"Shanti, can you stay this evening?"
"I don't know... Why do you want me to stay?"
"I have a meeting of the Lionesses'club committee. I have to serve them some drinks and cakes... Could you go and buy everything and then help me prepare things until they arrive?"
"Well, I don't have any duties at home... I could even stay to serve tea."
Kamakshi smiled. Her servant maid Shanti was ready to stay late if she could over-hear all the gossip. She would later exchange the news with her friends.
"Sure, if you want to. You can stay as long as you want."
"And tomorrow, could I come only in the morning? I'd like to have my afternoon to see the festival at the Kali temple. It started today."
"If you like." She knew that anyway, whether she liked it or not, Shanti would not come in that afternoon because of the festival. This way it gave her a good reason to take this small leave.
She gave a list of what she needed and sent her to the shop. Of course, Shanti couldn't read, but the shopkeeper could. As she saw her disappear in the crowded street outside her house, Kamakshi smiled. What a servant maid she had! Politeness was something she couldn't manage. She was always frank and direct, she came when she wanted and was always happy.
Kamakshi had noticed the girl when she was working in the fields, although she was not from a family of agricultural workers. Shanti was slightly retarded, and hence unable to do anything but menial, simple jobs. She didn't have good manners, but was very trustworthy. She would never steal or complain or ask for more money. She was never angry at anyone. Kamakshi had liked her unsophisticated and pure mind. She finally took her as her maid. And that was many years ago...
Shanti had been married once, but she quickly ran away and went back to her mother's house. Since then, she had lived happily with her family. At thirty, she took care of her aging parents and spent most of her free time carrying gossip around the city, in her naive, child-like way. She was also a devout Goddess worshipper, and never missed a festival. She was superstitious, but peys didn't frighten her. When she was young, when her parents had noticed her lack of intelligence, they had sent her to a temple where an exorcist lived. She had stayed there a month, being possessed every day. Finally, the priest had explained that the pey of a child was living in her and prevented her development. It was not harmful, and the pey would not leave. She would just be a simple child all her life.
When Shanti heard about the pey who had killed Mugil, she had felt very sorry for the girl, but thought she wasn't concerned. What could happen to her, who already had a demon living in herself? She kept on walking between Kamakshi's house and hers at her unhurried pace.
As the sun was getting bright red over the roofs of Andavur's houses, she was musing while walking in the hot dust of the street. She reached the shop and gave the list to the shopkeeper. He carefully wrapped all the items in neatly cut newspaper, and then gently stacked everything in Shanti's bag. She handed him the purse and he took the money himself, writing on the list the price of everything. Taking her filled bag and the purse, Shanti went back through the crowd to the house.
Kamakshi inspected the cakes and all the other snacks. She ordered Shanti to boil a large quantity of water for the tea. Ordinarily, she would always drink coffee, the most popular beverage in Tamil Nadu. But tea had become a fancy drink, something different, from this exotic land they called "North India". And tonight was a fancy night. She had asked her husband to visit his friends until 9 p.m. She was going to wear that new fashionable sari, and she would serve spiced tea.
As 7 p.m. approached, Shanti went in her little room in the backyard to put on a clean sari and comb her hair. She had stopped while coming back from the shop to buy a foot of jasmine garland, that she tucked in her braid. She powdered her face and stuck on her forehead a dot of red velvet. She looked at herself in the mirror, obviously pleased. She was a maid, but she wouldn't look sloppy in front of all these ladies.
Meanwhile, Kamakshi had also prepared herself, and both women sat in the main hall, waiting to hear the cars stop outside and the door bell ring. It didn't take too long. The first friend to arrive was Madavi, the wife of the Municipal Hospital's director. Shortly afterwards, Lalita, whose husband owned the city's largest sari shop, followed. Finally Mahadevi, a banker's wife, went hurriedly through the door giving some excuses as to why she was late.
The four fat, middle-aged women sat on the sofas and Shanti served them the snacks and the tea, about which they praised Kamakshi. For a few minutes they exchanged polite words, and, before they decided it was time to talk about the reason of their meeting, they spend a good hour gossiping. After discussing about the mistress of one of their friend's husband, the operation of so-and-so's wife, that boy who couldn't find a wife, and Madavi's son-in-law's stupidity, they started talking about Kannagi...
