Chapter 3 — Dangerous Curiosity
1671 Words
Chapter 3 — Dangerous Curiosity
The entire penthouse office smelled faintly of antiseptic.
Exactly how Mihir Raichand liked it.
Clean.
Controlled.
Untouched.
Yet somehow, despite the spotless silence surrounding him, his thoughts remained chaotic.
Because of her.
Maya Verma.
Nyx.
The hacker with sharp eyes, sarcastic replies, and a laugh that kept replaying in his head like an annoying song he couldn’t delete.
Mihir stared at the security footage paused on his monitor.
Frame 248.
Maya standing beside her motorcycle.
Black hoodie.
Wind moving through her hair.
That expression somewhere between confidence and carelessness.
Beautiful.
Mihir leaned back in his chair, irritated with himself.
He barely tolerated most people.
But this woman had invaded his systems, insulted him repeatedly, and vanished into the night—
and somehow he wanted to see her again.
His assistant entered nervously. “Sir, the investors from Kronos International have arrived.”
Mihir closed the security footage instantly.
“Five minutes.”
The assistant nodded quickly and left.
The moment the door shut, Mihir opened another encrypted screen.
A hidden tracker.
Not on Maya.
He wasn’t foolish enough to try that.
No, this tracker monitored Serpentine Network activity across the dark web.
And right now…
Their activity had tripled.
Something was coming.
His phone buzzed.
Unknown Number.
Mihir answered immediately.
“You’re obsessed with answering unknown calls,” Maya said casually.
Without warning, his mood improved slightly.
Annoying.
“You’re obsessed with hacking my systems.”
“They’re vulnerable.”
“They’re military grade.”
“They’re expensive decorations.”
Mihir almost smiled.
Almost.
“What do you want?” he asked.
“I need access to AstraVex archives.”
“No.”
“You didn’t even ask why.”
“You’re a hacker. I assumed crime.”
Maya gasped dramatically through the phone. “Wow. Hurtful.”
“You broke into my company twice.”
“Three times.”
Mihir went silent.
“…Three?”
“Yes. The third one was just to prove I could.”
For several seconds, Mihir simply stared at the city skyline through the glass walls.
Then quietly—
“You’re insane.”
“Thank you.”
A pause settled between them.
Not uncomfortable.
Just… strange.
Mihir realized something unsettling.
He liked hearing her voice.
“Meet me,” he said suddenly.
Silence.
Then Maya replied carefully, “Why?”
“I don’t discuss sensitive information over calls.”
“You traced this call already, didn’t you?”
“Yes.”
“And?”
“Nothing.”
Maya laughed softly.
“You really hate losing, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Interesting.”
Mihir lowered his voice slightly. “Meet me tonight.”
Another pause.
Then finally—
“Fine.”
—
At 9:15 PM, Maya stood outside an empty twenty-four-hour bookstore café in Mumbai.
She adjusted her hoodie nervously.
Which irritated her.
Why was she nervous?
It was just Mihir.
Cold billionaire.
Emotionally constipated CEO.
Annoyingly attractive human sanitizer dispenser.
Nothing important.
Naina’s voice echoed in her head:
You totally like him.
Maya rejected that thought immediately.
Impossible.
Ridiculous.
Catastrophic.
The café door opened.
And Mihir walked in.
Maya forgot every intelligent thought in her brain for a full two seconds.
Black shirt.
Rolled sleeves.
Dark watch.
Sharp jawline.
And those eyes.
Seriously unfair eyes.
Maya’s brain whispered traitorously:
Handsome.
Again.
Mihir stopped walking the moment he saw her.
Tonight she wore loose black jeans, white sneakers, and no mask.
Her hair fell around her face messily, and under the warm café lights, she looked softer somehow.
Beautiful.
The word hit him instantly again.
Dangerously beautiful.
Maya crossed her arms quickly. “You’re staring again.”
“You noticed.”
“You make it obvious.”
Mihir walked toward the table slowly.
The café was nearly empty except for an old man reading newspapers near the corner.
Maya immediately slid sanitizer across the table toward Mihir.
His eyebrows lifted slightly.
“You carry extra?”
“You looked emotionally distressed yesterday after touching parking garage air.”
For the first time in years, Mihir laughed quietly.
Actually laughed.
The sound startled both of them.
Maya blinked.
“That’s the first human emotion I’ve seen from you.”
“I experience emotions.”
“Name three.”
Mihir sat down across from her calmly. “Annoyance.”
“Obviously.”
“Irritation.”
“Same thing.”
“You.”
Maya stared at him.
Then narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
“Was that flirting?”
“No.”
“That’s disappointing.”
Mihir’s gaze paused on her face.
“You flirt with danger too casually.”
Maya leaned back in her chair. “Danger and I are close friends.”
“That’s exactly the problem.”
Before she could answer, a waiter approached carefully.
“Sir, ma’am, what would you like?”
Maya pointed immediately. “Coffee.”
Mihir looked horrified.
“You drink coffee in random cafés?”
“Yes?”
“The cups aren’t properly sanitized.”
