"I am sorry, I agree." That police officer Nicholas nodded his head. "But he has not confined to a single place and he visited many places and would have taken his breakfast, lunch and dinner at many restaurants and moreover there was a chance that poison might be given to him through the food he has taken at other times also. It Is not an easy task to decide who has poisoned him and how."

"What you have decided ultimately then? Drop the case completely?" the angry expression in Stuart's face was intensified even more.

"No, never." Nicholas nodded his head in negation. "I am just trying to tell you it may take a long time to find the culprit through our investigation and it may not happen at all also. So I want to give you a suggestion."

"I am interested in knowing about it." Stuart's face was suddenly filled with a curious expression. "Tell me what it is?"

"Hire a private investigator."

Stuart laughed on hearing that. "Private investigators are not new to us. We have hired private investigators for some of our works previously. But if the task of finding the culprit is as much serious as you said, a private investigator also may not be much helpful."

"Not some ordinary private investigator but a skilled and professional one. I suggest you a real, skilled and professional private investigator and you hire him. I promise you that he certainly gives you the result."

"Then give me his details."

Nicholas put his right hand in his right side front pocket, extracted his purse first from it and then a visiting card from that purse.

"Contact him. Generally in the beginning he does not like to visit his customers at their home but considering your reputation, I think he agrees." Putting that visiting card into the extended right hand of Stuart, Nicholas said.

As soon as Nicholas went away from that place, Stuart looked at that card. Mr.Smaran, Proprietor, Smaran Detective Agency and his cell number in it. Without any delay Stuart dialled that number.

***

"In the beginning customers have to come to me and I don't visit on them. But I know about your reputation so I have decided to come like this."

Even he could not guess how much efficient and skilful that Smaran was, Stuart was impressed by his physical appearance.

"Nicholas said this to me. I know him well and I know unless you are capable, he would not have recommended you to me. Anyhow thank you very much that you came to me like this."

At that time in Stuart's chamber in the office, along with him were this Smaran and Isabella.

"But my conditions for investigating into a matter are common to all people Mr.Stuart and under any circumstances they would not be changed. Before I start my investigation into this matter, I am thinking you may better to know about them. And we both have to sign on a contract also in this regard."

"If the conditions are agreeable to me, I have no objection to sign on a contract. But first let me know what those conditions are."

"I do visit any people and ask any questions. You must not prevent me from doing that. That is my first condition."

Stuart looked into the face of Isabella for once and then looked into the face of Smaran again. "What is the next condition?"

"I may visit any place for searching and may want to have anything for the same purpose. You must not deny that."

"Any other conditions?" Stuart knitted his brows together.

"The last condition."Smaran paused for a second before saying. "Sometimes my actions appear absurd, useless and irritating to you. But you must not try to obstruct to me."

"If it is so..........." when Stuart looked into the face of Isabella again she said with an uneasy expression in her face. ".............we may better think once again before hiring this detective."

"If you want to think about whether to appoint me or not whatever may be that investigation, I have no objection. But I don't start my investigation unless you agree to these conditions."

Stuart stooped forward, balanced his arms on the table in between them both and looked straight into the face of Smaran. "I have no objection to your conditions and I sign on the contract. But can you make me the promise that you hundred percent catch that culprit and get him punished?"

"Sir, I am thinking that you are hastening. If his conditions are like that, we may better think deep about it." The uneasy expression in Isabella's face was just so.

"You stay calm Isa, here I am talking." Without looking into her face Stuart said still looking into the face of Smaran. "Can you give me the promise like that Mr.Smaran? can you hundred percent catch the culprit?"

"I don't have any details about the case so far Mr.Stuart. You did not tell me anything over phone except you want me to investigate into something. Unless you fill me with the details, I cannot say anything."

"Alright then. Now I give you the details." Then in a measured tone Stuart explained to him how David Carter entered into their organisation again, how after few months his niece also came to her uncle and became his wife and how David Carter was murdered by poisoning. "David Carter is indeed an asset to our organisation. In these few months of his staying with me itself, he helped me a lot. I am sure one of my worst competitors poisoned him to death. They know very well what a big asset he is to us and removed him like that from us." In the end Stuart became angry.

"So it was not the first time that this David Carter worked with you. In before also he worked in your organisation."

"Absolutely yes." Stuart nodded his head. "He worked at my father for five years while my father was alive. Then he left for some other organisation."

"How the relationship was between your father and him?"

