The sky looks gloomy. Who could have thought that something as colourless as water can make the sky so dark. Seeing the weather, it wasn't difficult to guess how heavy it will pour down. And soon nature started to sing its most melodious song ever , the song that has the ability to make everyone's heart at ease and that beautiful smell of water mixing with soil... it's too amazing to feel but also too hard to explain. I enjoyed the view through my balcony.... the drops and the view of the busy street.

This was possibly going to be my last peaceful night for this year, because soon, I was leaving for India to investigate a case. Being born in a low middle class family and losing my mother at the age of 13, I was forced to earn and support my family at a very young age. Grandma, my brother and I used to live in England. I am an Indologist and Criminologist. My name is Anika. Although I am excited and looking forward to this journey, but the fear of leaving my brother and an old grandma, all alone, is making me scared. My family originally belongs to India, but due to some reasons as soon as my brother was born , we migrated to England. And that's the only memory I have of my life from India.

I don't quite understand why my mother was so scared of taking us back to India. Being deeply impressed by the diverse culture and beautiful landscape of India, as I have seen pictured in my books, I often used to request her to take us there on a vacation. But never once did I get the chance. She often told me that India is scary and if we want to stay safe, we must stay away from it. I am the eldest so I will have to make sure that my brother is safe... but how can such a beautiful country be scary? Did she always say this so that I should drop the idea of going to India?

Thinking about all this, I slowly drifted off....

The hallway was filled with the smell of blood. The smell was so strong that I almost threw up, my head started hurting. Darkness was the only thing filled in here. Every step I was taking and the increase in my heartbeat was so much in the sink that I almost felt as if I was dancing on heartbeat. The smell, the silence, the darkness and I with my racing heart...that's all?... I almost accepted this but... soon, a loud, fearful, painful scream of a man was heard... forgetting everything I rushed toward the direction from where the voice came. Not knowing where my courage came from I ran as if my life depended on it...but actually it did. Might be, I'll be able to save the life of the man. I ran, and in a few sec, I found myself standing in front of a big giant door, about 10 m high. And again. but this time a bit more loud and clear, the same scream was heard. I moved my hand and was about to open the door when... suddenly....

I felt as if someone was calling my name " Anika, Anika... " I forced my eyes open only to meet pairs of beautiful blue eyes filled with concern looking anxiously at me... as I opened my eyes I heard him signing in relief and again in his cold but calm voice he asked," Anika.. Are u alright?'

It took me a few sec to realise that all that I saw was just a dream.' OH GOD! it was too realistic to be a dream" I thought. I slowly stood up and dusted myself. I heard him again "Anika, are u all right? u suddenly fainted, if u are tired, let's first head back to your..." not wanting him to continue I interrupted him "oh, yeah, I'm fine, sorry to make u worry. It's just due to my long journey , u must not worry. But how do u know me?"

"It's William here and he is Kevin" the other guy said. He stood tall beside Kevin hardly having any expression on his face. His cold attitude made it hard to befriend him, and as he spoke, don't know why but I felt the temperature suddenly decreasing to certain degrees... he continued," we are your teammates." And after finishing he took my bags and said " Even if u are tired, u still need to report about your arrival, follow us to the embassy ." and he started walking towards the exit.

The famous vibe of soldiers... I guess. Not thinking much, I followed the two guys. They both were tall almost having a height of 6'1 and 6'3. Their pale well-build body made them stand out from the crowd... obviously , they were Englishmen, they have to be different from the rest of the crowd.

It took us almost half an hour to reach the embassy. The embassy was big and had 5 floors, as told by Kevin, the allotted room for my team-force was on the fourth floor. Without wasting time, the group of three walked directly towards our team room. Being honest, I wasn't expecting the agency to be so big and that well lighted and furnished, It was painted with white and red colour. We reached the room and William pushed open the door, as we entered, two men and a female were sitting across the table. With their expression, it wasn't hard to guess that they just had some argument.

To ease the atmosphere, I walked forward with a bright smile on my face and introduced myself," hello, I'm Anika, new teammate in your task-force." As I finished I saw the woman probably around 25 standing up politely, "Hey, so the new member is a female as well, so I'm not the only female in the taskforce. THANK U LORD. My name is Bella. I'm a criminologist." the other man leaning forward said," U can call me Alex".

As soon as he finished the last one spoke," Call me Daniel, I'll be the representative of the task force till the arrival of the leader." He had a bit of anger and attitude in his tone. "Anika and Bella," folding his hands behind his back, Daniel continued, " I don't know why we have two criminologists in our taskforce and that too female, but as u both are here, I would like to tell few facts, Indian street are not safe so better not go alone anywhere. We can't always be there to help u both, so rather than adding trouble, kindly stay at home" then he said in low voice," Women are always troublesome, cain any way, still like to jump everywhere."