"Eh, Madavi, did this new chief of police, Kannagi, get in touch with your husband?"
"Of course. She wants to find a job for her husband."
"I didn't know about this, is he a doctor?"
"Yes, Lalita, he is an anaesthesiologist. Now he works in Madras' General Hospital, but he wants to move here. We would like to oblige, but we already have four anaesthesiologists!"
"Wow! A husband who wants to follow his wife... Have you met her?"
"No, not yet..."
"I have!" said Mahadevi triumphantly, "My husband invited her when she opened an account at his bank. She seems to be a strong, very strong woman... But she's very warm."
"I have heard that her men have to give her much respect if they don't want to get blames."
"Well, I admire her! We should all be like her! Strong yet feminine, and force respect."
"You're right, Mahadevi. By the way, how do your studies go on?"
"I'll get my M.A. this year... I'm finishing my paper this month."
"I admire you, Mahadevi, to keep on studying at your age."
"Why don't you, Kamakshi? Don't tell me housework takes all your time!"
"No, but with my husband's bad health, I've got to take care of the land and his businesses. I've got to go to Madras at least once a week!"
As time passed and the night had surrounded the town with a black shroud, they suddenly remembered why they had arranged this meeting in the first place. They made plans to raise funds among their friends to finance the Lionesses' club vaccination campaign. They also wanted to have some trees planted in the courtyard of Ayappa's college. While they were discussing such boring matters, Shanti felt she had no reason to stay any longer. She asked for the permission to leave.
The street was now black and empty. Here and there, a dog was running for some reason it alone knew. Ordinarily, people would be chatting in front of their houses, but with this pey roaming around, the doors were all well locked and the street-lights seemed white as death. Yet, Shanti wasn't afraid. She took the small path to the Kali temple. She walked quietly in the total darkness, as if she knew every stone. At the other end, the bright illumination of the Kali temple filled the street with colours. A few groups of people hurried inside, to see the priest finish the rituals of today's festivities.
It was a Friday, the weekday dedicated to the Goddess. It was the night before new moon, consecrated to Her husband Siva who wore the tiny crescent on His hair. It was also the month of Adi, when She manifests Herself to protect Her worshippers...
Shanti had her eyes filled with the distant sight of the illuminated temple, and her heart felt joy deep inside. She was walking happily towards the light when she felt something seize her throat.
***
Kannagi was in her husband's arms. She had cooked him a good meal. Then they had quickly retired to their bedroom and she had felt very happy. Now, she began thinking the pey was only a distant nightmare, and nothing could trouble her anymore. Her parents had made a good choice when they had married her. He was a strong man, handsome and understanding. And being the chief of police's husband required a lot of patience!
She had to find him a job here soon. Unfortunately, anaesthesiologists seemed already numerous in Andavur. Their only daughter was now a student at the Madras Institute of Technology, and she lived on campus, in a hostel. In a couple of years she would marry her, as soon as she found a young man who would be as understanding as her own husband. Then she would really settle in Andavur, buy a nice big house and some land. When retirement would come, she would have made for themselves a good life in this beautiful, quiet city.
While she was dreaming in this way, her head on her husband's chest, the phone rang. It was Rajesh. The nightmare had invaded her dreams. Again. She felt like crying for a second, and Kovalan said he'd go with her. Soon she heard her car arrive in front of the house. Anandam drove them to the Kali temple...
While the car was passing through the deserted streets, Kannagi took her husband's hand. Finally, they reached a tiny lane fully crowded and brightly lit. They made their way to a recess between two houses, only a few yards away from the Kali temple. She realised it must have been very dark when this poor woman had walked in that street, a little while ago, when her head was still on her shoulders.
"Inspector Rajesh, have you found the head?" She asked.
Rajesh shook his head. No, not so far. Some people, who were going home after a visit to the temple, had bumped into her body which was lying across the street. It was so dark then, they had not realised what it was. Since they lived nearby, they had come back with lamps to see what it could be. He had taken their depositions, but they had not seen anything except the dead body.
