It was past twelve o’clock by the time we got back home. We invited Lalmohan Babu to have lunch with us, and he agreed. ‘A remarkable woman!’ he said, turning the regulator of our fan to its maximum speed, and stretching out on his favourite couch. ‘So calm and collected even at a time like this—and look at her brother! Just the opposite, isn’t he?’ ‘Perhaps that is why she is so fond of her brother,’ Feluda mused. ‘Feelings and emotions are a complex business, Lalmohan Babu. I think what Mrs Munshi feels for her brother is more than just sympathy and compassion. She is protective, like a mother. Don’t forget she has not got children of her own, nor is she close to her stepson. Her brother has probably always been like a child to her.’ ‘Besides, they are twins. So naturally they are close.’ ‘Right.’ ‘Do you think she did not get on very well with her husband?’ ‘I couldn’t say, Lalmohan Babu, without a degree of intimacy with the Munshi family. In my job, I have to make my deductions solely from what my eyes and ears tell me.’ ‘What did your ears tell you in this case?’ ‘Something struck me as odd.’ ‘What did?’ ‘You should have realized it too. I am surprised you didn’t.’ Now I felt I had to tell him what was bothering me. ‘Could it be that she has read Dr Munshi’s diary? Is that what you mean, Feluda?’ ‘Well done, Topshe! That’s the impression I got from what she said.’ ‘Why, Felu Babu, Dr Munshi could simply have told her what he had written in his diary. How do you know she read it?’ ‘Maybe she didn’t. But it’s the same thing, isn’t it? The point is that she knows what that diary contained.’ ‘I realized something when I read that manuscript, Felu Babu. Dr Munshi clearly had a lot of affection for his wife. The very first page proved that. I mean, if he was indifferent to her, why should he have dedicated his book to his wife?’ ‘Yes, that’s a good point.’ ‘I picked up something else. I use my ears, too, you know. Dr Munshi’s son may feel his father ignored him and was uncaring. But he was kind and generous to his secretary. So he could not have been a totally uncaring man, could he?’ ‘Good, good!’ said Feluda somewhat absently and began pacing up and down. A minute later, Lalmohan Babu asked, ‘What’s bothering you now?’

‘Just this: there is only one name among the three that we don’t know. Who is R? My enquiries would never be complete unless I can find out who he is. But I suppose I’ll just have to . . .’ Feluda was interrupted by the telephone. It was a new instrument. Its ring was louder and sharper than the old one. Feluda answered it. It was an incredible call, a perfect example of what Feluda refers to as telepathy. The conversation went like this: ‘Hello.’ ‘Mr Mitter?’ ‘Speaking.’ ‘This is R. The R in Munshi’s diary.’ ‘What!’ ‘Yes.’ ‘Oh. Oh, I see. But why are you calling me? How do you know about my connection with Dr Munshi?’ ‘You went to his house this morning, didn’t you?’ ‘Yes, I certainly did. He was killed early this morning. That’s why I was there.’ ‘You are a pretty well-known figure, Mr Mitter. A neighbour of Munshi’s saw you go into the house and recognized you. This neighbour happens to be one of my patients. Oh, didn’t you know I was a doctor too? Yes, I am; and I visited this patient only about an hour ago. When he mentioned having seen you, I put two and two together and deduced that you must have been employed by Munshi.’ ‘Will you tell me your real name, please?’ ‘No. That must remain a secret. But I want to know what Munshi said about me.’ ‘He said he knew you well, and had told you about the publication of his diary. He said you had no objection to his mentioning your case and referring to you as R.’ ‘Nonsense! That’s a complete lie. How could he have spoken to me? I wasn’t even here! I got back to Calcutta only the day before yesterday after a long absence. While going through old copies of the Telegraph, I came across a report that said Penguin was going to publish his diary. This worried me. I knew how well-informed he was about the intimate details of his patients’ lives, including my own. So I rang him and asked him straightaway if he had mentioned my case. He tried to reassure me by saying it did not matter since he had only used the first letter of my name. But that wasn’t good enough. I was a doctor twenty-four years ago, when I had to consult Munshi. The patients I used to treat then still come to me. Where is the guarantee that they will not recognize me if they read Munshi’s book?’ ‘I have read the book,’ Feluda interrupted, ‘and I do not think you have anything to fear.’ ‘I would never take anyone’s word for it, Mr Mitter. I told Munshi I wanted to read his manuscript and judge for myself whether I stood in any danger or not. I said if he did not hand it over to me, I would reveal everything about his murky past.’ ‘What! What are you talking about?’ ‘Yes, sir. Munshi and I went to London together to study medicine. Our subjects were different, but we were good friends. I have seen a side to Munshi’s character that no one here has ever seen. He

began to drink, fell into bad company, and would have ruined both himself and his career; but I made him see sense. Eventually, after coming back to Calcutta and starting his practice, he got back on the right track.’ ‘You went to Dr Munshi’s