Chapter 46
“There is only one way to find out if my instincts are correct,” said Santosh. “Let’s check out each of the nine avatars of Durga. Each one!”
Nisha quickly flipped the page and found that the second avatar was called Brahamcharini. She was pictured with one hand holding a water pot, and another holding a rosary.
“This ties in perfectly with the murder of Bhavna Choksi,” said Nisha excitedly.
“Let’s go further,” instructed Jack, realizing that Santosh’s insight might possibly have cracked the case wide open.
Nisha browsed the pages to find the third avatar, Chandraghanta. This avatar of Durga was shown riding a tiger. She was holding a bell and had a semicircular moon painted on her forehead.
“Priyanka Talati,” whispered Nisha to Jack.
“Actually, it turns out I was right in another little observation too,” said Santosh.
“In what way?” asked Nisha.
“The name Chandraghanta is a combination of two words — chandra and ghanta,” he replied. “The first means moon and the second bell. The murder of Priyanka happened on a Monday — the day of the moon. The night of the murder as per the almanac was a half-moon night. The half-moon is also a symbolic representation of a bell.”
Jack took the book from Nisha and turned the pages to check the fourth form of Durga. The avatar was called Kushmanda. Below the image in the book was a brief explanation.
“The name Kushmanda is derived from two separate Sanskrit words,” Jack read out, “kushma, which means warmth; and anda, which refers to the cosmic egg. So Kushmanda is considered to be the creator of the egg-shaped universe.”
“Elina Xavier was left on her bed with a dozen eggs placed in an oval pattern around her,” Nisha confirmed.
“There was something else about that murder scene,” said Santosh. “The temperature in the room had been set as high as possible, remember? Which ties in with the association with warmth.”
Jack hurriedly turned the page to the fifth form of Durga. Her name was Skandamata. She was depicted as holding her son — an infant — on her lap.
“Lara...” Jack sighed, slumping in his seat.
“What are the remaining forms of Durga?” asked Santosh. “After all, we know that she has nine forms, right?”
Nisha took the book back from Jack and hastily turned the pages to find the next avatar. “Here she is.” Nisha was pointing to an illustration of a goddess mounted on a lion. “Apparently this form is known as Katyayani.”
She flipped over the pages and showed Jack and Santosh the next image — Kaalratri — a terrifying form of Durga. With a bluish-black complexion, long and disheveled hair, and seated on a donkey, this form was shown holding a bunch of thorns in her hand.
The eighth avatar was Mahagauri, depicted with a fair complexion and holding a drum. Finally, the ninth incarnation — known as Siddhidatri — was shown with four arms holding a discus, a mace, a conch, and a lotus.
“Four forms still left. It means that we should expect four more murders,” said Santosh grimly.
Chapter 47
“If we know that the murderer is killing according to the nine incarnations of Durga, can’t we use this information to warn people?” asked Nisha.
“How?” replied Santosh. “Knowing what the symbols mean tells us absolutely nothing about how the killer is choosing his victims. Nothing! For all we know, the bastard could be standing in a supermarket or on a street corner, randomly choosing targets.”
“So what deductions can we make from what we know?” asked Jack.
“Well, one thing is certain,” said Santosh. “Given that all the victims are depicted as incarnations of the goddess Durga, we can be fairly certain that all the future targets will also be women.”
“All five previous killings have been in Mumbai, which means that the city constitutes a comfort zone for the killer,” added Jack.
“There’s something in the thuggee story that is also relevant to our investigation,” said Santosh. “For most of the cult members, killing was a religious duty. They often saw their murders as a means of worship. Almost the equivalent of human sacrifice.”
“Why the yellow scarf?” asked Nisha. “What does that have to do with Durga?”
“I think I know the answer to that one,” replied Santosh. “I remember my grandmother recounting to me a legend in which Durga once fought a ferocious demon. Unfortunately, each drop of the monster’s blood would spawn yet another monster. Durga finally created two men, each armed with yellow scarves, and ordered them to strangle the demons — in effect killing the monsters without allowing them to multiply. I assume that the thuggee tradition of yellow scarves has its genesis in that story.”
He took a deep breath as he tried to clear his head. “We know that at the first three murder sites the security apparatus belonged to Xilon. There was no CCTV system at the girls’ school or in Lara’s van. What have we found out about Xilon?” he asked Nisha.
“The company was created by a retired armed forces man — squeaky-clean track record. The reason that Xilon was at all three initial murder sites was because they have a monopoly of sorts... they control around two-thirds of the security business in Mumbai.”
“What about the company’s employees?” asked Santosh.
“I am still looking into individual employee records,” said Nisha. “Two of the senior engineers are on leave and one hasn’t reported in for a couple of days.”
“Find out about the missing employee,” said Santosh, his antennae picking up on a possible angle.
“Sure, I’ll get on it first thing tomorrow.”
The library was almost empty at this hour. Most of the senior citizens who had been perusing newspapers and magazines in the public reading room had left. Any sound made within the imposing space was amplified by its high ceilings and marble pillars. Santosh’s excitement caused his voice to rise and echo. In the center of the generously proportioned room the old librarian sat in his wooden chair, dozing off intermittently, absorbing snatches of conversation emanating from the table occupied by the Private India team.
They fell silent as Jack and Nisha stared across the table at Santosh, who seemed to be lost in thought, his lips moving as his mind chewed over the latest developments.
As they waited for the great detective’s next pronouncement they cast amused glances at each other. Nisha, aware of Jack’s hugely magnetic charm, felt herself redden all of a sudden, and was grateful when Santosh looked up from the book at them, his eyes shining with excitement.
“He’s not being worshipful to Durga,” he told them. “The trinkets he attaches to them, they’re not respectful tokens, they’re silly toys. A Viking helmet, for God’s sakes. This is not some kind of veneration, it’s a desecration. Why? Because our man hates women. He’s not just killing women, he’s killing womankind.”
Chapter 48
The sea of humanity dressed in white was overwhelming. It was high noon and the weather was hot and muggy but that had not deterred over a hundred thousand devotees from gathering in open ground on the outskirts of Mumbai. A roar of approval erupted from the crowd as Nimboo Baba pressed his palms together and greeted his followers with the traditional Indian greeting, “Namaste.”