Kiss and Die

Chapter 75

The next morning Hafiz’s body was discovered on a stairwell.

Sheng knelt beside Hafiz. ‘They say it can take twenty minutes.’ Daniel Lu didn’t answer him, he was busy drawing a plan of the scene. ‘Twenty minutes to die.’ The smell of burning tyre was still an acrid taste in the air. The smell of roasted flesh.

‘He wouldn’t have taken that long. He hasn’t much fat on him.’

Daniel was knelt beside the body, examining the blackened corpse. Hafiz’s charred body was lying on its side, hands tied behind his back. His knees up around his chest, where the body had shrivelled as it burned.

‘They’ll save a bit on the cremation anyway. They could ask for half price, half the job’s already done for them,’ joked Sheng. Daniel didn’t comment. Sheng left him to it. ‘I’m going to talk to the family. I’ll catch you back at the station.’

Sheng made his way back down the stairwell. The Delhi Grill was the site of mourning. It had Indians queuing to pay their respects to PJ and the family. He walked past the mourners and found PJ sat at one of his tables, Flo next to him. Ali was standing, talking to people as they approached the table. Nina was busy laying out plates of food and drinks for the mourners. She kept her head down, she moved silently around as she worked.

PJ looked up as Sheng approached.

‘Mr Kahn, a word please.’

Ali gently eased the mourners out. Nina got a chair for Sheng. He thanked her. She smiled at him. His eyes lingered on her as she went about her work again, refilling the plates of food ready for new mourners.

He turned back to PJ and Flo. ‘My sympathies for your loss.’

‘Where is his body now?’ asked PJ. He had aged twenty years. His face hung in sorrow.

‘He will be moved shortly.’

PJ groaned and hid his eyes as he wiped them. ‘Still on that stairwell?’ Sheng nodded.

Ali placed his hand on his father’s shoulder. ‘It’s all right, Dad.’

PJ rounded on him. ‘It’s not all right,’ he said angrily, shrugging off Ali’s hand. ‘You said it would be but it’s not. Two of my children lost. One dead, the other in prison. How is that all right?’

Ali looked nervously at Sheng and back at his father and spoke to him in Urdu.

‘English please.’ Sheng spoke. ‘I can get a translator here if you need.’

‘No we don’t need that.’ Flo spoke. Her eyes burned with sorrow and anger. ‘We can all speak English. Hafiz was murdered by the Africans.’

‘Did anyone see it?’

‘Of course not. We smelt it though. The Mansions was full of smoke. People said you could hear him begging for mercy as he burned to death.’

‘Did anyone try and help him?’

Flo shook her head. ‘No one helps in these Mansions, not unless you want to be killed next.’

Sheng stood. ‘I will leave you for now, I’ll get someone in to take your statements. Hafiz’s body will be taken to the morgue for the autopsy. It will be released to you as soon as we have finished with it.’

PJ nodded his head, his eyes on the table. ‘Nina, show the officer out,’ PJ said, always polite, always respectful.

Nina stopped her work and walked Sheng to the door. He stopped to speak with her.

‘What do you think about it, miss?’

Nina looked up at him. Sheng wasn’t usually partial to Indians. He had never dated an Indian woman but this one had something about her that appealed to him. She had a full chest beneath the silk and the sari; she had a beautiful face and light skin.

‘My brother had got in with the wrong people.’

Sheng raised an eyebrow, he nodded. He smiled. ‘Do you live here with your family? You’re not married?’

Nina shook her head. ‘I live with my grandmother.’ She looked away shyly and down at her feet. ‘I am engaged to be married.’

‘Not yet though, hey? I tell you what – it would be really helpful to catch your brother’s killers if we could meet for a private chat about it all. I would like to help you and the Indian community. I am sure, with the right information, I could change things in here. Does that sound good?’

‘Of course. Thank you. You’re very kind.’ Nina smiled nervously. She was anxious to get away.

‘Fine then. We’ll have a private meeting, you and I, somewhere quiet where we can talk and I’m sure we can achieve a lot.’ Sheng grinned. ‘I’ll ring you here and arrange something. Don’t go anywhere.’