"Have you looked inside the temple?" Kannagi was worried about the head. Who would go around carrying someone's head?
"Now the temple is closed. We can't go inside. The priest insists that since he has done the proper rituals, it would be wrong to open the gates before morning."
"Where is this priest? We've got to find the head. I have a feeling it's inside. Remember last time, the head was offered to a god. This crazy man most probably offered this one too." While Kannagi spoke, the priest arrived and greeted her.
"You have to open the temple. Please, you know as well as I do that nothing wrong will happen. At least, nothing worse than finding a human head."
"Madam, this Goddess is very powerful, if we wake Her up, it might be disastrous. One day, a priest had closed the Siva temple, leaving behind his little daughter. At home, his wife asked him to open the temple and get the girl. When he went near the gate, he heard a voice telling him the girl would be perfectly safe inside all night. But his wife would have none of it and forced him to go inside. While he was putting the key in the lock, blood poured out of it. Finally, he found the girl killed, in pieces. It happened a long time ago, but it's a true story! It happened to someone of our clan!"
Kannagi didn't want to start arguing. What she was looking for was already dead anyway.
"I don't think we'll have to go inside the sanctum. Just open the outside gate. Isn't there a sacred tree in the courtyard?"
"Of course, as in every temple!"
"My feeling is that it's where we'll find it. Under this tree, are there some gods?"
"Yes, well, actually, there are just some snake-stones and some hero-stones."
"I just want to see this tree. If the head is not there, I won't go any further anyway."
"Well, maybe that will be all right... Wait, I'll get the keys."
When they found the head lying at the feet of a hero-stone, just as Kannagi had guessed, the priest felt sick. He was really unhappy. Tomorrow was the second day of the festival, but he would have to close the temple and make some purification rituals. And who would pay for all that? He let the police remove the head and went home.
Despite the blood, the head was still well groomed, and the face looked happy. Someone in the crowd had identified her. She was a retarded girl who worked as a servant for one of the city's richest landowners. Her name was Shanti. A Sanskrit word meaning "peace".
***
Drummers and trumpeters came first, filling the street with the familiar music accompanying the dead. Then the flower palanquin passed by, carried by men of Shanti's family. On it, her body covered with red silk was well in sight, topped by her head, standing in a very awkward position. Her long, thick, black hair had been carefully laid around, and her face was decorated with white and red paintings. For her last day on earth, this poor girl had a first class funeral. Kamakshi had paid, and paid well, for it. On the way, everybody stood in front their houses to look at her colourful last journey to the cremation ground.
Kannagi looked at the procession, seating on Kamakshi's porch.
"Well, you gave her a beautiful farewell!"
"She was such a sweet girl. I will really miss her. And all this was my fault. I should never have asked her to stay last night. I wish I could do more, but nothing I can do will bring her back. I hope she didn't suffer. Poor Shanti! She didn't have much luck... She was retarded, you know... Couldn't go to school. Sometimes I had a hard time explaining to her how to do the housework. But she never got angry. She was so patient, so happy. And I've sent her to such a horrible death! How can I forgive myself?"
"Kamakshi, you shouldn't blame yourself. I am responsible. It's my duty to protect the people of this city. I'll find the bastard who killed her, but I wish I could have found him earlier. Whatever has happened was not in our control. Now, just help me and tell me anything you can think of."
But Kamakshi was of no help. She didn't think anyone would have wanted to kill Shanti, and she didn't see anything strange. Kannagi had come to see her more out of politeness, because her husband was an important man. She drunk her cup of coffee and left.
Anandam drove her back to the police station. She called everybody in the main hall and when they had gathered, she spoke:
"We had two murders in two days. Both killings seem similar, and might have been committed by the same man. Yet, we should not jump to conclusions. A man who wanted to get rid of Shanti might have used the opportunity of the first, well publicised murder to commit his own. We have to explore every possibility.
