On the evening of 21st March 2003, Conan and I were seated in the drawing room of 3/SA Metropolitan Co Operative Housing Society 1st Lane Sector A and were discussing about philosophy of human life. Conan was saying that there is no heaven or hell. Everything is on this earth. When we commit crime we face punishment on this earth similarly we get rewarded here for any good deed we do. I contradicted him and said that Gita the holy book of Hindu said that there is heaven and hell and the book is said to be hundred percent correct.
Our argument halted there as the doorbell rang and after few minutes a six feet tall man, well-built entered. He was dressed in white shirt, black trousers and with black overcoat.
Conan and I rose to bid him welcome and offered him a seat while our landlady Mrs. Potts offered him a glass of water. He thanked us and Mrs. Potts left and Conan and I took our seats on the sofa. The man was of fair complexion with black hair and black eyes. He was handsome and had some air of authority. Conan introduced himself and me to our probable client and waited for the man to speak.
The visitor said “Mr. Conan de Souza, I am here on behalf of my employer Mr. Vijay Roy. He is in distress and needs your help urgently. ”
Conan asked “And what is the matter and what is your name.”
The visitor replied “Oh!! I am sorry. My name is Mr. Suresh Rahane. I am the family lawyer of Mr. Roy.”
Conan asked “What are the matters that require my help?”
Mr. Rahane replied “Mr. Roy owns horses of best breed which participates in horse races. Mr. Roy’s favourite horse was Goldeen Moor which won fifteen race titles thereby bringing millions of rupees in account of Mr. Roy. He loves his horses more than his life and Goldeen Moor goes missing since yesterday and Mr. Roy has a race event due day after tomorrow. Since he had heard his horse missing, his heart is broken and is nearly bed ridden.”
I commented “Quite natural, he must be losing quite a lot of money.”
Mr. Rahane replied “Money does not matter to Mr. Roy. He does not care for money. What he actually cares are his horses. He loves them dearly.”
Conan asked “How old is Mr. Roy?”
Mr. Rahane replied “He is seventy years old but now he looks older than his age. Before his horse went missing he looked younger.”
Conan asked “Did Mr. Roy have any enemies?”
Mr. Rahane replied “Not really.”
Conan asked again “what about his family?”
Mr. Rahane replied “He has none.”
I inquired “Who’s going to get his property?”
Mr. Rahane replied “World Health Organization.”
Conan asked “Where can we find Mr. Roy?”
Mr. Rahane replied “He lives at 31/B/A Chatterjee Street, Cooch Bihar, West Bengal.”
Conan said after looking at his watch “Oh! Now is quarter to ten in morning. We will be there tonight. See you there Mr. Rahane. Goodbye.”
Mr. Rahane stood up, handed Conan an envelope, shook hands and said “Goodbye Monsieur Conan. Here is five thousand rupees for the journey. See you both soon.”, and he left. Conan took his seat and so did I.
“So” I said “Why on earth would someone steal a horse?”
Conan smiled and replied “Multiple reasons but each cancels out one another except one weird idea.”
I straightened up and inquired “What is that weird idea?”
Conan smiled, folded his hand and in a grave tone replied “Well Mr. Roy loves his horse more than his life. With his horse missing, he is heartbroken. So if somebody wants to hurt Mr. Roy he or she can steal the horse thereby hurting Mr. Roy. Now the question is if my theory is right who wants to hurt Mr. Roy and why or worse who wants to kill Mr. Roy and why?”
“So what are we waiting for?” I asked.
Conan replied “I will visit the Race Course Office before leaving. I need some more details on Goldeen Moor and Mr. Vijay Roy.”
After lunch Conan left for Race Course Office and I started packing the suitcases for both of us. After finishing with the packing process, I was thinking about the weird case of horse stealing and I lost the track of time. At quarter to five in evening Conan entered the premises. He had a complex look upon his face. It showed his journey was not a successful one but it also showed it was altogether not an unsuccessful one also.
I asked “What happened?”
Conan sat down in the arm chair and he began in a soft voice “Mr. Roy began his life as a jockey. He saved a lot during his youth and at forty he started buying horses and his prized possession is a milky white horse with golden mane and has a golden star on his forehead. This horse is called the Goldeen Moor. It is one of the most successful horses with win rate of ninety-nine percent. Till now it has lost only one race that too because of the jockey Roger whom Mr. Roy has put an allegation of taking bribe from his opponent. Even though it was not proved but out of humiliation Roger killed himself. That’s all I have found yet and”, glancing at the wall clock he said “I think we should leave for Sealdah Station or we will miss the train.”
