01 May,2011 10:29 AM IST | | Correspondent
Welcome to the world of Inspector Faridi and his disgruntled sidekick Captain Hameed, as they solve the puzzling case of an heiress who, it seems, has vanished into thin air in a translation of Urdu crime fiction writer Ibne Safi's The Laughing Corpse
The sky had been overcast since the evening. It began to rain at ten o'clock, and the downpour did not stop.
Along with the rain came storm winds, uprooting trees, snapping power cables, and disrupting phone connections. Darkness prevailed over much of the city; the streets became deserted.
Illustration/ Jishu Dev Malakar
A car entered Faridi's compound at some speed and proceeded straight to the portico. The person who got out of the car was the Superintendent of the Criminal Investigation Department. Faridi's manservant showed him to the living room and informed Faridi, who threw a dressing gown over his nightshirt and came out at once to see his visitor.
"Why did you take the trouble, sir? You could have called me over."
Faridi was a man of principles. Although his own social position was, de facto, much higher, he respected official rank and discipline. And besides, the Superintendent was an elderly person, who had only recently been transferred to the city.
"Colonel, there's a new problem..." He spoke haltingly.
"Please make yourself comfortable, and tell me about it."
"I wanted to phone, but all the lines were down. My God, what a torrent of water from the sky! It hasn't let up one bit since it began."
Faridi rang for coffee. The Superintendent protested: "No, no. Don't take the trouble."
"You braved the cold winds to come here," Faridi smiled. "You must have coffee at least."
"Oh, well. Actually, I came myself because I didn't want you to have to leave home in this storm. Who else could I turn to? It's such an important matter that entrusting it to anyone else would be a waste of time, really. I went and called on the Inspector General before I came here. He agreed with me that you're the only one who might be able to do something worthwhile, and quickly, in this case."
"Fine, please tell me what the case is all about. And don't worry about the weather-for weather is merely a product of the same forces of nature which created Man."
The Superintendent looked at Faridi quietly for a few moments, then said: "I assume you've heard of Saeeda Rahman."
"Saeeda Rahman? No, who is she?"
"A week ago, she was a lowly typist with the firm of James & Bartley. Now, she's a multimillionaire."
Faridi smiled. "Sorry, no, I haven't heard anything of this miraculous occurrence."
"Well, to tell you the truth, it really does seem like some sort of miracle," the Superintendent answered. "I find it quite astonishing myself. It's like something from a fairy tale. It appears that Saeeda Rahman had a rich uncle, who died recently. He had no other relatives except this girl, who is now the heiress of a fabulous fortune... And all of a sudden, every wealthy businessman in the city has developed an interest in her."
The Superintendent paused for breath, then went on. "This evening, she was in the Arlecchino with Parvez, the son of Sir Sulaiman. Qasim, Khan Bahadur Asim's son and Parvez had a bit of an altercation there."
"And what was the reason for the quarrel?"
"According to Parvez, they were dining peacefully at their own table when ufffd suddenly, and without provocation ufffdAsim's son threw a plate full of sauce and meat at Parvez. They hadn't even spoken. The two of them engaged in fisticuffs. As they fought, the lights went off ufffd a blown fuse, perhaps. In the dark hall, Parvez heard Saeeda screaming. When the lights came back on, both Saeeda and Qasim were missing. Parvez scoured the city, searching every place that Saeeda might possibly be, but without success. Sir Sulaiman spoke directly to the Inspector General. Parvez believes that the girl was kidnapped."
"And I suppose Qasim is the prime suspect?" Faridi asked.
"Yes. And therein lies the rub: Khan Bahadur Asim is among the Inspector General's close friends... and relations between Asim and Sulaiman are none too friendly."
"I understand," Faridi nodded. "But if you want to entrust this case to me, I would like to make clear..."
Coffee arrived before Faridi could complete his sentence. They remained silent while it was served. After the servant withdrew, the Superintendent said, "Yes, you were saying...?"
"Just this, sir: that if it's a case of kidnapping, and if Qasim really is the perpetrator, then his father Asim Saheb's friendship with the I.G. will avail him nothing."
"I know. The I.G. is very clear about that as well.
That's why he wants you to investigate. He doesn't believe Asim's son is really capable of doing such a thing."
Refilling the Superintendent's coffee cup, Faridi said: "I know Qasim very well. He is abundantly susceptible to being used by others. Anyway, I'll see what I can do. Now please tell me more about this girl, Saeeda. Where did her uncle live?"
"He settled in Jamaica many years ago. Over time, he built up a business there worth many crores, and he owns real estate worth crores as well. It has been determined that this girl Saeeda Rahman is his only remaining relative, and therefore his sole legatee. She received this information through a local firm of lawyers.
The surprising part is that Saeeda didn't even know that she had any such rich relative. She did confirm, however, that she had an uncle who had left home and disappeared when she was little."
"An interesting tale, indeed," Faridi smiled.
"No doubt. Sometimes one feels envious of the girl's good fortune."
"What was the uncle called?"
"Karam Rahman. They're from a lower-middle-class family, but... well, money is money. Both of Saeeda Rahman's parents are dead. She herself is educated ufffd has a B.A. from the local university."
"Has she received some money as advance against her inheritance?"
"I think so, yes. For she now lives in a splendid house in the posh neighborhood of Princeton."
"And who is the lawyer who informed her of this?"
"It was Kailash Varma; he's also her legal adviser."
"Can we find out how many others, besides Parvez, were interested in her?"
"Yes. I think Parvez himself, if no one else, can give us that information."
"Well, sir. I'll get down to it just now. By the way, has Khan Bahadur Asim been informed of the incident?"
"Yes. In fact, the I.G. phoned him right in my presence."
"That was a mistake." Faridi's tone was dry, if not harsh. "If Qasim really is the perpetrator, he would have been made to disappear by now."
The Superintendent made no comment. He sipped his coffee thoughtfully, then accepted Faridi's proffered cigar and put a match to it.
A car horn sounded from the portico, followed by the voice of Captain Hameed. He had just come in and blown the car horn to wake up the servants, whom he had assumed must be in bed by this time. He was quietly crossing the front verandah when Faridi called out to him. He turned, and was a little surprised to see the Superintendent, but came in and greeted him deferentially.
"Sit," Faridi said to Hameed, gesturing toward a chair and pouring a cup of coffee. The Superintendent rose.
"Well, I should be going now, Faridi."
"Rest assured, we'll start work right away."
When he heard the word "work", Hameed was stricken with despair; but he was obliged to walk along with Faridi as they saw the Superintendent to his car. He spoke the moment the Superintendent's car disappeared from view.
"I hear getting wet in the cold rain can cause pneumonia."
"You hear right," said Faridi.
"Then I'm off to get drenched."
"Don't jabber. If you're so keen on lying in bed, go ahead and try it. It's been a while since I broke somebody's bones."
"So what's the matter?"
"Quite interesting. You'll be pleased. Come into the living room and I'll tell you about it."
Once Faridi had finished narrating everything the Superintendent had told him, he asked Hameed, "Do you suppose Qasim had taken a fancy to the girl?"
"I don't know. But I'm quite sure that Qasim is incapable of kidnapping anyone."
"Perhaps someone is using him as a cat's-paw."
"That's possible, but only as long as Qasim is unaware of it. That is, someone may have used him without letting him in on their real motives. But this girl... Yes, I've heard about her too, just two or three days ago."
"Right. Go try to find her then. If you manage to marry her, you'll be counted among the city's elite. Don't forget, she's a multimillionaire."
The Laughing Corpse Published by Blaft in association with Tranquebar
Available at all leading bookstores Rs 200
