Murder Mystery

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, and other related events are either writer's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to a person living or dead is a pure coincidence.

"Thank you for attending this seminar. We are here to discuss the success we have achieved recently" said the speaker Aurobindo to the confined audience.

"Dr Aurobindo! You have given a 95% success rate from your experiment and the subject seems to be happy. This formula proved a miracle to the subject. It is a breakthrough in the medical field. What is your take on this, doctor?" questioned Raghu, a journalist.

"Thank you for making me revisit my success journey. To achieve this, I had crossed a lot of hardships and obstacles that were laid on my way. In this journey, my friend and professor Rajnath was beside me and extended his support to make this mission possible. Few authorities helped me in doing this and funded this project. I am thankful to them." said the Doctor and continued his scripted speech on his experiment and resulting outcome presentation prepared by Rajnath.

While the seminar was going in full swing, a person entered from the balcony sneakily and fixed the target. After a few minutes, there was a bullet sound that made all of them flinch for a moment. The bullet gave a resounding effect in that silent acoustic.

The audience scattered fearing for their lives. The security entered the auditorium but couldn't find the murderer or any suspect. The killer eloped smirking at the dead person. Journalists were taken aback for a few moments and then gathered the courage to note down the happenings and cameramen started recording the victim's body and TV reporter's information.

After reaching the spot, the police officer started his enquiry from Dr Aurobindo. While the investigation was going on, the forensic department was collecting samples from the body and suspected areas. The bullet that pierced out of the deceased's head was collected as primary evidence.

The police officer recorded Dr Aurobindo's statement handing the dead body of professor Rajnath for post mortem.

While a policeman started questioning the people who attended the seminar, a police officer entered the venue.

He was a tall and handsome 32 years old man. His physique was well built with a flawless body deceiving his age estimate. He has an attractive look and a charm gifted with smartness. He is well known for his knack in the department. He is recognized by many people for his good deeds. He caught hold of the most notorious criminals. The moment he entered the spot, the constables saluted him with respect reflecting in their eyes.

"Good morning, Mr Vijay. Here are the findings of the case. Have a look." said the senior police officer trying to analyze the motive of the murderer.

After a few minutes...

"Sir! Can I once again examine the balcony from where the bullet was fired?!" said Vijay. The official nodded on an affirmative note.

Vijay examined the balcony carefully to find any clues. He observed the footprints of a stranger and asked the photographer to take a snap of it by magnifying the camera's lens. Vijay observed the surroundings with hawk eyes. He enacted himself like a killer and tried to aim at the professor's head in an imaginary way. He understood the case deeply and proceeded further with the investigation.

His senior asked to solve the case as early as possible as it was a high profile case. Dr Aurobindo felt emotional and kept mum. He was permitted to go home and was asked not to leave the city uninformed.

Every news channel scrolled this news for 2 days consecutively.

********

Two days later, doorbells rang...

"Yes, who is it?" asked Dr Aurobindo's daughter Samidha.

"Ugh. Vijay here. I want to meet your father. How is Ajay?" asked Vijay with concern and a special feeling for her in his eyes.

"Stop seeing her," said his companion Pramod in a faint voice. Pramod is the assistant and best friend of Vijay.

"Yes! Can we come in?" asked Vijay clearing his throat. "Okay. Come in. Dad! Vijay has come to ask you something related to professor's murder" said Samidha and went back to her room.

Vijay entered the home with old memories flashing in front of his eyes.

"Vijay! Control your emotions. We are here not for personal work. Let the past not withheld you and come in your path of investigation" said Pramod by placing his hand on Vijay's shoulder to bring him back to his senses. The doctor cleared his throat and wished them "Good morning."

"Good morning, Sir. Sorry to hear that your assistant is no more. The professor worked with you on this prestigious project for a long time. Can you tell us does he have enemies or any people who disliked him or threatened him? Did you notice any change in his behaviour from the past few days?" enquired Vijay.

"No. He was a self-content man. He recently moved with his family into his newly brought apartment" said Dr Aurobindo.

"Where are his sons residing now? We are unable to contact them. Can you help us reach them?" said Vijay, staring at Samidha now and then.

