Place – Mumbai Port

Time – 2:10 A.M.

The port was still active. Giant container cranes moved slowly over stacks of colourful shipping containers. Forklifts beeped as they transported pallets. Truck headlights cut through the humid night air. Ships sounded their horns in the distance while floodlights cast long shadows across the docks.

But tonight, the atmosphere was entirely different.

The workers moved faster than usual. Security was unusually tight. Giant men dressed in black, heavily armed, surrounded the entire area. Everything was happening in haste.

Just then, a convoy of black SUVs arrived, followed by a truck.

As the vehicles came to a halt, the men hurried to open the door of the lead SUV.

A man stepped out.

Dressed in a perfectly tailored black shirt and trousers, he walked with calm confidence. Multiple rings adorned his fingers, each reflecting the floodlights as he slowly made his way towards a man standing beside a shipping container.

"Sab theek hai, Inspector?" he asked, a devilish smile playing on his lips.

"Salaam, Sahab. Sab apne control mein hai. Kisi ko shak nahi hoga ki—"

Before the inspector could complete his sentence, the man raised a finger.

"Shhh..."

He whispered, placing a finger on the inspector's lips.

"Suna hai na... deewaron ke bhi kaan hote hain."

His eyes slowly scanned the surroundings.

"Yahan deewarein nahi hain... par hawa apna rukh kabhi bhi badal sakti hai."

The inspector visibly shuddered.

"Matlab...?"

He chuckled.

"Matlab yeh ki agar ek bhi lafz bahar gaya... toh hawa se pehle teri laash milegi."

The inspector lowered his eyes immediately.

"Samajh gaya, Sahab."

"Chalo, sab ke sab containers pehle uss side rakho. Mujhe check karna hai, uske baad aage badhenge," he ordered.

"Raghu sir..." his man called, coming towards him.

"Kitni baar kaha hai, mera naam mat liya karo," Raghu glared at him.

"Sorry... sorry," the man said, handing him the phone.

"Don't worry, boss. Sab ekdum theek hai. Koi gadbad nahi hai. Medical equipment aap tak pahunch jaayega. Raghu koi kaam adhura nahi chhodta," he said before disconnecting the call.

The man took the phone back from Raghu and stepped away quietly. The moment the call ended, Raghu's expression changed. The calm face he showed to the world disappeared, replaced by a sharp, unreadable look.

He walked towards the containers and signalled his men.

"Ek bhi container bina check kiye yahan se nahi hilega. Samjhe?" he said coldly.

"Ji, Raghu sir," one of the men replied, immediately correcting himself, "Sorry... sir."

Raghu gave him a warning look but didn't say anything.

The port was still alive with noise—the sound of cranes moving, trucks passing, and workers rushing around. But for Raghu, every small movement mattered. He trusted very few people, and mistakes were something he never ignored.

He then moved towards a container and opened it. It was filled with medical equipment. He signalled his men with his fingers, and they immediately moved in. They removed the equipment and slowly pressed a button on the remote they was carrying in his hand.

The empty container opened, revealing bundles of notes neatly packed in waterproof plastic.

Raghu stared at the bundles of notes for a few seconds, his face remaining expressionless. The noise of the port continued around him, but his attention was fixed only on the hidden compartment.

One of his men looked at him carefully.

"Sir, saara maal yahi hai," he said.

Raghu didn't reply immediately. He picked up one of the packets and examined it before putting it back.

Raghu closed the compartment and looked towards the medical equipment that had been moved aside.

"Kal subah tak yeh shipment apni jagah pahunch jaana chahiye. Kisi ko shaq nahi hona chahiye."

"Ji, sir."

But little did they know that someone was recording everything.

Just above the SUVs and the containers, a pulley was connected to a machine carrying a large wooden crate. Hidden inside the crate was a tiny camera that continuously clicked photographs and recorded every movement below.

