Lucknow's Midnight Bullet

Chapter One: The Silence at Kumar Niwas

Lucknow wore a thick shawl of fog that night—more smothering than soothing. In the heart of Gomti Nagar, past iron gates and rows of neem trees, Kumar Niwas stood in brooding silence, the kind that echoed long after a gunshot faded.

At precisely 11:38 PM, Rajiv Kumar—real estate mogul, ruthless tycoon, and secret keeper—was found slumped in his leather recliner. Chest wound, single bullet, clean kill.

The city that once prided itself on grace and kebabs now whispered murder into the air.

Chapter Two: Enter Inspector Nalini Singh

She didn’t wear bangles. They’d clink too loud. Inspector Nalini Singh moved like a knife through silk—calm, precise, devastating.

At 7:10 AM, she stood in the drawing room of Kumar Niwas, eyes grazing the opulent room: crystal chandeliers, silver hookahs, velvet curtains, and... blood-stained carpet.

"Victim: Rajiv Kumar, 45," murmured the constable beside her.

"Time of death?"

"Between 10 PM and midnight."

Singh clicked her pen. "Let’s meet the ghosts in this mansion."

Chapter Three: Suspects and Shadows

1. Nalini Kumar, age 40. The widow. Elegant, composed, hiding fire behind kohl-lined eyes.

Motive: ₹15 crore life insurance and a crumbling marriage

Alibi: “Asleep in my room.”

Clue: Maid heard a spat. Saw her leave room at 10:45.

2. Vikas Gupta, 42. The business partner with ambition and a whiskey habit.

Motive: Fight over Kumar Constructions’ future

Alibi: "At a wedding" until 9:30 PM. Camera spotted his car near the house at 10:45 PM.

3. Rohan Sharma, 28. Fired that morning. Knew too much.

Motive: Discovered financial fraud. Humiliated. Angry.

Alibi: At a friend's place. Friend denied.

4. Karan Patel, 25. The rebel lover. Rajiv's daughter’s forbidden flame.

Motive: Disapproval. Threats from Rajiv.

Alibi: Said he was in the university library. No one confirmed.

Everyone had secrets. And Inspector Singh was ready to burn through them all.

Chapter Four: The Crack in Vikas Gupta’s Glass

Hotel logs were clear. Vikas left the wedding at 9:30. By 10:45, his car circled Kumar Niwas.

"Stopped by for a file," he told Inspector Singh. Sweat glistened behind his collar.

"You argued with Rajiv, didn’t you?"

He caved. "Yes. At a café. 9:30 to 10:30. We fought over shares. He wanted me out."

"And Nalini Kumar?"

Gupta’s lips parted—but no words came. Singh noticed the flicker in his eyes.

Chapter Five: The Web of Calls

Rohan’s call logs weren’t clean. Multiple calls to Karan Patel’s burner phone.

"You planned something," Singh said sharply.

Rohan crumbled. "We were going to leak his embezzlement to the media. That's it. Nothing more!"

Karan backed it. Barely.

His fingers fidgeted. His gaze dropped. “We hated him… but murder?”

Chapter Six: The Nightstand and the Truth

The gunpowder trace on Nalini Kumar’s nightstand was faint but damning.

"I... touched Rajiv's shooting jacket," she offered weakly.

"Our forensics say otherwise. That jacket was clean."

Then the silence cracked.

She sobbed. Her lips trembled.

"He... found out. About me and Vikas. He went mad. He said he'd kill me, ruin me."

"And so you shot him?"

"In self-defense!" she wailed.

Chapter Seven: Lovers and Liars

The confession gave Singh motive, means, and moment.

But the twist?

Vikas Gupta.

He admitted to the affair. Denied involvement in the murder.

"I was going to leave her. And the business. Rajiv found out. I didn’t think she’d...”

“Push the trigger?” Singh asked, steel in her voice.

Vikas lowered his eyes.

Chapter Eight: Closure Is a Lie

Nalini Kumar was arrested. The city buzzed with the scandal. The press called it "Lucknow’s Midnight Bullet."

The court would debate self-defense.

But Singh knew.

Guilt wasn’t always a straight road. Sometimes it branched—into lust, betrayal, ambition.

As she stared into the Gomti that night, its waters dark and endless, Inspector Nalini Singh whispered to herself:

"The real shadows aren’t behind us... they walk beside us."