"Okay. Just a moment. Let me bring my mobile. Samidha, serve them a cup of coffee, dear" said Aurobindo and ascended steps.

Samidha served them coffee. "How is Ajay? Can I meet him? Please bring him to our home at least once. My mother keeps asking for him. Sorry for whatever she has done in the past. Try to forget things and come back home. I am sorry on her behalf" said Vijay pleasingly to Samidha.

"It was not me who decided to come out of your home. It was Ajay who decided. He went abroad on important work. I told him to talk to you but he refused. I am sorry about it and I have to go out on important work. Bye" said Samidha expressing untold grief about the past incidents.

"Pramod! Follow her. She is hiding something" said Vijay.

"Are you doubting her? On what grounds?" said Pramod with a puzzled look.

"I am following my hunch. I know her more than anyone" said Vijay.

Pramod followed her while Vijay finished formal questions with Dr Aurobindo and reached the office.

"Vijay! I didn't find anything suspicious. Samidha went to a hospital for a checkup. She said to the doctor that she got hurt on her elbow during kitchen furnishing" said Pramod to which Vijay grew suspicious but hid the doubt from Pramod. Vijay nodded his head and got immersed in the case study.

"Vijay! Come on. We have a lot of tasks to do. You can't be thinking about her. She has moved on. It is time for you to move on. It is been five months now. By the way, why did you suspect Samidha?" asked Pramod curiously.

"Whenever she is trying to hide something, she rolls her eyes and constantly looks at her wristwatch weirdly," said Vijay.

"Really. I mean you loved her so much. But she chose your brother over you. Why? " questioned Pramod, knotting his brows.

"She was tricked by my brother Ajay! Leave it. That is past. Let us discuss the case-related stuff. Grab a chair" said Vijay trying to hide past and pain.

"Pramod, we contacted the professor's relations but did not find anything suspicious. The footprint analysis was done. My interpretation is that the murderer was wearing a shoe that was not a perfect fit for him. If he was wearing the perfect size, then the pressure on the foot will be equally distributed and the shoe print would be visible in a uniform way but here the footprint had very little stress of foot in the front portion of the footwear.

This case is strange. Before we ask for the CCTV footage, it has been damaged. The murderer is very clever. Post mortem reports state that the bullet was fired on his head but not any vital detail for our investigation apart from this. Forensic found out that bullet used was 0.45 ACP with 250mg grain powder mostly used by guns like ours. We have to find some clues and catch the criminal. Let us start the investigation by visiting the place where the murder happened on a clean slate" said Vijay rising from his seat.

At the crime(murder) spot...

The auditorium was sealed. They started searching hard for a clue that will lead the case further. On finding nothing, they came out and enquired the nearby cyber cafe for any details.

The cyber cafe owner Pranav was startled by seeing Vijay. "Sir! I saw you before in our cyber cafe. Did you forget me? On the day of that auditorium murder, you used our system to send some mail. You were in a hurry" said Pranav with a puzzled look.

"When did he come here? Can you give me details of the system he used?" said Vijay anxiously.

"Sir, why are you mentioning yourself as 'he'? Was it not you?" asked Pranav frowning badly.

"No, he is my twin, Ajay. Now, can you go and bring the logbook" ordered Vijay. After a moment, Pranav produced all the documents Vijay asked for. Vijay took the book and scanned every nook and corner for his twin name. He was shocked to find that Ajay came to the shop exactly 3 hours before the murder and saw Ajay's Sign. He checked the system number and called a close pal who was working for the Cybercrime department to take CPU into custody and check for any confidential data.

His pal Ranjit asked for 2 days to render the data and give the detailed report.

Two days passed like a millennium for Vijay. He spent those two days with a heavy heart while Pramod managed seniors who were concerned about the progress in the investigation and beneficial outcomes. Media also became a cause of concern as the person who was murdered was in trending news for making a breakthrough in medical science along with Aurobindo.

After a day, Vijay received the call which he was yearning.