"You are all aware that these crimes are attributed to a pey. Peys are superstitions for villagers, not for policemen. The person whom we are looking for is very alive, very real. The corpse of a drowned man which lies now in the hospital might have a connection with at least the first murder. A man very similar to that dead chap was seen by at least three people, including inspector Govind, the night after his death. This strange man, very tall, very dark, most probably from southern Tamil Nadu, maybe from a tribe of thieves/warriors, seems to be walking around with red eyes and fangs.
"As you all know, we are looking for this man. Most of you have inquired all over town to find out where he eats and sleeps, without any result. We don't know how he came, where he is hiding, and it seems obvious to me that he really wants us to believe he is a pey. But we won't fall into his trap and we will find him. Even if we have to search every house in Andavur!
"Now, inspector Rama, you and your men will try to find out where he came from. You will have to question every bus conductor who came to this city this last week, and also enquire into all the surrounding villages in case he came walking. Just one thing, don't look for only one man. Most probably, you are looking for two tall dark men who came from the South. This should make it easier for people to remember. Ask if people have seen one man, or two men, fitting the description, and if they were two, did they seem to get on well?
"Our pey might have started by drowning our mysterious man. Yet, the three deaths might also not have any direct link. So be vigilant and keep your mind open. Don't try to find facts to fit a theory. Just gather as many facts as you can, and then we'll elaborate the theory. Inspector Rajesh will be officially in charge of both murders. Everyone must work with him. You should all report to me as soon as you've found the slightest thing. Well. This is it. Tonight we will have frequent patrols all over town, and most of you will be on night duty. So take some rest while the sun shines, and be alert when night comes! The peace and order of this city is your responsibility."
The men and women had listened to her in silence. They went back to their duties with only murmurs. No-one felt like joking anymore, or making remarks about the chief's sari.
As soon as Kannagi was back to her desk, Govind knocked at the door. He was smiling. Finally some news!
"Chief, I found something. You were right, we should look for two men."
"Well, one we don't have to look for anymore. We know he's in a refrigerated room in the hospital."
"Right, right, but he didn't come here alone, or at least I think so."
"And why do you think so?"
"I went to Uttaramerur this morning and I talked to the owner of a small coffee shop who said a week ago he had seen two exceptionally tall and dark men. They had not talked to him or to anyone. They were proud and distant. Both wore amulets on their arms, just like the corpse. They looked very much alike. He thought they must have been two brothers."
"Well, well... You see, inspector Govind, when you look hard, you find. So after all we don't have a pey, but simply a brother. Tell inspector Rama to concentrate his questioning on villagers between here and Uttaramerur. Such an unusual pair must have been noticed. This way, we might track them to this city, and maybe to the pey's hiding place."
"Yes, you know these men, they can walk fifty miles in a day. The murderer could hide in a village quite far from Andavur. If he came only at night, few people would notice."
"You're probably right. Every evening, we should patrol the city limits. I think that if he stayed in town, he would have been caught already. Maybe he has some relatives in a village. Is there any village of southern tribesmen near here?"
"No, not that I know of. Our villagers are agricultural workers or weavers. We don't have any of those communities of thieves, thank God! We're all peaceful people. But I'll check. The adviser from the Ministry of Agriculture should know. She visits every village in the district regularly."
"She?"
"We have a woman as chief of police, why not one as adviser from the Ministry of Agriculture?"
"I guess... I didn't know. It must be a hard work."
"Wait until you see her... She's quite extraordinary. She's taller and stronger than most men, and never found a husband..."
Kannagi allowed herself to chat and laugh with Govind for a while. After all, she was so happy to have her first clue, she could relax a little. Then she sent him back to work. She stood next to her window, filling herself with the smell of jasmine.
Mugil and Shanti were two innocent, happy girls who had tucked a jasmine garland in their hair every evening, as most Tamil women do. One was a college girl from a middle-class family, and the other a simple maid. Yet, both shared their love of life, of bright clothing, of film stars. Both had lived in what they thought was a well ordered world, a world where happiness and sadness balanced each other, a world they had made the best of. And both died for no apparent reason, sacrificed to a god they had never heard of.
