Mr Sanyal arrived in our room the following morning, just as we finished our bed-tea. What did he want so early in the morning? I looked at him in surprise, but Feluda greeted him warmly. ‘We haven’t really had the chance to get to know each other, have we?’ he said, offering our visitor a seat. ‘As Mahitosh Babu’s friend, you must have had a lot of interesting experiences yourself.’ Mr Sanyal took a chair opposite the table. ‘Yes. I have known Mahitosh for fifty years, since our school days.’ ‘May I ask you something?’ ‘About Mahitosh?’ ‘No, about Torit Sengupta.’ ‘Yes?’ ‘What sort of a man was he? I mean, what was your impression?’ ‘He was a very good man. I found him intelligent, diligent and very patient.’ ‘How was he at his work?’ ‘Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.’ ‘Yes, I got that impression myself.’ Mr Sanyal gave Feluda a level look. ‘I have come to make a request, Mr Mitter,’ he said simply. ‘A request?’ Feluda asked, offering him a cigarette. Mr Sanyal accepted it and waited until it had been lit for him. I saw him smoking for the first time. He inhaled deeply before replying. ‘Yes. You have seen a lot in the last three days,’ he said. ‘You are far more clever than ordinary men, so obviously you have drawn your own conclusions from what you’ve seen. Today is probably the last day of your stay. No one knows what the day has in store. No matter what happens today, Mr Mitter, I’d be very grateful if you could keep it to yourself. I am sure Mahitosh would want the same thing. If you look at the history of any old family in Bengal—particularly the zamindars—I’m sure you’ll find a lot of skeletons in their cupboards. The Sinha-Roys are no exception. However, I see no reason why the facts that come to light should be made public. I am making the same appeal to your friend, and to your cousin.’ ‘Mr Sanyal,’ Feluda replied, ‘I have enjoyed Mahitosh Babu’s hospitality for three days. I am very grateful to him for his generosity. I can never go back to Calcutta and start maligning him. None of us could do that. I give you my word.’ Mr Sanyal nodded silently. Then Feluda asked another question, possibly because he couldn’t help himself. ‘Devtosh Babu’s room is still locked. Can you explain why?’ Mr Sanyal looked a little oddly at Feluda. ‘By the end of this day, Mr Mitter, the reason will become clear to you.’ ‘I take it that the police are still working on this case?’

‘No.’ ‘What! Why not?’ ‘Well, suspicion has fallen on someone . . . but Mahitosh does not want the police to harass this person at all.’ ‘You mean Devtosh Babu?’ ‘Yes, who else could I mean?’ ‘But even if that’s true, even if he did kill, he’s not going to be charged or punished in the usual way, is he? I mean, considering