“Okay. And you, Ma’am? What was your plan?”
“I didn’t have any plan. I too just wanted to help Jasbir uncle.”
“So all three of you are happy that your target met with the fate that you all wanted to give him?”
“Yes! Of course!” Jasbir was the first one to reply.
“No. I am shocked actually.” Rashi maintained.
“Yes. I too actually didn’t want to kill him. I realized it now.” Johnny remarked.
“Chill out guys. It was just a question and answer session. Not a serious interrogation.” Balbir got up to go. “Okay. It’s time for me to go. Patil died in the noon itself.” Balbir took a glance at his watch. “The preliminary autopsy report must have been ready. I have to go and see Dr. Sabharwal. Guess he’s going to give a report that would say it’s a “brain haemorrhage”.”
Both Balbir and Jasbir laughed out loud while Rashi and Johnny shared uncomfortable sniggers.
“Nice one, son. At last all our prayers got answered.” Jasbir said to Balbir.
“There are many more people who wanted to see Patil dead. I’ll go and have a chat with them too. But one thing I must say...” He looked at all the three and said, “If you plan anything like this in the future, then please do take my advice. Don’t go for filmy stuffs like failing a brake in 10 minutes or applying poison on the pages that the likely victim may lick. Because they would never work in reality. Go for simple ones.”
By now Rashi and Johnny had totally lost the understanding capacity. None of the words that the detective spoke made any sense to them. They simply nodded understanding nothing.
“Sometimes a simple sprinkle of a stimulant on a drink can trigger whatever ailment you want that person to suffer from.” With that, Balbir moved away.
Without wasting any time, both Rashi and Johnny too hurried out of the park. “It’s all like a nightmare.” Johnny exclaimed.
Rashi searched in her handbag for her mobile. “Thankfully I didn’t fall in this...” She suddenly stopped speaking seeing a paper that she had unmindfully put in her handbag. It was the Electricity meter transfer form of Jasbir. “Hey... Johnny! One second.”
“What happened?” Johnny asked.
She thought for a second. Something struck her. But she didn’t want to come out openly with it. She shook her head. “No. Nothing.”
Johnny smiled and bid goodbye to her. As he was making way towards his house, he kept on thinking about everything that happened in the park. Death of Patil, Jasbir meeting up with Balbir and then Balbir questioning them. All the incidents were quirkily weird. Johnny closed his eyes and tried to shake off the thoughts when suddenly, he was hit with an epiphany.
“Sometimes a simple sprinkle of a stimulant on a drink can trigger whatever ailment you want that person to suffer from.”
These words of Balbir suddenly took him back to the morning episode when Balbir was offering to hand over a glass of special juice himself to calm down a Hot Patil.
“Oh my Goodness!” Johnny gasped, understanding the innuendo that he had missed at the park itself.
*****
A few kilometres away from Johnny, Rashi was returning home reading the names on the Electricity meter transfer form of Jasbir again and again.
The bold letters at the top left hand corner were marked with the names Jasbir Bhalla and Balbir Bhalla. Was it the same detective Balbir she knew?
Could they be related? Jasbir even called Balbir, son. Were they father and son or Jasbir randomly called everyone, son? But did he call Johnny too, son?
Rashi shook her head unable to think anything clearly. She didn’t want to think anymore about this whole episode. Whatever it was, she was glad that she wasn’t a part of murdering anyone that night.
THE END
#shortstory #crimethriller #murdermystery #Story #lastpart #Epilogue