Makum’s Cheenapatti looked festive that day. It looked as though the entire neighbourhood had been spring-cleaned. On both sides of the neat lanes stood Chinese houses fenced with bamboo. The wooden beams of most of the houses wore fresh coats of bright red paint. The courtyards had been cleaned and the small gardens had been weeded and manicured to show off the colourful flowers. The main doorway of each house was decorated with red posters and couplets with auspicious golden lettering on them. All of Cheenapatti was decorated with red lanterns and festoons.

Robin, Pulok, Chitta, Rameswar and Narayan were on their way to C Hoi’s house. Wrapped in a shawl all over from his waist up, Thakur Prasad stood at the entrance of the lane. Seeing them, he chuckled, ‘New Year fever? Whose house have you been invited to?’ Though he asked the question with an innocent face nobody could mistake the sarcastic tone they were well acquainted with.

‘Why do you ask?’ Robin replied sternly.

‘Just like that. I’ll be going to Dulal Yem’s place myself. He is a good friend of mine.’

‘Dulal? Your friend?’ Chitta laughed.

‘Why did you laugh?’ Narayan asked.

‘Ask him what kind of a friend Dulal Yem is to him. Hey Thakra, shall I tell him?’

‘Oh ho! Why must you spill everything? I don’t want to get into meaningless issues.’

‘Oh really! Then why do you spend your time at the police outpost?’

‘Leave it. Let’s go,’ said Rameswar.

‘Wait, wait. Let’s hear the story first. Thakra, tell them what happened.’

Thakur Prasad didn’t speak, but his eyes twinkled with sarcasm.

‘He won’t. Let me tell you. Everyone knows about his friendship with Dulal. But, do you know what he did? He betrayed Dulal’s father in court.’

‘Why shouldn’t I betray him? His father called me a government agent. Should I sit idle after that? When I got the chance, I paid him back,’ retorted Thakur Prasad.

‘He said nothing of that sort. I was there when he said that,’ Chitta said. ‘Whenever he gets a chance he taunts the Chinese. That day he was taunting Dulal’s father. Dulal’s father got angry and said, “You say all this because you are a government agent.” That was all. If Dulal’s father had known that this man would take it to heart would he have taken him along to court?’

‘Why did he take him along?’

‘Thakra, you tell him.’