The waiter looked confused.
Maya looked delighted.
“Oh my God,” she whispered dramatically. “You brought your own cup, didn’t you?”
Mihir remained silent.
Maya gasped loudly. “YOU DID.”
From his coat pocket, Mihir calmly removed a sealed stainless-steel cup.
Maya burst into laughter so suddenly the old man in the corner looked over.
“You’re unbelievable.”
“It’s hygienic.”
“It’s psychotic.”
“It’s efficient.”
Maya wiped tears from laughing. “Rich people are fascinating.”
Something warm flickered briefly in Mihir’s chest watching her laugh.
It had been a long time since someone laughed around him without fear.
Without pretending.
Without wanting something.
The waiter left awkwardly.
Maya leaned forward slightly. “Okay, serious question.”
“What?”
“How many sanitizer bottles do you own?”
Mihir answered immediately. “Forty-three.”
Maya choked on air.
“You counted?”
“Of course.”
“That is the least normal thing I’ve ever heard.”
“You alphabetize disinfectants.”
Maya pointed accusingly. “That information was illegally obtained.”
“You hacked me first.”
“Fair point.”
Silence settled again.
But softer this time.
Mihir studied her quietly.
“You don’t like being touched either.”
Maya’s smile faded slightly.
Interesting.
He noticed things too.
“I don’t mind touch,” she said carefully.
“You avoid it.”
Maya looked down at the coffee cup.
Then finally shrugged.
“People are complicated.”
“So are you.”
“That’s because I’m interesting.”
“You’re exhausting.”
“You’re welcome.”
Mihir shook his head slightly.
Then his expression darkened.
“Tell me about Serpentine.”
Maya’s posture changed instantly.
Focused.
Serious.
“They’re building something bigger than data theft,” she said quietly. “I intercepted encrypted communications last week.”
“And?”
“They mentioned Project Helix.”
Mihir froze.
“How do you know that name?”
Maya noticed immediately.
“You know it.”
Mihir leaned back slowly.
Project Helix was AstraVex’s hidden AI prediction system.
Experimental.
Dangerous.
Capable of analyzing human behavior patterns before actions happened.
Only three executives knew about it.
And now Serpentine did too.
“That project was sealed,” Mihir said coldly.
“Well someone unsealed it.”
Maya looked around carefully before lowering her voice.
“They’re planning an auction.”
Mihir’s eyes sharpened dangerously.
“For Helix?”
“Yes.”
“To whom?”
“Governments. Criminal syndicates. Private buyers.”
Mihir’s jaw tightened hard enough to hurt.
If Helix reached the wrong hands—
Mass surveillance.
Manipulation.
Control.
Disaster.
“We need to stop it,” Maya said quietly.
We.
The word lingered strangely between them.
Mihir noticed it too.
“You’re involving yourself deeply for someone who doesn’t trust me.”
Maya looked at him carefully.
“I trust you not to sell innocent people.”
The simple honesty hit harder than expected.
Before Mihir could respond—
The café lights suddenly shut off.
Darkness.
Maya reacted instantly.
“Down!”
She grabbed Mihir’s arm and pulled him beneath the table just as glass shattered across the café windows.
Gunshots.
The old man screamed.
Mihir’s body tensed violently from both the attack and unexpected contact.
Maya released him immediately.
“Three shooters outside,” she whispered.
“How do you know?”
“I counted footsteps.”
Another gunshot exploded nearby.
Customers panicked.
Mihir looked toward Maya.
She looked terrifyingly calm.
Then he noticed it.
Her hand trembling slightly.
Fear.
Not for herself.
For civilians.
Mihir’s chest tightened unexpectedly.
Maya pulled a small device from her pocket and pressed a button.
Suddenly every electronic screen inside the café exploded with white static.
The attackers outside cursed loudly.
“Their targeting optics are jammed,” Maya explained.
Mihir stared at her.
“You carry EMP devices?”
“You carry emotional trauma. We all have hobbies.”
Despite the danger, Mihir almost smiled again.
Then police sirens echoed in the distance.
The shooters fled immediately.
Silence slowly returned.
Broken glass covered the floor.
People whispered shakily.
Maya stood carefully.
“You okay?”
Mihir looked at her for a long second.
“Yes.”
“You’re lying.”
“So are you.”
Maya opened her mouth to argue—
Then paused.
Because Mihir gently reached toward her hand.
Not touching.
Just noticing.
A thin line of blood across her knuckles from shattered glass.
“You’re injured.”
Maya looked down, surprised.
“Oh.”
Mihir removed a clean handkerchief from his pocket carefully.
For a second he hesitated.
Touch terrified him.
But somehow…
Not touching her felt worse.
Very slowly, Mihir wrapped the cloth around her hand.
Their eyes met.
And suddenly the noisy café disappeared around them.
Maya’s heartbeat stumbled.
Because Mihir Raichand looked at her like she was something fragile and dangerous at the same time.
And Mihir realized something terrifying.
For the first time in years…
Touching someone didn’t make him want to pull away.
- Writer