"Hey, Vijay! Sorry to say this but I think Ajay did this. He clearly stated in the mail that he sent to some unknown. I tried to trace the email address he sent but it is no more existing. One more was sent to the medical authority. I am sending you snapshots of what Ajay sent, go through it. If you need further help, let me know. Take care" said Ranjith and ended the call.

After going through the snapshots sent to his email ID, Vijay was shocked. He went to Samidha's home to find out the facts without realising that it was late in the night.

@ Samidha's home...

"I want to talk to you. Come and meet me near your lawn. Now!" demanded Vijay while Samidha was surprised with his demand.

"What do you want?" asked Samidha.

"Truth! Where is Ajay? I want to meet him now" said Vijay.

"I told you already that he went abroad for his official work. Why are you asking me again and again?" said Samidha, giving a vexed look.

"See this video and then tell me the truth!" said Vijay with an angry look.

After seeing the video, Samidha was in a state of shock for a moment.

"Do you know now where is he? I was hesitating whether to tell you or not. He is missing for a month after a petty fight that happened between us. I didn't want to trouble you or anyone else" said Samidha, lowering her head with a sad tone.

"Samidha! For God's sake, Will you please tell me in detail?" said Vijay, tired of listening to her lies.

"We fought because of you. You know that I loved you, right? He tricked me into getting him married. On that day of marriage, he tied that sacred thread by acting like you, Vijay! Since he was your twin and you never mentioned me, I thought it was you and happily married to him. Your mother also didn't utter a word. She stayed mum till marriage was over. Post marriage, he told me that he was Ajay! I was completely shaken inside out by that revelation. I felt tremors. I was deceived by your family. I wanted to confront you but he told me that you went on some case out of the station. Even you cheated me! I hate you too. I loved you more than my life. But you and your family played with my emotions. Because of my father's health condition at that time, I had to accept my fate and Ajay! But seeing your mother, always reminded me of the betrayal which you all did. She troubled me a lot like most of the mother-in-law's. But one day she came to know about our grave mistake of making love while she heard us talking about my apology and the reason for it. She thought I was having an extramarital affair by luring you with my beauty and brain. She lost her cool and took me to the backyard and started physically harming me without knowing the complete truth. Ajay came at the nick of the moment. Seeing my plight, Ajay couldn't take it and brought me here without any second thought.

Ajay readily accepted me despite committing a mistake like that. He said "I love you not because of your beauty but because of your pure heart. Please don't be hurt. I saw you when you came to our home with Vijay posing as his best friend. I loved you from the very first sight of your smile that caught my attention. I didn't know that you loved Vijay. I am sorry for that. The confusion had led to this chaos. My mother thought you loved me when you accidentally pointed towards me on that day thinking I am Vijay and said you want to get married to me. All I could say to you is Sorry. I will try to set things right for you. Please give me some time as now is not the right situation to mend things. Can we be friends?" extending his hand.

The very next day, Ajay filed the divorce petition but since we were a newly married couple, the court asked to stay together for six months. He became my best friend within a month. Happiness came into my life again. I was longing to meet you when last month Ajay called you to talk about these things but you were unavailable due to your secret operation. We waited for your return. I went to your home as I was eager to meet you but your mother threw me out as she considered me as the reason for the crack in their(Ajay and his mother) relationship.

After returning home, we fought as Ajay felt like I did not tell him willfully about my visit to your home. He misunderstood my emotion. I was longing to meet you, Vijay. But Ajay left me all alone due to that misunderstanding. He went missing leaving a note behind to not search for him" said Samidha in grief.

"You Loved me? I mean you loved me not my brother?!" asked Vijay in grief.

"I hate you, now. You didn't have the dare to tell your mother about our love. You didn't try to ask me at least once how did I marry him. You overlooked my pain. You love only your mother and brother! I am an outsider to you, right? I just hate you. Go away from here" yelled Samidha who was deeply hurt and left from there.

Vijay was trying to figure out the jigsaw puzzle which Samidha gave him. He cleared his mind from the notion that she willingly married Ajay as per his mother's say. He understood the plight of Samidha and the miserable pain she is going through.

"A misunderstanding broke my heart and our life into pieces!" said Vijay philosophically and went to his home.

