As he walked down the road, he saw a blue car parked near the construction site of FoGo Builders. It was half-past eleven at night and it was unusual to have a car there at this time. After he walked a few steps away from the building, he heard a gunshot and scream, which made him stutter with fear, and he ran from there like a bat out of hell. 

He made it to his room in a half-hour and repeated to himself that what he just heard was his imagination and nothing more than that, and went to bed. He woke in the morning with a calm mind and decided not to dwell on the things he heard yesterday. The day went normally until he read the headlines of the newspaper while having his breakfast from the tea shop; the headlines said- 'Ram Shankar, the owner of Hubble Vehicles Pvt. Ltd., shot dead'. 

He stopped eating, bought a newspaper and went back to his room with a heavy heart. On reaching his room, he sealed the door and started reading the newspaper carefully. The place, the details, the time and the date match exactly with the incident he heard yesterday. Yesterday, he promised himself not to be involved in the case, but now it was a hard choice since the man who was killed is his boss.

He couldn’t move for a while. It was like he was completely paralysed. After a moment of panic, he started thinking of the possibilities, about the reasons and tried hard to make a logical conclusion. He was the last employee to leave the office yesterday and he was sure all lights in the office were off and the parking lot was empty.  The road from the office to the room was almost deserted. There was no other cars or bikes visible from the road, only the blue car,  but the only way to the building is through the main road. The blue car is not Ram sir’s that was sure but then whose? How did he come there at that time?  The more he thought about it, the more complicated it became. 

This is not my puzzle to solve, he assured himself. But his heart prompted him to go in search of answers. The man who was killed is no normal guy. Ram sir was the one reason behind all his achievements. Even the job and the room was the sign of the generosity of Ram sir. It was a dilemma. The thought of Ram sir was no more was hurting him deeply and the fact that he could be an aid to find out the real reason did exhilarate him but the fear of what will happen afterwards was terrifying. 

He folded the newspaper neatly and placed it near the TV. He looked one last time at the headline and at the photo of Ram Sir in the newspaper. A sigh escaped from his lips and tears filled his eyes as he reached for the door. He closed the door and started walking towards the office. Everything has changed overnight, he thought. With a heavy heart and confused mind, he passed the main gates and entered the office compound.

 ©Ganga Ambily Gopi