ZEESHAN'S POV

“Good morning, sir,” the guard said, saluting. I nodded, returning the gesture as I stepped into the academy. Ignoring the sound my boots made on the marbled floor, I went straight to the training room I’d been assigned.

As I entered, the scattered chatter quickly died down, and they formed a line. Stepping up on the podium, I took the mic and stood in the middle.

“Good morning, officers,” I said, my voice was calm yet firm. They replied in unison, loud and clear.

“Today marks the end of your nine months of training as CBI officers. I hope you have learned the true meaning of resilience, patience, and most importantly, patriotism.”

I continued, “It was my pleasure to be your officer in charge. I hope you all use your powers and training on the right path… for our country. Let’s do some basics and end the training for the day. Am I clear?” My voice was firm as ever.

The response came immediately as I ended my monologue.

As per my instructions, the trainees practiced some basics for about an hour or two.

“DISMISSED,” I shouted, and that was it,they ran out like criminals set free from prison.

Shaking my head at the absurdity of these idiots, I turned to leave-

“Sir,” said a female trainee, accompanied by her friend. I raised an eyebrow and clasped my hands behind my back, waiting for her to continue.

“Th-that… si-r,” she stuttered, her friend elbowing her as if encouraging her. I sighed.

They were wasting my time.

“What is it? Be quick, I have work to do. I can’t sit here all day waiting for you to speak,” I snapped sharply. They flinched, but I cared less.

“Sir, I… l–Lik-” she started, stammering like an idiot. I understood what she meant.

“DON’T,” I interrupted her. “LEAVE.”

And she did, along with her friend, crying like a weak piece of shit.

“Poor girl, you could’ve at least dismissed her nicely,” said Vidit Sharma, appearing out of nowhere with his nose stuck in my business.

“Shut up. And why are you more interested in my business than in your own?” I snapped. He just grinned like the idiot he is.

“That’s because I love you more than I love myself, meri jaan,” he said, pouting at me and making me cringe immediately.

“Fuck off.” I pushed him away and left for the scheduled meeting.

“Aww, I love you too, babygirl,” he shouted. I flipped him off in response, which only made him laugh like an idiot and follow me nonetheless.

The meeting was about the mission we had been assigned-a rape case where a 60-year-old man had raped his own 15-year-old granddaughter.

Disgusting piece of shit.

His semen was found around her sensitive areas. Her parents were brave enough to file a complaint against him, but he fled and went underground. After some investigation, it was revealed that he had done this to five more girls who were his students. They, however, didn’t have supportive parents, so they couldn’t file a complaint against him. All of them are adults now, and they’ve agreed to finally file a complaint.

We had been working on this case, and we suspected he was hiding in his ancestral village house. His daughter told us about the ancestral house, though they didn’t know the exact address..only the village name.

“What was the name again?” said my senior, pulling me out of my thoughts.

“Warizabad. It’s about 50 km away from Madhya Pradesh. We’ll have to leave today if we want to execute the plan tomorrow night. From Delhi, it should take almost a whole day to reach, including breaks,” replied Naman, my fellow officer and part of this mission.

Our senior nodded with a grunt, his eyes fixed on the maps and the evidence we had managed to gather.

“Okay, let’s do one thing. Naman, Zeeshan, Vidit, Dev, Aditya, Nitin-leave immediately for the village and take a look around. Make sure you’re disguised as normal citizens. The rest of the officers will join you after your green signal about his presence in the village house. We’ll execute the plan the day after tomorrow.” He ordered. We all nodded and immediately left to follow his instructions.

As we walked out of the meeting room, Naman said, “Let’s go home, pack our basic necessities since we might stay there for a day or two, and meet at the academy gate at 6 p.m.” It was 2 p.m. right now, and he was right.

Everyone agreed to his plan, and we all scattered to complete the task. Vidit, however, walked with me since we lived next door to each other.

“What do you think?” he asked as we walked toward the parking lot where our cars were parked.

“About what?” I asked, confused by his vague way of questioning.

“About that old piece of shit. Is he really hiding in that ancestral house?” he replied.

“I don’t know if he’s smart enough to find a better hiding spot. Plus, that house is practically useless now, just a broken piece of land. So yeah, there are chances of finding him there,” I said. He nodded in understanding.

“My car or your car?” he asked as we reached the parking lot. I unlocked my car and walked straight toward it.

He muttered, “Such a pain in the ass,” and followed me. He could always pick his car up after the mission,no big deal.

I drove straight home after we settled into my car.

After 20 minutes of Vidit talking like a broken radio, we finally arrived.

“See you in two hours,” I said, leaving without waiting for his reply. My ears needed a break from his non-stop chitter-chatter.

“One day you’ll miss my cheerful self!” he shouted. I waved in response and knocked on my door. After a minute or two, my mother opened it.

“Itni jaldi aagya aaj?” she asked as I stepped in.
(Back so soon?)

“Haan woh mujhe mission k liye urgently nikalna hai 2 ghante mei. Aap mera bag pack kardoge?” I replied, making myself comfortable on the couch.
(Yeah, I've to leave for a mission in two hours, would you please help me pack my bag?)

“Kitne dino k liye Jaa Raha hai?” she asked, handing me a glass of chilled water.
(For how many days are you leaving?)

