Priya's POV:

"I know him!" I exclaimed. Oh my God. That's AK? Really? I looked at Arjun who was looking at me with a confused expression.

"Even you know who he is," I said, returning my gaze to the photo on the paper. Arjun raised his brow and took the paper to examine the face. The person's eyelashes were dense and thick. His regal nose stood out from a certain angle, and his jawline was as sharp as a knife. His hair had a brown tint and was perfectly styled. He had a solemn expression on his face and was conversing with a man who appeared to be a bodyguard. The photograph had been taken without his consent.

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AK

•Real Name- yet to be found

•Alias- AK

•Age- near 26

•Job- Drug dealing

•Details of the job- He is the leader of the DL (Drug Lord) gang.

The Drug Lord gang is one of the most powerful mafia gangs involved in drug trafficking. In India, they conduct extensive drug trafficking. They are supported by government officials.

•Income- 1-2 million per month.

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"This isn't enough," Arjun said after going over the details.

"This is, indeed, not enough. We should track down the rest," I responded and called Swati for assistance from the cyber department. She was an expert in information retrieval thanks to her hacking skills.

"Can I come in, ma'am?" Swati asked. She was holding a laptop.

"Come in, Swati. We need your help in a matter," I responded and motioned for her to sit. She shook her head and blushed as she looked at Arjun, who was sitting near the chair. Arjun remarked, "Ms Swati, we don't have all day. Take a seat, please. The work must be completed immediately."

"Y-yes, sir," Swati stammered before taking a seat. I guess she was scared of our arrogant jerk. She was not wrong. He did have a commanding presence.

"Whatever we're going to tell you should be kept between us. Okay?" She nodded.

"We'd like you to look up some information on someone. We have his photograph," I said as I handed her the picture.

"That should be simple, but wait! I've seen him. Just a second," she exclaimed. She opened her laptop and began typing furiously. Arjun and I sat patiently waiting for her to finish. After a few moments, she handed the laptop to us to examine. His name was right there.

Karan Ahuja.

We scrolled down to find out more. He ran an export company. He was from Mumbai and was 26 years old. There were a few tidbits about his past. Everyone knew him as a self-made, hardworking man.

"Who is he?" Swati asked, confused.

"He is AK," I responded calmly.

"WHAT?!"

"Yes, he is AK. AK is simply a reversal of his initials; A from Ahuja and K from Karan," Arjun declared.

Smart.

"Rover, on the other hand, was telling the truth that he contacted him to know about the auction. He was present there," I replied. His eyes were simply too beautiful to overlook. Those green eyes glistened like emeralds. Yes, he was the guy in the olive suit who approached me at the party. I recognised him because of his captivating eyes. His eyes may be lovely, but he was a convicted felon.

"I hope he doesn't know about our jobs," I sighed.

"And why are you concerned about that?" Arjun snapped, his voice was venomous.

'What's the matter with him now?' I pondered.

"Because we won't be able to arrest him with such little evidence. We can't just show his picture and claim he's AK. We'll have to prove it. We won't be able to contact him if he knows about us. He'll grow suspicious," I replied, more or less glaring at Arjun. He broke the staring game when he looked at Swati and asked her to leave. He turned to face me after she had gone.

"What is your plan?" He asked, leaning back in his chair and folding his hands across his chest.

'He looks sexy like this,' I thought and then froze. 'What?! Sexy?? No! There's something wrong with me.'

"Hello? Mehra, please come back from wonderland," he cut me off my ridiculous train of thought.

"Yes? Sorry. Plan? No, I don't have one at the moment. But we will find one soon," I responded. He hummed as he stood up to leave.

"Arjun, uh, I think this time you can come up with a plan," I said before he could leave.

For a brief moment, he appeared stunned, but quickly recovered and responded, "Are you alright? The great Mehra is telling me to devise a mission plan."

I just rolled my eyes as he walked out of my office. My phone rang after a few moments as I was going through some case files. When I saw the caller ID, my face lit up.