The Journey and History of Cooch Bihar
At six o’ clock in the evening we boarded Cooch Bihar bound express super-fast train. The train rattled gathering speed every moment. The train whooshed past trees, villages, towns and cities. When I looked out of the window it seemed that the surroundings are rushing away from us. The train moved through Chandanagar, Bardhaman, Asansol, Murshidabad, Malda, Raniganj and Darjeeling and finally at quarter past ten in evening of the same day we arrived at Cooch Bihar Station. We dismounted and came up to the platform. The platform was lit up by the tripod lights and the porters were there taking luggages from the people arriving at the station. From the platform I looked up at the sky and it was pitch black with no stars twinkling and the moon was not visible. It was extremely overcast and the grumbling noise of the clouds was audible and the flashes of the lightening could be seen. It was then when we were greeted by Mr. Rahane.
Mr. Rahane was wearing the dress he was wearing in the morning. He led us out of the platform and then the station while the porter carrying our luggage followed us. After coming out from the station gate we found a carriage driven by two horses standing before us. Our luggage was shifted to the carriage and Mr. Rahane paid the porter and then the porter was dismissed. We mounted the carriage. The interior of the carriage were splendid. The walls of the carriage were attached with glass. The seat was as soft as the feathers of the birds. Mr. Rahane told the carriage driver to drive and informed us that “Mr. Roy has sent his personal carriage for you. He is waiting eagerly for you all since morning. He is upset as he could not come personally to greet you at the station and he apologizes for his inability to come.”
I smiled after hearing these words.
Conan told Mr. Rahane “The carriage is nice. Where are we heading to?”
Mr. Rahane replied “To Baneswar.”
The streets through which we passed were lighted by tripod lamps. After nearly half an hour after leaving the station I looked up again to the sky. Now it was clear. The forest was seen glittering in the silver lights of the moon. The sky was clear with moon and stars twinkling and it was a marvelous night. This scene of nature is quite impossible to be witnessed in the cities. The air has a mystical essence of pastoral life; the freshness of the air mollified us. The fragrance of the evening dew on the thickets was intoxicating. Then Conan informed me about the historic prominence of Cooch Bihar which was more quantified by Mr. Rahane who is residing here at Cooch Bihar exclusively at Baneswar for over past forty years.
Conan said that “Cooch Bihar was previously known as Pragjyotishpur. During 1554 A.D. this was the kingdom of Maharaja Viswa Singha who at the age of fifty three became a priest and exiled himself at the Himalayas and was succeeded by his second son Nara Narayan who was married to Queen Shukladhaj and in 1568 A.D. Maharaja Nara Narayan was conquered by Kalapahar the army commander of the Karani. It was Maharaja Nara Narayan who started Durga Puja here at Cooch Bihar and he created the state seal bearing the lion symbol and he was the pioneer of these roads which we see today at Cooch Bihar. At 1857 A.D. the British Rule started and before 20th August 1949 A.D. this place was also under British Rule till 19th January 1950 A.D. The Palace of Maharaja Nara Narayan and his ancestors are known as Victor Jubilee Palace and even today it stands tall as a famous tourist spot. It was actually built under the instruction of Maharaja Nripendra Narayan. It was designed on the model of Buckingham Palace in England. This Palace is noted for its elegance and grandeur. It covers fifty-one thousand three hundred and nine feet square area. It is one hundred and twenty metre long and ninety metre wide. It has lots of verandahs and a portico providing entrance to the Durbar Hall and is a stepping stone of classical Italian Renaissance architecture. This Palace is full of historical significance”
When Conan ended Mr. Rahane asked “Mr. Conan do you previously lived here? Your descriptions are purely accurate.”
Laughingly Conan replied “Mr. Rahane I read about Cooch Bihar’s history a long time back. I remembered parts of it and before coming here I re-read the article on history of Cooch Bihar once again. That’s all and nothing more.”, and hearing this we started laughing. Suddenly Mr. Rahane ordered the driver to stop and he pointed towards a building and said “This is the Victor Jubilee Palace.” The Palace was splendid shining in the moonlight and looked awe-inspiring. It is a brick built double storied structure in classical western style. The palace is fronted on the ground and first floor by a series of arcaded verandahs with their piers arranged alternatively in single and double rows. At the southern and northern end the palace projects slightly. It has a Durbar shaped metal dome which is tapped by cylindrical louver type ventilators. The interior has Corinthian columns supporting the base of the cupola. This adds colour and design to the entire surface. There are various rooms – Bed Room, Ladies Room, Drawing Room, Dining Room, Vestibules, etc. The Palace is filled with various ancient objects. After visiting the palace, we resumed our journey to Baneswar.
