Till Human Voices Wake Us: Last Part: Page 175 - Page 28

Originally posted by: night13

Till Human Voices Wake Us... take me back to the start! Why do I get this ill feeling that the real killer is yet to be introduced (named)...

Originally posted by: Escapist

You know what Sooks I'm not gonna go out there and try to understand what's going on in your mind...I'm just gonna enjoy the story as it comes...blame my laziness or anything else that I don't wanna divulge in anything at the moment...

but there is this one thing that's bugging me all along and let me state it..dunno if the assumption is right or wrong but I feel both Mal and the killer are connected...if the killer is the artist...he had mentioned 2 of us...but he din specify if the other was a girl or a guy if I'm remembering correctly so, does it somewhere mean that Mal n this artist are siblings...coz I get an idea that both are related to Geet's childhood...Geet says she is her college friend..n Mal said childhood friend and din elaborate much...

ok ok fine...I want rack my poor brains 😕 more need to save something no much part of my brains for studies as of now 😛

Nice updates and interludes too :))

Take Care,

F

Originally posted by: -Sookie-

He did??? When? I gotta check...besides where did I mention that a killer is a "he"? 😊

Chapter 10:

-- Monday, 8 PM --

Once finished talking to Anjali's parents, Maan felt his entire life force had been drained from him. Anjali's parents were devastated and it had taken him many speechless moments to get through the initial question and answer session which had been permanently stuck on the question – why did my daughter die. He had given explanations about things that were going on but they weren't satisfied with his answer. They just wanted to know who and why. Why was Anjali killed anyway?

He was totally exhausted and when he went to his cabin, the entire group was waiting for him. They were comfortably seated and were talking about cricket. It had always fascinated him to the brilliant minds he worked with exhibited a totally different side when they weren't working on a case or when he wasn't around, his mind prodded wryly. Everyone had been working continuously without a break and he wanted all of them to take a good night rest. Not before assigning work for the next day of course.

Silence fell and everyone stood up when he entered. Except for David and Vic he received salutes and "Jai Hind" from his fellow cops. He sat down along with them. Two Chinese takeaway containers lay unopened on table along with a bottle of water. He picked one of them and dug in.

"Maan, I got Anjali's autopsy report." Vic was the first one to start.

"Is there something that is different from the initial assessment? I think you got complete toxicology report now, right?" Maan asked.

"There is something we did find. The time of death is pretty much spot on. But the ingestion of Rohypnol is much earlier." Vic almost stammered in the end. Everyone looked at him.

"Rohypnol was in her system at least two hours before she was dead." Vic said looking at a page from the eighty four paged report. Satya recovered first.

"That would mean that the killer was in house at around eight in evening. He spent close to five hours in that apartment? That's too weird", Satya said.

No one spoke for moments. Maan looked around the group. Everyone seemed to have some or the other bit of information pertaining to the case. He looked at Satya.

"I again spoke at length to the inspector who dealt with Geet's case during her stalking and after the death of her stalker. There are some interesting observations he has made today. I have provided Vic and Emily with all the details pertaining to forensics and autopsy. They are going to take a second look", Satya said.

"What about the blackmail pictures we found in Anjali's locker?" Maan asked.

"I have checked out the apartment from which the photo might have been taken. I have left messages to that building secretary saying that we would drop in tomorrow. I've filed for search warrant in case we need to go in." Satya said. Maan nodded.

"Deshmukh, take that up tomorrow. Also, you are talking again to Geet's and Anjali's colleagues?" Maan asked.

"Yes sir. Emily gave me a photo of the other man with Anjali. No one from Geet's friends circle recognized him. But one of Anjali's did." Deshmukh answered.

"They did?" Maan was truly surprised.

"Yes. They didn't know his name but said that he has come around couple of times in past year." Deshmukh answered.

"And this witness remembers him just by looking at him couple of times?" Emily asked incredulously.

"Yes. I asked the woman couple of times if she was sure and she said she was very sure that it was him. She didn't remember anything else about him. And get this, she saw him more than a year ago." Deshmukh said.

"She is hiding something", Emily said. Maan, Satya and Deshmukh nodded.

"I am asking her again tomorrow. And I will also visit Geet's neighbors and ask around about these two men", Deshmukh finished. Maan nodded at Emily.

"Was there something on Sasha's Facebook wall on the night she died?" Maan asked.

"I didn't see anything interesting there. But then again she blogged like crazy; Facebook, Twitter, Blogger, you name it and she was on it. Her blog is very extensive. She wrote about a lot of things – her work, personal life and lots about her friends; basically everything." Emily said.

