Collateral Hearts

The air in Delhi's airport terminal hummed with the usual symphony of hurried footsteps, hushed conversations, and distant announcements. Captain Ekansh Malhotra, a man whose posture alone screamed discipline, moved through the crowd. Dressed in a casual black T-shirt and olive cargo pants, only his polished combat boots betrayed the soldier beneath. He paused at a vending machine, his eyes, sharp and ceaselessly scanning, landed on her.
Kiara. Effortlessly stylish in a dark trench coat, she walked with an almost unsettling confidence. Her phone was in hand, but her gaze was alert, calculating. As she passed, a discreet, black-on-black embroidered tag on her bag caught his eye: "R.A.W." His jaw tightened. Instincts screaming, he turned, following her silent footsteps.
