"Well, who's to know?" said Vinay, throwing his hand in the air, turning away from Helen.
"What?!" said Helen. "So you don't know how she died?"
"Look, no one was around when she died, so no one can tell for sure. But since I was the person that was in touch with her toward the very end, I'd like to think mine's the best theory."
"Which is what?" said Helen, slightly nervously.
Vinay hoisted himself up and sat atop the railing of the bridge.
"After I proposed to her, all she could think of was getting married to me. She came out of her shell and started trying on nice clothes and wearing makeup," said Vinay. "Not that it made her look any less dreadful, but that's another matter."
"I don't need your editorial comments" said Helen, her tone cold. "Just state the facts."
Vinay chuckled. "She almost stopped eating in order to get in shape for the wedding, and that's where the problem started."
Helen closed her eyes.
"That's what anorexia does to you--you think you are overeating and getting fat, whereas in reality you may be malnourished," said Vinay.
"I know that."
"I used to visit her during those times to get a power of attorney done in my name--she was completely smitten with me, and I wanted to milk it--and I'd force her to eat. But I was away for a while, during which time she was left practically unmonitored."
"I tried calling her, but her phone was dead for several days toward the end."
"That's because the phone is with me--she left it with me before leaving for her Vipassana course, and after she came back, I didn't return it to her on some flimsy pretext, so the tenants that I drove away from your Bandra property wouldn't be able to get in touch with her," said Vinay. "She probably became too weak toward the end because of the starvation and wasn't able to get out of the room to ask for help. That mosquito net in your room--it can be a task getting out of that if you have no strength left in your body."
"You are responsible for her death," snapped Helen, flaring her nostrils. "And I'm going to be responsible for yours." she continued, limbering up her shoulders.
"Oh, please. If anything, I made her last days beautiful for her," said Vinay, dismissively. "And no one's dying tonight. Unless, of course, you suck the life out of me if you know what I mean."
Helen fell silent for a few moments and took a couple of backward steps.
"All this makes no sense. Why didn't she ever mention to me any of this?"
"How could she? I banged her hairy ass once just to make a sex movie--if you can call that sex--and used it to shut her mouth for good," said Vinay. "The good old blackmail trick. Never fails."
Helen's fingers clenched into a fist, and her face twisted in fury.
"I have that video on my phone. You want to take a look?" said Vinay, pulling out his mobile phone and pressing some keys. "In fact, I'd love to show you my collection to get you warmed up. I'm quite possibly the most prolific filmmaker ever. My phone could be a porn site's server!"
Vinay held his phone in Helen's direction. A video gallery application was open, with large thumbnails of the videos.
As Helen looked at the screen, her eyes widened in repugnance. She moved her hand over her mouth and gagged.
"You fucking bastard!" screamed Helen. "I can bet a lot of these are minor boys and girls!"
"Sure they are."
"You fucking pedophile!"
"Easy there," said Vinay. "Those kids are all past their puberty and perfectly consenting."
"So what?!" said Helen, disbelievingly.
"Look, I'm a man of nature. After puberty, a person is biologically ready to have sex. If it classifies as pedophilia, change the laws."
"You are scum of the highest order!"
"Look, everyone has their weaknesses--mine is my hormones. If I don't have sex regularly, I'll just implode. I fuck all kinds, you know. Age no bar; sex no bar."
Helen moved her hands over her ears, with disgust stamped all over her face.
"But I give back more to the world than I take," said Vinay. "I'm the greatest stage actor there ever was, a competent multi-linguist, a psychologist, a top-notch software programmer, an explorer; you name it."
"All those things don't right your wrongs."
"Look, I have my rights, and I have my wrongs," replied Vinay. "My biological parents abandoned me at birth and left me on a gutter--a rather cliched choice--but that's exactly where they left me. What do you expect the child of such parents to grow up to be? The man I call dad is my adopted father. He has been a physical laborer all his life and still works his ass off in Dubai. I have now made enough to help him live the rest of his days like a king."
"By robbing innocent people and leaving them in debt."
"So what? Debt is what makes the world go around, babe. Come on, now. You want me to give you a lesson in economics?"
"You," said Helen. "Are the worst human being alive."
"Oh, come on. The planet has seen far worse people. Instead of blowing things out of proportion, why don't you blow me out of proportion? That might stand you in better stead," said Vinay. "Bad wordplay again, but I couldn't resist the temptation this time either."