At this point of her thinking, Kannagi realised that this god might hold a key to understanding those murders. The girls had been "sacrificed". One in front of Karuppan, usually pictured as a warrior, and the other under a hero-stone, which celebrated a warrior who had died in battle and had thus become a sort of god too. That's how she had guessed where Shanti's head was. If there was no Karuppan in the Kali temple, it must have been a hero-stone. It was always a godly warrior. But what could she understand from that?
The suspect was from a warrior tribe. A violent man, who must have sacrificed goats and buffaloes. But why the girls? And had he killed his brother too? A piece of the puzzle was missing, the most important one, a motive.
As she was trying to make sense of it all, her eyes fell on a piece of paper on her desk. She read: "Police report of a theft: Mr Gopalkrishnan reported the theft of 6,000 rupees, some jewels and silverware. The suspect is a woman named Muttumariyamman, who worked in his house as a servant maid. On June 1st, Mr Gopalkrishnan and his wife, Radha, went away from their house in Raja street and took the bus to Madras, to visit their son who is studying at Madras University. They left charge of their home to their maid, Muttumariyamman, after having locked all their valuables in the shrine-room.
That evening, when they came back, the maid was not in the house. The neighbours said she had left about one hour after they did, that morning. They called a locksmith who opened their front door. When they went inside, the door of their shrine-room was broken and all the valuables had disappeared. A warrant has been issued to arrest Muttumariyamman, but so far she has not been found. Inspector Palani."
Today was the 22nd of July. The theft had occurred almost two months ago. The report had most probably ended on her desk since not much could be done about the case anymore. But her instinct told her there might be a link between this common theft and the murders. As a matter of fact, what had attracted her attention was the woman's name, Muttumariyamman. No woman in this region would have had such a name. It was very typically from South Tamil Nadu. Most probably, she had gone back to her village, rich enough to live quietly for the rest of her life.
There must have been several hundred persons from the South in Andavur. The proximity of Madras drew people here from all over Tamil Nadu and even beyond. She could not suspect everyone of them to know the murderer. But one of them might. This woman might have. She might have gone home and told everybody about Andavur's prosperity.
Kannagi called Palani. He still had his notes from when he had the case. The woman was from Tirunelvelli, the southernmost region of Tamil Nadu. Gopalkrishnan and his wife knew very little about her. They didn't know her native village, or why she had gone to work so far away from her home. She didn't speak much. She had tattoos on her arms and elongated earlobes, like many traditional Tamil women. She was maybe 50 years old, a widow. For a year she worked well, and earned their trust. Then that day she simply disappeared with everything she could take. She had been spotted at the bus stand, but no-one knew which bus she took. That was all. The hope of finding her again was very slim. The gold jewels and the silverware had probably been melted and transformed into money or new jewels. The case was practically closed.
"Do you know what was her community?"
"No, not really..."
"Did she go to temples? what god did she worship?"
"I'd have to ask Gopalkrishnan again. I didn't think it was important. Do you think we could find her?"
"Not really, but my intuition tells me she might have something to do with the murders."
"The murders? But she went away more than a month ago! How could she be tied with the murders?"
"I have no idea. She's from the South, and I have this idea... She left and they came... I just want you to find out if she might have been from one of those warrior tribes."
"Well, most probably. The women of those tribes still have tattoos and elongated earlobes. It's pretty unusual in other communities."
"That's the point. Something tells me that they might be from the same village. Of course, I have no real, objective reason to think that. Just an intuition. So be quiet about it and try to find out if we can pinpoint her community. Report to me immediately when you find something."
"I will do as you say. Although it seems far-fetched, it is possible that they all came from the same village. I guess it's worth inquiring. I'll go this evening."
Kannagi suddenly felt stupid. She kept telling her men not to be superstitious, and she took Palani's time just to follow a baseless intuition. Most likely, this would not give anything. She shouldn't waste her inspector's time... Yet, as she saw Palani walk outside, she knew, deep inside her heart, that she had found another clue.
Anandam came in. It was time to drive her home. Home, where her husband would be, awaiting for her after a day spent trying to persuade the hospital's director to hire him. Home...
********************************************************************