Five faces - Part six

Chapter 6 - The third case

Both the photos looked very similar. There was a star shaped tattoo on the right ankle of the murderer in both the pictures. And their height and body structure looked almost same. Although Shabana was fully covered in Burqa and Manjiri was in her normal clothes, the tattoo was visible on their ankle in both the pictures. Maybe Shabana forgot to hide it. Usually the ones who wear Burqa cover their entire body. They wear handsocks and legs are also covered. But Shabana forgot to cover her foot completely. This proved that something was fishy. Also, Shabana usually did not wear Burqa, so why did she wear it that day ?

"So, what do you think ? Is that possible ? Can both of these people be the same ?" Amit asked her. 

"It can be a possibility. If we clearly look at the sketches then we can figure out that their face shape is same. But their eye colour, lips, nose, hairstyle, complexion and accent differs. So, there's a possibility that she has used some products to fake her identity. Her real face will be different." Tripti stated.

"But how's that possible ? You can not go to a different country with a fake identity. It is nearly impossible." Amit said.

"But what if they go with their true identity at the airport ?" Tripti asked 

"What do you mean ?" He asked.

"What I suggest is that they have a true passport and have gone to a different country as they are. And after that they changed their look and went to the victim's house as a different person with fake documents and fake identity." Tripti suggested. 

"Oh. Yeah. That could be a possibility. But faking a face for 2 years is a difficult task. And also you need money and resources for making fake documents. Also, you have to show valid reason to stay in the country for so long." Amit stated.

"Definitely. And maybe they have it. This is on an international level, so much risk is involved. But still they are doing this. They are very intelligent and have a full proof plan and all the resources." she said.

"What do you mean by "they" ? he asked 

"Shabana or Manjiri whatever her name is, her ex-husband who is not her ex husband in reality. And also there might be some more people helping them." she said.

"Yeah true. She is the real murderer so whatever story that she has told was fake and so was her ex husband. He is involved with her in this. You are a genius Tripti." he said, agreeing.

"Nothing like that. And this is just my theory. It could be completely wrong too. We have to find more evidence to prove this. Tell Amy to ask Shehnaaz about Shabana. Some habits that she had or her body language, behaviour. Anything that gives us some idea about her daily habits. And we will ask the same questions to Vikram Roy's family tomorrow so that we can find out if our theory is true or not." she said 

"Yes." He replied. He called Amy. Amy's phone was busy. 

"It's busy. He'll call. Also, there's one more thing to backup your theory. Her first escape was Burqa but there was a chance that we could still figure out due to the bag that she was carrying. Shabana was last seen at the place where her ex-husband had a house. So, she went there and changed her clothes, her look and changed her bag so that even if she is seen in the CCTV after that no one would recognise her. And left her empty bag at that house." He stated.

"Yeah. That perfectly makes sense. This proves that we are right. Just a confirmation tomorrow. You are also a genius, Officer Sharma." she said

"I know that. But now finding her will be very difficult. We don't know how she looks now. What if she is in a different country planning for another murder." he said

"That's why we need to go to the root of the case. If we find the next potential victim then there is some chance." she said.

"This case is very tricky. But we will find the murderers. We will make sure that the wrong gets the punishment." he said 

"But what if they are not wrong ?" she asked.

"What do you mean ? "he asked

"They are taking so much risk. They are killing only certain people. And they are donating robbed money and also leaving the insurance so the family doesn't face financial difficulties. What if there is some real genuine cause behind these ?" she asked.

"Have you gone mad ? Whatever the reason is how it can justify a murder ? And is leaving insurance money is enough ? And donating money by robbing someone else is not charity." he said

"Maybe you are right. Anyway, leave it. I think we need to get refreshed. Let me bring you a cup of coffee." she said.

"No. Let me make you one. I make the best coffee." he said 

"You always think you are the best. Don't you ?" she asked 

"No, I don't think that. I know I'm the best." he stated and laughed.

He came back with two cups of coffee and gave one to Tripti.

"How's it ?" he asked 

"Amazing. Is this how you woo so many girls ?" she asked jokingly

Amit coughed. "What ?" he asked

"Nothing." she replied.

"How do you know ? I mean who told you ?" he asked 

"No, nothing. No one told me anything. I just guessed. But your reaction says that I was right." she laughed.

"Don't lie. How do you know ? Oh wait, did you..?" he asked.

"It wasn't intended. I just wanted to have Amy's number. I did not have any other intention. But notification kept coming on the screen while I was finding his contact number. I did not even open them." she said.

"That's why you should never touch someone's phone without their permission." he said

"Sorry." she replied and continued " also one of the girls wrote : Please take care of your health. Don't eat street food." she said and started laughing.

"Very funny. Happy now ? Stop making fun of me." he said.

"Do you even have any single serious relationship or just these flings ?" she asked

 

"Why are you so interested ?" he asked.

"I'm always interested to know anything about anyone. As you can see my own life is not very interesting." she replied

"Yeah. That's what happens when you believe in love and all that nonsense. I never felt connected to anyone. You got divorced even though you are such a good person. My mom and dad got divorced even though they had a love marriage. My dad found someone else only a few months after divorce. All these things prove that there is no such thing as love. It exists only in the movies and books." he concluded.

"Maybe it exists but not everyone is lucky enough to experience it. Only a few people get that opportunity." she said

"Whatever it is. One thing is sure that it isn't meant for people like you and me." he replied.

"True. Lucky are those who have it. Even though the entire world is against you, if you have someone who loves you by your side nothing is difficult." she said more to herself.

Amit didn't say anything.