Helen stood her ground and slowly moved her right hand over her kurta.
"Come on, get to work now; we've had enough of talking," said Vinay. "You don't want me to force myself on you, now, do you?"
Helen plucked out the knife from underneath her kurta and brandished it at Vinay, stomping her feet. A metallic clang reverberated through the structure of the bridge. "No one can force themselves on me!"
Vinay looked on, amused.
Helen started shuffling from foot to foot, her stance combative.
"Ah! And here I was, thinking I'll be the one drawing first blood," said Vinay, winking at Helen.
Helen studied him carefully.
"I'm glad you thought of bringing along a prop--it does add weight to the scene, but you know as well as I that you won't be using it in this scene," said Vinay cockily.
"What makes you so sure?" challenged Helen.
"Well, let me sum it up for you, so you can put your gray matter to better use, which is to figure out how you can give me an explosive head," he said snottily.
Helen brandished the knife again.
Vinay seemed completely unaffected.
"Look, let's face it: for all practical purposes, I'm the new owner of your property, off which you were earning rent, your only source of income. Your medical intern stipend is a joke and probably lets you buy only your monthly quota of sanitary napkins. Oh, in fact, since you are an extern, you probably don't even have a stipend! Either way, you have no money to pay your education loan EMIs, and Machhi is inches away from your ass. In short, you are screwed. Or are about to be. By whom, is your choice."
Helen stared at Vinay disbelievingly.
"Now, to your good fortune, I got to you first. In return for banging you at least thrice every day, I'll protect you from Machhi and Bhau, so they are left with only one another's asses to screw. Poor buggers," said Vinay. "What's more, I make love like a stallion!"
Helen brandished the knife again.
"Look, this is your only chance," said Vinay, now sounding slightly irritated. "Unless you do exactly as I say, you lose everything forever. So save your hormones for a little later, and hand over that useless little prop to me."
Helen stared hard at him for half a minute or so.
He held out his palm. Helen flung the knife off the bridge, into the water.
"Smooth move, but you are down a knife. Add Rs. 200 to your debt. In fact, my dad works in a knife factory. I'll get you one for cheap."
Helen stared at Vinay.
"Now, my dear, start making me happy," said Vinay, spreading his thighs apart.
After a few moments, Helen slowly moved closer to Vinay, squatted down, and moved her fingers toward his trousers' zipper.
Vinay pulled out his mobile phone, started the video recorder, and pointed it toward Helen's face.
Helen slowly pulled down his zipper.
Vinay threw his head back.
Helen looked up at him.
"I have waited for this moment ever since I set my eyes on your impossibly beautiful body," said Vinay, his head still back.
Helen grabbed his ankles, pulled them toward her, sprang on her feet, and flung them upward. Vinay lost his balance, his feet going over his head, and slipped off the railing, banging his head hard against a column of the bridge, somersaulting in the air once, and plunging into the lake below, still looking up at Helen--his eyes filled with indescribable fear--before disappearing under the surface of the water.
Helen walked up to the railing and rested her elbows on the railing, surveying the sight.
Vinay screamed, splashing around.
Helen looked at him in amusement.
Vinay kept splashing around helplessly and gradually looked like he was losing strength.
Helen stiffened.
Vinay disappeared under the surface of the water.
Helen bit her cheek, thumbing her ear, tapping her right foot.
There was no movement on the surface of the water.
Helen's mouth hung open.
A few bubbles rose to the surface.
Helen climbed up on the railing and dived into the water. After swimming toward the area where he had sunk, she dived, emerging moments later, holding the lifeless man. After a lot of physical effort, she dragged him to a patch of land.
Squatting near him, she shook him vigorously. He did not respond. She pinched his earlobe. He did not respond.
She swept a couple of her fingers around in his mouth and removed some trash that had got lodged in his throat.
"Always assume a neck injury" she muttered to herself.
Water started spilling out of his mouth. Holding his head, she turned him on his side. Some water drained from his mouth. Then she placed both her hands below his ears and jut his jaw forward, opening his airway. Then she leaned over him placing her cheek near his mouth.
"Breathe, you idiot!"
Helen pinched his nose, drew a long breath, and blew into his mouth. She had a disgusted look on her face. She repeated this a few more times.
Using both her hands together, one on top of the other, Helen started rhythmically pushing down in the center of his chest firmly, with her arms straight. She stopped after about a minute, checked his pulse, and let out a long sigh.
"Shit"