Outside the port, concealed behind a wall covered with thick bushes, a girl operated the camera through her tablet. Her face remained hidden. Only her fingers moving swiftly across the screen and the end of her dupatta fluttering in the night breeze were visible.

"Hey Bappa, kisi bhi tarah ek baar sab record ho jaaye. Bas phir kal subah inhe dikhaati hoon. Reporters ko samajh kya rakha hai inhone?" she muttered through gritted teeth.

Inside the port, the workers began loading the containers onto the ship.

Suddenly, Raghu's eyes fell on the crane holding the container with the hidden camera.

"Yeh crane band kyun hai? Operate karo isse, taki baaki containers bhi jaldi load ho jaayein," he ordered.

"Sir, yeh kaam nahi karta," the worker replied nervously.

"Achha? Ek baar check kar," Raghu said.

"Ji, sahab."

The worker switched on the crane. To everyone's surprise, it started working, and the container slowly began descending.

Outside the port, the girl's eyes widened.

"Arre, yeh kya ho raha hai? Achanak sab itna paas... Ek minute... kahin yeh wala container..."

"Shit! I think it's enough proof. Mujhe abhi nikalna hoga, warna yeh proof bhi haath se chala jaayega."

She hurried towards her scooty and tried to start it.

"Abey o... isse kya ho gaya?"

Frustrated, she gave it a hard kick.

The engine roared to life with a loud noise, breaking the heavy silence of the port.

"Abey saalo! Dekho... lagta hai koi bahar hai!" Raghu shouted.

His men immediately rushed towards the gate.

Before they could reach the spot, the girl sped away on her scooty.

"Boss, ek ladki thi! Abhi-abhi bhaag gayi," one of the men reported, panting.

"Abey toh dekh kya rahe ho? Pichha karo! Tum logon se ek ladki bhi nahi pakdi gayi?" Raghu barked.

"Ji, sahab!"

The men instantly jumped into their SUVs and sped after her.

Just then, another worker came running towards Raghu.

"Sahab!"

"Kya hai?" Raghu asked irritably.

"Sahab... iss container mein ek digital camera mila hai."

"What?" Raghu yelled, his face darkening as he snatched the camera from the worker's hands.

Raghu snatched the camera from the worker's hands and examined it carefully.

"Kisne nikala yeh?" he asked in a dangerously calm voice.

"Sa... sahab, jab container neeche aaya tab cleaning karte waqt mila," the worker replied, his voice trembling.

One of his men stepped forward.

"Boss, gaadi lekar peeche gaye hain. Mil jaayegi."

Raghu remained silent for a few seconds before speaking.

"Nahi."

Everyone looked at him in confusion.

"Jo ladki itni planning ke saath port ke andar camera chhupa sakti hai, woh bhaagne ka raasta bhi pehle se soch kar aayi hogi."

He crushed the camera under his boot with a loud crack.

"Lekin..." his voice turned cold, "duniya gol hai bach kar kaha jayegi".

"Uski scooty ka number, uska route, aas-paas ke CCTV... sab nikalo. Mujhe uska naam, uska ghar aur uski poori kundli chahiye."

"Ji, boss!"

His men immediately scattered to follow the orders.

Raghu slipped his hands into his pockets and looked towards the dark road outside the port.

A slight smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

"Pehli baar kisi ne Raghu ko challenge kiya hai," he murmured.

"Ab dekhte hain... tu kitni door bhaag sakti hai."

Far away from the port...

The girl finally slowed down after riding nearly five kilometres without looking back. Her heart was pounding so loudly that she could hear it over the sound of the engine.

She stopped near an abandoned tea stall, quickly removed her helmet, and took out a tiny memory card hidden inside the lining of her tablet cover.

A relieved smile spread across her face.

"Mil gaya."

She looked at the tiny chip shining under the streetlight.

"Ab dekhte hain, Raghu... kitne din bach paate ho."

Unaware of her, a black SUV silently emerged from the shadows at the far end of the road.

Its headlights remained off.

Slowly the glass slided down revealing paired of eyes staring at her.