Baneswar
At twenty-five minutes past eleven in the night we reached our destination. The gate keeper opened the arched iron gate and the carriage entered and a servant opened the carriage door and then we dismounted from the carriage. Before us stood a two storied building constructed in Gothic Architecture with huge field in front the building was pink in colour and has lots of windows. To the right we could see the horses’ stables and even we could hear the sound of the hooves and their calls which they do as ‘neighs’. The atmosphere was serene and quiet and the surroundings were of utter beauty and excellence. An elderly man came up to us. He looked weak. His body was shaking and he was limping and he was walking with the support of the crutch. That man was of average height; he was well built and was of dark complexion. His head was bald with black eyes. He introduced himself as Mr. Vijay Roy and said us “Good Evening gentlemen, welcome to Baneswar. I am very sorry that I could not personally go to the station to receive you due to my poor health condition. Hope you all will forgive me.” in an apologizing voice.
Hearing this Conan said sympathetically “Its ok. Thank You. It’s quite a pleasant place to live in.”
Mr. Roy smiled and said in a heartfelt tone “Yes that it is.”
We then entered the entrance hall of the building. The floor was covered with green marble and there were pillars all along the passageway. The hall was decorated with Gothic Sculptures. The walls of the hall were painted white. Then we reached the drawing room which was well furnished with two sofa set and with a wall cabinet at the opposite side from where the sofas were placed. The sofa was covered with red sofa cover and the cushions were covered with yellow cushion cover. The floor of the drawing room was covered with an auburn carpet. There were five more people waiting for us.
First there was a lad of twenty-two. He was short heighted, stout and had a fair complexion and his hair was blonde dressed in night robes and was in mid-twenties. He was Vinayak Kumar. He was Mr. Roy’s nephew and he was an orphan. Second was a tall fair built man dressed in black robes. His hair was black so was his complexion and was around forty years of age. He was the butler of Mr. Roy and his name was Mr. Shah. Third was an elderly lady in mid-fifties. She wore a white saree and had white hair. Her face was criss-crossed with wrinkles and folds of her aging skin. She was the cook of Mr. Roy and her name is Mrs. Narine. Fourth was another lady in mid-thirties. She wore a blue salwar-kameez. She was stout and was of fair complexion with brown hair and blue eyes.
She was the maid servant of Mr. Roy and her name was Mrs. Desai. Next was the jockey of Goldeen Moor. His name was Ramyash. He was in mid-forties and had athletic body needed for a jockey. He had black hair and green eyes with fair complexion. After introducing us with one another Mr. Roy said “You must be tired so can we proceed to our respective bedrooms, Mr. Conan?”
Conan smiled and replied “Yes but before that I have one question to ask you Mr. Roy.”
Mr. Roy replied in a serious tone “Yes?”
Then Conan asked “Why come to me?”
From the face of Mr. Roy the graveness feelings receded and he grinned and replied “Because you are the best, I read the article on the Cram in Russet and your methods were mind blowing.”
I asked “Do the local police know about this matter?”
Mr. Roy replied “Yes, Mr. Rahane has already talked to Inspector Dasarath about Conan investigating this case and he said he will give Conan his fullest cooperation regarding this case.”
Conan grinned and responded “Where are we going to sleep?”
Mr. Roy replied “Follow me please.” He led us to first floor of the building. Its design was same as the ground floor. Mr. Roy showed us the first room on the left of the staircase. The room was well furnished as well as well-ventilated with two large windows. On the ceiling there was a fresco painting of the Egyptian Sun God called ‘Ra’. There were two beds in the room. I sat on one. The bed was soft as feather and was really clannish. It had a blue bed cover over it. When I changed into my night dress and laid down on the bed Conan said “Duce we will go for a walk at half past four in the morning.”
“But why?” I asked.
Conan beamed and retorted “To inhale fresh air and perceive the gorgeousness of countryside. Good Night.” and he rolled over and fell asleep. I lay upon bed gazing at the ceiling blankly for a moment or two and then without knowing I fell asleep.
Prints and Interrogation and Patronage
Next morning when I woke up, I found Conan already dressed in his track suit. He bade me good morning. I went to the bathroom, washed my faced and did all other things one is supposed to do. At half past four in morning we
left for our walk.
The sun was just rising behind the peaks of the colossal Himalayas; the golden light reached us through the gaps of the peaks. The hills appeared of violet colour and along with the golden light of the sun the view was breathtaking. The birds flew over our head. They were sparrows, eagles, kites, falcons, flamingoes, hawks, skylarks, etc. Their callings together made a magnificent sound. The weather was cool and an icy wind blew across our face as we walked around the premises and then we approached the entrance gate of Mr. Roy’s place. We found a man dressed in khaki clothes. He was in mid-fifties and had black hair and black eyes. He was five feet nine inches tall and was well built and had a tummy. He was the gatekeeper of Mr. Roy’s place. His name was Ravi. He saw us coming so the greeted us and said “Salam Saheb.” and then he saluted us.
I yawned and replied “Good Morning.”
