I took my car's keys and rushed to the door as I kept hoping everything was alright.

I could not concentrate on my driving as I kept trying to contact the security force that we arranged for Chandni. None of the ten men attended my call as their phones were switched off. I threw my phone on the passenger seat and gripped the steering wheel tighter, cursing under my breath. I did not know if it was anger or fear but I could feel the adrenaline rush in me.

The streets were empty as I drove under the night sky. All the roadside shops were closed and there wasn't anyone except the occasional drunkards lying on the footpaths with empty bottles in their hands. Street light after street light, I sped the car against the army of rain drops that started descending. The heavy thunderstorm could not take my mind away from Chandni. My car kept bouncing as I continued to challenge the pits on the road. I had to reach there soon.

It was a  thirty-minute ride from my home to her flat but it felt like an eternity and each bend and turn seemed to have extended themselves.

Arjun had once taken me for a night drive and I enjoyed the vision in dim light but this drive managed to make my heart race against time. Houses and trees blurred into different shades of grey as I sped through the short cuts. I did not stop at any traffic signals neither did I slow down on the uneven grounds.

My eyes went wide as they met a beam of light. I blocked my vision with one of my hands and turned my steering wheel as fast as I could with the other. My car skidded with an unpleasant sound and a burning smell filled my nostrils. I saw his face through the smoke that surrounded my car.

Riddick's white coloured swift did not even slow down as I coughed inside my car.

I wanted to shout at him but there were more important places I had to be so I resumed my driving while cursing him. I could not help but wonder what he was doing at that time on the street but I pushed it back and concentrated on the moment.

I stopped the car in front of the flat's gate and started sprinting towards the flat. My hair flew behind me as my steps seemed to become weaker and weaker. Behind me, I could hear the watchman shouting at my car, He was sleeping when I reached there, I made a mental note to contact the owner of the flat to speak about the weak security system.

I pressed on the switch several times before realizing that the lift was broken. I clenched my fists and trotted towards the stairs as I kept trying to call Chandni. The phone was still switched off.

I had never been to her house but she invited me several times over the last week and I always rejected her invitation politely.

I was panting by the time I reached the fourth floor. I ran to her apartment while loading my gun. I bit my lip, standing in front of her door which was left ajar. I peeped inside before stepping inside with cautious eyes. The apartment was giving away a sweet aroma and I frowned.

It was dark inside her apartment. All the lights were off. The light from the street lamps entered through the curtained windows to give a basic vision of the room. I tiptoed , my back pressing against the wall, to the living room as my eyes moved over the space scanning for any alert.

My heart was pounding and my stomach churned. Each step was taken slowly and cautiously. The room was eerily silent, I could only hear my breathing. Something fell on the floor in the room across the living room. I licked my chapped lips and looked at the closed door.

I pressed my ear against the door but I could hear nothing. I waited for some more time, only to be disappointed.

I opened the door quickly and pointed my gun. I did not need light to understand that the room was a mess. I was walking on scattered files, books and clothes. I took my phone and inspected around with the flashlight. There were a lot of chokers on the bed.

Suddenly a hand held my ankle.

I almost screamed, my phone falling from my hand. In a moment my gun was directed at Chandini whose eyes were wide and surprised as she anxiously looked at me. She shrugged.

I dropped my arms beside me and sighed. I

Only the upper half of her body was visible to me. The other half was still under the bed. She crawled quickly by simultaneously concentrating her weight on either of her elbows. She did it easily and stood erect in a second.

She was covered in sweat and some strokes of her hair were stuck on her forehead. She wiped the sweat with the back of her hand.

"What happened?"

"Someone was here, a few minutes ago. It was a man who wore a long black coat and a black mask. He had a knife and an iron rod in his belt. I dared to come out of hiding, only when I saw him go outside." She said in between her heavy breaths and that was when the lights illuminated the apartment. She moved to the switchboard and switched on the fan. She let out a deep sigh as she stood directly below the fan and directed her face towards it. "And then you opened the door. We climbed back under the bed as soon you started to open the door, thinking it was him"

"Who?"

"I don't know. Our power went off and I heard the clicking sound of the door, we ran into our bedroom and hid under the bed"

"I thought you to be the kind of woman who would take a knife upon intrusion," I kept the gun back and dropped myself on a bean bag. I was tired.

"I would have if it was not for Fathima. You know, taking a weapon is as harmful to you as it is to your enemy" She did not look at me and was still enjoying the artificial wind.

I frowned at her.

"Who is Fathima?"

"My daughter,"

"I never knew that you were married,"

"In a country were rapes and sexual assaults are rather being common, I don't think you need to be married to have children," She looked at me and smirked. There she was at it again, criticizing our country without any hesitation.

That was when her daughter's name registered in my head. It was rare, perhaps impossible, for 'Chandni' to parent 'Fathima'.

"Fathima?"

"Please Keerthi, don't be one among them. She wanted to convert and who am I to stop her from following her ideals that would not hurt another person,"

A girl came to the room with a porcelain cup. She gave me a cup of coffee and stood beside Chandini. I frowned at her.

"She went to the kitchen when we were talking, you sure, you are a detective?"

I smiled and nodded.

Fathima opened her hair bun to let down the black cascade. Her brown eyes darted towards me before giving me a beautiful smile. Her dimples became visible as she showed off her perfect set of teeth. She was nothing like her mother, not physically at least.

I did not expect Chandini to have a daughter who was as old as Fathima. My face must have given away my thoughts.

"She adopted me," The girl said. She downcasted her eyes before continuing, "My Amma committed suicide when her family disowned her after her divorce with my Achan"

Fathima's voice trembled as she said it to me but she put up a brave front and did not let a single tear escape her eyes. Beside her, Chandni shifted uncomfortably and kept her arm on her daughter's shoulder. I did not understand why she said that to me but I knew that I had to change the subject.

"Why did you call me? You should have called the police, you know!"

"Do you think that I really do trust them after all my years of journalism and discovering truths," She tilted her head. She sat on a sofa beside me and drank from my cup. Fathima followed her and sat beside her.

"I think it was someone related to Lilly because he searched my shelf rashly, throwing the clothes away and breaking any fragile thing he touched. The room is now a mess of thrown dresses and broken perfume bottles" She sighed. " I was checking the files when you entered, I think my file on Lilly Thomachan is missing."

"What did the file contain?"

" Documents and photos that proved her involvement in various illegal activities. It also included information on many people related to her, both criminal based and not"

"Do you think it could help her in any way?"

"Not really but it could give information on people related to her" She crossed her legs. "You remember the first two people on Kalan's hitlist"

"Yes, Yes I do"

We proceeded to a long silent session before I took them to my home. Both of us agreed that the apartment was no longer safe for them and Chandni decided to shift. They needed time and I offered them to stay at my place. I called Raziya to arrange a group to 'visit' Chandni's apartment.

All throughout the drive and a few sleepless hours before 10'o clock there were a lot of thoughts looming in my mind.

 Though Chandni suspected him to be Kaalan, Kaalan's tribute of the year was over and I just felt that it was not Kaalan, Kalan appeared only when he wanted to shed some blood. Who took the files? Why would someone need Lilly's file then?

Slowly I dozed into a deep slumber.