Three Days Later
The city was quieter than usual.
The air carried tension—unspoken, electric. Even the sun looked hesitant behind grey clouds. The school had reopened, but something had changed. Fear lived in the hallways now.
Samruddhi walked through them like a ghost.
Whispers followed her. About the incident. About Arpan. About how she had "barely survived."
She ignored them.
But she couldn't ignore the silence in her phone.
Arpan had disappeared.
No messages.
No calls.
Not even a "stay safe."
She stared at her phone during lunch, refreshing his chat again and again like it might suddenly bring him back.
But all she got was:
"Last seen 2 days ago."
Elsewhere – Underground Safe House
Arpan stood before a board covered in strings and photographs—Rivan's childhood, the surveillance feeds, burner phones, and the unknown woman.
He hadn't slept in 48 hours.
Vikram tossed him a protein bar. "You keep skipping meals like this, you'll collapse."
Arpan didn't respond.
He circled the image of the woman's eyes.
"I know her," he said finally. "Not her name. But that stare. That voice."
Vikram leaned forward. "You think she's connected to your father's death?"
Arpan's jaw clenched. "More than connected. I think she planned it."
He pointed to a photo.
"My father wasn't a gangster. He was a whistleblower."
Vikram blinked. "What?"
"He had documents. Evidence. Something that could've brought down half the city's corrupt elite. And then, one night… he disappeared. They called it suicide. I never believed that."
Arpan grabbed another photo and pinned it up.
"She was there. I remember her at the funeral. No one knew her. She left before the pyre was lit."
Vikram frowned. "And now she's hunting you."
"No," Arpan whispered. "She's hunting Samruddhi."
That Evening – Samruddhi's Room
She opened her laptop and replayed the surveillance footage she had downloaded from the auditorium's database. She had bribed the security guy for it—Arpan had once told her:
"Sometimes truth hides in silence. Look for the quiet moments."
She paused a frame—just before the timer first blinked on screen.
In the corner, barely visible in the crowd—
A woman.
Red scarf.
Sunlight hair.
Smiling.
Even in the chaos.
She wasn't running.
She was watching.
Samruddhi zoomed in. Blurry, but the eyes were sharp.
Familiar.
Chillingly familiar.
She remembered those eyes from a dream she'd had years ago—after her father's accident. The woman in the hospital who had touched her cheek and said, "Strong girls survive."
Was that real?
She didn't know anymore.
But now, this wasn't just about Arpan.
It was about her.
That Night – Rooftop
Arpan finally called.
She picked up on the first ring.
"Where the hell have you been?" Her voice cracked with hurt.
"I couldn't risk calling sooner. You were being watched."
"Still am," she whispered.
Arpan's voice was quiet. "They've turned it into a game."
"What kind of game?"
"The kind where the prize is pain. And the winner is the one willing to lose everything."
There was silence.
Then she asked, "Are you still playing?"
His voice trembled.
"I'm trying to quit."
But we both know ghosts don't retire, she thought.
The Next Day – School Library
Samruddhi met her childhood friend Ishaan, now a junior tech analyst for a startup. She pushed the photos and videos toward him.
"I need you to enhance this. Get me a clear face."
He hesitated. "Sam… this woman looks dangerous."
"She is."
He stared at her. "Why are you doing this? This isn't your fight."
She looked down at the pictures. "It became my fight the day I loved someone who didn't know how to be saved."
Meanwhile – Abandoned Church in Panvel
The woman stood at the altar of the ruined church, speaking to a group of hooded figures.
"We've waited long enough."
A man asked, "What of the boy?"
She smiled. "Arpan is broken. But he's useful. He'll lead us to the files his father died protecting."
"And the girl?"
Her smile faded.
"She's becoming a problem."
She walked to a stained-glass window and whispered:
"Break the mind, the body follows."
Later That Night – Samruddhi's Dream
She's walking in a hallway.
Dim. Endless.
Arpan's voice echoes: "Run. Run. Run."
She turns.
No one.
The floor begins to disappear.
Suddenly—arms grab her.
She's pulled into a room.
The woman stands over her.
Those eyes.
That voice.
"You don't belong in his world."
Samruddhi gasps.
The woman leans in close.
"But you will die in it."
She jolts awake.
Sweating.
Heart racing.
She grabs her diary.
"They're getting closer. Not just in reality. In my dreams. I don't know how much time I have before this world swallows me whole. I need to find the truth. About her. About Arpan. Before it's too late."
Two Days Later – Rooftop Café
Ishaan arrives breathless.
"I found her."
Samruddhi snaps her head up.
"She's not just anyone. Her name was once on a high-level intelligence list. Vasundhara Kale. Former counter-intelligence. Then she vanished. No record of resignation. Just… disappeared."
Samruddhi felt her blood run cold.
"She's alive. Watching. And she's planning something worse."
Ishaan nodded. "You need to disappear."
Samruddhi stood. Calm. Determined.
"No. I need to be seen. Loudly. Publicly."
He stared. "Why?"
"So they come for me."
That Night – News Channel Studio
Samruddhi sat across from a reporter. She had leaked her own surveillance photo to them. Told them a half-truth.
About the attack. About being hunted.
She stared into the camera.
"If you're watching this... I know who you are. I remember your voice. I remember your eyes."
"You want to scare me. You want me to hide."
"But I'm not going anywhere."
"Come get me."
Meanwhile – Arpan's Hideout
Vikram rushed in. "She went on national television!"
Arpan turned, eyes wide. "She what?"
He watched the broadcast.
His heart clenched.
"She just painted a target on her back."
"No," Vikram said. "She painted a mirror. They'll have to step into the light to strike."
Arpan stared at the screen.
"She's braver than I ever was."
Final Scene – Unknown Surveillance Room
The woman watched the news segment.
Silent.
Still.
Then smiled.
"Finally... a worthy opponent."
She turned to her lieutenant.
"Initiate Protocol Ashes."
"Her father's death was just a warning."
"Let's see what she does when she learns... he was murdered for protecting her."
To Be Continued…