Then Conan walked up to him. He shook Ravi’s hand and said to him “Please do not call us saheb.”
Ravi nodded and then Conan asked Ravi “Do you know about the Goldeen Moor?”
Ravi replied “It is my master’s most favourite horse which went missing from two days ago.”
Conan asked him “Do you know when it went missing?”
Ravi replied “It was found missing since morning.”
Conan inquired “Who found it missing?”
Ravi replied “Jockey Ramyash who went to the stable to take the horse out for morning ride.”
Conan inquired again “Do you suspect anyone or seen anyone acting suspiciously?”
Ravi replied “No, no one.”
Conan thanked him and walked out of the gate. I followed. The scenery was amazing, the forest glittering in sunlight and the smell of flora and fauna was most hallucinogenic. On the way we found many other people whom Conan asked about the horse but they were unable to provide any light regarding this matter. Then we reached back to the premises of Mr. Roy and asked Ravi to lead us to the stable.
The stable was of wooden structure and there were one dozen of cubicles inside it out of which eleven were occupied with horses and the cubicle on which Goldeen Moor used to stay was empty. Conan entered the empty cubicle and began to examine the ground closely with his magnifying glass set upon his right eye. The sudden excitement he shouted “Eureka!!”
I asked in amazement “What did you found?”
Then Conan pointed towards the footprints he found leading to the cubicle. It was relatively a fresh one and there was also horse’s footprints leading out of the cubicle. Due to presence of Ravi Conan whispered to me “Someone led the horse out. It is deliberate plan of action.”
Then we went inside the house of Mr. Roy and took a sit on the sofa placed at the drawing room of Mr. Roy’s home. The butler Mr. Shah served us breakfast which consists of luchi and potato curry with two varieties of sweets.
Conan asked Mr. Shah “Where were you on the night two days ago?”
Mr. Shah replied “With my master.”
Conan asked again “When did you know the horse was missing?”
Mr. Shah replied “When Mr. Ramyash Singh alarmed the house.”
Conan asked sternly “Do you suspect anyone?”
Mr. Shah replied “No one except the gatekeeper.”
Conan became attentive and asked again “Why?”
Mr. Shah replied “Because this premises has only one entrance gate and Ravi is posted there. So if someone steals the horse he would have to lead the horse through that gate as there are no other gates so the thief would have been seen by Ravi. For these rea…” before Mr. Shah could finish he was interrupted by Mr. Roy “Ravi was with me all the night that day Mr. Shah. So do not speak which you do not know. I have already told you this earlier.” To this Mr. Shah dejected and in a disappointment tone replied “Sorry Sir.” and he took his leave.
I bade Mr. Roy good morning and Mr. Roy was also served the same breakfast. Over the breakfast Conan asked Mr. Roy few questions.
He asked “Where were you on that night?”
Mr. Roy replied “Here in the drawing room with Ravi.”
“Why with Ravi?”
“Ravi was here taking medicine for his headache.”
“Headache?”
“Yes.” replied Mr. Roy.
Then Conan asked again “Do you suspect anyone?”
“Everyone working here is faithful and loyal to me.” replied Mr. Roy.
“Thank You. I wasn’t to see Mrs. Narine.” Conan said.
Then Mr. Roy called for her. She entered and stood by the side of the sofa. She was wearing the same dress which she wore on the day we arrived. Mr. Roy commanded her to take a seat to which she obliged.
Conan asked “Mrs. Narine where were you on the night of that day?”
Mrs. Narine replied in a trembling voice “I was in my quarter, Sir.”
“How do you know that the horse was missing?”
“Mr. Shah told me in the morning of the next day.”
“Do you suspect anyone?”
“Yes.”
“Who?” asked Conan in an agitated tone.
“Ravi.”
Mr. Roy opened his mouth to say something but Conan gestured him to stop and asked Mrs. Narine “Why?”
She responded “Because Mr. Shah told me Ravi was missing from his room which is alongside the entrance gate on that dreadful night.”
Conan retorted “Thank You and you can leave” and when she stood up, he humbly added “Please send in Mrs. Desai.” Hearing this Mrs. Narine bowed and left and after few minutes Mrs. Desai entered. Meanwhile Mr. Shah took the breakfast trays away and placed a steaming hot cup of jasmine tea before us.
Conan asked Mrs. Desai “Where were on the night from when the horse went missing?”
Mrs. Desai looked frightened and replied “At…. At my bed.” Stammering.
Conan in a stern voice retorted “Do no lie to me.”
She broke down and replied “Believe me sir I did not do anything. That night I went to the forest to meet my son.”
Conan smiled and replied “I know you did nothing. You were seen by some person.” and after a minute pause Conan added “Who gave you the news?”
She replied “The jockey.”
“Do you suspect anyone?”
“No Sir.”
