The rain had stopped, but the air still carried the scent of storm and secrets.
Preyajeet rushed out of the café, scanning the street.
Empty.
No sign of Akanksha.
She had disappeared like smoke.
He clenched his jaw. No one had ever slipped from his watch so easily. Not in the field. Not in the city.
"She's highly trained," he muttered.
His phone rang again.
"Status?" his senior officer asked sharply.
"She knows," Preyajeet replied calmly. "And she's good."
"Then finish it before she finishes her mission."
The line disconnected.
Meanwhile, inside a moving cab, Akanksha removed her earrings. Tiny micro transmitters. She crushed them inside her palm and threw the pieces out of the window.
Her expression was cold.
But inside, something wasn't steady.
Why didn't he arrest her?
Why did he talk instead of attack?
Why did his eyes feel… different?
She shook her head.
"Focus, Akanksha," she whispered to herself.
Her mission mattered more than emotions.
Always.
Two days later.
Military Intelligence Headquarters.
Preyajeet stood before a digital screen showing Akanksha's photo.
"Her real name is unknown," an officer explained. "She entered India three months ago. Fake identity. Fake job. No family records."
Preyajeet stared at her image.
"She's not just gathering data," he said quietly. "She's planning something bigger."
"What do you suggest?"
"I need to get closer."
The room fell silent.
"You mean emotionally?" another officer asked.
"If needed," Preyajeet replied firmly. "I'll play the game."
That evening.
Akanksha returned to the same café.
She knew it was risky.
But she also knew he would come.
And he did.
This time, he didn't pretend.
He walked straight to her table.
"Can I sit?" he asked calmly.
"You already decided to," she replied.
He smiled faintly.
No uniforms. No weapons visible. Just two people sitting across from each other.
But beneath the table—
Both carried hidden guns.
"I know you're not ordinary," Preyajeet said softly.
"And I know you're army," Akanksha replied.
No shock.
No denial.
Just truth between enemies.
"So what now?" she asked.
He leaned back. "Now we find out who makes the first mistake."
Thunder rolled again in the distance.
Akanksha's phone vibrated.
A coded message flashed:
"Final phase begins tomorrow."
Her heartbeat quickened.
Tomorrow.
Everything would change.
She looked at Preyajeet.
For the first time, doubt flickered in her eyes.
If the final phase started…
There would be blood.
And maybe—
His.
Preyajeet noticed the shift in her expression.
"What happened?" he asked.
She forced a smile. "Nothing."
But both of them felt it.
The countdown had begun.
And love…
Was becoming the most dangerous weapon of all.