Chapter 14 – Solder
Peeya had told “The time will come” and the trio of Chavi, Praneethi and even Disha were anxious for that moment in time to arrive.
6 ½ months, after the academic year had started and three tests and a mid – term examination later, ‘The time’ had indeed arrived. It was the 15 day vacation that arrives after the mid – terms get over.
Disha, Praneethi and Chavi spoke to Pawan whose injured arm had recovered much but was still wearing a crepe bandage since the fractured bone had still not set completely.
“Peeya Mukherjee is now talking!” laughed Praneethi as Pawan listened.
A small discussion later, Pawan was appraised of all the happenings just when his father who had been waiting called at him to get into the car.
“Sorry Guys! Have to leave! Wish I could have been here with you all! See you soon though!” Pawan bade them all Goodbye.
“Bye Pawan, Take care” wished the three girls.
On the day of the last paper, Peeya had spoken to Chavi.
“The library, in 10 minutes” Peeya spoke into Chavi’s ear just as she passed her. She had no intention of being seen speaking to Chavi.
After 10 minutes, Chavi, Praneethi & Disha separated themselves from the huge crowd of students who were busy discussing their performances and their plans for the 15 day vacation & found themselves among a sea of books in the library. The library was huge; it covered the area of almost 5 regular classrooms. It had reading desks a few feet away from its main door and there were also desks along the long walls and one had to cross a small maze of tall book shelves to reach such desks.
Peeya had settled herself behind one of the tall book shelves and when she heard the sound of school shoes clicking, she assumed it would be Chavi and her friends. It was highly unlikely that anyone else would visit the library just after the exams.
“I’m back here” Peeya pushed the desk with her toes while seated so that it inclined at an angle, enough for the trio to catch a glimpse of Peeya.
The trio soon made their way to Peeya’s secret hideout.
“How was your paper?” Chavi asked Peeya
“Listen; there is no time for that! I am here talk about important stuff. Things that you girls better beware of” Peeya addressed the trio.
“Well! We have been waiting to hear from you as well! Go on!” Disha was not to be bogged down by some words of caution by an eighth grader.
“Very well! Let me tell you that, whatever you have known about this school, the bungalow and the village. They are all false” Peeya stated
“Oh great! This is what you had to tell us” Praneethi interrupted. “Shh!” Chavi chided her friend.
“All those rumors you heard about Richmond and Lily Mary are just that, Rumors, those stories are a figment of somebody’s imagination. He might have gotten into wrong company, I don’t know, but all that I know is that he did not get the Kamat family killed. His death also was not an act of the supernatural, it was the act of coward men, who wanted to take him out of their way” Peeya explained.
“And why should we believe you? How do you know so much about that family?” asked Disha who was extremely skeptical of Peeya.
“Because…. Because they are my grandparents.. on my father’s side” revealed Peeya only to see a trio of totally shocked girls.
“You are out of your mind girl! Are you listening to what you are saying? Sounds ridiculous! They did not even have children and you say you are their grand child?! What a story indeed!” Praneethi made fun of Peeya while Disha and Chavi silently looked at each other confused how to react.
“No I am not! That is the truth” insisted Peeya.
“Hello! Madam! You are Peeya! Peeya M U K H E R J E E” Praneethi laid emphasis on Peeya’s surname which was Hindu while Richmond was Christian Catholic.
“I know that; my grandparents loved each other very much and all those stories about them not sharing any relation is a load of crap. They had a son; their only kid. My granddad’s business associations with the Kamat family proved to be fatal for him. He might have been whatever he was called, a smuggler, a thief, a bootlegger, a punter. Of course, people will let their imaginations run scot free when they see a modest fisherman from a small village arrive at a big city and get rich in a short time. I, have never even seen him in the flesh, but my father always used to tell us that his father was a kind and gentle man. Perhaps he had told more, but I only remember these words as I was too small when I lost my parents” Peeya narrated emotionlessly.
“We heard your parents died in a car crash. Is it true?” Chavi asked before Praneethi could come up with another snide comment.
“Yes, they did, they were in the car when they died, but they did not die of a car crash. They were also murdered” Peeya said.
“Ha! Caught your bluff! Pawan had done some research on you and we found out that your father’s name was Kunal Roy Mukherjee. Would you connect the pieces? We are getting lost here” this time Disha assumed Praneethi’s role.
“After the entire Kamat family was burnt, my granddad started experiencing strange phenomena in the bungalow. He was being contacted by spirits from beyond the grave and they were warning him from something extremely vicious. My ageing father, quickly sent away my father whose real name was actually Russell D’Cousta to a village near Kolkata where my father bought a big piece of land, changed his name as instructed and started a new life” continued Peeya.
“What happened next?” Chavi asked.
“My granddad was experiencing more and more interactions with ‘spirits’ and he sometimes felt that he was going insane. My grandmother was slowly sinking into depression as she had to lose her only son and her husband of over 30 years claimed that he was being contacted by spirits” added Peeya.
“Why didn’t your father try to contact your granddad later?” asked Disha.
“He was instructed not to. His life as well as mine and my mother’s was all in danger. My granddad had bequeathed his entire property in my name and his enemies had no clue about this. They had to eliminate me along with my parents to hold sway over the huge D’Cousta property” replied Peeya.
“Well then if your real parents are dead, then who are you living with now?” Chavi asked.
“With Kailash Roy Mukherjee, the D’Costa family lawyer. He was the only one who really cared for the family and immediately took me into his fold. When I turned 8, he sat me down and narrated all the events” said Peeya.
