A MUMBAI MURDER MYSTERY a completely unputdownable must-read crime mystery (A Temple Hill Mystery Book 1) by MEETI SHROFF-SHAH

Author:MEETI SHROFF-SHAH [SHROFF-SHAH, MEETI]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub
Publisher: JOFFE BOOKS crime thrillers and mysteries
Published: 2021-12-09T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

Lila handed Radhi a glass of water. ‘Sit.’

Radhi had just come home from meeting Hrishi. In the living room, there were more than a dozen cardboard boxes piled on top of each other, in two neat rows. Radhi felt a flutter of excitement at the sight of her books.

Lila followed her gaze, guessing that Radhi wanted to unpack her books right away. ‘Later, didi.’

‘So,’ she announced, when she was sure she had Radhi’s full attention. ‘It turns out that our Bhawani Lal is in the market for a new job.’

Lila had spent the afternoon loitering in the lobby of their building. She’d chatted up the other maids who were supposed to be running errands but were more than happy to linger a few minutes, gossiping and sharing the stuffed betel nut paan that Lila had ingeniously thought to offer them. From one of these conversations, she had learned that Bhawani was deeply unhappy with the Kadakias. Mr Kadakia had refused to lend him the one lac, fifty thousand rupees he needed for his daughter’s wedding, offering instead a modest sum of twenty-five thousand, which had enraged Bhawani.

‘This is how he rewards almost a decade of service? Abandon a man when he needs help the most! Are our daughters’ weddings not as important as theirs? What am I going to do with twenty-five thousand? Where do I go for the rest of the money? Rob a bank? I’ll show that heartless son of a b**** to not treat people like this!’ — is what he’d been heard telling anyone who would listen.

‘When was all this?’

‘A week before the old man died,’ Lila replied.

‘And now he is looking for a new job?’

‘Yes, quite desperately from the sound of it.’

‘Why desperately?’

‘He told one of the drivers, in confidence of course, that he was even willing to take a pay cut, as long as he could get a job with a decent family. Which as you and I know is bullshit. No matter how decent the family is, nobody will voluntarily take a pay cut, unless they’re really desperate.’

‘Hmm.’ Radhika understood why the cash-strapped Mr Kadakia must’ve had to refuse Bhawani, but she could also appreciate why Bhawani, who didn’t have an inkling of Mr Kadakia’s financial troubles, was upset. He must have felt like this was a betrayal in his time of need. The question was, exactly how upset was he?

‘Thank you, Lila. You’ve been brilliant. And what about Tarika? Any luck?’

Lila shook her head. ‘She didn’t come down all afternoon. I’ll try again tomorrow.’

Radhi nodded and was about to get up, when Lila added, ‘Didi, there’s one more thing. You know the girl who works with the Kadakias?’

‘Yes, Kamal.’

‘I saw her crying profusely. She was sitting on the steps, near the landing between the third and fourth floor. She immediately stopped when she saw me climbing up. “My granny passed away,” she said, without me even asking her, and then without waiting for my answer, she jumped up, wiped her eyes and ran up the stairs to the fifth floor.

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