Kunal jerked back from the window, his heart hammering against his ribs like a trapped bird. The casual glint of light off a lens in the parked sedan below wasn't imagination. It was confirmation. Antarhitaḥ paśyanti. They watch while concealed. Ashoka's warning, the ancient text – it was all converging, right here, right now, outside his Lower Parel apartment.
His first instinct was pure, cold Bhayam (Fear). His second was to grab his phone, fumbling slightly with trembling fingers. He dialled Abhishek first.
"Bhai?" Abhishek answered, sounding like he was already half-asleep.
"Abhi! Suno! (Listen!)" Kunal whispered urgently, moving away from the window, crouching low. "There's a car outside. Unfamiliar. Been parked across the street for a while. No lights. I think… yaar, I'm sure… they're watching me."
"What?!" Abhishek was instantly awake. "Kaun log? (Which people?) The council guys?"
"Pata nahin! (Don't know!) But it fits. What you said about security… Bhai, they found me."
"Okay, okay, shaant ho ja. (Calm down.)" Abhishek's voice was level, cutting through Kunal's panic. "Window se dur reh. (Stay away from the window.) Locks check kar. Main 15-20 minute mein pahunchta hoon." (Check the locks. I'll reach in 15-20 minutes.)
"Theek hai. (Okay.) Jaldi aa. (Come quickly.)"
Kunal hung up, his breath coming in ragged gasps. He immediately dialled Ananya.
"Annie," he said, keeping his voice low. "They're here. Outside my apartment. Watching."
"What? Already?" Ananya gasped. "The watchers from the text… Kunal, be careful! Don't do anything reckless. Stay inside. Lock everything."
"Abhishek is coming over."
"Good. Achha hai. Let me know what happens. I'll… I'll keep digging online from my place. Maybe I can find something about surveillance methods used by… well, whoever these people are."
The next twenty minutes were the longest of Kunal's life. He checked the locks on his door and windows multiple times, peering cautiously through a slit in the blinds only once – the dark sedan was still there, an unmoving block of shadow. He resisted the urge to light a cigarette, knowing the flare might draw attention. He paced his small living room like a caged animal, the silence punctuated only by the distant hum of Mumbai traffic and his own frantic heartbeat.
A soft, coded knock finally came at the door. Kunal checked the peephole – Abhishek, face grim, looking left and right down the corridor. Kunal quickly unlatched the locks.
Abhishek slipped inside, immediately relocking the door behind him. "Kidhar hai gaadi? (Where's the car?)" he whispered, heading straight for the window but keeping low and to the side.
Kunal pointed cautiously. Abhishek peered through the edge of the blinds for a long moment.
"Dark grey Honda City, looks like an older model," he murmured. "Tinted windows. Can't see inside. No clear shot at the number plate from this angle." He pulled back. "Could be anyone, yaar. But given everything else… better assume the worst."
He scanned Kunal's apartment. "We need to check for bugs. Now." Abhishek pulled a small electronic device from his bag – a basic RF detector. "Not professional grade, but might pick up common transmitters."
While Abhishek methodically swept the room, Kunal updated Ananya via secure text message. The simple act of doing something, anything, helped push back the paralysis of fear. Abhishek found nothing obvious, but admitted, "Professional gear could be much harder to detect. And they could be using directional mics from the car." He looked at Kunal seriously. "Bhai, I don't think you should stay here tonight."
Kunal nodded slowly. The illusion of safety his apartment offered had shattered. "Where do I go?"
"You can crash at my place," Abhishek offered immediately. "Small, but secure building. Less obvious than a hotel."
Just then, Ananya messaged back: 'Found something maybe? Cross-referencing the 'Crimson Star' prophecy timings with known historical periods of upheaval + mentions of secretive councils in Mauryan commentaries. There might be a pattern linked to specific astronomical alignments. Need more time.'
"Astronomical alignments?" Abhishek raised an eyebrow as Kunal read the message aloud. "Now we're talking astrology?"
"Maybe not astrology in the usual sense," Kunal mused, recalling Ashoka's cosmic perspective. "Maybe actual celestial events that these groups, ancient or modern, attach significance to. Like the prophecy itself." He felt a new urgency. "Annie, keep looking into that. Abhi, your place sounds good for tonight."
As they prepared to leave, taking only essentials, Abhishek did one last check through the peephole.
"Gaadi chali gayi," he announced, a note of surprise in his voice. (The car is gone.)
Kunal rushed to look. The space across the street where the sedan had sat ominously was now empty.
Relief washed over him, quickly followed by a deeper unease. They hadn't made a move. They had just watched. Letting him know they could.
"They wanted us to see them," Kunal said quietly. "They know we're onto them. This changes things."
Abhishek clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Chal. (Let's go.) We figure out the next move from my place. Securely."
Stepping out into the corridor felt like entering enemy territory. The game wasn't just about uncovering history anymore. It was about survival.
To be continued...