Kunal's POV
Jenny had created a fake Reddit account under the name Phoenix600.
Of course she did.
And of course she did it just to annoy me.
The realization sat in my head like a headache that refused to leave. Every time I looked at her sitting in front of the glowing monitor screens, typing calmly like she owned the entire cyber department, I felt the same irritation crawling under my skin.
No... irritation wasn't the right word.
It was something far worse.
Because Jenny knew exactly how to get under my skin without even trying.
The lab buzzed quietly around us. Keyboards clicking. Papers shuffling. The low hum of computers mixing with the muffled noise of police activity outside the glass walls. The fluorescent lights above cast sharp white reflections across the tables, making the entire room feel cold and sleepless.
Everyone had returned to work after the little "password humiliation" incident.
Everyone except me.
My attention kept drifting toward her.
She sat with one leg crossed over the other, sleeves rolled slightly upward, eyes fixed on the screen with complete focus. The glow of the monitor reflected in her eyes while strands of dark hair occasionally slipped across her face.
And somehow... she looked completely unbothered.
Like she hadn't just shattered my ego in front of the entire team.
Unbelievable.
I tore my gaze away before my thoughts could embarrass me further and walked toward Tanish.
He stood near one of the side benches, flipping lazily through a pile of newspapers like a retired uncle searching for cricket scores instead of clues in a murder case.
Childish.
This entire "Reddit post" thing felt childish.
Someone was clearly trying to distract us from the real murders happening in the city. Or maybe the killer was enjoying this. Playing games with us. Smirking somewhere behind a screen while throwing hints like breadcrumbs.
Catch me if you can.
Tanish peeked over the newspaper the moment he noticed me approaching.
"Anything I can help with, sir?" he asked casually.
I leaned against the nearby bench, folding my arms. "Yeah... actually."
He raised an eyebrow immediately, placing the newspaper aside. "Yeah?"
I hesitated for a second, annoyed at myself already.
"You said both victims were orphans, right?" I asked carefully. "How did you even figure that out? It wasn't mentioned in the files."
The question itself irritated me.
How had I missed that detail?
Tanish blinked once before realization crossed his face.
"Oh, you mean officially? Yeah, it wasn't." He scratched the back of his neck. "Actually... I was scrolling through Instagram and thought I'd search their IDs."
I stared at him silently.
"And that's when I found the posts."
"What posts?"
"The donation posts" he explained quickly. "Both of them uploaded pictures from the same orphanage."
My expression shifted instantly.
"Same orphanage?"
"I... don't remember clearly."
Something inside me snapped.
"Then check it, you brainless Homo sapien" I muttered sharply.
Tanish frowned dramatically. "Come on, man. I'm literally the one who found out they were orphans."
"Yeah" I replied flatly. "Late."
He rolled his eyes and pulled his phone from his pocket with exaggerated annoyance. The screen lit up against his face as he searched through Instagram.
A few seconds passed.
Then his expression changed.
"Yeah..." he said slowly, staring at the screen. "It's the same one."
I straightened slightly. "And you thought that wasn't important?"
"No, I just forgot.."
"What's the name?"
He swallowed. "Wish Society... Goregaon West."
The moment those words left his mouth, calculations started running automatically in my head.
Goregaon West.
Roughly three hours from here if traffic stayed decent.
Maybe four if Mumbai decided to behave like Mumbai.
"We're going there" I said immediately.
Tanish looked up. "We?"
"Yes. We."
His expression twisted instantly. "Wait... are you planning to go with Vishal?"
Then suddenly his face froze.
A slow smirk appeared.
"Ohhhh..." he dragged the sound dramatically. "Or maybe... Miss Jennifer Fonseca?"
"You son of-"
I stopped myself halfway.
He grinned wider.
"You're definitely jealous."
"I'm definitely taking you with me," I replied coldly.
His smile vanished instantly. "Nope. Absolutely not. I have a date tomorrow."
Slowly... very slowly... my gaze dropped toward the gun holster resting against my waist.
Tanish followed my eyes.
His confidence disappeared within seconds.
"Actually," he corrected himself immediately, "I'm completely free. Totally available. Would love to come."
"Thought so."
I pushed myself away from the bench and walked back toward the others while Tanish followed behind me like a hostage pretending he had rights.
Near the center workstation, the entire team had gathered around Jenny's monitor. Multiple lines of code flashed rapidly across the screen while she typed with frightening speed.
Rhea looked confused.
Shruti looked impressed.
Vishal looked stressed.
And Jenny?
Jenny looked entertained.
I stopped near the table and spoke loudly enough for everyone to hear.
