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I have rummaged through the papers on his desk in his absence. I could find nothing but a notebook with poems written in it, college lecture notes, and a few letters from home. The letters contained pleas from his parents and relatives to return home. He had ignored these requests, which proved he had some compelling motive for staying. If the motive had been a legitimate one, it would certainly have come up during our conversations by now. However, his suspicious behavior was ample proof that the reason was anything but honest. This boy was a part of the underworld that made the ordinary citizen uneasy. He was no ordinary college student; he was only masquerading as a harmless college student. I respected him for his artistry.

Finally, I had to physically introduce a woman. Harimati, my colleague in the police department, arrived to assist me. I told Manmoth that it was Harimati whom I loved. While making sure that Manmoth was nearby, I even recited a few poems to Harimati and she, making certain that the youth was within earshot, made it known she had lost her heart to Manmoth. But this did not yield the desired result; Manmoth began observing us with curiosity.

One day, I found torn pieces of a letter strewn in his room. After strenuous efforts, I was able to correctly join together a few pieces and deciphered an incomplete sentence "today evening at 7 p. m. secretly at your lodge". I was unable to find anything more.

I was thrilled. I felt exhilarated like a paleontologist who has dug up a fossil. I knew that Harimati would be arriving at our place at 10 p. m, so why arrange something at 7 p. m? This boy was really intelligent! He had chosen the day carefully; it is better to plan a crime when there is some special event happening in the house - everyone's attention is focused on the event, and no one bothers about anything else.

A doubt crept into my mind; I began to suspect that Manmoth was exploiting this newly-developed friendship with me and my pretence of love for Harimati to aid him in attaining his own objective. It was a good idea to lead everybody to think that he was occupied with Harimati and me while pursuing his own dark objective secretly.

Just ponder this reasoning: A student prefers to remain in a lodge during the vacations, ignoring requests from his relatives to come home. There cannot be the slightest doubt that he had stayed out of some necessity. I had invaded his privacy by moving into his lodge and even introduced a female. Yet, he had shown no bitterness. He had neither abandoned the lodge nor did he avoid us. However, I have noticed on several occasions - when he lowered his guard - that he actually loathed both Harimati and me. It could mean only one thing: he was using our friendship as a cloak.

When I met Manmoth that day, I offered to treat him to dinner. "Let's have our meals in a restaurant at 7 p. m. today," I told him. He was taken aback but quickly recovered his composure. "No, brother, I am in bad shape today with an upset stomach," he said. Manmoth had never before refused to dine in a restaurant.

I wasn't expected to remain in the lodge that evening. But I deliberately engaged Manmoth in a conversation and did not show any inclination to go out. I noticed that Manmoth was becoming very uncomfortable. He agreed to everything I said and did not enter into any argument. Finally, looking at his watch in desperation, he stood up and said, "Aren't you going to pick up Harimati today?" I feigned surprise, "Oh! I had completely forgotten. Brother, please prepare the meals, I will return with Harimati around 10.30 p. m." So saying, I left.

I was rather pleased with myself. I was excited beyond words, and this excitement was no less than what Manmoth was experiencing while awaiting the hour of 7 p. m. I removed myself to a safe distance from the lodge and, remaining well hidden, stood vigil. When twilight descended and the street lamps were lit, I saw a palanquin, balanced on the shoulders of bearers, drawing up to the lodge.

I did not dally. Taking slow and easy steps, I climbed the stairs to the first floor. At first, I had planned to remain in hiding, observe, and eavesdrop. But I could not put that plan into action because Manmoth was sitting, facing the stairs, and a woman sat opposite him and talking in a soft voice. When I realized that Manmoth had already seen me, I entered the room as if in a hurry and said, "Brother, I had forgotten to take my watch. I have come back for it."

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