Well offensive ...isn't it? Bella balled her fist and was about to speak as I spoke up first," Dear leader, thanks for your thoughtfulness but speaking too much will drain away your energy and since u r too eager to solve this case , u actually need to save up your energy. We are not here to please u, so please u also don't displeasure us by your presence. As fortunately and unfortunately, both, we r part of it so bear with us." with the same smile I said and went to sit beside Bella. By my words, it was clear that no matter what happens I am and will be part of the case, and anyones comment cant change that fact.

Except Danial. everyone was having a pleasant expression on their face.

As we all settled down, Alex stood up and said in a clear voice," Since everyone is here now, I would like to introduce you all with the case you are dealing with. Latterly, many murder cases are reported and the number is increasing rapidly. To crack down this case, the British government joined their hands with the Indian government. For this, a team of 6 members was sent here but sadly two of them went missing, one is reported dead. The left one is currently hospitalized, he was found by local police, badly injured and has still not gained consciousness. Our task is to crack this unsolved case and find out the whereabouts of the rest of the two officers. "

After finishing speaking he handed over a total of 5 printed reports. These reports had the details about the officers.

Danial stood up and left the room first.

As soon as he left, a man dressed up in an Indian outfit entered the room. He was tall and the type of clothes he wore, he looked royal. He was handsome and had the facial features of an Indian. His long hairs which reached till his shoulder and brown eyes made him look the most handsome man present in the room. Seeing him, Kevin jumped up happily and said in a joyful voice," Young master, dressing up like this, WOW, do you really want to steal away all the young women's hearts? You are too bad.. leave a few for us too." "Oh, my bad, Anika, meet young master from the Sinha family, he is part of our guild... "

"U can call me Omkar or MR. Sinha, nice meeting u Miss. Anika."

"Mr. Sinha, nice meeting u too."

Allow me to escort u till Kaushik mansion Miss. Dubey."

"U R mistaken Mr. Sinha... my surname is Jaiswal." listening to this he just looked at me without speaking. Why was everyone this weird today? As he was escorting me back and I was too exhausted, I already started looking pale and weary. So, not considering any other thing I walked out of the room. The ride back was peaceful and filled with silence.

Within 15 min, we were standing in front of Kaushik Mansion. Mr. Sinha and I walked into the mansion together. This mansion was double the size of our embassy. It had a beautiful garden and a fountain giving it a rich European Villa vibe. This mansion exterior was a perfect example of the mixture of art and architecture of Mughals and Rajput. As we reached the main entrance, I noticed an Old couple standing there, definitely waiting for someone...oh, for us. They were dressed in simple Indian outfits. Near them,young girl, in her early 20's was standing, holding a plate which has diya, tikka and a bit of rice in it. This is how traditionally, Indian people welcome their guests.

We entered the mansion altogether. The mansion exterior and interior, both were mesmerizing but both gave off different vibes. The exterior gave a royal vibe whereas the interior was designed and decorated in bengali taste. It was simple and comfortable with luxurious vibes.

It was already late when we reached the mansion. Shortly, the food was served. The simple food was seriously the most delicious food I had this whole year. Surprisingly, after being there for a few minutes, it made me forget all my worries and sadness, It honestly felt as if I was home again after a long journey.

Mr. Sinha and Mr. Kaushik went to the study room to chat about something important after having dinner. Till then, Mrs. Kaushik gave me a house tour. This mansion simply had everything in it. There was a big library, a separate servant quarter, and beautiful balconies attached to every room. This mansion was way too beautiful.

After finishing the house tour we returned back to the living room where Mr. Kaushik and Mr. Sinha, both were waiting. As Mr. Sinha helped me a lot, I wanted to thank him so i followed him out. I was about to speak when Mr. Sinha warned me, "No one here is yours, so be careful and don't trust anyone".

Saying this, he left without giving me a chance to say anything. I stood there rooted to the ground being unable to move or to ask him what he meant by his warning.

With the conflict in my heart, I returned to the room in which Mrs. Kaushik arranged for me. His words clearly had a hidden meaning. Was he warning me to not trust anyone who I am gonna meet? Or was he warning me to not trust people I am surrounded with? Anyways even if I try, I can't find out what he actually meant... The only thing I can do is to be careful.

Putting all my thoughts aside, I opened the report that Alex gave me and began to read it. But, unknowingly, I again began to think about Mr. Sinha. This time it wasn't due to his words but because of how I felt about him. The first time i saw him, I felt my heart beat increasing. I don't know what exactly attracted me the most about him, might be his thoughtfulness and upright behaviour?

Ah..... I screamed. 'Focus- focus! Anika. U gotta do lots of stuff. ' saying this to myself, I dropped off.

