The Awl

Who Dun It

Chapter I: The Awl

The office of Detective Bose was thick with the scent of old paper, stale tobacco, and something heavier — regret. The dim light from the single window fell across stacks of case files, each one a reminder of battles fought and scars carried. Bose stood silently; his gaze fixed on a framed photograph of his sister. Her smile was frozen in time, but his eyes brimmed with unshed tears, the kind that never seemed to fall yet never truly left him.

“Excuse me!”

The sharp voice cut through his grief like a blade. Bose startled, quickly wiping his eyes before turning. A woman stood in the doorway, frail and trembling. Her clothes hung loosely on her thin frame, and her face bore the hollow look of someone who hadn’t eaten properly in days. Before Bose could speak, she collapsed.

He lunged forward, catching her just before she hit the floor. With surprising gentleness, he carried her to the small bed tucked in the corner of his office. Sprinkling water across her face, he coaxed her back to consciousness.

Her condition alarmed him. He turned to his assistant. “Ashish, get some food for the lady. Quickly.”

Ashish nodded and rushed out.

Bose leaned closer. “Are you alright?”

Her voice was weak, stammering. “Y-Y-Yes… I am okay.” But tears streamed down her face, unstoppable.

“Why are you crying?” Bose asked softly. “Tell me what happened.”

The woman drew a shaky breath. “Someonnn…” Her words dissolved into sobs.

“Alright,” Bose said carefully. “Tell me your name first.”

“Shreya,” she whispered.

“Okay, Shreya. Now—”

“I was sexually assaulted,” she interrupted, her voice breaking.

Bose froze for a moment.

“Who assaulted you?” said Bose after a pause.

She gulped, her eyes darting away. “Aryan Kukreja.”

The name hit Bose like a thunderclap.

Aryan Kukreja, a wealthy businessman but not only he was businessman — he was also Bose’s friend.

“How do you know Aryan?” Bose asked quickly.

“I was his employee,” Shreya said, her voice trembling. “Yesterday, I made a mistake drafting an email. As punishment, he forced me to stay late. When he saw me alone… he misbehaved with me. And then…” Her words dissolved into sobs again.

Bose’s jaw tightened. “What do you want me to do?”

“I know Aryan has connections — legal, political, everywhere. It’s impossible to punish him through the system. So I want you to find dirt on him. Something I can use to punish him myself.” Her voice shifted from despair to anger.

“There is no need to worry about money,” she said while wiping her tears.

“No, sister,” Bose said gently. “I’ll take care of this.”

At that moment, his phone rang. Aryan’s name flashed across the screen. Bose hesitated, then answered.

“Hey Bose! You’re coming to my birthday, right? I just sent you the details.”

“Yes, I’ll be there. Thanks for inviting me, bro.” Bose forced cheer into his voice before hanging up.

Aryan’s Office

Aryan Kukreja sat in his lavish office, spinning idly in a leather chair. The walls were made entirely of glass, sunlight pouring in from every angle, making the room glitter like a diamond.

He dialled a number. “Hello Darling! I am calling to invite You on my birthday, Shreya. Details are sent. And make sure not to make any mistakes this time, Shreyaaaa.” His tone was mocking, flirtatious. He hung up with a smirk.

The Birthday Party.

Bose was running late for the party. He was on a run; he saw the gate of the hall, reached for it, and opened it. Suddenly, his eyes began to glow as he entered a grand hall shimmering in gold and black. Golden chandeliers bathed the room in warm light, while black curtains and tablecloths created a striking contrast. It was a palace of decadence, a sun suspended in space.

Aryan stood at the top of the staircase, basking in admiration. “Welcome, everyone, to my thirty-sixth birthday! Tonight is special. As a gesture, each of you will receive a golden watch. Enjoy the evening!”

The crowd erupted in cheers.

Detective Bose entered, scanning the room. To his surprise, Shreya was there too, lurking in the shadows. It looked like she was trying to hide from someone. The worst part was that she was holding a knife, and her eyes were red. She looked scary, though. Seeing her like that, Bose rushed to her, but at the same time, he was approached by Rakesh. “Where have you been, Man! I have not seen you in days,” Rakesh approached Bose.

