Let's End Your FEAR

Chapter 3

"Come on Nakuul, Stop at any mall or someplace so I can buy a pair of pants", Viraj grumbled from the passenger seat.

Nakuul shook his head, "Can't. Crime scene's getting older by the minute."

Viraj plucked unhappily at the legs of his shorts.

"This is totally unprofessional."

He blew out a noisy sigh and looked out of the window.

"Damn, I hate this part."

"At least we don't have to inform the family." Shetty said.

"That's something."

"Yeah, I suppose. But we still have to ask his family stupid questions, specially his wife, like did she behead him after some ugly fight."

"That's why we get paid big."

There was a squad on the street and another one blocking the driveway of the hotel when Shetty and Yadav arrived. A couple of uniforms were standing around blocking the road since it was swarmed with reporters and few of them with rolls of yellow crime- scene tape, looking lost.

Nakuul showed his batch when one of them approached the window.

"You got a grid staked out? You want us to park on the street?"

The uniform took off his hat and wiped his shinny forehead with his sleeve. It was already hot as hell.

"Hell, I don't know, Inspector. We got no clue where to string the tape."

"God, How about around the body?", Yadav suggested.

The cop bristled a little," Yeah, well the wife moved a body the moment she came, that was right before we came here."

"WHAT?"

"That's right. She got the call first even before the police were informed. The manager regrets his actions though and apologised."

"Fuck his apology, A celebrity gets murdered and all he needed to do was fuck our job." Yadav grumbled.

"But why did the wife move the body?" Shetty questioned.

"Said she couldn't let the world see him without his head, and it was insulting to have his head been replaced by that of a dog."

"Oh man.." Shetty groaned.

"Lock her up," Yadav muttered. "Tampering with evidence, destroying the crime scene. Lock her up and throw away the key. She probably killed him anyway."

"She's has an alibi Inspector."

"Yeah, She must have faked one, well that's the thing about being rich. Poor can't get away with it, Rich can no matter how fucked they are." Yadav added

He got out of the car and slammed the door and started walking slowly towards the entrance, eyes down in case if he could find a bloody footprint or something.

The uniform watched him go, shaking his head

"That is not a Happy man."

"Normally he is," Shetty replied. "He's just pissed because I wouldn't let him stop and change into some long pants before we came here."

"You gotta give him points then. Those are some bad legs."

"Who belongs to the other squad?"

"Verma and Shekhawat. They are walking the block, asking the neighbors, guests in other rooms. Couple of bike patrols are baby- sitting the body inside, but I wouldn't be surprised if the lady has them cleaning the body or trying to search his head or something."

"Yeah?"

The uniform wiped his brow with his sleeve again.

"She's a piece of work, that one."

"You got a feeling about her?"

"Yeah. I get a feeling her husband's getting the first rest he's had in years.

Nakuul caught up to Viraj on the middle of the lot, staring at the hearse angled in front of the elevator.

"We got no crime scene," Yadav grumbled, "His wife trashed it first, then the maid cleaned the floor until she found the body and puked, decided to clean everything up since she thought we'll consider her a suspect and it was embarrassing."

"..... Ohh man, Are you seeing what I'm seeing? Viraj asked

"Huh," Nakuul grunted. "What do you think?"

"So what's he doing here?"

"Beats me. Buying flowers?"

No one had seen Imran Syed since he'd left the industry a year ago, a few months after his wife had died. Not that they had known him that well, had met him in few parties. It was just that once you saw Imran, you weren't likely to forget him.
He still had a wrestler physique, short blowlegs, massive chest and arms.

"Man, looks like he lost about a lot of weight", said Yadav under his breath.

"Hell of a year for him", Shetty said, and then Imran was there, shaking their hands, his expressions as sober as ever.

"Nakuul, Viraj, Good to see you."

"What the hell, Syed?" Yadav pumped his hand.

"Did you start yoga , or did you join an army and nobody told me?"

Imran blew a long shaky breath out through puffed cheeks. He looked like he was teetering on the edge of something.

"The man who was killed brutally was my brother on law, Viraj."

"Oh shit." Viraj's face fell. "He was Alisha's brother? Oh man, I'm sorry, Shit.'

"Forget it. You had no way of knowing. Listen, you guys don't have much of a scene here."

Shetty heard the quaver in his voice, and decided to hold off on the sympathy until the man was strong enough to accept it.