Alexei picked up the velvet with shaking hands and opened its folds. The dazzle of a stone set tiara blinded them for a moment.

“Diamonds, like real,” someone gasped.

“It’s worth millions,” Linda commented, awed.

“It must be royal. Anybody could actually be motivated to commit a murder for such a thing,” that was John, crisp and clear.

“It’s magnificent,” said Alexei gazing wonderingly at it.

“We must give it to the museum where it truly belongs,” a voice of wisdom was heard from John.

“N…No, I won’t,” Alexei screamed, backing off towards the door, “I’ll destroy this jewel. It’s ill luck. I…It is for this that I….”

He bit his lips.

“You are the one that killed Midore,” Alyssa’s hands were on her face, disgust evident in her eyes.

“I always knew it. You are a doctor too. You can’t deny because there were stethoscopes and other medical equipment in one of the drawers,” said Linda, “I was surprised but now I realise. You knew everything, about the jewel.”

Alexei was still backing off towards the patio door, one step at a time, when there was the sound of police sirens.

“The police are here,” John informed calmly.

The tiara dropped from his shaking hands.

“N…Not the police. I…I didn’t mean it. It was an accident…I…I…loved her. I just wanted the jewel gone and she was very possessive about it. That jewel was the cause of all discord when the legacy was bequeathed to her. I wanted its evil presence out of the house. Takeshi wanted it just for money. He threatened her, I guess. I saw her note and was afraid she may mean me. Believe me, it was an accident,” Alexei dropped to the ground, sweating.

“You killed somebody. It can’t be an accident,” Michael moved deftly to the patio door to block any route of exit.

“I just wanted to sedate her, and search her room. But,” he winced, “in my hurry, I forgot to make the syringe air free and just pushed in…”

His face contorted in pain, “I am ready to accept any punishment they give me. I surrender. I am the killer.”

“She trusted you, you jerk. She knew Takeshi wanted to murder her. But it was ultimately you. That means everything you told us was a lie,” Michael said through clenched teeth, holding up a small pocket recorder.

Alexei was shaking badly.

The look of hate in Michael’s eye was reflected in the eyes of the others.

“I suspected you first when you were giving full details of the postmortem report and the cause as MI. Only medicos will know things in such great detail. I go to a med school. I remember the pallor on your face when I mentioned the cause of the murder. But what you did was wrong, unethical and harmful even from the medicine point of view. You deserve cancellation of license apart from whatever the punishment for the murder you committed,” said John.

“I believe Takeshi had come to meet her. Because I bumped into him,” said Nathan.

“After he left and she had gone to sleep. I went to search for the jewel. I had made up my mind to remove the clue later. She slept like a log under the effect of the neurofen. I had a relatively harmless lorazepam, but I didn’t realise what I had done until she started choking, gasping and collapsed. I was so afraid that flushed the syringe down the toilet to remove any evidence. But her death killed me from the inside. That unlucky jewel had finally snatched my most precious possession,” he clutched his head in his hands.

618 words...
TO be completed...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dedicated to mampty joharateregeyo pamirayo, I remember you three reading my work, the open novella. And supporting me till the end. I never got the chance to thank you.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~