Mr Boral came to our house at around twelve o’clock and told us what Maganlal had said. ‘What do you want to do with the pearl now?’ he asked. ‘Should I take it back with me?’ ‘Maganlal knows I have got it here. He’s an extremely cunning man. I shouldn’t be surprised if he actually came here himself. I realize you are anxious to take the pearl back to your house, but believe me, it will be safer here. If you keep it, Maganlal will take it from you, by hook or by crook. We can’t let that happen.’ ‘Very well. Let’s wait until Maganlal leaves Calcutta. Once he’s out of the way, I can come back and collect it from you.’ ‘Yes, that would be far better. Are you going back to Sonahati today?’ ‘Yes, by the evening train.’ ‘All right. Don’t forget to let me know if anything untoward happens.’ The next morning, Someshwar Saha rang us from Sonahati. Mr Boral, he said, was attacked on his way back from Calcutta. He was struck on the head and he lost consciousness. When he came to, he found his belongings strewn all over. Someone had clearly gone through everything looking for a specific object. ‘Maganlal did this!’ I exclaimed when Feluda told me what Mr Saha had said. ‘Of course. He obviously decided not to take chances. Thank God the pearl was not with Mr Boral.’ Lalmohan Babu dropped by in the evening, and was told of the latest development. ‘This can mean only one thing, Felu Babu,’ he declared. ‘Maganlal will now try speaking to you. He must know for sure that you have got Boral’s pearl.’ Barely five minutes later, a car stopped outside our house and then the doorbell rang. I opened it to find the object of our discussion standing there, beaming at me. ‘May I come in, Tapesh Babu?’ asked Maganlal. ‘Certainly.’ Maganlal stepped in. Still dressed in a black sherwani and a white dhoti, he didn’t seem to have changed at all. ‘I have often wanted to visit your house, Mr Mitter. After all, we’re such old friends, aren’t we?’ he remarked jovially. ‘Hello Uncle, how are you?’ Lalmohan Babu stiffened. Maganlal had treated him so awfully on two previous occasions that he was clearly finding it difficult to relax in his presence. ‘Fine, thank you,’ he croaked after a while. ‘Would you like a cup of tea?’ Feluda asked politely. ‘No, sir. I am not going to take much time, Mr Mitter. Perhaps you can guess why I am here?’ ‘Yes, perhaps I can.’

‘Then let’s not beat about the bush. Where is that pearl?’ ‘Mr Boral doesn’t have it. At least that much you ought to know, since the men you sent to attack him did not find it.’ ‘My men?’ ‘Yes, who else would do such a thing?’ ‘Please don’t talk like that, Mr Mitter. There is no evidence that those men were mine.’ ‘I don’t even have to look for evidence, Maganlalji. A crook of your stature has his own style. I would recognize your style anywhere.’ ‘Is that so? Well, let me ask you again: where is that pearl?’ ‘With me.’ ‘I need it.’ ‘Too bad. You cannot always have what you need, or what you want.’ ‘Maganlal always gets what he wants. Why are you wasting your time talking? I want that pink pearl. If you don’t give it to me, you know very well I have the means to take it from you.’ ‘Then you will have to resort to those means, won’t you? You won’t get it from me, Maganlalji.’ ‘No?’ ‘No.’ ‘Very well,’ Maganlal rose. ‘I will take my leave now. Goodbye, Mr Mitter. Goodbye, Uncle.’ ‘Goodbye,’ Lalmohan Babu answered in a faint voice. Maganlal stopped at the door and turned back. ‘I am prepared to give you another three days,’ he said, looking straight at Feluda. ‘Today is Monday. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. Think it over. Do you understand me?’ ‘Perfectly.’ Maganlal went out. Lalmohan Babu stared after him, shaking his head. ‘I don’t like this, Felu Babu,’ he said. ‘Why don’t you give him the pearl and be done with it? How long can you keep it here, anyway? Boral will take it back sooner or later, won’t he?’ ‘Yes, but not when there is even a remote chance of its failing into the wrong hands. I will return the pearl to its rightful owner only when I can be sure that Maganlal is out of the way.’ ‘What about that maharaja who is also interested in the same pearl? We know nothing about him, do we?’ ‘No, but there is someone who can tell us something about the man: Uncle Sidhu. I haven’t been to see him for a long time. Let’s visit him today.’ ‘What is that man called? Can you remember his name?’ ‘Suraj Singh.’ ‘And the place?’ ‘Dharampur, in Uttar Pradesh.’ We got into Lalmohan Babu’s car and reached Uncle Sidhu’s house in five minutes. We found him in his room inspecting an ancient scroll with a magnifying glass. He looked at us coldly. ‘Who are you? I don’t think I know any of you.’ Feluda laughed. ‘You must forgive me, Uncle. I know it’s a long time since I last visited you, but I’ve had so many cases that it simply didn’t leave me any time for socializing. At least it means I am doing well in my work. You should be pleased.’

This time, Uncle Sidhu smiled. ‘Felu Mitter,’ he said, ‘I have known you since you were a child of eight. You had killed a mynah with your airgun and brought the dead bird to show me. I had said to you, “It is a sin to kill a poor defenceless creature. Promise me you won’t do it ever again.” You understood, and stopped using your airgun. Of course I am glad you’re doing well. But don’t try boasting about it. I might have been a