“When you left for the forest did you see Ravi at his room?”
“I am not sure Sir. I was in a hurry so I did not notice whether he was in his room or not.”
Then Conan signalled her to leave and told her to send Ramyash the jockey.
When he entered Conan asked “Where were you on that appalling night?”
Ramyash replied confidently “With Mr. Vinayak Kumar.”
“And why?”
“To tell him about different races and classes of horses.”
Conan hummed “Hmmmm…” then he continued his interrogation by asking “Where do you stay?”
Ramyash replied “Why, here.”
“How do you know that the horse was missing?”
“I went to the stable to take Goldeen Moor for a ride in the morning and found the stable empty.”
“Do you suspect anyone?”
“No.” then Conan signalled him to leave and asked me whether I had made note of all these statements made by these people to which I nodded to express the idea that I have made a note of all these statements cum confession.
Then Conan turned to Mr. Roy after sipping the tae and asked “Where does Mr. Rahane reside?”
Mr. Roy replied “In Kuthipara which is twelve kilometres by car towards north from Baneswar.”
Then I took a sip of the tea. It had the quintessence of jasmine and was really energizing. I thanked Mr. Roy for this wonderful tea.
After few minutes Conan sent for Mr. Vinayak Kumar, the nephew of Mr. Roy. When he entered Conan asked him “Where were you on that night?”
“In my room with Ramyash listening about horses.”
“How do you know that the horse was missing?”
“Uncle told me the immediate morning.”
“Do you suspect anyone?”
“None.”
“Why were you talking about horses with Ramyash?”
“It is none of your business and I think it will not help in your investigation Mr. de Souza.”
“Well now it is my business and it will be nice enough for your safety to cooperate or the consequences will be bad enough for your skin Mr. Kumar.” retorted Conan back in unsympathetic voice.
“Well I am interested in horses because horse racing runs in our family and I also wish to participate in such races with the best breed of horses.” replied Vinayak dejectedly. Then Mr. Rahane entered the room. Conan dismissed Vinayak and fixed his attention towards Mr. Rahane and began his interrogation by repeating the same questions all over again.
“Where were you on that night?”
“At my home in Kuthipara.”
“Who told you about the missing horse?”
“Mr. Roy.”
“When?”
“The following morning.”
“Do you suspect anyone?”
“No.”
Then Conan stood up and took few paces through the room and after few minutes he called for every living soul present there in the drawing room and stated “After talking to all of you, I can conclude that the thief is no one but one of you
The Strike
Bedlam broke loose. Vinayak looked anguish and asked Conan in rough voice “Are you blaming me?”
Conan smiled and laughed as if Vinayak cracked a joke and replied “I do not like your tone kid. I can play rough if I want to so better keep quite.”
Then Mr. Roy said to Conan in traumatized voice “You are blaming my peoples Mr. de Souza. Do you have a proof, a motive for them to do such a heinous crime?”
Conan smiled and replied “I have an idea, a theory as I do not twaddle. I will inform it to you if you lead me and Duce to the stable all by yourself.”
Mr. Roy nodded and led us to the stable silently. I wondered what was going through his mind after Conan’s sudden announcement about the criminal. Then Conan showed Mr. Roy the horse’s foot marks and stated “As you can see Mr. Roy the horse was not forcibly taken. It cooperated with the so called kidnapper. The horse knows only the members of the house. Is it was an outsider; the horse would not cooperate and would make noise of protest. So I can conclude that the criminal is none except one of the members of the house.” then he murmured to us quietly “But who and why?”
Hearing this Mr. Roy said annoyingly “Everybody here if faithful and has been working over for five years now. Even if why should anybody would commit this crime?”
“Maybe for property?
“But my nephew does not want my land and my money along with my business.”
“What about those royal coins left to you by late Maharaja Nripendra Narayan?”
Mr. Roy replied in afraid manner “What do you mean?”
At the mention of the late Maharaja Nripendra Narayan I was shocked and thought Conan has no doubt lost his mind. Then I saw a glint in Conan’s eyes. So I finally asked Conan “What are you saying? Mr. Roy is related to the royal family.” quizzically. Whereas Mr. Roy stood dumbstruck.
Conan smiled and replied “Yes, his father was disowned by the family and he is the last progeny of the royal family. His only royal possession is three thousand royal coins with the lion seal on it. Am I wrong Mr. Roy?”
Mr. Roy still stood like a statue. When Conan patted on his shoulder he jerked like he has fell from the sky. When Conan repeated his question “Am I wrong Mr. Roy?”, he replied in shocking manner “How?.....How? Please do not tell anyone.”
Conan smiled and replied “I saw your father’s picture on the internet. You bear prominent resemblance with your father.”
Then disturbingly Mr. Roy asked Conan “Do you suspect my nephew?”
