Pulak Ghoshal came to our hotel at half past nine the next morning. ‘Have the police finished asking questions?’ Feluda asked him. ‘Yes. None of us could go home before half past nine last night. Who could ever have imagined something like this would happen? We can’t start shooting until the police give the all-clear. Samiran Babu has said we may go ahead once the police finish their investigation, but who knows how long that might take? I’m trying not even to think about the financial loss we’ll have to suffer because of this.’ Lalmohan Babu clicked his tongue in sympathy. ‘However,’ Pulak Babu added a shade more cheerfully, ‘there’s something I have seen in the past. If the production of a film gets temporarily stopped for some reason, it goes on to become a smash hit. Besides, Laluda, your story is totally unbeatable.’ Inspector Saha turned up half an hour after Pulak Babu left. ‘No sign of Lokenath,’ he said, ‘but we’re still looking for him. My men are working even in Siliguri. I think it’s just a matter of time before we find him. He may be hiding in a tribal colony at the moment, but he’s bound to be caught sooner or later. I am positive he’ll try to go to Calcutta and sell the statue there. It’s strange, isn’t it, what greed can do to an otherwise simple man?’ ‘I believe you’ve finished interviewing people in the house.’ ‘Yes. It proved one thing: everyone, without a single exception, was avidly curious to see how a film is shot. All of them admitted to having spent considerable time watching the shooting. Even Mr Majumdar changed his routine. That is most remarkable, for his life ran with clockwork precision.’ ‘How many people would have had the opportunity, do you think? Let’s not worry about the motive as yet.’ ‘Well, there are two things to be considered here. One, pouring poison into the victim’s glass of milk; and then stabbing him to steal the statue. Lokenath got the glass of milk ready at around half past one and went to call Mr Majumdar. He could have dropped the remaining thirty pills into the glass; or, in his absence, someone else might have slipped in and done that. Rajat Bose says he was reading in his room at that time. Samiran Majumdar also says he was in his own room. Neither can prove it. Bahadur and Jagadish were watching the shooting. This happens to be true.’ ‘What did your surgeon say about the time of murder?’ ‘According to him, the victim was stabbed between 2.30 and 4 p.m. There is no doubt that the cause of death was stabbing, or there wouldn’t have been so much bleeding.’ ‘Could anyone say anything about Lokenath?’ ‘No. Everyone was engrossed with the shooting.’ Lalmohan Babu cleared his throat. ‘If I must be questioned, why don’t you ask your questions now? Let’s get it over with.’

‘Very well. Technically, I should have interviewed you