chapter four"You go first." Arjun told Sunil.
"I sent the locket to the forensic lab to be analyzed and unfortunately some of the fingerprints got smudged by mine while I was digging it out. However, a partial fingerprint was found and they were able to match it to Meher's. Also," He held up a finger and slid the now open locket towards Arjun. "It has their photos inside."
Arjun picked up the locket and saw Abeer and Meher's solo pictures inside the locket.
"And what about Meher's family? What did they have to say about this?"
"They were shocked. To find out that their only daughter is in a secret relationship with a boy.. they were upset. They immediately started pointing fingers at Abeer. But from what I could tell, they didn't even know who Abeer was until I asked them about him." Sunil informed. "The father was really mad. His facial expressions changed. His fists were clenching tight, his words were becoming hostile... he was becoming mad really fast."
"Hmm, it's probably concern for her daughter. Knowing that she kept a huge secret from them and might be in potential danger because of it? Knowing that he's unable to protect his daughter? Still, keep an eye on him as well." Arjun said.
"What did you find out from Rocco's?" Sunil asked.
"Meher was scared. From her conservative and reserved lifestyle it's clear she was uncomfortable going out in such a public place. But she was trying and from what I gather, the change in her behavior is because of Abeer. Whatever problems she was facing she was able to share openly with him. But, she was still somewhat scared."
"I'll keep an eye out on the father. Out of everyone else, he seemed like the most erratic one."
Arjun nodded his head.
Seeing Arjun highly tensed, Sunil asked, "What are you thinking?"
"How a victim can survive for this long without trying to make contact to their family. Think about it Sunil. When the attack was happening, Meher reached out to everyone. The family, her friends, her family... and yet when she managed to escape she didn't try to reach out to anyone. Not only that her phone hasn't been used even once since that day." Arjun explained tensely.
"And neither has she made any transactions at the bank." Sunil added.
"Exactly. Either she knew something like this would happen or she has someone on the outside helping her out."
"Abeer?" Sunil questioned.
"No. At least I don't think so. If Abeer was to help her out then why come back at all? Why not just leave with her altogether? Why wait for two weeks?"
"Maybe Meher reached out to him?"
"The locket."
"Rocco's. That place surely must have been where they went for their first date. It's very special to them."
"Then the manager lied?" Sunil asked.
"No. He told me he had just come back from vacation. He wouldn't have known anything about it."
"Okay, let's think about our intruder for a minute. He was able to mingle with the student population and not raise any suspicion. He then had the knowledge of when the opportune time will be to attack Meher and he did. Who else would know the students' schedules so well? Be able to earn their trust so that no unwanted attention is attracted?"
"A professor?" Arjun inquired.
"Exactly. And I found out all the victims that have been murdered "accidentally" so far, they had all attended a similar dancing class." Sunil informed.
"Dance."Arjun perked up. "The manager, he remembered Abeer for his music and Meher for her dance. Who taught the classes?"
Sunil looked at his notes.
"A Miss Sharma. I went to go and interview her but she's nowhere to be found." Sunil said dejectedly. "But," he raised a finger, "I did manage to get a complete list of her students. All the remaining girls and their families have already been warned."
"That's good." Arjun scoffed.
"What?" Sunil asked incredulously.
"You're getting one step ahead of me. I don't have to tell you have to do your work now. Maybe I should just let you solve the case." Arjun said, smugly.
"Maybe you should. We both know you're lost without me."
"Am not!" Arjun defended.
"Are too! I'm the one out there doing all the work while you're here with your nose stuck in the book. Honestly, bro. How do you manage to get anything done warming up your ass all day?"
"Hey, you're just jealous that my warm ass has been able to close so many cold cases." Arjun remarked.
"Yeah, yeah." Sunil waved him off.
Sunil picked up the remote and pressed play to start the video footage that Arjun had brought from Rocco's.