Conan replied “Not at the moment. His alibi is strong. Besides do you remember Roger?”
Mr. Roy’s expression hardened and he replied firmly “Yes, he was a traitor. He took bribe and sold me to my opponent.”
I said “Then someone might be taking vengeance for his suicide.”
Conan asked Mr. Roy to leave us alone. When Mr. Roy left Conan said to me “This is the most amazing case I ever
had Duce. Here a horse is stolen and there is also revenge motive in the air while everybody has a strong alibi and there is no weakness in anybody’s alibi but..” he stopped abruptly.
“What happened?” I asked Conan.
Conan stood like a statue without blinking and seemed like he was in a state of jolt. I looked at his line of sight. Before me I saw the horse, the Goldeen Moor. Just like Mr. Rahane said milky white body with golden mane and a golden star on the forehead. It was the most spectacular thing I have ever seen in my life. It was standing quietly near the entrance of the house.
Murder of Mr. Roy
me. I saw his eyes glittering with joy. He came up to me and whispered to me “I know who he is.”
I asked “Who it is?”
He smiled and replied “Patience my friend. He will be exposed after I fix my few knots of my investigation.” and he went out of the premises. I was quite unused to such secretive manner of Conan which he showed since our arrival at Baneswar. Till now I assumed he found some strong lead and picked up strong scent about the murderer which he has not shared with me yet. Then I thought that Conan likes dramatic scenes and his secretive manner is the stepping stone to the dramatic final episode. I followed Conan out of the premises. I saw him walking by bending towards the ground. So out of curiosity I also looked towards the ground and saw hoof’s mark. I understood that Conan was following the horse’s hoof’s mark leading him to the place where the horse was held captive. I walked up to Conan and asked “What was that piece of cloth you placed in your pocket?”
He replied “Not now Duce.”
“At least tell me whose was it?” I told.
“The thief’s.” Conan replied back.
I finally gave up and told Conan “Dude I am the one who has to pen the incident down so why are you keeping me
in dark.”
Conan as usually kept quiet and followed the horse’s trail. Soon a silhouette of hut against the sky was visible. The hoof’s print led us to that hut. It was a wooden hut which approached us with the doors opened ajar.
We entered the house. It was a small hut with wooden chairs and wooden tables and nothing else. It has a pair of windows which was bolted from inside. The room was large but dimly lit. in one corner a suffocating smell was coming. It was of horse’s dung. It proved that the horse was held captive in this hut and few metres from the dung in front of us was another surprise waiting for us.
Just then Mr. Rahane came out shouting for Conan. Seeing us he shouted from the entrance of the drawing room “Mr. Roy is dead.” in a dreadful voice.
Both Conan and I turned stunned and replied in unison “What!! How??”
Mr. Rahane replied in that broken voice “Probably cardiac arrest.”
I asked as I was also a doctor “Where is his corpse?”
“He is being laid upon the sofa.” replied Mr. Rahane.
Then Conan glanced at the Goldeen Moor and exclaimed “I have been a fool!”
“Why?” I asked.
“This is not a cardiac arrest but murder.” replied Conan.
I looked reluctant to digest his statement so Conan went further “”I mean it was an act of murder from beginning. The kidnapper did not call for ransom because he was not interested in money or anything. All he wanted his Mr. Roy’s death which he brought about by stealing his horse and now he is dead so the kidnapper’s objective is complete so the horse has returned. So it was a foolproof plan to murder Mr. Roy without being directly accused of Mr. Roy’s murder. Now he is mourning inside the house.” Then Conan said with his chest puffed up “I will expose you whoever you Mister Thief.”
Till now while hearing Conan’s theory I closed and opened my mouth in regular intervals. After he finished I was dumbstruck then finally I resolved myself up and said “What a plan for murder!”
Hearing this Mr. Rahane replied “By Jove!! This is most strange way to murder yet an effective one I have ever come across in my career over past twenty years.”
Then Conan went into the building and headed towards the drawing room while Mr. Rahane and I simply followed. When we reached the drawing I saw the corpse of Mr. Roy which was laid upon the red velvet sofa. His face which showed sign of fear, anxiety and insecurity and betrayal. I felt sorry for Mr. Roy.
Seeing us Vinayak Kumar came up to us and said “Mr. de Souza, since my uncle is dead, your service is no longer required I hope.”
To this Mr. Rahane replied “But your uncle …” Conan gestured Mr. Rahane to stop and faced Vinayak with an expressionless face. Then he broke into a grin and replied “Mr. Kumar it is true your uncle has asked for my expertise in this matter. But if the matter was not an interesting one I would not have come here so now even if my so called my client cum employer has passed away and even if you wish I will not leave this case unfinished. I had an agreement with your late uncle that I will expose the thief, which I will do even if he is dead and also not to forget even if you like it or not. Good Day.” and he walked out of the room.