On reaching home, he confronted his mother and revealed all the happenings. She mentioned a heartfelt apology to him for taking a wrong decision that ruined their lives. She asked him for time to accept Samidha.

The next morning...

Vijay was in deep sleep for the first time after knowing that Samidha belonged only to him. He took it on a positive note that Ajay will unite them both very soon. He also dreamed that Ajay was not the convict and was freed from this murder case as he was considered to be innocent.

While Vijay was dreaming, he heard the footsteps of people approaching him. He opened his eyes at once. "Vijay! You are under arrest" said the police officer holding handcuffs.

Vijay was perplexed while police took him for an investigation.

"Why did you kill the professor? What was your motive behind it? We found the CCTV footage you took from Cyber cafe Pranav. Pramod gave us. Better, you speak out. You tried to mislead us and also tried to tamper the video evidence" said the official while Pramod stood aside with a sly look.

"Sorry, sir. I accept my crime" said Vijay.

On listening to these words, the entire department was in shock. His fame got tarnished among people. He was taken into custody. The suits were filed against him by the anonymous public. Legal proceedings started with news channels covering the latest updated information stating the high profile news of the professor murder committed by Vijay.

A few days passed with arguments between the lawyers who were fighting for and against Vijay. Samidha seeing Vijay's downfall both in life and career couldn't take it and she was depressed.

After hearing all the arguments, the judge ordered that the professor's murder case judgement will be declared the next week.

***********

Next week...

"As per the evidence gathered and after hearing arguments, Vijay is found to be guilty. Being a police officer, he committed the crime. He is to be hanged till death. This is my order!" said the honourable Judge and was about to sign the judgment papers.

Just then, Samidha entered the court hall in a wounded state. She has asked Judge's permission to talk and present evidence that would prove Vijay was not a convict.

The judge gave her permission by taking pity on her. He asked her to stand in the witness box and convey her statement.

"Your Honour! Vijay had not committed this sin. It was Ajay who sinned. He is a twin of Vijay. Please see the evidence furnished. Your Honour! In the footage, if you see the person he has a small burn mark on his neck region exactly below his ear. But this mark is not present on Vijay. Even in the logbook, he forged Vijay's sign. It nowhere matches with Vijay's real signature if you carefully examine the strokes. You can send it to graphologists who can give you a signature analysis report. The case was manipulated to frame Vijay in this murder case, your honour" said Samidha.

The court hall was in pin-drop silence. The prosecutor dropped his jaw in surprise and shock. The whole case went into a topsy turvy situation after hearing her statement. The people shut their mouth who were gossiping about the case.

The judge postponed his judgment and gave three days for the final hearing.

************

After three days in the court hall,

"After careful examination of evidence and analysis, the court declares Vijay as no guilt. Also, the court orders to immediately find Ajay who went missing on the day of the murder. Pramod is given a warning for trying to mislead the case" said the Judge and adjourned.

After walking out of the court hall, Samidha hugged him with the joy of tears. They reached her home.

"Samidha! At least now can you tell me the complete truth?" said Vijay in tears.

"I am sorry. What truth?" said Samidha, cocking her head and moving her eyes to the left.

"I know it was you who committed the murder. I know Ajay can't shoot the gun accurately as he doesn't know how to shoot whereas you are a sharpshooter. But none noticed that as all were focusing on me and Ajay. It slipped out of their minds. The email which I concealed was sent to medical authorities stating a fraudulent activity that happened and one more was to you about the threat he was facing. Now, can you tell me the truth? and where is Ajay?" asked Vijay in despair.

"Ajay...Ajay is no more. He died on that day of Professor's murder trying to escape from his goons" said Samidha, holding her tears that were rolling down her cheeks.

"What? How did this happen?" asked Vijay shaking her shoulders in a mixed emotion of shock and immense pain.

"A few months back, Ajay became my close friend. He also became an apprentice for my dad's body parts transplanting project. He gave vital detail and findings to my father. He was the one who made this project successful. Now, people can have anybody part transplanted because of his study and foolproof method. But, professor Rajnath who was one of the investors and assistant to my father saw this as an opportunity to make money and turned greedy.