“Nothing, Recent days were tough for me, I was just trying to figure ou--” Bose stopped while saying it and then again started looking for Shreya, who had disappeared just from that moment.

“Excuse Me!” Rakesh interrupted him.

“Yeah! Sorry, where was I?”

“Are you alright, Bose?”

“Yeah! What is going to happen to me? Leave me. Tell me about yourself. I recently heard that you lost your father. It must be tough for you and your sister, Ragini”.

“Yeah! It was tough, but every coin has two sides. He left enormous wealth for Ragini and me.”

You must be thinking, who are these characters that came in the blink of an eye? So let me introduce you to Rakesh and Ragini.

Rakesh was a restaurant owner. He was one of Aryan’s closest friends. He was a mutual friend of Bose and Aryan. He listened to everything that Aryan said, and he always tried to butter Aryan. The reason behind this is that his whole business is alive only because of him. Aryan’s money was the only plug for his business, and if he pulled it, then his restaurant finances would collapse. He was almost financially dependent on him.

But why does Aryan keep giving him money?

You must have been thinking, so first of all, let me tell you, Aryan was no saint.

He gave money to Rakesh, and in return, he treated him worse than his servant.

Let me understand you through an incident.

It was the time of summer, and Rakesh was on holiday with his girlfriend. Rakesh seemed happy, and they were enjoying and sharing beautiful memories. His girlfriend was in the sea, and he was just relaxing on the sand.

Suddenly, a scream came that disturbed the whole mood,

“Raaaaaakeeeesh”

It was Aryan, he saw Rakesh and came there, and at the same time his girlfriend was coming out of the sea, Aryan looks her and opened his mouth looking hungry for something.

He shamelessly demands Rakesh in front of his girlfriend that he likes his girlfriend and wants her for the night.

Initially, Rakesh thought he was joking, but soon he realised that he was not joking.

Aryan already done worse things earlier, but this time it was the worst of all.

Rakesh was angry, but he couldn’t do a thing to stop him. He watched the whole thing. His girlfriend screamed, “Save me”, but Rakesh bowed his head down and walked straight to his apartment.

So, this was the incident. And this is only the tip of the iceberg.

So, this was Rakesh, burdened with the debt of Aryan, and it was so big that he always saw it as impossible to pay.

The night deepened, and guests began to leave. By midnight, only a few people remained — people whose livelihoods depended on him. Rakesh, the struggling restaurateur. Ragini, the fashion designer whose shop was funded by Aryan. Rani, his secretary and personal assistant. And Sujal, Aryan’s brother, who lived entirely off Aryan’s wealth.

Aryan grinned. “Now, let’s make the night more interesting.” He pressed a button, and the doors locked with a metallic clang. “We’ll play music loud enough to shake the walls. If you feel unwell, headphones are provided. But remember who wore the headphones first, lose and the winner gets a Rolls-Royce. But no one leaves until morning.”

No one dared object. Aryan was their benefactor, their lifeline.

During the game, Bose saw a shocking scene in which Shreya was trying to seduce Aryan. Bose was confused by the behaviour of Shreya.

The game ended abruptly when Aryan, distracted by Shreya’s attempts to seduce him, led her upstairs.

Bose was seeing them going upstairs and then approached by a really strange but excited person.

“You are Detective Bose right, who solved every mystery, I know you, I read all your cases, oh god! I know that I am going to meet you one day, I am your huge fan, Hi I am Raj, Oh my God, I am shaking hands with India’s greatest detective, I read your biography also, how your father was cobbler and how you fought that, No, You are not going to be cobbler like your father” Said the excited person after meeting with Bose, Bose didn’t reply at all, he just nod his head.

Both were talking, and at the same time Rani joined to both and asked to the Bose, “ How are your sister doing, she didn’t come to office at all, where is she” Bose take a deep breathe and said, “ She ran off with somebody and never returned I am still waiting for her and I want her to comeback since.” “I am sorry, I didn’t know”, said Rani. Bose quickly replied, “It’s Okay”.