"Very nice I must say." Stuart said. "My father has lot of respect on him. He quite often said that David Carter was intelligent and very much helpful."

"What was that David Carter's opinion on your father? Was he also satisfied with him?"

"Hundred percent! He always held my father with lot of respect. He hundred percent satisfied with my father."

"If it is so..........."

"I know what do you want to ask Mr.Smaran. If the relationship was like that between them both, why David Carter left my father, is it is not?"

"You are right!" Smaran laughed. "That is what I want to ask."

"David Carter's wife and his son died a long time back. After that occurrence David Carter has become a sort of mad, completely upset and could not stay at any place longer. He changed so many organisations and in that process he came to my father also. He was a skilled and efficient chartered accountant so my father recruited him instantly. Our office was the only office where he worked for such a long period of five years." Stuart sighed heavily and leaned back in the chair. "But after five years he thought very much to change once again and went away from our organisation also."

"When he asked, did your father let him go willingly? Did not he try to stop him at all?" Smaran adjusted himself in the chair for more comfort.

"It was appearing so. Anyhow I cannot say about that much." Stuart said. "From six months or so back to that date, I was in USA of course on our business purpose itself as we have branches in USA also. So I did not know how my father felt when David Carter said to him that he wanted to go away."

"Anyhow how long back it all has taken place?"

"Ten years back."

"Why did he come to join in your office again?"

"He said he became old and wanted to stay at one place from then on. I did not ask for the reasons but he resigned to the organisation he was working at that moment and while he was thinking where to join, he remembered our organisation. So he came straight to me. As I knew him well, I did not have any objection to take him into our organisation again."

"You said that he has come here with his niece. What about her?"

"I did not say that he has come here along with his niece. She came here after three months of his joining in our organisation." Then he explained about Jasmine to him. "I said that also we both became man and wife later on. That his niece Jasmine is my wife now."

"I see." A small smile filled the lips of Smaran seeing the blush on Stuart's cheeks then. "Have you got any file on that David Carter with you at present?"

"No, I don't have any particular file of him with me." Stuart said. "I did not ask particularly anything from him to recruit him in our office again. I already know him well and I did not think that was necessary. Anyhow it is mainly because.............." Stuart paused for a second before saying again. "................he has crossed sixty five years that means he could not work as a permanent employee in our organisation but only as a temporary employee. As per statutory rule we cannot take people aged more than sixty as permanent employees. So I did not show too much interest in maintaining a file on him."

"Anyhow your father would have some file about him in the office. I think he would have asked him some of his documents to satisfy himself about his qualification, experience etcetera. However much close they both might become later, he was a stranger to your father on the first day."

"I agree with you." Stuart nodded his head. "I have to cause a search in my human resources department for his file. But I am not thinking it is necessary at all. That file may not give any clue to you about his murder."

"I already told you some of my queries and actions appear quite absurd to you. I think your father has a file on him and I hundred percent want to see into that. You may better get that file as fast as possible for me if you intended to appoint me."

"You did not let your opinion known to me yet." Stuart once again leaned back in the chair and said. "If I agree to your conditions and cooperate with you in all respects, can you catch the culprit and how much time you do take for it?"

"Mr.Stuart, in the hundred or so far of my cases the failure percentage is only one. My subconscious is saying to me it is not going to be difficult to catch the culprit in this case. If you give me the chance, the maximum time I do take to catch the culprit is, one month."

"Really, really you are thinking like that!" with a shocking expression in his face Stuart said. "Can you really catch the culprit just in one month?"

"I am thinking positive about it Mr.Stuart." Smaran smiled. "If I cannot keep my promise and find out the culprit just in one month, you need not pay any amount to me. I have stopped taking any payment from the cases in which I faced failure."

"Money is not a big thing for me Mr.Smaran but what all I want is that the culprit has to be caught and punished." Smaran once again stooped forward in his chair and balanced his arms on the table once again and asked with a determined expression in his face. "When can I sign on the contract sir?"

"These contracts are always ready with me Mr.Stuart, we need to fill just some gaps in that." Then Smaran put his right hand in the suit-case he took along with him and took some set of papers from it. After writing something in those papers, he put them before Stuart and Stuart has gone through them one after one carefully before signing on the each page of it. While he was handing over that to Smaran, he looked into the face of Isabella and her face was with full of uneasiness.

(I hope that you enjoyed upto here. I publish the next chapter as early as possible. Please don't forget to rate and review the same.)