Sera's POV
The boy didn't look at me when he spoke again.
"They came back."
The words were flat. Too flat.
"After they dragged her inside," he continued, staring at the floor. "I was behind the tree. I thought they didn't see me."
Raghav stiffened beside me.
"They walked toward me," the boy said. "Slow. Like they were deciding."
My fingers curled into my palm.
"One of them put money in my hand," he whispered. "A lot. I didn't understand why."
I swallowed. "What did they say?"
"They asked my name."
His lips trembled. "I don't have one."
The room went still.
"I stayed quiet," he went on. "They thought I was mute."
Raghav exhaled shakily.
"But the man she was shouting at," the boy said—and this time his voice wavered—"he didn't believe it."
My pulse spiked.
"He looked at me for a long time," the boy said. "Then he stabbed me."
The word landed wrong. Too sharp. Too sudden.
I stood up without realizing it. "Where?"
He pulled aside his shirt.
Bandages. Blood seeping faintly through white gauze.
"I don't remember much after," he said softly. "I fell. It was dark. I woke up when the sky was light."
Dawn.
"I crawled back to my hut," he continued. "I cleaned it myself. But it doesn't heal."
That was it.
I turned to Raghav. "Call an ambulance. Now."
The boy panicked. "No police—"
"I promise," I said immediately, crouching in front of him. "Just doctors. That's all."
His eyes searched my face.
Then he nodded.
Hospital Corridor – Minutes Later
The irony burned.
Nehra's hospital.
The same sterile smell. The same white walls. The same helpless waiting.
As doctors rushed the boy past us, Raghav finally spoke. "They tried to erase him."
I stared straight ahead. "They failed."
Raghav and Sera – Outside the ICU
We stood near the vending machines, untouched coffee growing cold between us.
"Three men," Raghav said slowly. "One leader. Two followers."
"And one mistake," I replied. "They let him live."
Raghav looked at me. "He saw them."
"He didn't just see them," I said. "He survived them."
Raghav hesitated. "Sera... the way he described it—the car, the coordination, the money—it wasn't random."
"No," I agreed. "It was organized."
Raghav leaned closer. "He might remember their faces. Or how they looked. Height. Voice. Anything."
I closed my eyes briefly.
"Then we don't push," I said. "We let memory come to us."
Raghav frowned. "What if Avinash—"
"Avinash is counting on fear," I interrupted. "So we do the opposite."
I opened my eyes.
"We give the boy safety," I said quietly. "And time."
Raghav nodded slowly. "And if he remembers?"
I looked through the glass window at Nehra's unconscious form.
"Then Arvind Rathore's story collapses," I said. "And Avinash knows it."
Sera's POV – Evening
The boy shuffled out of the room, small steps dragging along the polished floor. His eyes were wide, haunted, and for a second I saw all the nights he had survived alone—the fear, the cold, the darkness.
"I might be dead soon," he said quietly, voice barely above a whisper. "No sooner... they'll find me. And kill me."
I knelt, trying to match his height, though he still towered over my knees. "Shh," I said softly. "Listen to me. You're alive, and they'll never know that. You're staying at Raghav's place. He'll take care of you. You're safe now."
His lips pressed together, then he looked at me with a sharp, searching gaze. "Don't you want to know... anything else?"
I shook my head, offering a half-smile I didn't feel. "Let's not rush. Okay? We'll talk later. Right now... you rest."
He nodded once, small and hesitant, then turned and left.
Back at the Office – Late Night
The city outside my window had a low hum. Streetlights flickered across the glass. I dropped my bag into the chair and sank behind my desk, letting exhaustion finally press down.
Raghav leaned against the doorway, arms crossed, watching me. "Wait," he said slowly, voice cautious. "What if it's not a leader? What if all three were a group, operating equally?"
I paused, letting the thought settle. The tension in my chest tightened. "Then we've been looking for the wrong angle," I said softly. "But that... doesn't change what we know."
Raghav sighed, pushing himself off the wall. "It's been a long day, Sera. You need rest."
I looked at him, shoulders tight, jaw set. "Rest," I repeated. The word felt foreign.
"Tomorrow," he added gently, "we start tracking every possibility. Witnesses. Cars. Routes. Every slip, every hesitation, every moment they think they're invisible—they're not."
I nodded, standing slowly. "And the boy?"
"He stays hidden. Safe. Until we need him," Raghav said firmly.
I let the chair fall back and closed my eyes for a brief moment, just a heartbeat, just enough to feel the weight of the day—the screams, the assault, the boy, the threat of three men I hadn't even seen yet.
Tomorrow, I reminded myself. Tomorrow, we would move.
As I left the office, Raghav's voice followed me, quiet but sharp. "Remember, Sera... these aren't mistakes we can correct overnight. And sometimes the worst monsters are the ones no one notices. Keep your focus. Don't let them see you break."
I didn't answer, walking through the empty lobby.
But inside, I clenched my fists, heart thundering.
Three men, maybe more, maybe none in charge—it didn't matter.
They had underestimated me.
And that would be their first mistake.