He threatened my father to sell the method and formula used for genome compatibility to a big shot. My father and Ajay rejected this offer and said this has to reach out to common people who trust the government and believe doctors. The professor blackmailed them both using me as bait. Left with no option, my father and Ajay agreed. Professor made Ajay a silent spectator to the trade exchange between him, the investor, and a masked person from the same medical field.

Ajay couldn't take this. He said that by hook or crook, I will make this wrong a right and left angrily from home. He made a soft copy of the documents prepared by him and hid it somewhere before he left our home. Professor's formula only gives partial output as Ajay altered the formula before handing it to him. Professor was unaware of this.

When this seminar was announced, he was outraged and decided to end the professor's chapter by making him accept his wrongdoings in public. He mailed it from the cyber cafe to medical authorities and me. But before he could enter the auditorium to confront the professor's mistakes and stop him from getting patents and copyrights of the formula, he was kidnapped and was stabbed to death by the goons who were in disguise at the entrance of the auditorium. They left the place after they felt someone was approaching them in fear of getting caught. After receiving the mail notification, I went through it and went in search of Ajay. I received a call from Pranav revealing the entire truth. He doubted Ajay's behaviour and followed him only to see him die. He was the one who helped me in Ajay's cremation. Pranav was my childhood best friend. I lost his contact in my adolescence age when we moved to this city but he found my contact in Ajay's phone.

I wanted to seek revenge on professor Rajnath. So, I came back dressed in Ajay's clothes and shoes. I entered the balcony wearing his attire and fired the bullet straight into Professor's head. I killed him for bringing justice to Ajay. Meanwhile, Pranav managed the rest.

Vijay! If you consider it to be murder and arrest me, I am ready for it. Pramod whom you consider the close one was also part of this exchange. He tortured me on the final day of your case judgment for the formula documents as he knew I was coming to court with evidence of Ajay's forge sign to save you. Pranav saved me with help of his influence. Pramod accidentally fell into a pit and lost his life while trying to chase me. I couldn't save Ajay but at least I saved you somehow. I failed to show the real faces of Professor and Pramod as I couldn't find any solid proof that they killed Ajay" said Samidha with a trembling voice.

Vijay sat on the ground and tried to analyze all the incidents that happened. Something struck his mind and asked her to show the note that Ajay left behind. Vijay carefully analyzed it. "You hurt me. I am leaving home and don't search for me. You used me and throw my heart in the dustbin. Bye forever" were the words written. He asked Samidha for a pen and paper.

He sat and re-read it a couple of times to understand it in greater detail. Something struck his mind. "Samidha during our childhood days, we used to write the notes with such sentences where there are hidden keywords to decipher the information we were trying to hide from our parents and others. See this carefully" pointed Vijay to a particular set of words that were scribbled.

"Search, for, throw, in, dustbin. These words are scribbled. It is a clue. He is telling us to search in the dustbin" said Vijay.

"But, it is emptied long back. That means we have lost evidence" said Samidha, losing hope.

"No. Ajay is not a fool to store it in the dustbin. He is way smarter than us. Try to get other meaning of dustbin!" said Vijay trying hard to understand the clue.

Just then Samidha got an offer email notification on her mobile. Vijay shouted in the joy of deciphering the clue. Samidha saw his weird behaviour and questioned.

"Samidha! Dustbin meant Trash. Let us check his email account Trash. Hurry up" said Vijay.

Finally, they succeeded in accessing Ajay's email account with help of Ranjith. They found the documents and preparation of the formula.

*********

The next day, Dr Aurobindo handed over the documents to the medical team and got them patented. While a medico tried to stop him on his way. He found that he was this person who hid his face under a mask on the day of the trade exchange. He was arrested and sent for investigation.

After a few days...

Samidha and Vijay got united with the blessings of Vijay's mother. They thanked Ajay deep in their heart and apologized for not being able to save him.

The suspected medical official spilt the beans after getting special degree treatment from police and CBI. Finally, the truth was out and Ajay got justice. Vijay resumed his service.

*************

The End.