Moments later, a scream shattered the night.

“Aaaaaaaaaaaaa!”

Everyone rushed to Aryan’s room. He lay sprawled on the bed, drenched in blood.

Shreya stood nearby, trembling. “I didn’t do this,” she whispered.

Bose stepped forward. “No one touches anything. Raj, assist me.”

Aryan’s body was face down, his back soaked in blood. A broad belt lay beside him, stained. Blood pooled across the bed, dripping onto the floor.

Raj frowned. “He must have been stabbed from behind. Shreya was with him. She had a knife. It’s obvious.”

“Means, Motive and Opportunity, The three things behind every murder. You are right, she has motive and Opportunity, but the means is missing here, as a matter of fact, she has been found with a knife, but there is no blood on it,” Said Bose on which Raj quickly replied, “Maybe she washed off the knife in the bathroom.”

Bose shook his head and said, “We can’t convict on assumptions.”

“So what now?” Raj asked.

“We search for means, motive, and opportunity — for everyone.”

In the hall, Bose gathered them all.

“Until I find the murderer,” he declared, “everyone here is a suspect.”

Rani spoke first, her voice trembling. “I was his secretary. He used me whenever he wanted. I was nothing but a toy. Sometimes he was so harsh… he forgot I was human.” Tears streamed down her face.

Rakesh snapped. “I didn’t kill him! Yes, I hated him. But killing him would ruin my restaurant. I need him alive.”

Bose’s eyes narrowed. “Didn’t you inherit wealth after your father’s death?”

“Yes, but Ragini inherited too. Why not blame her?” Rakesh retorted.

Ragini’s eyes flashed. “My inheritance doesn’t make me a murderer. And Rakesh was with Aryan all night. Maybe he did it.”

Rakesh pointed at Sujal. “Aryan’s death benefits his brother most, because he was the nominee of Aryan’s insurance, which means he benefited the most in case of Aryan’s death.”

Sujal shrugged carelessly. “Why would I kill him? He was my ATM. He gave me everything I wanted, without asking me. If you want a suspect, look at Rani. She was always upset.”

Rani’s voice cracked. “Both brothers are the same. Both used me. Sometimes Aryan, sometimes Sujal. And Sujal is not any saint, once he told me he wanted Aryan dead, so he could take everything.”

“Yes, I want to kill him, but I didn’t, how can I and why do I take the company in my hand as it was already in losses and I didn’t know even an A of how to run the company, but why are you blaming us Shreya is the one who has been sexually assaulted by Aryan, why she was seducing Aryan, this only means she wanted to kill him” Sujal said in a frightened voice.

Shreya’s eyes blazed. “Yes, I seduced him. But not to kill him. I wanted to humiliate him, to make him suffer. Killing him gave me nothing.” “How are you planning to do with the knife?” Sujal asked.

“By emasculating him, I want him to suffer so bad that he can’t even be able to do this again”, Shreya replied while everybody was stunned with the reply of Shreya.

Everybody was listening to Shreya but Bose suddenly remembered something he rushed to the room. Everybody ran behind him.

Everyone reached to the room and saw Bose examining the belt.

Bose examined the belt again. His eyes narrowed. “The awl,” he murmured.

Raj blinked. “What?”

“The murder weapon wasn’t a knife. It was an awl. See this tiny puncture in the belt? A knife couldn’t make that.

“How can you say that it was The Awl?” Raj asked

“If you examine the crime scene correctly, it was the only sharp weapon that could pierce the belt.

What I think is that someone pierced the belt with The Awl long before Aryan entered the room. The belt was tight, blocking the blood. That is why Aryan did not collapse at the moment when someone stabbed him. But when Aryan removed it, the wound opened, and he bled out instantly.”

The room fell silent.

Raj whispered, “Then who planted the awl?”

Bose’s gaze swept across the suspects. “That is the question. The answer lies within Shreya’s account… and the secrets each of you hides.”

The hall seemed to shrink, the golden light now suffocating. Everyone’s eyes darted nervously. The truth was close, but the question remains the same: Who Dun It – I