Tall and lean, he was sometimes compared by his friends to a weeping willow, especially when he let his hair grow. At other times, his beard, which made his already long face look even longer, was compared with that of a bearded collie.
Five minutes later, he was on the phone, talking to his friend Rajan, the retired IPS officer in Coonoor. He briefed him on what had happened, and sought his help in finding out as much as possible about Phillip, Abbas, Ganesh and the people at Greybrooke Manor. He asked him to speak to the retired postmaster and his wife, and to anyone else who might be able to throw light on the backgrounds of these people. He also asked him to tap the police network in Ooty and Coonoor if he could.
He then went to the art gallery and photographed all of Phillip’s paintings. He returned to his room, called a Delhi number and spoke on the phone for ten minutes. After hanging up, he sent the photographs of the paintings via WhatsApp to the person in Delhi.
Then he went upstairs to Phillip’s room and examined it thoroughly without leaving fingerprints or smudging any that were already there. With a pencil or the tip of his shoe, he opened the cupboards. But he didn’t find anything out of place. A few clothes hung in the cupboard and Phillip’s bag lay open in one corner of the room. The bathroom had nothing other than his toiletries. After a fruitless fifteen minutes, he opened the door and stepped out.
When he stepped out of Phillip’s room, he found Dora waiting for him at the top of the stairs.
‘Can I speak to you for a few minutes?’ she asked softly.
‘Certainly. Where would you like to talk?’ Athreya asked. ‘The study?’
‘Let’s take a walk outside, if you don’t mind.’
‘I don’t mind at all.’
They went down the stairs and out of the front door together, then walked along the walkway towards the rock garden.
‘I remembered one or two things from last night. I don’t know if they are relevant. I don’t even know if they really happened or I imagined them. But I thought I should tell you about them. I can’t swear by them, but I kind of think I didn’t imagine them. Is that okay?’
‘It’s perfectly fine. Tell me.’
‘As I said earlier, I returned to the mansion at 12.27 a.m. Of that, I am absolutely certain, and it doesn’t change. Besides, Mr Varadan also corroborated it.
‘When I shut the front door and turned to go towards the stairs, I thought I heard a small noise from the art gallery. I stopped and peered in the direction of the sound, but I couldn’t see anything amiss in the faint light of the night bulb. I didn’t see anyone in the gallery. I didn’t think much of it as it could have been anyone–Murugan, Uncle, Sebastian or any of the staff.
‘I am not sure of the next thing I’m going to say. I thought–and I am not certain–that I saw a thin crack of light at the end of the gallery, as if the back door was slightly open. If it was open half an inch, light from the staff quarters would have spilled in, and that’s how it would have looked.
‘Dismissing it from my mind, I went up the stairs. Now, you need to understand how the rooms upstairs are laid out. The four rooms that are occupied are in a line. I am using the first one, which is the corner room above the drawing room. The next room is occupied by Richie and the third by Phillip. Michelle is using the last one. Is that clear?'
‘Yes. Go on,' said Athreya.
‘The stairs come out between the second and the third rooms–Richie’s and Phillip’s. When I reached the top of the stairs, I noticed two things. First, there was no light under Phillip’s door. I didn’t think that was relevant until I realized that Phillip was talking to Varadan till about 12.25 a.m.
‘If Phillip had gone up to his room immediately after that, he would have just entered his room when I reached the first floor, and the light would have been burning. Most of us would have our lights on for at least a few minutes after entering our room. And as Phillip had just entered his room, his light should have been on. But it wasn’t. Again, I am not sure if it is relevant or not, but I thought I should tell you.’
‘You did the right thing, Dora,’ Athreya said slowly, his mind churning. ‘I can’t be sure yet, but it could turn out to be very relevant. You said that you noticed two things. What was the second thing?’
‘I noticed that Richie’s light was on. The line of light was clearly visible under his door, and I also heard him humming a tune.’
Athreya stopped and looked Dora full in the face.
‘Now, Dora. Look me in the eye. You wouldn’t be protecting your brother, would you? We all know how much you love your brother, and I have seen you come to his defence at least once before. He continues to disappoint you, but you fight for him. This is not one such case, is it?’
Dora flushed deeply and bit her lip. Tears sprang to her eyes and she looked hurt. After a few moments’ struggle, she whispered through a choked throat.
‘That was not fair, Mr Athreya.’
‘Perhaps not,’ Athreya conceded. ‘But I’m sure you see why I have to ask that.’
Dora nodded mutely and dropped her eyes.
‘I am speaking the truth, Mr Athreya,’ she said slowly. ‘I am not making this up. I don’t know how to convince you, but I’ll swear to it if you want me to.’
‘No.’ Athreya resumed walking. ‘No need to swear. All this
