BALI 100 KM (Book 1) ✔

Chapter 30

There was no car following them this time, and that was comforting. Now he had to tackle another problem-Will Samar come to know about Nand? No, he thought, that should not happen under any circumstances. Before that happened, he had to take Nand to Guntak to his family and solve the mystery. He will have to answer many questions that Samar would put forth as he was now bound to him. The question was, how can he dissuade Samar from accompanying them?

On reaching home, Bandu noticed the trio on the veranda, the usual scene Bandu saw every day. It was but new to Samar, as he was to Nand and Partho, who held questioning looks on their faces. Bandu smiled to give a feeling that all was well and there was nothing to worry about.

After parking their cycles nearby, they approached Partho, and Bandu made the introductions.

"This is Samar; he joined me today as my assistant. Commissioner Seth recommended him to me, and I could not refuse him. Samar will also be staying with us for a few days until he finds a suitable accommodation," Bandu paused to judge the reactions and received a nod in agreement from both, even though the surprise was evident on their faces.

"Samar, Partho here stays in the room beside me with his family and Nand," ruffling Nand's hair, "lives with me," he said, completing the introductions.

"Nand, why don't you take Samar bhaiya inside. I will follow," Bandu added.

Bandu looked at Samar, "Nand cannot talk, so you will have to get used to his gestures to understand him," he said. Samar had a fleeting surprise look on his face, but covered it with a nod.

With that, Samar followed Nand inside the house.

"Partho, do you have a spare mattress that I can borrow for Samar?" Bandu asked.

"I think I have one. Let me ask Maithili where it is. He looks like a decent chap to me. I hope he is reliable and trustworthy. Anyways keep an eye on him, whoever has recommended him," Partho advised Bandu.

That was Partho, who did not enquire about Bandu's hasty decision. He knew Bandu would, in time, tell him the reason for his actions, and until then, he would wait.

"That I will, don't worry," Bandu assured him and walked into the house.

"Samar, did you understand Nand's gestures," asked Bandu while keeping the grocery bag flat on the table.

"Oh yes, he is very good with his hands and face. Your son is smart. Where is his mother?" Samar wanted to know.

"I don't know where his mother is. I found him on the streets and took him in. The police are looking into the matter." Bandu explained, keeping his voice flat voice, bracing himself inside for more questions, but on the contrary, thankfully, none came. Samar came as disinterested about Nand, which Bandu thought was good.

But Nand was quite interested in Samar and kept following him everywhere, to see what he was doing, what was there in his suitcase, what clothes he wore and came up with questions. Samar got tried answering the questions, and Bandu observing all this decided to rescue him from the lad.

"Nand, go to Partho and ask him about the mattress I had requested for Samar," Bandu distracted him with work.

Nand happily trotted off to do as bidden. As soon as Nand stepped out, Samar picked up his phone from the suitcase hidden amongst his clothes and got talking into it. After freshening, Bandu entered the kitchen to prepare dinner, and after some time, Samar joined him.

"The men who attacked you yesterday, do you recognize any of them?" Samar wanted to know.

"No, they covered their faces with a cloth, and the place was dim lighted, so I could not glimpse their eyes also. Only the fellow who fell on me shouted. And when they heard people coming, one of them spoke up, instructing them to run. That's all." Bandu said.

"What were you doing beside the car? You had stopped for some other purpose," Bandu asked, remembering the incident while returning home.

"Oh...that...it's just a false alarm. I suspected something foul when I saw the car parked there in the darkness," he dismissed Bandu's doubt casually.

Samar began looking around the room as though conducting an inspection when Partho came in carrying the mattress with him. He deposited it on Bandu's bed.

"Bandu, here's the mattress. I have already dusted it for you. Nand is playing at home. I will send him back for dinner." Partho said and left.

Bandu thanked Partho and got to work again. Samar took it upon him to find a place to spread the mattress. He found one below the window and picked up the bed, and spread it open. From his suitcase, he took out a bedsheet and used it to cover the mattress.

With Samar busy with the bedding, Bandu's mind worked on making plans to travel to Guntak with Nand without taking Samar with them. Thankfully there were no mishaps that night.

On the way to the shop the next day, they came across the same car at the same place parked along the road. But now, there were masked policemen around it. They picked up a foul stench as they neared the car and rode on quickly to get away from it. Rather curious, Bandu stopped when his nose could no longer pick up the disgusting odor.

The policemen managing the traffic on the road were not allowing any vehicles to stop near the car. Bandu saw a body covered in cloth laid on the stretcher.

"Move on, Bandu, we will come to know about it later on," Samar told Bandu, who had stopped to see the going-on.

Estimating a busy day ahead, Bandu hurried away to open his business. And indeed, that was the case. Many motorists stopped at his shop to inquire about the car and dead body rather than have tea. He also expected a visit from inspector Sarathi later that day.

As Bandu had predicted, he had a lot of visitors that day for tea and gossip. But he wasn't happy about the affair. On the contrary, he felt sorry for the dead person's relatives who would receive the terrible news. By noon even inspector Sarathi made a stop at his shop for tea. Bandu knew now inspector Sarathi would reveal everything to him about the dead man. He prayed that it was not someone he knew.