Compass Box Killer Read Free

eighteen as per our records,’ retorted the man in the black jacket who, by now, had started to sweat.
    ‘Okay. Go and get your records,’ said Virkar without hesitation.
    Black Jacket lost all his bravado and fell into a sullen silence.
    ‘I will have to take these two with me to the police station to record their statement,’ Virkar announced loudly to no one in particular. But before he could say anything else, a dark, portly man in an electric blue silk lungi-kurta ensemble emerged from the door behind the stage. Everyone except Virkar and the father-daughter duo moved aside in deference as he sauntered forward. The chunky gold chains around his neck and wrists shone under the bright lights of the stage. His thick, bushy moustache hung over even thicker lips which parted lazily to ask, ‘Why are you getting involved in this, Inspector Virkar saheb?’ As a Lotus Bar regular, Virkar recognized the man as Sadhu Anna, the owner.
    Sadhu Anna continued, ‘These kind of things happen daily in our business, saheb. Please take your seat and I’ll send you another beer. Or better still, I’ve just received a couple of cases of your favourite Godfather Beer from Delhi; I’ll send them to your home. Enjoy!’
    ‘This is a serious matter, Anna. This girl is underage,’ said Virkar, without backing down.
    Sadhu Anna raised his portly, gold-laden arm and placed it around Virkar’s shoulders. He smirked. ‘Virkar, nothing is going to come out of this. You know all your seniors are my friends, don’t you?’
    Virkar’s eyes turned to steel. ‘You’re right, Sadhu Anna. So, maybe I should get a few of the juniors who are my friends to start questioning all these nice customers sitting in your bar to check whether they have liquor permits,’ he replied in a loud voice that carried across the bar. Immediately, a few patrons slammed down whatever money they had in their pockets and quickly slunk towards the door. Virkar was amused to see Sadhu Anna’s mounting irritation.
    He turned to Virkar. ‘Why are you behaving like a filmy hero?’
    Virkar shrugged. ‘This is a filmy situation. A father goes to a bar for a drink and finds the daughter he had lost, performing there. But the villainous bar owner does not let them reunite. A policeman, who is also at the bar, comes to their rescue. The villainous bar owner lets them go with the policeman because he realizes that the policeman will otherwise make his life a living hell.’
    Sadhu Anna spat on the floor of the stage. ‘All right, take them with you. But remember, you will no longer be welcome here. And I will be speaking to your seniors.’
    Without wasting another second, Virkar held Binky’s wrist with one hand, her father’s with the other and pulled them towards the exit. Sadhu Anna watched them for a few tense moments and then turned towards the bouncers and waiters. ‘Laudu log, what are you all staring at me for? Get the next singer!’ he yelled.
    Outside the Lotus Bar, Virkar hailed a cab. He made the father and daughter sit in the back seat while himself getting into the front. ‘Girgaon Police Station,’ he told the driver.
    No one spoke a word during the ride. The father and daughter sat in tense silence. The cab had only driven for about ten minutes before stopping at the signal in front of Mumbai Central Railway Station when Virkar handed the surprised cab driver a hundred rupee note.
    ‘Change rakhle,’ he patted the driver and waved him away.
    Virkar asked his co-passengers to get out of the cab. Then, reaching into his pocket, Virkar fished out two train tickets and handed them to the middle-aged man who was overcome with emotion. ‘I will never forget your good deed, Inspector Virkar. Thank you,’ he said.
    Binky joined her hands in namaste, too choked for words.
    Virkar cleared his throat and pointed towards the railway station. ‘You’d better hurry. Your train leaves in fifteen minutes.’
    The man reached out and hugged Virkar. Turning