1.

Author's POV

Place : New York, U.S.A

Golden chandeliers glowed overhead, though the light they cast barely softened the darkness filling the study. Shadows stretched across the marble floor and climbed the walls lined with dark wood and expensive paintings. The air smelled faintly of cigar smoke.

At the far end of the room stood Vardan Agnihotri.

One hand rested against the edge of a polished mahogany desk while the other loosened the cuff of his black suit with controlled impatience. He wasn't shouting. He didn't need to.

The silence in the room already carried enough pressure to make every man standing there avoid breathing too loudly.

A line of guards stood near the entrance, motionless and rigid. Years of working under Vardan had taught them one thing clearly - the calmer he looked, the worse his temper usually was.

In front of the desk stood Mihir, Vardan's most trusted associate. A file remained clutched tightly in his hands.

"Who is it this time?" Vardan finally asked.

His voice was low, almost casual, but the room seemed to tense around it. Mihir hesitated briefly before answering.

"A woman."

For the first time since entering the room, Vardan looked up fully.

"A woman is handling the case against me?"

"Yes, boss."
Mihir stepped forward and placed the file carefully on the desk.

Vardan opened it. His eyes moved across the pages once. Then again. The irritation in his expression sharpened almost immediately.

"That's all?" he asked quietly.

Mihir straightened. "We tried tracing everything we could. Most of her records are either restricted or missing entirely. Even the cyber team couldn't pull much."
Vardan flipped another page.

Date of birth. Birthplace. Education records. Bar registration.
Nothing useful.

No recent photographs. No personal information. No clear routine.

Almost nothing.

His jaw tightened slightly.

"So I'm paying an entire cyber unit," he said slowly, "and they still can't gather complete information on one lawyer?"

Nobody answered.
The silence itself felt dangerous.

Vardan closed the file sharply and tossed it back onto the desk. "Pathetic."

Mihir lowered his gaze but remained silent. Excuses usually make things worse.

For a moment, Vardan simply stared at the papers scattered across the desk before his eyes settled on the name printed at the top.

Shivantika Adya Randhawa.

He read it once in silence. Something about the name lingered in his mind longer than it should have.

Not fascination.

Not interest.

More like irritation born from not knowing enough.

People usually feared him long before they reached courtrooms. Most disappeared before cases ever made it that far.

But this woman had not only taken the case - she had managed to keep herself almost completely hidden while doing it.
That bothered him more than he cared to admit.

"Mihir."
"Yes, boss?"

"I don't need to explain what happens next, do I?"

Mihir understood immediately.
"No, boss."

With a slight nod, he turned and walked out of the study. The guards followed behind him, shutting the heavy doors quietly as they left.

Silence returned.

Vardan leaned back slowly into his chair, eyes drifting once more toward the open file on the desk.

After a few seconds, he pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

The call connected almost instantly.
"Liam," Vardan said calmly, "are the arrangements for tonight finished?"

"Yes, boss," came the reply immediately. "Everything's ready."

Vardan picked up the crystal paperweight resting on the desk and turned it idly between his fingers.

"Security?"

"Tightened already."

"Good."

His gaze shifted absentmindedly back toward the file.

"Keep the guest list controlled," he added. "I don't want unknown people wandering inside the estate tonight."

"Understood."
The call ended.

Vardan set the paperweight back down carefully, the soft sound echoing through the otherwise empty room.

For a long moment, he remained still.
Then his eyes returned once again to the name on the file.

Shivantika Adya Randhawa.

A lawyer he couldn't fully trace. A woman willing to fight a case most people wouldn't even look at twice.

His expression hardened again. Whatever game she thought she was
playing, it wouldn't last long.

People who interfered with his work usually disappeared quietly.

And if they didn't-
He made examples out of them.

The thought settled coldly in his mind as thunder rolled somewhere beyond the mansion walls.

By tomorrow, he told himself, this problem would be handled like every other one before it.

Cleanly. Permanently.

♡

"Shivantika, you do realize how badly this can end, don't you?"

A woman in her late twenties stepped into the room, the white coat hanging from her shoulders making her look even more exhausted after a long hospital shift. The moment she spoke, the tension in the room sharpened.

Standing before the mirror, Shivantika calmly adjusted the collar of her black jacket over a dark tank top and jeans.

She uncapped a tube of dark red lipstick and applied it carefully, as though Aria's panic wasn't filling the room inch by inch.

"How do I look?" she asked, glancing at Aria through the mirror.

Aria stared at her in disbelief before striding across the room and turning her around by the shoulders.

"Stop acting like this is normal, Shivantika," she snapped, her voice low but shaking.

"You're walking into the house of a man accused of murder under a fake identity. Do you understand what happens if he recognizes you?"

Shivantika gently removed Aria's hands from her shoulders. "He doesn't know what I look like," she said evenly. "I've never met him outside court filings, and my face will stay covered the entire time."

"That doesn't make this safe," Aria shot back. "And it definitely doesn't make it legal."

The room fell silent for a moment.