"Hello," I said as I picked it up.

"You bitch! What do you think of yourself?!" Kashi was cursed.

"What did I do to merit so many compliments?" I asked with a chuckle.

"Are you serious?" she groaned.

"Okay! Stop yelling! Nobody is going to fall for this deaf woman," I cackled in response.

"It's not funny, believe me! You haven't called in two days. I came back yesterday and was expecting you to run up to me in the airport to hug me. But all I got was a driver holding a board with my name on it. Don't ask how the ride back home was. He was speaking the entire time. Can you believe that he told me about his affairs?" she screamed angrily.

"Fine, I'm sorry, I was busy with a case. Please forgive me, BB," I begged and snickered, anticipating what was to come.

"Don't call me BB! It's ridiculous, and you still call me that stupid nickname." I could feel the heat of her rage in my ears.

"Okay, okay! Fine," I said, "How can I make it up to you?"

"Umm... meet me at the mall today. I'll do the shopping, you'll pay," she replied, giggling.

"Oh, you mean you'll eat and I'll pay?" Kashi had never been a big fan of shopping. Instead of going to the mall, she would order everything online. She only went to the mall to eat at McDonald's or KFC. She was a serious foodie.

"Whatever," she said. I was sure that she shrugged as she said this.

"Okay, that's it. When do you want me to pick you up?"

"Around 5," she said after a moment's thought.

"Done. I have a lot of things to tell you, by the way," I opened up. I couldn't call her for two days and so many things happened in those two days.

'I guess life is moving at a breakneck pace and keeping me busy,' I thought.

"Sure, I'll wait, bye," she exclaimed enthusiastically.

"Bye." I hung up the phone and went back to work.

(In the evening)

"Come on, one more store, please. This is going to be the final one. I swear," Kashi pleaded, her puppy eyes shining brightly. We'd been here for an hour and she still wasn't happy with any of the dresses.

"This is the last one. Otherwise, I'll leave you here," I responded with a heavy sigh. Shopping was not something I enjoyed. It was something I abhorred. It was extremely exhausting to go shopping.

She spent a good fifteen minutes in this shop and finally found her dream dress, or so she claimed. I knew she'd have a new dream dress by the end of this week.

"Let's find a place to sit now. We still have a lot of time. It is now 6:30 p.m," she said, glancing at her watch.

We sat down at McDonald's and ordered two spicy macs. Kashi was telling me about her recent trip to Korea, her favourite country. She had chocolate-coloured skin, a strangely beautiful smile, and a great personality. Others saw her as a savage and a sassy lass, but I knew the real Kashi beneath the sassy lass. She had her own set of insecurities and problems that she preferred not to discuss with anyone. But because I wasn't anyone, I'd sit and bug her until she confessed everything.

She and I were the same age and we met at school. We were fifteen at that time and now, twenty- four. She had been my best friend ever since. She worked for a multinational corporation and was required to travel to Japan for a new project for a few months. She returned yesterday. I couldn't go to the airport to meet her, which was why this mad woman had been torturing me until now.

"You were going to tell me something?" Kashi inquired as she bit into her wrap.

"Oh, I had a mission two days ago. Remember that human trafficking ring I was looking into?" She nodded, and I told her what had happened.

"I am so thrilled that you are adopting her. I can hardly wait to see her," She commented on my decision to adopt Nila. "I'll take her shopping while you're busy with your things." What?

"There will be no shopping!" I exclaimed, strictly.

"Who is asking for your permission? Get lost!" she responded while wiping her mouth with a tissue. I just glared at her, which was ineffective. She refused to budge. I heard someone playing a Blackpink song.

"I had no idea McDonald's played Blackpink songs," I said as I sipped my icy Coca-Cola.

"Duffer, it's your phone," she responded, laughing. Okay, I'll admit it; my brain occasionally goes into dump mode. I didn't waste any time and answered the phone. Arjun was calling. Strange, he never called me before.

"I have a plan, Mehra."

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