It was already 9 till the time I woke up. The sun was already shining brightly, there was a lingering smell of jasmine in the air, WOW, a pleasant and bright day.

After getting ready I walked downstairs. Greeting Mrs. Kaushik, I walked out and started walking towards the embassy. Remembering correctly, today we will investigate the hotel where all the officers were staying.

As today was the first day of my work and was in my native land... I felt like dressing up in a saree. The Saree which I wore was whitish-green in colour and had flowers drawn on its border. It made me look classy and elegant.

The street was packed tightly. Everyone was rushing to do their jobs. Every shop beside the street was filled with people...especially tea shops. Ah... Common scene from India.

I reached the embassy, I saw all my teammates standing in front of the embassy. I don't know why they all were standing out under the sun... I mean, it was sunny today and waiting for me outside,under the sun...it doesn't sound good... Did I really force them to wait a lot for me? As I approached them...William turned to me slowly and said in a low voice, "Anika, we have bad news, the last officer was reported dead." I frowned after hearing this. I turned my face up to look at William and sadly with his bitter expression it was confirmed that I heard him right.

All my teammates were sad, even me too. When suddenly a thought crossed my mind," Even the one who managed to free himself from those kidnappers was killed so brutally, what must have happened to those two left officers? Were they still alive? Were they also tortured like this? Thinking about this even made me feel afraid.

The officer was still murdered inside the hospital, in spite of all those security guards and police officers guarding the ward room. This made me realize how unsafe we all were.

This bad news was enough for me today, I don't have the heart to continue thinking, it was too disturbing for me.

While thinking about all this, I saw my colleagues getting into the car, keeping all my thoughts aside, I tried my best to keep my cool. quickly following them, I also sat down into it. The ride was silent. Nobody said anything, we didn't even feel like sharing our thoughts. This news made all of us realize, that now, not even a single minute can be wasted.

As we reached the hospital, we saw the ward room surrounded by police officers. They all were whispering among themselves. There in one corner I saw Mr. Sinha standing, he didn't have any expression on his face, the same as the first day I saw him. Sometimes,due to this cold and calm nature of his, I felt scared,it made me realize how in spite of being so close, we were still so distant. Thinking this made me feel a little uncomfortable. Yeah, he and I were still strangers to each other, but he acted as a guide for the officer as well. They were familiar with each other. At least, he should have a little expression on his face.

I followed my teammates inside the ward room. There, the officer's body was laying on his bed. Bella and I walked forward and started examining the body. The body was as cold as ice. He was murdered a long time ago!!! I turned towards my Alex and asked him loudly, " When exactly did u all receive the news of the officer's death? "..."Almost an hour ago" He replied after thinking for a few seconds.

What?!!!!! But why??? Shouldn't we be informed about it a little more earlier? He was clearly dead for more than ten hours for now. Exact time will be confirmed after the forensic report.

I wasn't in the mood to continue asking, so I asked the police officer standing nearby to kindly call the nurses responsible for the check-up of the officer. Hearing me, almost all understood that something was wrong to the extent that it can't be tolerated.

Till then Bella spoke up, " His nails have a bit of skin in it and there is a knife mark on his neck. I don't think it's hard to guess the cause of his death, and the blueish mark on his chest proves that he was also poisoned. Someone injected him the poison.The killer simply doesn't want to leave any chance for the officer to survive. "

"If u say so, then he must have at least struggled. I don't think anyone will allow anyone to kill them. " Kevin said frowning.

"Exactly, that's the problem is, the room is so clean, it looks like it was cleaned a few hours back" Bella said

"But the sad thing is that the officer is dead for more than ten hours. It's impossible that no one noticed that he was dead because the room must have been a mess before the cleaning. " Anika said.

"His clothes, his bedsheets... Everything was changed" Bella said.

Hearing this no one inside the room looked good. It proves that someone inside the hospital was the killer's follower.

After examination, Bella and i left the hospital with Mr. Sinha. Just like our mood, the weather was also gloomy. Dark clouds covered the sun. None of us had a good expression on our face.

We bid our goodbyes and separated our ways.

Darkness fills the alley. With a stony wall ahead I have nowhere else to run. I can feel his presence behind me. He was so close that I could even feel his icy breath on my skin.

"You have nowhere to go. You were mine. " Stranger said. Hearing him, I turned around sharply. "You'll never have me! never! "

He was dressed up in a gothic style. It was hard to see his face as it was covered with a piece of cloth. But his eyes were dark, filled up with lust and desires. His skin was pale white. His nails were long and sharp. His clothes were dark and tightly hugging his body. He was wearing chunky boots.

It was clear that I was getting under his skin. He was losing his control. He started moving closer to me.

