FORTY-FOUR

The return to Sambalpore was an exercise in frustration. Two hours that felt as long as six. Each precious mile travelled felt like a journey in itself, purchased with the most valuable currency I had – time.

I felt a gnawing unease in my bones. Finding Golding had offered succour of sorts. I’d discovered not just his body, but also, I thought, the reason for his murder. The pieces slotted into place. The Dewan had been siphoning off diamonds, either for himself or for others. He’d killed Golding because the accountant had discovered the fraud and refused to be bought off. And where better to dump his body than in a mine shaft in the middle of nowhere?

Any exhilaration was tempered by cold reality: I may have worked it out, but there was damn all I could do about it. I thought I had the truth and, if the old Maharani, Shubhadra, was to be believed, I should be satisfied with that. It was all very high-minded, all very Indian. But I was British, and the thought of truth without justice rankled.

Through the afternoon the sky had grown black beneath the monsoon clouds and, as the lights of the town came into view, the first drops of rain began to fall.

Beside me Surrender-not smiled.

‘What’s so funny, Sergeant?’

‘I was just thinking of the map in Golding’s office, sir. It seems that sometimes “X” does mark the spot.’

‘True,’ I said, ‘though it’s rarely the final resting place of the man who drew it on the map in the first place.’

What was more, having visited the site, I finally had some idea of what that ‘X’ had meant. Colonel Arora had been adamant that there had never been diamond mines in that part of Sambalpore. It turned out he was right. I was no expert, but even I could recognise coal when I saw it.

‘We need to contact the colonel as soon as we reach town,’ I said, suddenly straining at the leash of my own impatience. I had decided I had a Dewan to confront.

At the Rose Building, I jumped out into the rain before the car had even stopped and made for the stairs, taking them two at a time with Surrender-not close behind. I burst into Colonel Arora’s office, startling his diminutive secretary.

‘Where’s the colonel?’ I gasped.

‘He’s with His Highness, Prince Punit,’ said the man, rising from his chair.

‘Find him,’ I ordered, catching my breath. ‘And tell him Captain Wyndham needs to speak to him immediately.’

The man looked out of the window. The expression on his face soured as he saw the downpour.

‘I’ll call the prince’s private secretary,’ he said, reaching for the telephone receiver on his desk. ‘That will be faster.’

And drier.

The secretary dialled a single-digit number, asked the operator for the connection, then waited. With each passing ring, he became increasingly nervous, probably worried that should no one answer, he’d have to make the journey to the palace after all. Finally there came a click. He smiled, then spoke quickly in Hindi. The reply came just as quickly, the secretary nodding all the while. Seconds passed, then finally he passed me the receiver.

‘What is it, Captain?’ came the familiar voice.

‘Just one moment, Colonel,’ I said.

I turned to the secretary and asked him to leave the room. The man was about to protest, but thought better of it once Surrender-not had grabbed him rather forcefully by the arm and begun to escort him out the door.

I turned back to the telephone. ‘We’ve found him.’

‘Golding?’

‘What’s left of him.’

‘Where?’

‘In a mine shaft near Remunda.’

‘And you can link Davé to it?’

‘Golding met with Davé the morning he disappeared, and his report was found in Davé’s safe, along with a doctored version.’

‘It’s not conclusive.’

‘Does it need to be?’ I asked. ‘Even if we can’t prove Davé’s involvement in Golding’s murder, we can prove his involvement in the fraud. You’ll find all the evidence of that in Davé’s safe and among the papers in Golding’s office. As I see it, with the Maharaja incapacitated, it’ll be Prince Punit who’ll take the decisions round here in future. What with your little show last night, Punit obviously trusts you. I’m sure you could convince him to charge Davé on the latter point. And with him out of the way, the post of Dewan would be vacant. I think you’d be in line for a rather rapid promotion.’

There was silence for a moment.

‘And what would be in it for you, Captain?’

‘I want to see Golding’s remains retrieved and given a proper, Christian burial, and I want Davé to answer for his crimes,’ I replied. ‘If I can bring him down for the fraud he’s perpetrated, I know that in Sambalpore he’d receive a fitting punishment for all his crimes. Especially if you were the new Dewan.’

He gave a short laugh. ‘So, suddenly the concept of innocent till proven guilty no longer appeals to you? I can’t say I’m surprised.’

‘I’m a believer in justice,’ I said.

He paused before replying.

‘Meet me outside the Maharaja’s office in an hour.’