Aarav Kane hated unfinished puzzles. The dead man's apartment was one big lie wrapped in cleaning chemicals and police tape, and the fact that Cipher Dawn had sent an assassin instead of erasing everything meant one thing:
They'd missed something.
Back inside, rain dripping from his jacket, Aarav scanned the apartment again. Faster this time. Sharper. He ignored the obvious—the spotless tub, the staged razor. His eyes went to what criminals always forgot: habits.
Two toothbrushes in the bathroom cup.
One mug in the sink.
One bed, neatly made.
Someone had lived here recently. And left in a hurry.
"Soren," Aarav whispered, "victim had a roommate. Police report say anything?"
A pause. Fingers typing on the other end.
"Officially, no," Soren replied. "Lease shows only Mehta."
Aarav smirked. "Unofficially, people lie."
He crouched beside the wardrobe. The floorboard beneath it was loose. Amateur mistake. Aarav pried it open with his blade.
Inside: a burner phone, a memory card, and a folded metro pass with today's date circled in red.
"Found our ghost," he murmured.
The phone vibrated in his hand.
UNKNOWN CALLER.
Aarav answered without hesitation.
A woman's voice whispered, frantic. "If this is Cipher Dawn, hang up. If it's the Bureau… I'm already dead."
Aarav leaned against the wall, calm despite the adrenaline spike. "You're not dead yet. That's good news. Bad news—you're running out of time."
Silence.
Then, "You found Raghav's apartment."
"Yes."
"And you saw the symbol."
"Yes."
Another pause. He could hear her breathing now. Controlled—but scared.
"My name is Nisha," she said. "I was his roommate. And if they know you're there… you need to leave. Now."
Too late.
Aarav's instincts flared. He grabbed the phone and rolled just as the apartment door exploded inward.
Two attackers this time. Silenced pistols. Efficient.
Aarav smashed through the window instead of retreating—glass exploding outward as he hit the fire escape hard. A shot cracked the air, grazing his shoulder. He hissed, gritted his teeth, and kept moving.
"Nisha," he said into the phone, breathless, "start talking. Where are you?"
"Chhatrapati metro station," she whispered. "Platform three. They're watching everyone."
"Good," Aarav said. "Crowds are messy. Cipher Dawn hates messy."
He ran.
The city swallowed him whole. Traffic. Rain. Neon. Noise. Perfect cover.
By the time he reached the metro station, his shoulder burned and his ribs screamed, but his mind was razor-sharp. Platform three was packed—office workers, students, vendors. Everyone pretending not to see anything.
Aarav spotted her instantly.
Early twenties. Hood pulled low. Eyes scanning exits every two seconds. Fear—but intelligent fear.
She saw him too.
And bolted.
Aarav cursed softly and followed, weaving through the crowd. Two men detached from opposite sides—too coordinated to be commuters.
Cipher Dawn operatives.
Aarav tackled one into a vending machine, sending soda cans exploding. He pivoted, elbowing the second in the throat before dragging Nisha behind a concrete pillar.
"Rule one," Aarav said calmly, "don't run from the guy trying to save you."
"You jumped out a window," she hissed.
"Occupational habit."
Gunshots rang out. Screams followed. Panic spread.
Aarav grabbed her wrist and pulled her toward the service tunnel behind the platform. A door slammed. Darkness swallowed them.
They ran.
Finally, hidden behind maintenance crates, Nisha collapsed, gasping.
"Raghav wasn't going to kill himself," she said shakily. "He found something. A list. Names. Locations. Cipher Dawn operatives embedded everywhere."
Aarav knelt beside her. "And you have it."
She nodded. "I memorized it. Digital copies don't survive long."
Smart. Very smart.
She looked at him then. Really looked.
"You're his son, aren't you?" she asked quietly. "Detective Kane."
Aarav stiffened.
"My father?" he said slowly.
She swallowed. "He tried to stop Cipher Dawn twelve years ago. He failed. Or… he disappeared."
The tunnel felt colder.
Aarav stood, eyes hard.
"Then," he said evenly, "this just became personal."
Above them, sirens wailed. Somewhere in the city, Cipher Dawn adjusted its plans.
They had lost a piece.
And Aarav Kane had gained a reason.