And suddenly....

I woke up, but my hands still burned painfully.

It was drizzling outside. I quickly stood up and started moving towards the balcony. As I walked, my gaze shifted to my hands. There were three uneven bleeding scratches.

"Claws.... " I muttered.

But how do I have these marks on my skin. I clearly remember, no one in the kaushik mansion had any pets.

And what was wrong with me? Why was I always in a dark room and running in my dreams?

Hoping to clear my mind I made my way towards the bathroom with uncertain steps, invaded in my thoughts.

The bloods had gotten on my clothes. I signed and started undressing myself. I went under the shower and turned it on. Hot water started running down my body, making me feel calm and relaxed. I don't even know when I started humming and occasionally dancing under the shower. Well, being more specific, I was having my own mini concert and was rocking it.

I smiled and turned off the shower. The bathroom was clouded with a stream, it was clear that I was under the shower for a long period of time. I wrapped a towel around my naked body and opened the door. Now, it's time to put on the bandage.

I walked towards the drawer where my first-aid box was kept.

Suddenly, I felt the presence of someone in my room. I turned around sharply. A tall, dark figure in baggy clothes stood in front of me. And for sure, this time I wasn't dreaming.

An icy wave of terror rushed down my spine. Without my notice, I punched the man standing in front of me.

I heard his cry. He took a step back and I quickly searched for the switches to turn on the lights.

With all the experience of my day, I was too scared to believe anyone. And now there is a stranger in my room.... Wasn't it too much!!!!!

He started, "hey! sorry I don't mean to scare u. Please calm down. Actually my cat is missing and as yours and my balcony is attached, I thought it might come here through it. I guess u don't know me, Hello I am Aryan. The  son of kaushiks."He smiled broadly and flipped his hair back with his hands.

He's an attractive, hot and handsome looking young man. As mentioned, he is around 6'1 something. He has a black, straight hair reaching his shoulder. Half of his hair was tied up in a bun, making him look more presentable.

He fake coughed making me snap back to reality. I was definitely checking him out for a quite long time. "your cat, you say?"

I looked at him but he was not looking at my face but my lower ... he was staring at my chest. WOW! now he is checking me out.

That's when I felt my towel, hugging my body, slipping down. But at the right moment Aryan's hand darted forward and caught the towel , pressing it against my body. As soon as I felt his warm hands , my body started reacting to his touch. I started melting, my heart beat rate increased. And I am sure he can hear it out loud.

...... he leaned forward and said "got it".

Finding myself in his arms, I immediately thought of him wrapping me in a towel as a sibling, it made me feel kinda awkward and disappointed.

I wanted to crack a joke and laugh it off....

But when I looked up at Aryan, all my words vanished . There wasn't anything brotherly about his expression. His blue ocean deep eyes were looking deep into into my eyes. His lustful gaze shifted from my eyes to my lips. A wave of heat stirred within me.

Our face was too close... dangerously close. Aryan finger slip down my face to my cheeks and then my lips. He pulled me closer, but soon he snapped back to reality. He stepped back," for real, go and get dressed otherwise you will catch cold" he said and went straight to the couch.

He was about to sit down ....when we heard the sound "MEOW"

Something jumped from under the table and darted around the room. Aryan reached out and immediately caught the cat in a gentle hug. "MEOW" this time cat was looking at me.

" Are you afraid of this scary lady, buddy? Don't be , it's , btw, what is your name?" Aryan asked.

"I'm scary?!!! never mind it's Anika"

Suddenly I realized I was still wearing nothing but just a towel. I quickly went to my closet and started dressing up. It was already late at night, so there wasn't any point in dolling-up.

Getting dress, I returned to my room. And for my surprise, Aryan was still there, standing, his back facing towards me.

He spoke softly, "I am extremely sorry for entering into your room and disturbing you. I never knew that we were hosting a guest. And that you are staying in the room besides me. "

He sounds sincere. And even I wasn't told that there is any son in Kaushik family. So, we were somewhat same. Furthermore this house belongs to him. He has right to visit every room in this house.

"It's alright. I also never knew that kaushiks have son. "

"Kaushik have three son. " Aryan said turning towards me. "I am the youngest of all. My eldest brother mostly stays away and helps father with our family business and about the second elder brother ... U have met him already. "

"Have I? " I questioned myself.

"Omkar... People mostly call him Mr. Sinha. He is my second elder brother. "

It was shocking. I actually thought him to be from Sinha house. "He stay at Sinha house because of my mother promise. Don't think to much about it. "

"Let's be friends. " I suggested.

"I thought we already became one. And plz, don't talk to Omkar about what I told you. It has always been a sour point for him. "He said and winking at me, he left the room with his cat in his arms.