Blood Feud by Brenda Donelan

Author:Brenda Donelan [Donelan, Brenda]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-06-18T22:00:00+00:00

Those who make the most threats seldom do anything.

Hindu proverb

Chapter 18

True to her word, Meena showed up at Marlee’s apartment at 3:00 that afternoon. She looked just as frazzled as she had earlier that morning and looked over her shoulder twice before entering the apartment.

“What’s got you so spooked, Meena?” Marlee asked.

“So many bad things could happen if I am seen meeting with you. Many from my husband’s family work on campus and would not hesitate to make trouble for me.”

“What are they worried you might say?”

“In our family, it is the eldest male who is the spokesperson for the family. That would be Raj’s father, in this instance. All information about family matters is to be disseminated through him. The family is concerned that I might say something which is not in keeping with the official family version,” Meena stated. “They think I might talk because I am a modern woman and work outside the home. My father-in-law once told me he was afraid for his son and our children because I placed my employment before them.”

“Oh, no. Is that fairly typical here in India?” Marlee asked and Meena nodded.

“Women are not to have their own opinions when they differ from the male head of household.”

“What do they think you are going to say?” Marlee asked. “You said earlier that you knew something about Raj’s death.”

“Promise me you will not tell anyone else,” Meena pleaded and Marlee nodded her assent.

“I overheard Raj’s parents speaking to their eldest son, Ajay. They asked him directly if he poisoned Raj. He denied it, but there was something in his denial that did not ring true to me.”

“Why would they think Raj was poisoned?” Marlee asked, intrigued by this new branch of the mystery.

“His mother said Raj was feeling better that day once he was moved into his room. He was very, very sore, but did not need help using the toilet or feeding himself. She thought he would be fine to return to work in a few days after the pain from the bruising subsided. But later that day, he seemed delirious. Raj said he was tired and wanted to rest. They all left him alone for a few hours, and when his mother checked on him at meal time, they found him unresponsive.” Meena took a deep breath before continuing. “There was a drinking glass that his mother did not bring to him. It was there when she left him to rest but was gone three hours later when they found Raj unresponsive.”

“Wow, that’s really suspicious. Anyone in the house could’ve brought Raj that glass, and anyone could’ve later removed it from his bedside. Do you know if there were any extra people in the house that day other than Raj, his parents, and his brothers and their wives and kids?”

“Raj’s parents did not mention anyone else. And as far as I know, Ajay was the only person they asked about poisoning him. It is possible, I suppose, that they questioned others when I was not around.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.