"Did she write about Phuket trip too?" Maan asked with a raised eyebrow.

"When I said everything, I meant everything. This is her personal blog an online journal of sorts, by the way. I doubt this information was privy to anyone other than her." Emily said.

"How did you find out then?" Maan asked hoping that she used completely legal ways of finding that information.

"Do you really want to know?" Emily asked smiling wickedly. She chuckled when her boss and her colleagues refused vehemently.

"We don't want to be implicated by being an accomplice in your illegal ways of retrieving information Emily. Guilt by association, you see?" Satya said. Emily rolled her eyes.

"What do the vases say David? Anything interesting?" Maan asked David who was munching on a nutrition bar.

"That's the surprising part. There is nothing interesting, unfortunately. The wood from which it is made is local and it's painted recently." David said.

"Are there no specific indicator to find out where they were manufactured or something?" Satya asked.

"I have consulted a colleague who deals with art fraud and forgery. He said this work is quite original." David replied.

"Is it possible a picture of it is available in Sasha's blog?" Maan asked.

"Yes, it's possible. But not very sure", Emily confessed. "I will look into it. Also when am at it, I will check flight information, hotel details and also immigration." Emily said and noted down whatever she had just said. Maan and Satya exchanged amused looks.

"I will have to go through forensic evidence from Sasha's murder and also from the murder of the stalker. Maybe there is something we have missed." David said and decided what he was going to do.

They were quiet for moments.

"Has anyone thought of the love note left by our charming killer?" Emily asked. Maan had forgotten about it completely. He looked on like the rest of others curiously.

"It isn't a random note Maan", Emily's voice had the strangest tinge of tragedy and she dropped the honorifics while talking to her oldest friend who was currently also her boss.

"It's a line chosen carefully by the killer. The line is from a poem by Eliot and the poem in itself isn't simple and there are lots of analyses done around it. But the way killer has used it and the circumstance surrounding it is fascinating. I believe the killer is dealing with two strong conflicting emotions within himself. Maan, I haven't thought through this completely and am thinking aloud right now but I think it explains the killer's behavior at the crime scene; extreme care and extreme rage", Emily finished in one breath.

"But why?" Satya asked immediately.

"I don't know. I have no behavior evidence to prove my theory Satya. I was merely thinking out loud", Emily said sounding a little peeved. Satya smiled sheepishly.

"Let's work on the profile of the killer when we have all the information, okay?" Maan said. Everyone nodded.

"Satya and I are visiting Geet's parents and her old college tomorrow. We need to figure out where this all started", Maan said.

"Didn't these killings start because of the stalker?" Vic asked puzzled.

"Quite possible, but…" Maan trailed. He got up and paced for minutes organizing thoughts in his head. And then he spoke.

"We still don't know from where all this started. We know that the killer knows intimate things about these women. There are overlaps in the victimology from the murder which is more than half a decade old; even before Sasha, Anjali and Geet met. There are too many holes in their stories and there are many events unaccounted for", Maan said. He continued to pace and think aloud.

"Let's go back to where everything started and start eliminating anything irrelevant which means we have to start from Geet." Maan said sitting down, finally.

"Maan, is it necessary delving deep into Geet's life?" Emily asked slowly.

"Emily, we need to eliminate or approve the possibility that it's her old stalker who is doing all this after these many years. And I also want to know if the stalker is from her hometown – someone whom she knew as a kid but drifted apart when they grew up. Failure to recognize him after he grew up would have made him angry and hurt. Without knowing about her past in true sense, we cannot move forward. Somehow Geet is tied more closely to the killer than anyone else." Maan said.

"What about Mal?" Satya asked looking at Maan. Maan turned and nodded to Deshmukh.

"Yes sir." Deshmukh said, understanding Maan's unspoken requirement of finding everything about Mal and also interviewing her neighbors without raising an alarm. He planned to put a tail on her till the case was solved, just in case. She wasn't speaking the entire truth either.

"Okay, we regroup tomorrow night at ten. And then we can start putting the pieces together." Maan said. Everyone except Satya left Maan's cabin parting for the day.

"Shall I make copies of these sir ji?" Satya said waving at the reports left by the rest of the team.

"No Satya. I think it's better if we keep an open mind when we meet Geet's parents or the police from her college town. I don't want any information to influence our interview", Maan said. Satya nodded and left.

Since Emily had spoken a little of the killer, the line left by the killer was haunting on his mind. He had a feeling that the killer knew exactly what he was doing and was also keeping a close eye on the investigation.

And the three women – two dead and one perhaps marked for death know the killer too well.

Why isn't he showing himself in the list of friends, relatives and suspects then?

To be continued.