Far away from them in a different country in a small hotel room a guy was assembling some documents while a girl kept looking at him.

"What" he asked

"Why are you doing this ?" she asked

"How many times will you ask that question ? You already know the answer. Or maybe you like to hear it again and again?" he said winking

The girl had tears in her eyes.

"What did I do to have someone like you in my life ? I have gone through so much but I have only survived because of you. You are the reason that I'm alive. But please don't do this. This is my mission. You don't have to get involved. All this is very risky. Your life will be destroyed." she replied sadly.

"My life can only be destroyed if you aren't a part of it. With you nothing is that bad. And our missions can never be different. Your mission is my mission. Because I love you." he said

Amit got a call from Amy. He told her to find out habits of Shabana. Amy gathered the information and then called Amit. He informed him about Shabana's habits. She used to move her hand a lot while speaking. She had a big scar on her left hand. She used to eat raw rice sometimes while cooking in the kitchen. She had a Bhopali accent.

Next day, Amit and Tripti went to meet the Roy family. Amit asked everything related to case. But almost everything that they said was already there in the documents that Tripti had given him. So, he asked about Manjiri's body language, behaviour and habits. They said that she used to speak very fast. And she had a scar on her left hand.

"Did she have a Bhopali accent ?" he asked 

"No, maybe you are confused. She was a Bengali. Our cook had a Bhopali accent." Mrs. Roy said.

"Did your cook have a habit of eating raw rice sometimes ?" he asked.

"Yes. How do you know ? she asked 

It was clear that Manjiri and Shabana were the same person. She learnt some habits from the cook at Roy house and used it as a personality trait in London. She thought that no one would be able to find out that the two person are same due to different habits. But she didn't have any idea that there were two officers who were smart enough to figure it out.

Next day, Tripti took leave. She said that she had to go to Mumbai for medical emergency of a family member.  Of course, the idea was given by Amit.

 

"I have booked our flight tickets." Amit said

"Why flight ? I don't have that much money." she said

"Relax. All your money goes for charity. And all my money goes into personal investigations." he joked.

They reached Mumbai and checked into a hotel. After freshening up they went to Mumbai College of commerce, science, arts and technology. 

"Hello, I'm officer Amit Sharma. I am a police officer and I want information about the 1998 MBA batch of this college." he said to the admin.

"Sure sir." he said after checking Amit's ID.

"I know something is wrong with that batch. Sarfaraz Khan is the third person from this batch to die that too in the short duration of 3-4 years." the admin said. 

"What ? Sarfaraz Khan, Vikram Roy and who else ?" Amit asked

"Manoj Tambe" he said

"He was working as a lecturer in this college. He died 3 years ago. He was found dead in his apartment when his wife had gone to her mother's house. Police declared it as suicide but his wife refused to agree." he concluded.

Amit and Tripti looked shocked. Not two but three murders were committed till now. Because this can't be a coincidence. Manoj Tambe's death was a murder too.

They looked at the list of students in the 1998 batch. Tripti was worried now. She knew that  what she thought must be a coincidence only but still she could not stop thinking about it. She decided not to tell Amit anything about it.

"Okay. So, five of these people live in Mumbai. I think instead of investigating families of those who died we should investigate these people. They were the classmates and may have some idea about what had happened in college." he said.

"Yes, you are right. Let's do that." she replied.

"But they all are in different areas. So, let's visit three of them today and two of them tomorrow." he said

"No. Why waste time ? You meet three of them and I'll go and meet another two." she replied.

"Are you sure ? I mean we don't have any other officer with us right now and it's a new city. Will you be fine ?" he asked

"I'm also a police officer, Amit. Chill. I can investigate on my own." she replied

"Okay then. Let's do it. We will meet in the evening at the hotel and will discuss further.

Amit went to meet the first guy from the list. The guy didn't have much idea about any of them. He said that he only remembers the fact that Sarfaraz was the richest guy in the class and he had many friends.

The second guy said that Sarfaraz, Manoj and Vikram were friends. They will bully juniors and irritate teachers. They were one of the most popular groups of college and had friends in other departments too. But he didn't remember the ones from another department. 

The third guy said that they were 8 friends. Six from MBA and two were from computer engineering and mechanical engineering department respectively. He recalled the name of mechanical eng. guy. His name was Arunesh Prabhu. He couldn't recall his last name. Amit thanked him. Just when he was about to leave, the guy remembered the name of the boy from the computer department. He told the name to Amit. 

Amit heard the name and asked it again. He was a bit shocked. He decided to ask Tripti. He called her but she didn't pick his call. Amit went to the hotel. He went to his suite. As he entered, he saw an envelope on the ground. He picked it up.

Amit opened it. There was a letter inside. 

Officer Amit,

You think that you and your fellow officer are the only intelligent people in the world. Don't you dare to be a part of this case if you want to be alive. I know you won't get scared just by a letter. So, we have kidnapped Officer Tripti. She is with us. If you want her alive then reach Shaanta Mills before 9 pm. The address is at the end of the letter. Her life will be in danger if you don't come on time. If you dare to inform someone or try to bring someone with you then we assure you, you will find her dead body in the mills. 

All the best

Amit was shocked. He tried calling her again but her phone was switched off now. He looked at his watch. It was already 8 pm. He ran out of his room. 

Will Amit reach on time ? Who has kidnapped Tripti ? What Tripti was hiding ? What is the name of the guy from the computer engineering department ? Why was Amit shocked after hearing his name ? Who is the next target of the murderers ? Will Amit and Tripti solve the case ? Stay tuned to know more….