Hey folks, I’m Rupali, your host and welcome
to my channel Crime Hack!
We are listening to the story “Mystery of
the Catacombish Tunnels”.
I would be publishing a new episode
every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, so mark
your calendars and let’s dive right in.
Nayak Brothers And The
Mystery of the Catacombish Tunnels
By Rupali Rajopadhye Rotti
Part 5
Aakash was beaten up just one day after Valentine’s,
so his friends Raj and Sandy are discussing
if he had gotten involved with the girl Priya
to attract trouble of this magnitude.
While Sandy thinks that’s the case, Raj
disagrees because Aakash’s bike was stolen
but not his gold chain.
So something didn’t make sense to him.
Reaching college, they met up with their best
friend and Aakash’s brother Dev.
Dev was looking miserable, but to the others,
he was still the cool dude with his dazzling
smile.
His eyes were red, showing that he hadn’t
slept the night before, and as soon as they
arrived, he took them aside.
“I need a favour,” Dev stated in a hushed
tone.
“Don’t worry; we’ll help you complete
your journal,” Raj assured, and Dev looked
baffled at first.
Slowly, his eyes widened.
“Oh, shit, I forgot all about that.”
Going into a sudden frenzy, he pulled the
journal out of his bag and holding Raj by
his arm, scurried to the nearest aisle.
Raj wailed.
“Let’s at least not do this on the highway.”
The isle was no less risky.
“Come on, cry-baby, half our nation’s
students study by the streetlights; this aisle’s
at least in a college.”
Raj grimaced.
“There goes my first lecture.”
“You wouldn’t even miss it, I promise.”
Dev flashed a conniving smile.
“Here.
You complete all the left side pages, I’ll
do the rights.
Just tell me where n’ what to write or draw,
and I’ll do it.”
Raj and Dev got busy wrestling with each other,
pulling the journal this way and that to finish
their side of the paper, while Sandy took
care of the stationery and distractions for
them.
He sharpened their pencils, fetched the sole
rubber which flew time and again through the
air as the men-at-work snatched it from each
other’s hands, and also handled their friends
who came to either say ‘hi’ or to watch
the little circus.
Amazingly, the journal was finished within
minutes and the boys took a breather.
“Oh, man,” Dev sighed.
“No wonder the outsourcing business is flourishing
– there’s so much demand.”
Soon, Dev grew serious again.
“By the way, the favour I was gonna ask
you, wasn’t about the journal completion.”
he lingered.
“Then what?”
Raj coaxed.
“Would you try and find out who did this
to my brother, and why?
I know the police have been informed.
But you see…if they come in here, into our
college, for investigation, the news will
spread like wildfire.”
Raj and Sandy realized that Akash’s reputation
was at stake as well, not to mention that
of the girl.
Dev continued, “So, I’m going to request
that the police don’t come to the college.
But at the same time, I’m not letting the
culprits hurt my family and get away without
being brought to justice either.”
For the first time, Dev lost his smile.
Raj looked at him with newfound respect.
Man!
When did he grow up to think about the consequences?
But Dev wasn’t looking; he had turned to
wave at a friend.
“I know that if anybody could help me right
now, it is you two.”
He looked back at them.
“I know you can work on this better than
anyone else, and we can still manage to keep
this a secret.”
Raj and Sandy needed no further coaxing; they
couldn’t turn down their friend in need
and, moreover, this was a great chance at
some sleuthing.
The boys were excited, yet troubled at the
irony that their first real case was to be
so close to their hearts.
During the day, in between periods, they got
a chance to see the girl, Priya.
She was beautiful, no doubt, with long, straight
black hair and a cute little round face.
She always seemed to be surrounded by a lot
of friends.
Priya Mahajan came from a lower middleclass,
conservative family that had found their abode
in a humble locality where people cared for
each other.
Every family in that locality had their own,
individual crosses to bear and the Mahajans
were no different.
A few years ago, Priya lost her brother to
an accident and suddenly the quiet, shy girl
had to grow up.
She not only tossed her grief in the basket,
but also became cheerful, strong and considerate
for her parents because the loss was too overwhelming
for them and someone needed to step-in as
the mast.
So, she did.
Over the years since then, while her parents
put the grief in the past, she became the
source of strength and cheerfulness for the
people around her.
But almost nobody in the college knew about
this, and she was a complete stranger for
the Nayak brothers.
Raj walked up casually and called her aside.
“Can I talk to you for a sec?”
When asked about Akash, she turned furious.
“Whoa!
What happened?”
Raj was taken aback.
She went pink in the face.
“He…proposed to me…”
“Oh?”
Raj mused aloud, and Sandy shot him a triumphant
look.
Unfortunate for them, Priya caught this small
exchange of glances and asked, “What is
it?
Why are you asking?”
She eyed them intently and Raj flickered under
her gaze.
“Let’s talk it over in the canteen?”
Sandy proposed with a polite smile, buying
some time to think over a proper response.
Their mission was to extract as much information
from her as possible, without divulging anything
that could ruin their effort.
Moreover, for all they knew, she or her family
could’ve been behind the beat-up.
In the canteen, while Sandy went to place
an order, Raj and Priya took seats.
“So…you two are friends of Akash, huh?”
she asked, and Raj assumed a guarded stance.
Would they be next on the beating list now?
Nevertheless, he nodded, trying to look as
normal and relaxed as possible, produced a
smile even.
“Well, being his friend, it’s difficult
to believe he did such a thing.
I mean, he’s like the race-horse with those
things around the eyes…”
Raj placed his open palms about his face so
as to block the side-views, and then flashed
an awkward smile.
“You know what I mean.
Graduation, post-graduation, dad’s business,
arranged marriage, business, kids, business,
grand-kids, retire, and then go to hell…
h-heaven.”
He gulped.
Priya giggled, digested Raj’s opinion about
Akash, and then responded.
“I agree.
He’d struck me exactly as you described…
But on the 14th, Deepak came to me with a
red rose and said that Akash had sent it.”
“So, Deepak had come to you?
Huh…”
Raj mused aloud, and then admitted, “I don’t
know what to say now… but I can see why
they say: love ‘smitten’.”
There was no doubt that Priya was an attractive
girl – maybe Akash really did become interested
in her.
However, Raj was still skeptical about the
guy with the ‘planned life.’
Priya looked apologetic.
“Look, I’m sorry.
I know he’s your friend, but I’m not into
all that stuff.
I can’t afford to get into an affair and
all — it makes life so complicated.”
“Agree on that one,” Raj empathized.
“If you don’t like the person who proposes
to you, it becomes difficult to get rid of
him.”
“And I don’t even want to imagine if more
than one person proposes.
Then you’re stuck with dealing with ego
clashes as well,” she finished, shaking
her head.
“Yeah.”
Raj found an opening and decided to give a
direction to the conversation.
“But in such a situation, I’d use the
one I prefer, to beat up the one I don’t.”
Saying so, he eyed her closely for reaction.
Priya blinked, as if hit with something unpleasant
and out of the blue, then shook her head in
disgust.
“Guys can think of nothing but violence,
now can they?”
She rose to leave.
“Anyway, that’s a cheap way of dealing
with the situation.”
And she left the canteen.
Sandy walked up with three cups of tea.
“Where’d she go?”
Unknown to them this whole while, a guy had
been watching them intently from another table.