"I'm going to Goregaon West," I announced. "With Tanish."
Every head turned toward us instantly.
"Goregaon West?" Vishal frowned. "Why?"
"There's something we need to investigate," I replied. "And don't worry about that old man. I'll handle him."
"DIG sir, you mean?" Rhea asked carefully, though the flirtatious tone in her voice made me instantly regret existing.
I stared at her blankly.
"Are you naturally this dumb," I asked calmly, "or do you practice before coming to work?"
The room fell silent for half a second.
Then-
A quiet chuckle escaped from Jenny.
I turned toward her instinctively.
The moment our eyes met, she immediately looked back at her screen, hiding the smile that had already betrayed her.
But before I could say anything-
Her expression changed.
Completely.
The amusement disappeared from her face like someone had switched it off.
"Guys..." she said slowly, eyes locked onto the monitor. "There's something you need to see."
The tension in her voice pulled everyone toward the screen immediately.
"What happened?" Vishal asked, stepping closer.
Jenny didn't answer.
She simply moved aside slightly.
Another Reddit post glowed on the screen.
Another post from him.
Kishi Vaitarna.
Post by: KishiVaitarna
"9:00 PM
The hooded man stepped inside the NightSky Club. Loud music shook the walls while flashing neon lights painted the crowd in red and blue. The smell of alcohol, smoke, and sweat filled the air as people danced without caring about the world around them.
He walked calmly through the chaos, his black hoodie hiding most of his face. No one noticed him. No one ever notices the quiet ones.
He approached the bar counter.
"One Scotch" he said softly.
The bartender nodded and slid the glass toward him. The hooded man took a slow sip, his eyes scanning the crowd carefully like a predator searching for the perfect target.
Then he saw him.
A man standing near the dance floor, completely lost in the music. Laughing. Dancing carelessly. Unaware that death had already entered the club.
The hooded man walked toward him.
The stranger smiled casually, thinking it was just another random interaction between drunk people in a nightclub. They exchanged a few words. Nobody paid attention.
Why would they?
In a place full of noise and strangers, danger looks normal.
The hooded man slowly guided him toward a darker corner of the club, away from the flashing lights and crowded floor.
Then—
A white handkerchief covered the man's nose.
The smell of chloroform filled his lungs before he could react properly.
His body struggled weakly for a few seconds.
Then silence.
Unconscious.
The hooded man dragged him carefully through the back exit of the club and placed him inside his car.
The city roads remained empty as the vehicle disappeared into the night.
30mins later, they reached an abandoned building
After waiting for an hour,
He began the procedure."
My jaw tightened slowly.
Something felt wrong.
Very wrong.
"This feels off," I muttered.
Vishal glanced at me. "Why?"
I crossed my arms, staring at the screen carefully.
"In the previous posts, the killer never interacted with the victims this much," I explained slowly. "And every murder happened after twelve."
The room fell silent again.
Jenny looked thoughtful.
Vishal rubbed his forehead. "We don't know anything for sure yet."
"No," I replied quietly. "But if the pattern stays the same... then the murder will happen two days from now."
Rhea's face paled slightly.
"We need to stop it before it happens," I continued.
Jenny leaned back in her chair slightly, eyes narrowing toward the screen.
"Two days?" she repeated.
Vishal nodded once.
A slow smile appeared on Jenny's face.
"Perfect," she said softly. "Two days are enough for me to dig out everything about Kishi Vaitarna."
Confidence.
Pure confidence.
I hated how attractive that sounded.
"And me and Tanish are leaving for Goregaon West tonight," I reminded everyone again.
Beside me, Tanish looked personally betrayed by life itself.
"I never agreed to tonight" he muttered weakly.
I looked at him.
Just looked.
"Yeah," he sighed immediately. "Tonight's fine."
Shruti suddenly glanced toward Vishal.
"Wouldn't Vishal sir be better for guiding there?" she suggested innocently. "I mean... he's from Goregaon, right?"
My eyebrows pulled together instantly.
"From Goregaon?"
For the first time since the discussion started, Vishal looked uncomfortable.
He ran a hand through his hair before answering.
"No need," he said quickly. "I'll stay here and monitor things in your absence."
Interesting.
Very interesting.
But I let it slide.
"Works for me," I replied casually.
Then my eyes shifted toward Jenny one last time.
"After all..." I said slowly, "there are new people here to take care of."
She looked up.
"And I'm pretty sure," I finished quietly, "they don't want to see my face anyway."
The silence that followed felt heavier than it should have.
Then I turned and walked out before anyone could stop me.