The Mechanic Strikes Again: Chapter 3 - The Investigation Begins
Within hours a police car pulled up into the porch of a posh building complex in Saltlec with its distinct blue flashing light gracing the roof - the wailing siren forcing the residents to wake up ashen-faced with fear from their midnight slumber.
The men in white lost no time in swinging into action. The main door of the flat was barricaded with 'Do not cross' tape within minutes. A police officer stood like sentry at the entrance of the block - jotting down statements of those retiring late from work before allowing them entry , while another waited at the lift gate on eighth floor. Visitors' registers were fetched, CC TV footages were collected, housekeeping staff were summoned. Suddenly the building complex of Suparna Sengupta's flat was brisling with activity.
'Hello I'm Inspector Sarkar. Arunava Sarkar. You filed a missing person report in Saltlec police station an hour ago Ma'am'.
Shivangi found a tall, sturdy man of 30-35 years age with a pair of dark, probing eyes and a pointed nose looking at her. He had long, curly hairs and his face was covered with short, boxed beard. He forced a cutely bashful smile when he shook hands and it seemed to set free a million butterflies in her stomach.
The flat was filled with darkness. 'There must be a fuse cut', Arunava gestured to someone and lighted a torch. Shivangi remembered that when she had visited the flat an hour ago the lights had flickered and went out, one after one. The first thing which took their attention was the feeling of doom which remained suspended in the air like thick, black clouds. 'Let's check the balcony first', Arunava looked at Shivangi. Those strict, probing eyes had a twinkle in them now. She lowered her eyes.
The sound of water trickling could be heard coming from the washroom. In the darkness everything appeared ghastly around. The light from the torch drew strange shadows on the walls as they crept from one room to another.
They checked the almirahs, desks, shelfs, lofts, under the tables, below the bed and every where for clues. But the girl seemed to have disappeared suddenly as if under a spell. 'I hope you haven't touched anything here when you entered before. Be careful Ma'am. We may lose fingerprints of your sister's abductor'. Shivangi knew she could trust him.
A three BHK apartment was too big for Suparna, but no small-sized flats were available for rent in the complex. On the top of that the close proximity of her office from the location and a reasonable monthly rent had made the broker's offer irrefusable. Once it appeared to Shivangi that three shadows moved across the walls with them instead of two . 'Something is wrong with the fuse box Sir. I'm afraid It's the job of an electrician.' Almost immediately a man sprang out of nowhere, scaring the shits out of her. In her state of anxiety she had forgotten the constable.
Strangely some things in the room had changed. The furnitures seemed to have changed positions. A chair had been pulled in front of the dining table. There was a plate with traces of biriyani in it and few crockeries lying on the table . But she was sure she had seen all utensils and crockeries in the sink last time.
An inkling caused her to check the microwave. The oven was hot, as if someone had heated food in it a few minutes ago. She could clearly remember Suparna's clothes to be lying at the centre of the sofa, but now they were lying at the corner. She had locked the collapsible gate and handed over the key to the caretaker in presence of Mr. Sen, the association's secretary. There was no way anybody could've sneaked inside. Was her mind playing games in the dark ?