“2 din maximum, lekin 3 bhi lag skte hai. Aap sirf meri basic basic necessities pack kardo. A few pairs of clothes, toiletries, nothing much,” I informed her, laying my head in her lap as she sat next to me.
(2 days maximum or it might take me 3 days. Just pack my basic necessities.)

“Theek hai,” she responded softly with a chuckle. “Abhi bhi bachpan wali aadat nahi gayi teri. Pehle bhi meri god mei sir rakh kr so jata tha school ya college se aakar.”
(Okay.)
(You are still stuck with your childhood habit, you would always sleep with your head on my lap after returning from school or college.)

“Aapki god mei sir rakh kar thakaan dur ho jaati hai meri,” I replied, closing my eyes. She chuckled softly, caressing my hair.
(I always feel fresh when I lay my head in your lap)

“Ek bahu laa de, meri bhi thakaan dur ho jae,” she said. I sighed.
(Get me a daughter-in-law,  I will also feel fresh.)

As if inki bahu inko sir par bitha kar ghumegi.
(As if her daughter-in-law will roam around with her on her head.)

“Mumma I told you, jab mai taiyar hounga shadi k liye tabhi mai aapko khud bolunga. Usse pehle aap baat ni karoge iske baare mei.” I repeated the same sentence I’ve been saying every time she asks this question.
(Mumma, I told you, whenever I feel like I'm ready to get married, I'll tell you myself. Before that, you would not talk to me about it.)

“Theek hai, jaise tujhe theek lage,” she sighed.
(Fine, do whatever you want to do.)

After her everyday dose of melodrama, she went to pack my bag while I decided to take a power nap for 15 minutes.

Soon, I was standing in front of my car, waiting for my ass of a best friend to arrive because, as usual, he was running late.

“Let’s go, let’s go,” he came running, tossing his duffle bag onto the back seat before sliding into the passenger seat.

“I would’ve left if you hadn’t come within the next minute,” I snapped, fastening my seatbelt and starting the engine.

“Aww, I love you too,” he replied with a sarcastic smile.

“Fuck off, bitch,” I muttered as I shifted gears. He only chuckled.

And just like that, the team was off on the mission-with me, Vidit, and Naman in my car, and the other three in another. It was a long drive. We took turns driving, and after 20 hours on the road with breaks, we finally reached our destination: a small village far removed from the amenities of the modern world.

We parked our cars 30 minutes outside the village, near a cottage that Nitin had managed to book for us.

“Let’s freshen up and get some rest. There’s a fair in the village today-almost everyone attends it. We should execute our plan there. We’ve got five to six hours to give our bodies a much-needed nap,” Dev informed us. We all nodded and dispersed.

The cottage had exactly seven rooms with bathrooms, plus a drawing room and a kitchen. We each took one room.

After reaching mine, I decided to take a much-needed shower before sleeping. Once I was done, I threw my tired body onto the soft bed and drifted off almost instantly-not before dropping a text to my mother.

After three to four hours, we all gathered to eat and discuss the plan. It was decided that three of us would ask around at the fair while the rest searched the village.

Naman, Vidit, and Nitin took charge of questioning people at the fair, leaving the other three of us to sweep the village.

By around 8 p.m., the whole village was deserted. That’s when we began our search. Almost every house was locked but showed signs of life-except one. Nodding to each other, we loaded our guns and moved quietly, our shoes crunching against the dry leaves.

As expected, the house was locked with an old rusted lock. But something felt off-the lock rotated too easily, and there were no spider webs around the door.

A lock untouched for years would never move that smoothly. Which meant he was inside.

We immediately retreated and made our way back to the cottage. Dev called the rest of the team to regroup.

Waiting for the others felt pointless. Six of us could easily execute the mission. But our senior wouldn’t like it-he was a stuck-up asshole who needed everything by the book.

“There’s no point in waiting for the team. We should execute this mission ourselves,” said Naman, surprisingly. He was usually the one kissing up to seniors during every mission.

“He’s right. We can’t risk him escaping,” Dev agreed, standing up.

“We need a foolproof plan. We don’t know if he’s alone or with a damn army of fuckers inside that haunted house,” Nitin cautioned. We nodded and weighed the pros and cons, planning out every step.

Soon, we were on a Zoom call with our senior barking at us. According to him, none of us were following protocols and we had no business doing this alone.

But his favorite, Naman, calmly explained the consequences. Eventually, it was decided-we’d move at 3 a.m. Three of us from the front gate, the other three from the back.

At around 2:30 a.m., the village was pitch dark and silent. We stood in front of the house. Naman, Dev, and Nitin nodded at us before heading to the back. We stayed connected through earpieces.

We began searching the house quietly. It was empty, as expected, but we still had the basement left.

Silently, we opened the basement door. And there he was-drowned in alcohol, drunk out of his guts.

“Pick him up and let’s leave for Delhi now,” I said, staring at the pathetic piece of shit. Aditya and Dev lifted him up.

Naman, Aditya, Dev, and Nitin went in one car with the drunk bastard, while Vidit and I followed in the other, carrying everyone’s luggage. This time, we didn’t take breaks-we drove straight to headquarters.

“Good job, officers. All of you can take the day off. We’ll handle it from here,” one of the seniors said. We nodded and left for home.

As soon as I reached, I changed into fresh clothes and collapsed onto my bed, fast asleep within minutes.