Serial Killer - 5

Broken heart of the city was bleeding everyday.
14 days, in just 2 weeks, 11 murders.
The whole city was scared & angry.
Simmering tension.
Protests everywhere.
Magazines,TV channels... all the media, projecting police as useless losers, failing in their duty.
It was humiliating.
Internet was abuzz with blogs, mails, celebrity tweets, Facebook/Orkut groups etc.
Kumar's videos were the most watched one's on YouTube.
Peace protests were held in MG road.
Malls & roads were empty.
Commissioner's cartoons were made & effigies burnt.

People from outside had started returning to their natives.
Whole city had a deserted look.
Brand Bengaluru took a beating in world stage.
There were experts & ministers, landing in the city.
CID & CBI were called for.
For police chief Anath, it was chaotic, painful and humiliating.

And Ravi Kumar....well
Every 2-3 hours, he appeared in TV special programs.
Photos of dead from different angles, murder spot, their background, video from the spot, mixing it all he was presenting them like a horror movie.

Citizens had long stopped trusting the 'don't worry’ promises of police & politicians.
They trusted no one but Ravi Kumar.
He was their hero.
He was the crusader.
He was the sensation.

Commissioner Ananth, almost had a nervous break down.

Every single personal in the department was put to work.
Patrolling the roads day and night 24/7.
Murderer had left not a single clue.
Everyone the police had doubt was inquired.
Each one in the police file was scanned.
Rs.10 Lakh prize money, for information on the Killer, got no response.
Help was sought from neighbor states, centre and other friendly nations who had tackled serial killers.
Psychologists were consulted & private detectives were contacted.

Still there was absolutely no clue.
None of the police informers could provide any clue.
What’s the bloody reason?
Ananth had put his trusted best men at work.
Still at square one!
Where’s the bloody loophole?
As he was having 10th cup of black coffee since morning, silently entered inspector Shyam, who was commissioner’s blue eyed boy.
He silently switched on the TV in the chamber.
That means there's a special bulletin of Kumar.
4 hrs back there was a murder.
Now he will present it like a Dracula movie.
As he was about to throw paper weight into TV, inspector Shyam stopped him, gently holding his hand.
'Sorry' said Ananth in a low voice.
Sleepless for weeks his eyes were red. Suddenly he looked to have aged 10 years in 2 weeks.
'It’s alright sir, I can understand your angst. But no point scolding Kumar, we have to catch the murderer, who's the reason for all this'
Sincerely agreed Ananth.
'You are right, young man, it's the frustration of not being able to catch the killer. You are right, Kumar just presents the incidents happening, on the screen. Stopping them is our responsibility’.

Shyam could feel Commissioner's voice breaking.
Not one or two, but for 25 years, his boss had achieved major victories in his career. Right from a forest brigand to the underworld, he had fought them all.
Coming from a poor family, he had worked his way up and was widely respected in the department. He was held in high regards so far by the public too.
He was Shyam's hero.
But now suddenly he was facing a humiliating defeat.
It was intolerable.

But life is like that.
After all, everyday is like a toss, who knows when you go to bed at the end of the day; it might have been head or tail, happiness or sadness, victory or defeat...