The Blue Bar (Blue Mumbai #1)(70)

“All right,” Nandini said. “There’s a note about a thumb drive—did you find one in the bag?”

Arnav reached for the bag, but tendrils of pain crept up his arm. Tara picked it up, turning it upside down. A tiny steel casing fell out. Nandini dragged her laptop across the table and plugged it in, but the thumb drive was password protected.

“I’ll figure this one out,” Nandini said. “I know someone who can help.”

“Be careful who you speak to,” Arnav said.

“I’ll get tea.” Tara rose and left, despite Nandini offering to make it instead.

“I’ll stay at the dojo for the next few days,” Arnav said. “The police station is right next door. I’ll take Tara with me.”

“With Joshi in these pictures, can you trust the police?”

The police. Joshi, who schmoozed with the underworld. Mhatre, on leave and a no-show even after a shoot-out at his own station. Considering all that Tukaram had told him, Mhatre could easily be a suspect.

“No. I’m leaving the thumb drive with you. Duplicate it and put the original in the safety-deposit box along with the papers. I’ll be OK with the sensei and the other students around me.”

Arnav sent the plainclothes constables back to Naik at the station. He could trust Naik, but he didn’t want extra pairs of watching eyes, not when Tara was with him.

Pulling out his notebook, he added notes.

Joshi

Ordered a transfer and promotion which would pause the investigation into the bodies.

Tara mentioned a police officer cap at the mystery client’s place.

Friends with Taneja, but also Namit Gokhale, Rehaan Virani, Vijayan

Shinde

Concealed Neha Chaubey’s identity.

Took bribes from Shetty. Is Shetty delivering the bar girls to Taneja?

What else has he not disclosed?

Connected with Vijayan, Joshi. Possible money laundering connection.

If Joshi was transferring Arnav out due to the Versova case, it could be to cover up for any one of those men.

For years, Shinde had known about Joshi’s connection to Vijayan—he had made detailed notes of the amounts Joshi received in cash via Vijayan’s shell companies. He’d never mentioned it to Arnav, despite intimate knowledge of Arnav’s desperation to bring Joshi to justice. What else had Shinde hidden? That was a thought for later. For now, he must tie together all the open threads in the case.

Or maybe there were more connections to uncover.

Nandini held a picture of Mhatre, with Joshi and Taneja. Twinkle-eyed Shinde, lounging at the bar. Joshi stood in the middle, with the looming Mhatre and the urbane Taneja flanking him, champagne glasses in their hands.





CHAPTER FIFTY-NINE


TARA

Tara didn’t want to admit it, but her heart felt lighter after she left Nandini’s apartment with Arnav. The discussions between Nandini and Arnav about Shinde’s papers, and Nandini’s kindness, had overwhelmed her.

The sensei had welcomed them to the dojo this morning and assigned them two small rooms facing each other on the upper floor. The rooms were bare, a single bed and dresser in each, but she was moved to see clothes her size in her dresser. Arnav had remembered that her suitcase was at the hotel, to which she couldn’t go back. She wished they were going to his home, where she could take better care of him. Arnav was adamant—this was safer.

He’d been on the phone nonstop and encouraged her to get changed into more comfortable clothes while he finished his calls and met with his assistant. She’d not been alone with him even once, and it gnawed at her. She must tell him about Pia, and the men Zoya had seen.

Worrying about Arnav after the shoot-out and anxiety over money had kept her up most of last night. How would she pay for Pia’s school? She’d spoken to Zoya—Shetty had called Zoya, asking for Tara’s whereabouts.

Tara hoped Arnav would go easy on her when he realized he had a daughter. And, now that she wasn’t earning money, why was she still in Mumbai? She could book a flight back and spend Diwali with Pia. Who knew if they’d get another chance? She cursed her absurd foreboding. Don’t give up—find a different way to fund Pia’s education. She would return as soon as Shetty gave up asking about her and Arnav said it was safe for her to leave.

She was about to dial Zoya when her friend’s name flashed on the screen.

“Hello! Aren’t you supposed to be dropping Pia to school?”

“Where are you?” Zoya sounded hoarse. “Why won’t you . . . pick up?”

“Did you catch a cold? Why are you breathing so hard?”

“Tara!” Zoya’s voice rose.

“What’s wrong?”

“They took Pia.”

“What are you saying? Who?”

“I’m near Pia’s school . . . stepped out of the auto . . . paying them when a car stopped and it was so fast . . . and by the time . . .”

Tara heard her sob. Her mind went blank. Pia.

“I’m sorry, I should never have . . . I told you,” Zoya babbled and gasped on the phone.

“Get ahold of yourself.” Tara spoke with feigned calm. “Tell me what happened.”

As she pieced together Zoya’s account, Tara sank down on the bed, phone in hand. Zoya had ferried Pia to school a little later than usual. While she was paying off the auto-rickshaw, she’d spotted the same blue car as before. Three large men had rushed up to them and, before Zoya could react, grabbed Pia. While Zoya screamed, two of them held Pia and the third put a cloth over her mouth. The car had raced off.