Six

The three of us returned to the adjoining room and found Kestobabu and Prabhat seated at opposite ends of the bench. Kestobabu was yawning and casting sidelong glances at Prabhat, who sat with his chin resting on his palm, lost in thought. Nanibala had sprawled on the floor, her legs stretched out, dozing against the wall. At our entrance, everyone straightened up. Prabhat rose from the bench and murmured, almost inaudibly, “Please, sit.”

Byomkesh replied, “No, I won’t sit. Dawn is breaking; it’s time for us to return home. The police may arrive at any moment. If they see us here, it might sour their mood. Let me give you all a word of advice—remember it well. Do not try to shift the blame onto anyone else; it will only harm you. The police might just round everyone up and throw you all into lockup.”

Everyone fell silent.

“Prabhatbabu, now it’s your turn to speak. Yesterday, you accompanied your mother to the cinema, but you didn’t watch the film yourself?”

Prabhat replied, “No. I bought the tickets, seated my mother inside, and then went to my shop.”

“Oh. You went to the shop after half past eight at night?”

“Yes. On Diwali night, I had decorated the shop with lights.”

“And then?”

“Then, at about quarter to twelve, I closed the shop and went back to the cinema, brought my mother home from there.”

“So, from roughly nine to quarter to twelve, you were at the shop. Was anyone else there?”

“Gurung was there, standing guard at the door.”

“Gurung—the Gurkha doorman. Did any customers come by?”

“No.”

“What did you do all that time in the shop?”

“Nothing. I sat in the back room and bound some books.”

“All right, let’s leave that for now. —Did you get along with Anadibabu?”

Prabhat lifted his eyes, brimming with resentment. “No. He took me in as a foster son, treated me well at first. Then—gradually—”

“Gradually, his attitude changed?” Byomkesh said. “Tell me, why did he take you in as a foster son?”

“I don’t know.”

“At first he treated you well, then his mood changed; was there any particular reason for that?”

“Perhaps there was. But to my knowledge, I did nothing wrong.”

Prabhat, exhausted, sat down again on the bench. Byomkesh regarded him with a gentle gaze and said, “You should go and lie down for a while. Once the police arrive, there will be no more rest.”

Adimriphu 455

‘Whether you’ll get it or not, I doubt.’

But Prabhat merely shook his head. Byomkesh then turned to Nanibala and said,

‘You didn’t have a cordial relationship with Anadi Babu either, did you?’

Nanibala’s mouth and cow-like eyes widened at once, and she almost broke into tears,

‘I’ve told you everything, Byomkesh Babu. I was a thorn in the old man’s side. He loved Prabhat, but he couldn’t stand the sight of me. Day and night he’d look for excuses; the moment he found something, he’d start gnashing his teeth. Such a vile heart—’ Nanibala stopped abruptly.

Anadi Halder was indeed dead, but perhaps the sudden memory that his corpse still lay nearby made her regain her composure. Moreover, she realized—albeit a little late—that it was best not to dwell on her discord with Anadi Babu.

Kestobabu hinted at the same, letting out a hiccup-like chuckle and saying,

‘So it wasn’t just with me that Anadi quarreled?’

Prabhat turned his head and glanced at him once. Byomkesh said, ‘That line of thought leads nowhere. It appears Anadi Halder quarreled with everyone; that proves nothing. To commit murder, one must not only have the desire, but also the opportunity.’

Byomkesh turned to Nanibala. ‘How was the cinema yesterday?’

Nanibala stared at him, mouth agape.

‘Eh—the cinema—!’

‘Did you watch the film till the end?’

At last, Nanibala seemed to grasp the meaning of the question. She said, ‘Oh, but of course I did! I watched it from start to finish, only left after the film ended. I came out and stood outside, and then Prabhat came. I returned home with him. When we arrived—’

Byomkesh sighed and said, ‘I know. Now let’s go to Anadi Halder’s bedroom. We need to look at the iron almirah.’

The six of us gathered and made our way to Anadi Halder’s sleeping quarters. It was the room adjacent to the one where we had met Anadi Halder a few days ago. Nripen pressed the switch by the door and turned on the light.

The room was similar in size and shape to Nripen’s, but at the other end of the house. A barred window stood open. Apart from a bed and a steel almirah at its head, there was nothing else in the room.

Once we all entered, the room felt cramped. Byomkesh said, ‘Not everyone needs to be in here. Kestobabu, perhaps you could stay in the other room. The stairway door is broken; the police might arrive any moment.’

Kestobabu was surely as curious as the rest of us to know what was inside the almirah, but he said, ‘No matter, I’ll keep watch over the corpse. But at a time like this, a cup of hot tea would be most welcome.’ With that, he began to rub his hands together eagerly.

Byomkesh said, ‘Tea wouldn’t be amiss,’ and turned a questioning gaze towards Nanibala.

Nanibala replied reluctantly, ‘I can make tea. But there’s no milk.’

Byomkesh said, ‘Lemon juice will do instead of milk.’

Kestobabu said in a deep voice, ‘Ginger! Ginger! Have tea with ginger juice, it’ll invigorate you.’

Byomkesh said, ‘Ginger juice will do as well.’

When Nanibala and Kestobabu left, Nripen hesitated a little and said, ‘Will you need me—’

Byomkesh Samagra

“What?” Byomkesh said, “It’s you I need. Prabhatbabu, you’d better go to your own room and get some rest.” Prabhat hesitated for a moment, then, without a word, slowly left the room. Now only the two of us and Nripen remained.

There was nothing much