The Case of Known-Unknown

The Abandoned Plot

Seven

17th March 2003

Dusk. The winds whispered humidity. Jeel slid all those window ceilings down, hiding the view with curtains, it was time. They might have found out about her, he must have told them. She couldn't blame him, though, how long would he sit tight-lipped, after all, he wasn't even aware of that event.

Ring Ring!

She knew very well who the caller was. Poor David, if only he knew! But things didn't work out for her, as well. After the mass- murder, one thing was for sure, she had lost it too. Her motives and intentions didn't match with David's wishes, and then the interrogation, the cops were after her. She realized she was the prime suspect of the case. And she knew things, secrets, which put her in danger. If I'm caught, then there'd be no repair to what was done, instead, the problem would just widen, she thought.

She had decided to shift to some other place, somewhere quieter. But leaving the city at such times would make her a fugitive and things could go worse, so she decided to go to the other place. The dummy address, she thought and chuckled. But she did curse her boss, damn him, why had he given her such a tough job? Jeel had never faced such an issue, in all of her career.

*****

18th March 2003

Himanshu Savla strolled happily back to his villa, though he was well aware that he was under secret surveillance by the cops. At least something went as planned. The interrogation was easy for him to crack. He was pressed hard by the authorities but was backed up by confidence. His alibi worked!

He didn't have a lawyer, but with the help of his friend, he was able to get the ticket of the train which he travelled to, for his drama show in another town. That ticket was dated for the same day that the party was held, so the authorities had no choice, but to believe that he had no part to play in the murder. The supervisor of the drama company was also contacted, but he confirmed Himanshu Savla's presence in the show. The colony members' answers about Himanshu being an alcoholic also worked in his favour, as it justified his drinking the leftover wine. And then he was asked about the locket, he did see it, but he couldn't remember where. The only question where he stumbled on was,

   'David always invited you to his parties, but our reports show that you weren't invited to the last two parties held in the previous month. Neither were you invited to this party, what do you have to say about that?'

This question could have spilt the water, but the terrain was strong, and Himanshu countered it easily by bringing up the change in timings of his drama shows, and how he had to skip those parties due to that. He focused on the final quest now. After all, there had to be something to make up for the loss he suffered.

*****

Syna sent Dexter on an unofficial task. She ordered him to set off in the morning, grab a seat on the first bus he saw and head to the address of the sender for that letter.

   'It's a fake address of-course! Why do you think The Stalker would send you a letter with his real address?' he argued with Syna.

   'Right now, we aren't sure if it's him. Furthermore, there's something I want to check, so are you going to follow my orders or do you want me to have second thoughts about whether or not I can rely on you?' she taunted and he backed off.

Syna wanted the task to be completely discreet, so he had no accomplice to help him. He carried a 9mm revolver with him, for safety. It was his only chance to prove something. Looking around, he observed that the bus was hardly occupied, there were just eleven of them. An old woman, probably in her sixties, knitting a sweater, sitting right behind him. A couple with their son, enjoying their journey. He then noticed a strange man in the back seat, reading a newspaper. That face somehow seemed familiar. He glanced at the address,