Peacock Feathers

‘Sure thing,’ said Jacob, setting another place, ‘and now,’ he continued, beaming at the children, ‘what would each of you like?’ There’s egg bhujia, sausages, cheese, fried onions and tomatoes, lots of hot buttered toast, and different kinds of jam. There’s also tomato chutney which tastes great with the egg bhujia.’ ‘Oooh! What a choice!’ said Nimal hungrily. ‘I’ll have a large plate with some of each, please.’ Jacob joined in the laughter over Nimal’s appetite, but as the idea was a good one, the others decided to have the same and ordered for Peter, too, since they knew what he liked. Jacob went off to place their order and seat some other passengers. ‘There’s Peter,’ said Rohan, spotting the young man as he came into the car. Peter saw the children and immediately walked over to join them. ‘Hey! What a pleasant surprise to meet all of you on this train,’ said Peter with a broad grin as he hugged the girls and shook hands with the boys. ‘Do you mind if I join you for breakfast?’ ‘Of course not,’ they chorused. Peter sat down as Rohan said, ‘We asked for a larger table so that we could sit with you.’ ‘How did you know I was on this train?’ asked Peter in surprise. ‘I didn’t see you at any of the stations – though I must confess I didn’t look out as I was busy doing a report on my computer, which had to be emailed off to my boss last night.’ ‘We saw you run into Tooku station at the last minute, and just about miss the train,’ said Rohan. ‘How come you were so late for it?’ ‘Well…,’ started Peter and then stopped as a small bark was heard. He peered under the table and saw Hunter. ‘And whom do we have here?’ he said. ‘Oh, sorry, that’s Hunter,’ said Nimal. ‘Hunter, shake. This is one of our best friends.’ Hunter waved his right paw in the air and looked up at Peter. Peter shook his paw and patted Hunter on the head. He, too, loved dogs. ‘What a beauty he is,’ said Peter after he had fussed over Hunter. ‘How did you get him? He seems like a very intelligent dog – he didn’t even growl when I sat down.’ ‘I guess he recognized from our tones that you were a friend and wanted to greet you,’ said Rohan. ‘He’s smart, and man, does he ever have some queer habits.’ The children took it in turns to tell Peter the story of how they got Hunter and the strange manner in which he ate grapes and watermelon. Peter was thoroughly amused and very pleased for them and the dog. Their breakfast arrived and they tucked in hungrily. Hunter was given a special bowl with sausages and biscuits, and of course everyone gave him bits and pieces from their own plates. It was a delicious meal, and they ate in silence for a while, gazing out of the windows at the changing landscape. They were now passing through dense forests and the trees were getting closer together and taller. There was also a fair amount of underbrush, and every now and then they spotted small animals like rabbit, deer and jackals pausing in their search for food to watch the train from a safe distance. As they waited for second rounds of food, Rohan said, ‘You were about to tell us why you were so late for the train, Peter.’ ‘Oh, yeah,’ said Peter. ‘Where shall I begin?’ He thought for a moment and then said, ‘You know about the problem the Conservation has been having with peacock poaching?’ The children nodded. They were aware that, for the past month, poachers had been killing peacocks, and Rohan’s parents were very concerned about this but had not had much luck in catching the crooks. Peter continued, ‘Well, last week even more peacocks were killed. Three birds were stripped of all feathers and just left to rot near one of the waterholes; the others were found in various parts of the jungle, also without their feathers. There wasn’t even any attempt to bury the poor creatures.’ Peter’s voice growled in anger. The children were horrified and Anu and Gina had tears in their eyes. They all hated the idea that anyone could be so cruel as to kill animals or birds in the first place, and then to just leave them to rot like that. It was appalling. ‘That’s disgusting and horrid!’ said Anu passionately. ‘Why are people so horrible? How would they like it if someone did that to them?’ ‘Over how many days did this go on?’ asked Rohan sharply, ‘and were all the birds killed at the same waterhole?’ ‘Well, the birds were found within a week, and we think they were killed at waterholes located in the northern area of the Conservation – within walking distance from each other,’ said Peter, ‘but we’re not quite sure.’ ‘How come Uncle and his staff were unable to catch the fellows?’ asked Nimal furiously. ‘They’ve tried everything they could,’ said Peter, ‘but you know how large the Conservation is and not too many of the staff can leave their other work to cover fifteen to twenty waterholes each night. Though the waterholes are in the same location, it would take a minimum of twenty minutes to get from one to the other. Also, the poachers are very cunning and clever; they seem to know exactly where to hit next without being caught and, because the weather has been so dry lately, they don’t even leave any footprints.’ ‘So what’s happening now?’ asked Rohan. ‘I’m sure Dad won’t give up that easily.’ ‘Well, that’s the reason I was late for the train,’ said Peter. ‘Your Dad called my boss last morning and asked if I could be sent to deal with this problem as a special case. My boss knew that I loved the Conservation and the animals, and realized that I was very keen on dealing with this situation and catching those crooks. I was wrapping up a case in Tooku last afternoon, and since I had just been assigned to help with another case in Hardwar, he felt that I could handle this one, too, since Hardwar is so close to Patiyak. So he called me up and told me to get on the case. I had twenty minutes to catch the train. The Tooku police station used a police car with a siren to get me to the station in time. And, so, here I am.’ Peter was well respected in the force, and had risen rapidly in the ranks. ‘Wow! That’s great, yaar,’ said Nimal. ‘I’m sure if anyone can catch those crooks, you can. Did you bring all your “detective” things, too?’ ‘You mean like my raincoat, magnifying glass and violin?’ asked Peter, grinning broadly. ‘No, of course not,’ said Nimal with a chuckle. He had also read about Sherlock Holmes, the famous detective. ‘I meant your kit for taking finger prints, a gun, your portable computer with email facilities and all that kind of high-tech stuff.’ ‘Yes, of course, but I need those more for my other case,’ said Peter. ‘However, I’m hoping that a certain group of young people I know will assist me. What do you say? Will you have time to help me with this case? I could use five bright sparks like you.’ He looked around the table at the eager children and raised his eyebrows questioningly. ‘You bet we’ll help. You’d have a tough time trying to keep us out,’ exclaimed Rohan excitedly. This was the first time Peter had worked on a case in their vicinity, and Rohan was thrilled that they may be of some help to him. He would get hands-on experience as a detective, too. The others nodded fervently as well. Gina slipped her little hand into Peter’s and sobbed, ‘We won’t go back to school till we catch those crooks. They are mean and wicked.’ She was most distraught. ‘What’s up, Gina?’ asked Jacob, as he returned with their second order of food and looked at the little girl in concern. ‘She’s upset because of all those peacocks which are being killed, Jacob,’ said Peter, giving Gina a consoling hug. They told Jacob what was happening on the Conservation and he was most indignant. ‘But why peacocks?’ asked Jacob. ‘Because,’ explained Rohan, ‘these beautiful birds – especially the “Indian Blue” peacock – are often caught and exported to traders looking for exotic birds to sell; or they’re killed for their feathers. There’s an enormous market, both in India and abroad, for ornamen