This was sounding like a potboiler movie that had so many twists in the tale and there is a lot of confusion about what was true & what was not. Nevertheless, the girls had decided in unison that they would put their faith in Peeya.
“My granddad’s enemies were successful in hunting down my parents, when they realized who they were. For 5 long years, my father had protected his identity, but he seized the opportunity of sponsoring the construction of this school when it came to light that it was being constructed with a spectacular view of his family estate. His emotions got the best of him” tears had welled up in Peeya’s eyes just as she lifted her hand to wipe them off with a handkerchief.
“We had flown down to Bangalore when I was probably over 3 years old when the School’s foundation laying ceremony was to take place. That was the first time that I saw my grandmother. I didn’t even know who she was, but was later told by Mr. Kailash, my foster father who she was”
“But what about your grandfather’s death? Why did his own dogs kill him?” asked Praneethi.
“Men can be unfaithful & ungrateful, dogs can never be” said Peeya.
“Well then how do you explain what happened to your granddad” asked Chavi.
“Lucifer & Gabriel were brought into the house when they were just puppies. They were a gift to my father on his 13th birthday. They were brothers and the whole family loved them like sons. They were 15 when my father was asked to go away to Kolkata and in dog years, believe me 15 means old, very old” reasoned Peeya.
“You still haven’t answered my question!” said Praneethi.
“That was a conspiracy too. My father had found out everything that happened to the Kamat family. Who was behind it and why granddad was so scared for his son’s family’s lives. He had done a great deal of research into granddad’s gallery and who the stakeholders were. To the outside world, only my granddad and the Kamat family were visible, whereas there were other key players too and apparently they were getting insecure about the growing relationship between my granddad and the Kamat family.
They had tried to intimidate my granddad who was a minor partner by ruthlessly killing the entire Kamat family. They even threatened to hold him responsible for their murders if he didn’t yield to their demands. My granddad was incorruptible; he did not want to betray his friends. So the bad people spread rumors about my granddad’s involvement thought the cops also could never prove anything against him” Peeya explained.
“Who are these ‘they’ that you keep talking about?” asked Chavi.
“They don’t have a name, yet! But that’s what I had wanted to find out, when I came here. This school has many investors and my foster dad Mr. Kailash came to know that the men who killed my dad & granddad were major stakeholders here. They actually have their eyes on the Bungalow and the huge estate & of course the gallery which is being managed by trust on behalf of my grandmother, Lily Mary” said Peeya.
“Well, the property is in safe hands then! How can anyone possibly seize the estate & the bungalow without either your grandmother’s consent or the trust’s?” asked Disha.
“Precisely the point! My grandmother seems to be in no state to think of anything at all. She has been in a state of shock ever since she saw the way granddad was killed” said a crestfallen Peeya.
“Have you spoken to her yet?” asked Chavi.
“No! It’s very dangerous. I cannot be spotted by anyone talking to my grandmother. That will expose my cover & moreover those dogs there, they are not ours. Lucifer & Gabriel were both poisoned & killed and they were replaced by these trained dogs by them” explained Peeya.
“There must be a way out to get to speak to her. We must! Maybe that will give us some clues” pondered Chavi loud enough for the other 3 girls to hear.
“Anyway, what is your real name? We know it is not Peeya!” asked Praneethi.
“Well I was baptized in Kolkata and was named Priscilla D’Cousta” revealed Peeya.
“No way! This can’t be!” gasped Chavi.
“What?” asked both Praneethi and Disha “What can’t be?”
“This.. this.. this book I am reading! Wait a minute! Peeya! Have you been reading my book?” asked Chavi.
“What no! I never read books! What are you talking about?” shrugged Peeya and there was no guilt in her voice.
“Amazing! Whatever you said so far is almost a replica of the story I am reading. The story is set in a land & time so different and yet the characters are strikingly similar and most interestingly, its your bloody name! the little girl’s name in the book was also Priscilla… Priscilla Schneider” said Chavi.
“Well maybe you could find out how it ends soon. Perhaps we could follow the hints from the book” said Praneethi.
“You people can’t be serious! We act based on a plot of a horror thriller that Chavi is reading! That sounds so silly!” said Disha and Peeya seemed to second her opinion.
“No! I think the book has definitely something to say! Maybe its fate’s decision that Peeya gets justice this way. We must leave no stone unturned. There are some things that we cannot explain easily” said Chavi.
“Whoa! You are freaking me out now! I think we must go now. We have spoken enough. We will get back together after lunch. Tonight is going to be a long one” said Disha.
“Alright our room at 9.30 P.M tonight!” said Chavi and Peeya nodded in agreement.
“But we all leave for our homes tomorrow!” said Praneethi. She was true. They had a 15 day vacation for which they had been waiting for more than 6 months and yet they were in a predicament.
“Can’t we stay here for 3 more days? I think we are getting close to something and if we take a break now, who knows what else will happen? Peeya will be staying here and I assume she can be in danger” asked Chavi.
“No Guys! This is my problem; I will try to solve this somehow. Please don’t spoil your vacations for my sake” Peeya said.
“Hey! I assume when you disclosed your case to us, we became friends and friends do not abandon each other in times of distress. We can bear to wait three more days to see our families. What say Praneethi? Disha Di?” said Chavi. She had spoken wisely & bravely and both Praneethi and Disha liked her stance very much.
“We are with you. We will call our parents tonight. Alright? Now shall we leave Madam?” giggled Disha.