have staged the shooting at the cafe and the murders with some help which I strongly doubted to be Sidhanshu or he was totally innocent. The worst thing was that the Guptas were unreachable for any contact. My hypothesis was that both Karthik and Sidhanshu worked together for the murders or else someone was trying to frame them. Anyways, I confiscated Karthik's phone. Surprisingly, his call logs were empty. But I knew the right person to call for, Arjun. Arjun promised to send the details before nightfall. I couldn't interrogate Karthik because he was unconscious. So I left for the forest to check for evidence.
*****
Naveen's and Arpitha's bodies were taken away to the lab. The outlines of their bodies were drawn on the forest floor somewhere far away from the highways. Arush was guarding the area with his baton in his hands. "Hi mam", he said when he saw me coming. "Hi Arush", I greeted him back. "Ravi sir asked me to guard the spot till you come. So I have been waiting for so long. Shall I leave now??", he asked sincerely. "Of course yes. But send someone else here to help clear up the mess after I have photographed everything", I told him. He nodded and left.
I must have spent more than an hour checking for bootprints or any other such clues. But I didn't find anything useful at all within a radius of two kilometres. So I left for the police station as it was almost 5 PM.
*****
At the police station, Sashwath ardently presented the autopsy report of Naveen and Arpitha, "Naveen was shot right in the centre of his forehead at around 8 PM the same day Nishanthi was murdered. He must have also been hit by a heavy vehicle before his death because his abdomen region was damaged." So Ravi's assumption was right. The red car might have hit him. "Arpitha was shot on her knee and her chest. The knee must have been wounded at the same time Naveen was shot dead. She should have been completely killed only around 10 PM. And the drug tests on Naveen showed positive results", told Sashwath.
To make things clearer, I asked Ravi to compare the bullets of Naveen, Arpitha and Karthik. The result was that they all matched. Each weighing 25 grams were shot from a 17 Remington rifle. It is noted for exceptional accuracy and has extremely high velocity. It is usually used for prairie dog-sized animals. When we compared the buttons from Karthik's shirt with the ones we found in the car and the ones from near the Kundras' house, they matched perfectly. Either it was a coincidence or Karthik was definitely involved. I asked Karan to take them to the agency to store them as evidence.
At around 6 PM, a nurse from Krishna Hospital called informing us that Karthik got his consciousness back. So we sent Arush over to hold him hostage and get the confession. But Karthik refused to accept the accusal. I asked him via phone if he had lent his shirt to anyone lately and he denied the same. As we could not beat him up for getting a confession, Ravi called up Dr Swaragini. She said that she will examine him the next day around noon as she was busy with other appointments. Until then, we had to arrange a special room for Karthik where Arush was put in charge to keep a close watch on him. My main task for the evening was to meet Mr Kamal Ghosh and inform him about his daughter's death. I thought that I could also ask him about the treasure chest if possible.
*****
I rang the doorbell of Mr Kamal Ghosh's home. I reached their house around 7 PM. It was a regular middle-class duplex house in Mandir Marg, Durgapura. There was a small yet beautiful flower garden between the home and the compound wall. A middle-aged woman with a half-smiling face opened the doors. She was Bhairavi, Arpitha's mom. She looked like she hadn't slept for days. The swollen eyes showed that she had been crying. In a weak meagre voice, she asked, "Who are you?" I told her that I was a detective and informed her of her daughter's death. It was a tad bit difficult task as she broke down completely when I told her that. She asked me to come and sit inside.
I went in. It was a house filled with regular items. At a corner was a spiral staircase made with planks of wood. I sat on a cushioned sofa beside the staircase. Bhairavi got me a glass of water. She was weeping continuously. I didn't want to drink water as I felt uncomfortable looking at her grieve. But I sipped a little amount for her sake.
All the while, Kamal hadn't shown up. I couldn't ask Bhairavi as she was quite preoccupied with her sorrow. She was sitting on the ground and crying silently without a word. So I got up to leave. Looking at me making a move to leave, she got up, walked up to me and grabbed my hands. She spoke up weakly, "Her dad and her brother have gone out searching for her and you say all these. I don't know how is that man going to take such news?!" She took my hands over to her chest. "Please stay here until they return. Please", she pleaded. I kind of felt pity for her. But I thought it wouldn't be comfortable to watch her only weeping till her husband comes home, which could take longer than I would expect. She understood that I was going to turn her down and so she looked at me dejected. She let go of my hands and sat on the sofa looking expectantly at me. My eyes filled up looking at her. I had no other option, so I sat down beside her and wrapped my arms around her in a hug. She felt warm. She reminded me of my mom. I decided to wait and comfort her till Mr Kamal comes back home.
A few minutes later, I heard the gate screeching open. Bhairavi's heart thumped faster. I could feel it with my hands. She quickly unwrapped from my arms and murmured hurriedly in my ears, "I am not capable of handling this situation. Could you please inform him just like you did to me?" Again she pleaded. I nodded immediately and stood up.
The door opened and a young boy around fifteen years of age with pimples on his face rushed toward the stairs without even turning to look who was there. Following him came the man whom I anticipated meeting. My heart pounded fast. He was the same man with whom I felt a phenomenal connection in the vaulted gallery. When he looked at me, his eyes sparkled. I saw happiness on his face as though he had gotten his daughter back. He plodded toward me with the avid expression still on his face. He was in mixed emotions of happiness and melancholy. "Bibbi??", he expressed in a surprised tone.
Bhairavi was shocked too. In a minute, a deluge of events took place. Bhairavi stood up and grabbed me tightly by my arms and kissed me on my forehead. Her teardrops hit my face. Kamal too came closer and gave me a mild hug and patted my shoulders. They forgot their agony in an instant. Kamal kept his hand on the back of my head like a father. Oh, no. He was the memory that I had always kept at bay. I threw his hands away from me. I had forgotten him forever. Why! Why should he return back into my life!? Were my problems not enough?! My face turned red in anger. I tried to walk away.
Bhairavi stopped me, folded her hands in front of me and once again pleaded to me in a soft trembling voice, "I'm sorry dear for your loss. But don't go away. Your dad is a true gentleman. He meant no harm. All that happened was out of fate. You have hated him for years now. Please, no more hate. We have lost one of our daughters today. And see, we got back another daughter." She spoke quickly and burst into tears. Kamal, who was actually my real father, asked her innocently, "What do you mean by we lost one of our daughters?"
I cared no more. I was frustrated. My anger was sturdier than my pity. "Arpitha is dead and I have no father", I proclaimed heartlessly.