Shivantika placed the lipstick on the dressing table before finally meeting Aria's eyes properly.

"I know exactly what this is," she said quietly. "If the police could prove anything against him, I wouldn't be doing this."

Aria crossed her arms tightly. "Then let the police handle it."

"They can't move without evidence." Shivantika's tone remained controlled, but there was frustration buried underneath it now.

"Witnesses are terrified, records disappear overnight, and every person connected to the case suddenly forgets everything the moment they're questioned." She paused briefly.

"I'm not going there to steal documents or do something reckless. I just need one real lead. One mistake. One conversation. Anything that points us toward evidence that can actually be obtained legally."

Aria looked unconvinced.

"And if someone finds out who you are?"

"Then I leave."

"And if you can't?"

For the first time, Shivantika hesitated. "That's why nobody can know I was ever there."

Aria let out a disbelieving laugh and sat heavily on the edge of the bed, rubbing a hand over her face.

"You're a criminal lawyer, not an undercover officer."

"I know."

"Then why are you acting like one?"

Shivantika leaned back against the dressing table, arms folded loosely across her chest. "Because sometimes the law only reaches people after someone risks getting close enough to expose the truth first."

Aria looked up at her silently. Shivantika softened slightly at the worry written across her friend's face and walked over to sit beside her.

"You're a doctor," she said quietly. "If a patient comes in critical, you don't walk away just because the chances are low. You still try everything you can to save them."

"That's different." Aria said in a softer tone.

"Not really." Shivantika's voice lowered. "People come to me when everyone else has already given up on them. If I walk away because I'm scared, then what exactly am I fighting these cases for?"

Aria's eyes glistened faintly, though whether from fear or frustration, even she probably didn't know anymore.

"And your safety?" she asked softly.
Shivantika gave a faint smile, though it didn't quite reach her eyes.

"I'm being careful."

Aria studied her for a long moment before sighing in defeat.

"I hate when you say that."

A small laugh escaped Shivantika. After a moment, Aria frowned again.

"What about the dancers? You said they're bringing professionals from Egypt. What if you stand out?"

"I won't." Shivantika's confidence returned almost instantly. "I trained for years in school performances and competitions. I've spent the last two weeks practicing again. I just need to blend in long enough to stay unnoticed."

Aria shook her head slowly. "You've actually planned this."

"Of course I have."

"That's somehow worse."

Despite herself, Shivantika smiled. Aria finally pulled her into a tight hug, holding on a little longer than usual.

"Just come back safely," she whispered.

Shivantika closed her eyes briefly before pulling away.

"I will."

Her words had sounded confident moments ago, but when Shivantika turned back toward the mirror, the reflection staring at her felt unfamiliar for a second. Less like a lawyer and more like someone willingly walking into danger she could no longer avoid.

Outside, the city had gone quiet as the evening settled.

Aria followed her downstairs, and together they stepped into the dimly lit street where Shivantika's racing bike stood parked beneath a flickering street lamp.

Shivantika slipped on her helmet and swung onto the seat before starting the engine. The low growl of the bike cut through the silence of the empty road. A moment later, Aria climbed on behind her, fastening her helmet and gripping lightly onto her waist.

Neither of them spoke as the bike sped through the sleeping city.

The night was moonless, heavy clouds swallowing whatever light the sky could offer. Cold air rushed past them, sharp against their skin. Streetlights blurred one after another as they moved farther away from the crowded parts of the city and closer toward the isolated outskirts.

The closer Shivantika got, the more aware she became of her heartbeat beneath the steady hum of the engine.
She kept her posture calm, controlled but the tension sitting in her chest refused to settle.

This is it, she thought quietly. Once I walk in, there's no room for mistakes anymore.

After nearly one and half hours, Shivantika slowed the bike near a narrow road surrounded by dense forest.

In the distance, beyond the trees, faint lights from the mansion glimmered through the darkness.

She stopped the bike far enough from the main gate to avoid drawing attention.
For a moment, neither woman moved.
Then Shivantika removed her helmet and stepped off the bike.

Aria crouched behind the bike, pressing the black tape carefully about the number plate.

She glanced up to see Shivantika looking at her weirdly.

"Just in case," Aria muttered and stood up.

Just as she started toward the narrow path leading deeper into the property, she felt Aria gently catch hold of her wrist.

Shivantika turned back. Even in the darkness of the night, she could see the worry written plainly across Aria's face.

"I'll wait here," Aria said softly. "No matter how long it takes."

A faint smile crossed Shivantika's lips. "You shouldn't."

"And you shouldn't be doing this either."

That earned the smallest huff of amusement from Shivantika before the silence settled between them again.

Aria stepped forward and pulled her into a quick, tight embrace.

"Just come back safely," she whispered. Shivantika closed her eyes briefly before nodding once.

Then she pulled away, adjusted the hood of her jacket, and turned toward the forest path ahead.

Within moments, her figure disappeared into the darkness, walking steadily toward whatever waited for her beyond the lights of the mansion.

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Huffff..... The start has begun.

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