The first video showed an empty terrace that was slowly being trickled in with people. Sunil whistled as he looked at the fancy and sophisticated dress wear.
"Now I know why this place is so expensive. Just look at what they're wearing. Their clothes alone must have cost a fortune." Sunil exclaimed.
"Tell me about it. The way Nisaar was describing Abeer's state..." Arjun shook his head and blew out air.
Just then Sunil whistled loudly.
"What happened to you?" Arjun asked.
"Look at our lovebirds." Sunil said.
Arjun did, and didn't notice what the commotion was about.
"What?"
"You don't see it?" Sunil asked.
When Arjun shook his head, Sunil swatted him away.
"I forgot, I'm asking the one person who has zero fashion sense to appreciate it." Sunil taunted.
Arjun glared at him.
"Just look at that white chiffon dress. And that golden bead necklace?"
"Are you looking to buy one for yourself?" Arjun asked sarcastically.
"Shut up. If you can't appreciate fine clothing, then at least let me."
"Meher is looking beautiful regardless, but Abeer? He's -"
"Hot?" Arjun offered.
"Damn hot!" Sunil shouted to which Arjun rolled his eyes.
"That blazer! And deciding to wear the tie loosely rather than tightly around his neck? And bro, white suits him. I don't care, he should just stick to white. Forget all the colors in the world. Just stick to white."
Arjun got up with his belongings and headed towards the door.
"I'm going to get something to eat. Tell me if you want something. You know, a sandwich, soup. Lube perhaps?" Arjun offered.
In response, Sunil chucked a stress ball at him.
Laughing his head off, Arjun left the station and headed towards his favorite eating place: Chaudhry and Sons.
Once he sat down in his usual spot, he waited for his order to come. Arjun smiled to himself as how he no longer needs to request his order. The cooks already know.
"Hi Arjun," Arjun smiles as the owner, Mr. Chaudhry greeted him. "How are you today?"
"I'm good. Just stuck with a case."
"Like always. Are you ever not on a case?"
"Come on uncle. You know how it is."
"Arjun doesn't sleep until crime does." They both said in unison and ending it with a laugh.
Mr. Chaudhry sat down opposite Arjun and smiled eagerly when the food arrived.
"Mind if I join you?" He asked Arjun while placing a roti onto his plate.
"Of course not! Think of this as your own place." Arjun said tongue-in-cheek.
"So tell me," Mr. Chaudhry began, while they were both busy filling up their plates. "Are you still looking for the missing girl?"
"It's become complicated now. I'm now searching for a boy as well." Arjun said. "I can't give you any details of course, but I can say that it has gotten a lot more complex. At first I had just thought it was a kidnapping case. But no ransom note or call was made. Then I found some connections with several other missing girls in the area. Their deaths were made to look like accidental when they actually weren't. An alert has been made to warn everyone."
"I can't believe something like this is happening in our own neighborhood." Mr. Chaudhry said glumly. "Our daughters are no longer safe in their own homes." He shuddered and said a small prayer.
"Uncle, believe me. We're doing our best to find out who the murderer is." Arjun tried to console.
"Don't you have any idea of who it might be?" He asked.
"We do... but it's not enough to send out a profile." Arjun rubbed his temple. "Honestly, my main priority right now is to find the two kids before they get into serious trouble."
"Can I see their photos?" Mr. Chaudhry asked in between bites.
"Sure." Arjun gulped down his food.
Wiping his hands with a napkin, he reached into his pocket to take out the individual photographs that seem to have made a permanent residence. Mr. Chaudhry cleaned his hands on a napkin before taking them.
"These two?" Mr. Chaudhry asked surprised.
Arjun was intrigued. "You know them?"
"Yeah. They were here. A few days ago..." He answered.
"What? When? Were both of them here?" Arjun asked frantically, unable to believe Abeer and Meher were just out of his reach.
"Not together. First this one came," Mr. Chaudhry pointed at Meher's photo. "I wasn't here because I was out to get some more supplies. But when I came back, my son said that there was a pretty girl had come. She was acting really weird."