Within few seconds I heard Conan let out a roar of laughter. I hurried out to see what the matter was. There I saw Conan stroking the mane of Goldeen Moor. The saddle was still placed on the horse’s back. I saw Conan removed a piece of fabric from the saddle. Seeing me he pocketed the piece of the cloth in his watch pocket and smiled to
The Second Murder
Before us a man was lying upon the floor. He was in mid-thirties. He was stout and had a moustache but was bald. His skin was of dark complexion but his eyes were green. His face and eyes were conveying the last signs of horror which has not left his face before his life swept out from his body. On his temple there was deep crack out of which blood has oozed out and thereby created a pool of blood around his head just like a halo around the head of a holy person as depicted in the photographs. He wore a white sleeveless vest with a brown bermuda and had a knife in his hand. The injured mark showed as if he has been attacked by a horse’s hoof. I bent down and touched the corpse’s forehead, it was cold. I looked up to Conan and said “He died nearly an hour ago.” and taking the knife out of the corpse’s hand and showing it to Conan I said “It is an optic surgical knife. It can cut muscle beneath the dermis and epidermis without showing any sign on the skin.”
After hearing my statements Conan replied “There are two murderers who will be exposed tonight.” and then he took out his phone and he put it back in his pocket with disappointment and asked me “Do your phone has network? Mine does not.”
I took my phone out, there was network so I nodded and handed the phone to Conan. He dialed 0335823502139, the local police station number which we found from the telephone directory on the day of our arrival just in case we need the help of Inspector Dasarath.
Conan spoke over the phone “Hello Inspector Dasarath, I am detective Conan. Mr. Rahane has talked about me to you.”
Being a listener I only heard Conan’s part of the conversation. After few seconds Conan replied to what Inspector Dasarath has said “Can you come to 31/B/A Chatterjee Street at six ‘o’ clock this evening?”
I glanced at my watch. It showed half past four in the evening. Probably after hearing the reply of Inspector Dasarath Conan replied “Thank You.” and disconnected the call and turned to me and handed me my phone and told me “Never breathe a word about it before six ‘o’ clock this evening.”
Then my eye felt on the left hand of the corpse. Its palm was enclosed in a fist so I forcibly opened his fist and found a silver whistle with Roger engraved on it. I handed the whistle to Conan and he jumped in joy and told me “Not a word Duce, not a single word.”
We returned to Mr. Roy’s place and Conan asked for everyone’s presence in the drawing room. When everybody came Conan announced that he knows the thief. He will expose him at six ‘o’ clock this evening so no one will leave the house. He also mentioned that by that time Inspector Dasarath will also come here for official arrest. After hearing this everybody went to their respective places whereas I sat upon the chair and Conan left the room asking me not to follow him. I wondered why. After few minutes Conan returned probably victorious from his short mission as he seemed happy. At fifteen minutes past five in the evening hospital workers came to take the corpse away and at quarter to six Inspector Dasarath of Baneswar Police Station entered the house. He was a tall athletic man with black hair. He was in his khaki uniform. He had black hair and black eyes .He was followed by two constables. Conan greeted them and introduced me to them. Then Conan called everybody of the house at drawing room and when everyone assembled Conan asked them to follow him while I was given the task to pull the Goldeen Moor and follow them which was not at all easy for me.
The Final Act and Betrayal
We walked through the path Conan and I took earlier this evening leading to that hut. When we finally arrived at the hut Conan tied Goldeen Moor to the window bar of the hut and ordered us to enter the hut. Everyone did. Then Conan went in followed by Inspector Dasarath, his constables and finally me.
Seeing the corpse few people gave a wail of cry but Vinayak and Ramyash seemed unmoved. Finally Vinayak asked Conan in a firm voice “So what does this mean and why we are in this godforsaken place?”
Conan smiled and pulled a chair towards him and sat on it. He pulled out the piece of cloth which he removed from the saddle earlier today. He showed it to everyone present and placed it on the table and then he began “The thief who stole Goldeen Moor is no one apart from our Jockey Ramyash.”
Everyone including me was startled and Ramyash was angry and he said to Conan in a threatening voice “Are you fooling around Mr. Conan?”
Conan smiled and said “That piece of cloth” pointing to the blue piece of cloth placed upon the table “belongs to your shirt which is still lying in the corner of your bedroom in you corner. I sneaked in your quarter this evening to confirm whether it was of your shirt or not. So you see I am not fooling around.”
“So what??” shouted Ramyash angrily “So what if it is torn from my shirt? It possibly does not mean that I stole the horse and moreover why should I steal the horse?”
