Perfect

Iola Tom Kalavoor, a young police officer came on a solo vacation in a big hotel in Ooty. She checked into the hotel, took her room keys and went to her room.

 “Excuse me?” she asked the bellboy, “Can I please have a chilled beer?”

 “Of course ma’am I will get it right away” said the bellboy and went away after keeping the luggage.

 Iola looked out of the window and stared at the landscape. Tring-trrrrrring, rang the bell and Iola went to open the door. “Ma’am your chilled beer and some ice with it.” said the bellboy. She thanked him and shut the door. “Finally some rest”, she sighed. She got out her laptop, shut down her phone and started watching all the movies she had missed. Sometime later she saw the time. 

1: 04 AM – She shut the laptop and got ready for bed. Washed her feet and pinged her home, “I have reached don’t worry about me. My phone will remain switched off.” She set her phone aside and fell asleep.

 “AAAAHHHHHHHH” came a sound from the corridor. Iola got up ran towards the door. A dog barked. A man shouted. A crowd was standing in front of a room, at the end of the corridor, staring inside it in horror and whispering. She forced her way into the crowd and looked inside. A mother and her 5-6 year old child were lying on the floor, lifeless. Another man was hugging them and weeping. ‘A grieving man, with a dead mother and daughter’she thought. She looked around the room, everything was normal. A murder no doubt, but who? And why? A sly smile came over her face. A murder is an art. The murderer is an artist but this murder was just perfect.

 Her promotion was due so what if …….

“Calm down everybody, I am IPS officer Iola Kavaloor, posted in Bangalore. I will handle this case and get it solved. Dear sir please stop crying and all of you people get back to bed.” She said these things and went away. 

The man continued to weep. The crowed continued to whisper. 

 Iola shut herself in her room and danced, “I will get a promotion I will get a promotion yay! Yay! Yay!” (A universal fact - everybody thinks about themselves first.) She came out a few minutes later, the crown had parted the manager was in distress.

 “Please sir don’t call the police….. they will take my wife away and even my daughter. I want to be with them at least till the morning.” The manager stared at the man. Iola entered, “Sir please I am the IPS officer here I will stay with him here, you can stay too if you want. I want to investigate the matter.”

 “yes please officer” said the manager.

Iola turned to the man,

“What is your name?”

“Rishi”

“and your wife’s?

“Sa….Sita” he said biting back his sobs.

“and you daughter’s?”

“Re…..Revati” he said.

Iola checked the watch 3:14 AM things needed to be done really fast.

“Sir I will investigate some more if you may please excuse us” said Iola.

“Yes ma'am please find out the truth, nothing like this has ever happened in the hotel.” He stared walking way. “My reputation….., My honor all lost…………………… I must inform the police immediately!” and his voice trailed away.

Iola was now alone with the man. The room was suddenly quiet. She turned back to see the man wiping a tear from his eye and smiling with a dagger. “Please don’t call the police, I want some time with my wife and daughter” he mimicked and laughed. He moved close. Iola took out her pistol and laughed, “Now brother you are perfecting the art of murder!”

 He laughed dropped the gun and ruffled his hair. “If you teach me Akka (elder sister) how will I not?” They laughed and stared at the lady and her daughter. Iola took a deep breath and thought of the saying, ‘revenge is best when served cold’.

 “Akka I knew you wanted to kill the daughter but why did you ask me to kill the lady? Won’t it break David almost immediately?” 

Iola looked at the man with fury in her eyes, “That pesky Politian David deserves a slow and painful death. He ran his car over my son. I have been waiting for 3 years to catch his family and now when I have done it my son can rest in peace.” “I understand Akka but why the wife?” asked the man.

 Iola’s eyes softened and she said, “Dear brother dint I teach you? If a person gives you a slap, slap them twice, they will never bother you again.” The man smiled and looked around and asked, “so you mind to show he how to clean up?” “Sure first get the pillow which you used to stop their breath here and put on your gloves .”

 The man listen to her and did what she asked. She took the cover off and went out of the room. She came back moments later carrying her own pillow cover,” Here put this on” she said. 

The police sirens rang. “That dammed manager………..” she cursed. The corridor was waking up again. 

The man sat next to the little girl’s bodies and cried, “my wife and daughter… god take me instead please..” The crowd came again.

 Iola sobbed and said, “I failed. Excuse me please.”

 The police came and took the body.                                                                                                      No questions asked.                                                                                                               Nobody suspected.                                                                                                                Nobody arrested. 

The man wept and moved towards door. “I cannot stay without my wife take me back to my home town.” He wailed.

 Iola turned and said, “come with me I will drop you off.”

 He went away weeping.

 The crowd departed whispering.