The screen of Vikram's phone glowed faintly in Isha's trembling hands. For a moment, she couldn't breathe. The words in front of her felt unreal, like they didn't belong to this world, like they had been written for someone else… not her.
"If you're reading this… I'm already dead."
Her vision blurred as tears welled up again, but this time it wasn't just grief. It was fear. A cold, creeping fear that settled deep inside her chest.
Vikram knew.
He knew something was going to happen.
Her fingers tightened around the phone as her mind started racing. Why would he send this? What did he see? Who was he afraid of?
"Isha…" Karan's voice came softly from behind her.
She quickly wiped her tears and turned slightly, hiding the screen from him without thinking. It wasn't that she didn't trust Karan… but something inside her told her to keep this to herself. At least for now.
"Did you find something?" he asked, stepping closer.
She shook her head lightly. "No… just… nothing important."
The lie felt heavy on her tongue, but she didn't take it back.
Karan studied her face for a moment, as if trying to read her thoughts, but then he sighed and looked away. "We should go… it's getting late."
Isha nodded slowly, but her eyes drifted back to the phone.
Nothing important.
That message was everything.
As they stepped out of the ward, the air in the corridor felt even heavier than before. Every step Isha took felt like she was walking deeper into something she didn't understand.
Her grip on the phone tightened again.
There had to be more.
Vikram wouldn't just leave one line.
He wasn't that kind of person.
Her thumb moved slowly over the screen, opening his messages, his calls, his notes… searching… scanning… hoping to find something that made sense.
And then she saw it.
A draft message.
Unsent.
Her heart skipped a beat.
She opened it.
The text wasn't complete… broken sentences… like he was writing in a hurry… or in fear.
"I don't have much time…"
"They know…"
"Not safe…"
Her breath hitched.
"They know…"
Who?
Her eyes moved further down the message.
"I trusted the wrong person…"
Her entire body went still.
The wrong person…
Her mind immediately started listing names.
Rahul…?
No.
Karan…?
Impossible.
Then who?
Her fingers trembled as she kept reading.
"If something happens… don't trust"
The message ended there.
Cut off.
Incomplete.
Like something....or someone.....had stopped him.
A chill ran down her spine.
This wasn't just fear anymore.
This was real.
Something had happened to Vikram.
Something planned.
Something dangerous.
"Isha…"
She flinched slightly as Karan called her again, pulling her back to reality.
"Hm?" she responded absentmindedly.
"You've been quiet… since we left the room."
"I'm just… tired."
That wasn't the truth.
But it was easier than explaining everything she didn't understand.
They stepped outside the hospital building. The night had settled in completely now. The streetlights flickered softly, casting long shadows on the empty road.
For a moment, everything felt still.
Too still.
Isha's heartbeat slowed… then suddenly quickened again.
Something felt wrong.
And then…
The voice came back.
Clear.
Sharp.
Unavoidable.
"Clue found."
Her steps stopped instantly.
Karan looked at her in confusion. "What happened?"
But she didn't answer.
Her eyes moved slowly around her surroundings, as if searching for the source of that voice… but she already knew.
There was no one there.
Only her.
"Next step…"
The voice continued.
"Follow the last call."
Her breath caught.
Last call…?
Her eyes immediately dropped to the phone in her hand.
Her fingers moved quickly, opening Vikram's call history.
The last call.
An unknown number.
No name.
No identity.
Just a string of digits staring back at her.
Her heart began to race again.
"Who is this…?" she whispered under her breath.
"Target identified."
The voice responded instantly.
Her chest tightened.
Target…?
Why did that word sound so dangerous?
"Trace the number."
"I don't know how…" she muttered softly, almost forgetting that Karan was still beside her.
"What?" he asked.
She shook her head quickly. "Nothing…"
Her mind was spinning now.
Trace the number…
How?
She wasn't some hacker.
She didn't have any connections.
She was just… Isha.
A normal girl.
At least… she used to be.
Her grip on the phone tightened again.
There had to be a way.
"I know someone…" Karan suddenly spoke.
She looked at him instantly.
"What?"
"I said… I know someone who might help."
Her eyes narrowed slightly. "Help with what?"
"With… numbers, data… stuff like that."
There was a slight hesitation in his voice.
A small pause.
But Isha noticed it.
Something about this felt strange.
"Who?" she asked carefully.
"My friend… Aarav. He works with tech stuff. He might be able to trace it."
Isha stayed silent for a moment.
Thinking.
Analyzing.
Was this coincidence…?
Or was this something else?
The voice didn't say anything this time.
It just watched.
Waited.
Tested.
"Okay…" she finally said. "Let's try."
Karan nodded. "We'll go tomorrow. It's too late now."
Tomorrow.
That felt too far.
Too slow.
But she had no other option.
"Fine."
They started walking toward the main road.
But Isha couldn't shake the feeling that something had changed.
That she had crossed a line she couldn't go back from.
Her fingers brushed lightly over the phone again.
Unknown number.
Wrong person.
"They know…"
Her heartbeat grew louder in her ears.
And then… something else caught her attention.
A reflection.
In the glass window of a parked car.
Someone standing behind them.
Her steps slowed.
Her eyes shifted slightly, pretending not to notice.
But she saw it.
A shadow.
Still.
Watching.
Her breath became uneven.
"Don't react."
The voice whispered softly this time.
"They're observing."
Her chest tightened.
They…?
Plural.
That meant more than one.
Fear crawled up her spine, but she forced herself to keep walking.
Normal.
Act normal.
Karan was still talking about something… but she couldn't focus on his words anymore.
Her mind was elsewhere.
Behind her.
With that shadow.
"Keep moving."
The voice instructed.
"Do not look back."
Her fingers curled slightly.
Whoever that was…
They weren't random.
They were connected.
To Vikram.
To the call.
To everything.
Her throat felt dry.
"Why me…?" she whispered under her breath.
No answer came this time.
Only silence.
Heavy and suffocating.
After a few minutes, they reached the road where vehicles were passing by occasionally.
The reflection disappeared.
The shadow was gone.
But the feeling didn't leave.
It stayed.
Clinging to her.
Watching her.
Waiting.
Karan stopped a cab and opened the door for her. "Come, I'll drop you home."
She hesitated for a second.
Home.
Was she even safe there?
She didn't know anymore.
But she got in anyway.
The ride was quiet.
Too quiet.
Her mind kept replaying everything again and again.
The message.
The draft.
The number.
The shadow.
"They know…"
Her fingers tightened around the phone once more.
"I'm going to find out…"
She whispered softly.
"No matter what."
The voice responded immediately.
"Task accepted."
A strange calm settled inside her.
Not peace.
Not comfort.
Something else.
Something stronger.
Resolve.
As the cab stopped in front of her house, she stepped out slowly.
Her home looked the same.
Silent.
Familiar.
But tonight… it felt different.
Like something inside it had changed.
Or maybe…
Something inside her had.
She turned back slightly, looking at the empty road behind her.
No shadow.
No movement.
Nothing.
But she knew.
This wasn't over.
This had just begun.
And somewhere… someone was still watching her.
Waiting for her next move.