Conan smiled again and replied “All expected questions. Don’t you have more tricky questions? Well yes you stole the horse to kill Mr. Roy so that you can take revenge for the death of your father Roger’s suicide.”
Ramyash sounding frightened but trying to look confident asked “How can Roger be my father?”
Conan replied “Your face is the exact cut of your father. You have Roger’s portrait in your bedroom. If Roger is not your father then why do you have his picture in your bedroom with garland around it. What I do not understand how could Mr. Roy miss it? You know Mr. Roy loves his horse more than his life. You stole it and ultimately you killed him. Moreover you left your father’s whistle” showing the silver whistle which we found earlier “with this dead man. This whistle confirmed my theory about you so after that I went to your quarter for the search. Yes, Ramyash it was well planned but your ill lick this case came to me.”
Ramyash then stood like a broken man. Head sink beneath the shoulder and looked like a devastated person while other audience of the play was still in shock including Inspector Dasarath. Then Ramyash said in angry voice with tears overflowing from his eyes and climbing down his cheeks ultimately falling upon the floor and then evaporated on the spot “My father did not commit suicide he was brutally murdered by Mr. Roy right in front of me and due to his royal lineage he evaded the law and I was too small to do anything. But the world is round that what you do you must be paid. The press also printed that my father committed suicide. Mr. Conan you know everything but do you know why was he killed? Because during that race just before the finish line a scorpion was moving in front of the horse and Mr. Roy’s horse got frightened and moved away from the finish line. It was all that idiot horse’s fault. My father was loyal to Mr. Roy but see where his loyalty has led him. I know all this because I saw the video of that race in zoomed version. But who would listen to poor people like us. After my father’s death I buried him all alone and vowed on his grave that I will murder Mr. Roy in a way which will make it seem that Mr. Roy died natural death. And I got that opportunity last week where if Mr. Roy wins would gain 1000 million pounds. Few months ago I made acquaintance with this man lying dead. He was Samuel Sen. He listened to my story and he pitied me and promised to help me. That night after mixing medicine to Ravi’s food, I gave it to Ravi which he ate without doubt. Soon Ravi had headache and went to Mr. Roy for medicine. Taking that opportunity I brought the horse here and went back to Vinayak’s room. This is all but I did not kill Samuel.”
After Ramyash stopped Vinayak came forward and grabbed Ramyash’s shirt collar and said “You swine how dare you..” but Vinayak was separated from Ramyash by the constables. Inspector Dasarath arrested Ramyash and placed handcuffs around his both wrist and asked Conan “But who killed Samuel?”
Conan smiled and said to me “Duce will you explain as you are a doctor?”
I smiled and replied “Of course.” and I began “This man Samuel Sen was attacked upon his temple by the Goldeen Moor as the inured portion shows the mark of the hoof a horse and we know which horse was held captive in this room.”
Then I saw Ramyash kneeling beside Samuel. He moved his hand across his temple and cried. He said “I am sorry Samuel. For my foolishness for taking revenge I lost a true friend. I am truly sorry my friend. Hope you will forgive me.” and he cried harder. I actually for the first time felt sorry for him since I learnt that he was the criminal. I step up to him and patted on his head and said to him “May God forgive us all. I am sorry for what has happened in past.”
Ramyash stood up and asked for apology from each and every one present there. Even Vinayak forgave Ramyash.
Inspector Dasarath turned to Conan and said “I have heard about you but you are truly a genius.” Hearing the compliment Conan smiled. As Ramyash was taken away by the police, the corpse was taking by the hospital worker who has been informed by no one but Ramyash himself.
The Last and Final Testament of Mr. Roy
Meanwhile Vinayak came up to Conan and said “I am sorry for my attitude towards you earlier. I do not know how to thank you but I feel sad that I do not have anything to give you for the justice you did.” in folded hands.
Conan smiled and hugged Vinayak and replied “You do not have to give me anything.” Seeing this I was moved.
Now Mr. Rahane interfered by saying “Actually we do.”
Seeing us puzzled he continued “Before Mr. Roy breathed his last he told me to give Conan half of his royal coins if he actually catches the thief and remaining half to his nephew, the last living member of the royal family.” and he handed Conan and Vinayak two identical red bags.
Conan opened it and took out the coins. He gave me to see it. It was ancient. Made of silver with the denominations written in front and the lion symbol of the royal family engraved on the back.
We returned to the premises of Late Mr. Roy. We took our luggage we left after thanking each of them. Then we boarded Sealdah bound train and started journey back home to 3/SA Metropolitan Co Operative Housing Society 1st Lane Sector A to take a well-deserved rest. On the way in the train Conan told me “See Duce whatever you do you have to face the consequences here on earth not anywhere else even if you are poor or you belong to the royal family. I was right.”
This was the most unusual case of Conan de Souza, a private detective. The case of the Goldeen Moor.