"Weird, how?" Arjun asked.
"Weird as in, wait. Let me just call him over. Chotu!" Mr. Chaudhry called out for his son.
"What's up, pops?" A young man asked, smiling.
"Remember one day you told me how a young girl had come, who was acting really strange? Was it this girl?" Mr. Chaudhry asked holding up Meher's photo.
"It might be. I didn't get to see her face properly. Besides she had these big glasses on. No one could see her properly." Chaudhry Jr. answered.
"Still, can you describe her? What state she was in, her behavior, attitude, anything?" Arjun pressed.
"Well, she looked like she was waiting for someone. She kept looking around here and there. And she kept ordering clam chowder, even after I told her that we don't serve that here. Clam chowder and a Lost Safari. I have no idea what that is."
Arjun nodded his head and made notes of it into his phone.
"When I had finally come out to deal with her, she got mad at me and said, 'make sure that these items are available the next time someone orders it'. I'm telling you she was weird to the max." Chaudhry Jr. recalled.
"What about her physical state? How did she look like?" Arjun questioned further.
"She had a red scarf that was around her head and covered her mouth. Big, black sunglasses... was wearing a trench coat? I think that's what it was... it was a really long coat that covered her up. She did not want to be noticed but all she did was attract attention. Oh! She was limping." He described.
"This is really good. Do you remember when she had come here?" Arjun asked.
"Not exactly. It's been a while..." The younger son answered.
"And this one," Mr. Chaudhry said pointing to Abeer's photo, "came in a few days ago. He was asking about the same things. The clam chowder and the safari. I brushed it off thinking it's some new hype between the kids."
"Did you tell him anything about Meher?" Arjun asked.
"Well, I didn't but I think our server at the time did. He told me that another kid had come in today asking for these items and mentioned the lady. He also said that he got really interested in her. Wanted to know more about her, but he didn't say anything. Just that she had asked for similar items and then left." Mr. Chaudhry explained.
"These items they mentioned is not just a coincidence. They're sending each other a message." Arjun's mind started connecting even more dots. "I have to go now Uncle, I'll see you tomorrow." Gathering his things, Arjun rushed off to the station.
A million and one things were running in Arjun's mind all at once. A new surge of energy was rushing through him as he felt closer to finding the kids.
"Sunil!" Arjun called out.
"Arjun! I was just about to call you." Sunil said, putting down his phone. "Look who I found at the restaurant."
Sunil replayed the video footage and zoomed in to show Arjun his find.
"This... is starting to make a lot more sense now. When is this? Before or after the dance had happened?" Arjun said.
"After." Sunil replied after checking the time stamp.
"Is there any chance that Meher might have seen him?" Arjun asked, fast-forwarding the footage.
"None that I can see. It's possible that she was confronted afterwards. Perhaps after they had left, or when Abeer wasn't there with her." Sunil supplied. "What did you find?"
"I was at Chaudhry's right now and they told me that Meher and Abeer had been there."
"When?" Sunil asked surprised.
"Meher had come there earlier. I'm guessing sometime after the attack. But Abeer had been there recently. And from what I could understand Meher was sending Abeer a message."
"What kind of message?"
"She was asking about clam chowder and a safari." Arjun answered perplexed.
"She was hungry?"
"No, you idiot." Arjun retorted. "It was some sort of Lost Safari..."
"Lost Safari... that's an island bar by the cove!" Sunil exclaimed, excitedly.
"And the clam chowder must be...?" Arjun trailed off thinking.
"The sea or a large body of water. She might have gone there." Sunil said. "I'll send out an alert to all the police stations, and hotels to keep an eye out for them."
Sunil had gotten up to write up the fax when a constable had entered, rushing in.
"Sir," he huffed.
Arjun and Sunil froze, dreading the next words.
"There's been a body... it's a woman."
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