CHAPTER 45

The living room floor was a warzone of plush toys, plastic animals, and mismatched action figures. A cardboard box turned on its side served as a castle, and a line of building blocks created a colorful wall around it.

Veer, now down on his elbows, crawled beside Munni, who was intensely focused on arranging her dolls in a neat row.

Veer (in a dramatic voice): "Princess Munni, your kingdom is under attack by the evil Brozilla! Raaaargh!"

He picked up a toy dinosaur and made it stomp across the floor toward the castle.

Munni (giggling): "Nooo! You can't destroy my dollhouse again! That's cheating!"

Veer: "Cheating? This is a surprise attack. Brozilla has no rules!"

He lunged forward, gently knocking down a toy horse.

Munni (laughing harder): "You're the worst dinosaur ever! Look at your face, you're smiling!"

Veer (faking seriousness): "That's because Brozilla just had ice cream. Evil ice cream. Made from tears of naughty little sisters."

Munni: "You're so weird, bhaiya!"

Veer: "Takes one to know one."

She picked up a tiny action figure and made it jump on Veer's head.

Munni: "Now my superhero will defeat you with... tickle powers!"

Veer: "Wait, no—NO! Not the tickles—anything but that!"

He collapsed dramatically, letting Munni climb on his back in victory, both of them laughing until their stomachs hurt.

As Veer and Munni were playing in Munni and Raja's house, Raja arrived after being with Dilip and getting to know everything about the plan. He called Veer to tell him the details so he could be ready for the next move.

Seeing Raja arrive, Munni rushed to greet her brother. Behind her, Veer also joined to say hello. As they met, Raja spoke, "How is my big bundle of joy doing?"

Munni replied, "I'm good, brother! You know, Veer made super awesome dishes. I ate so much that I feel like I won't be able to eat for weeks. Hehe..." She replied so cheerfully that all of Raja's worries and tension melted away instantly.

Raja's house was in a slum area—not too good, not too bad. It was more like a storeroom than a house. But after Veer became a frequent visitor and wouldn't let Munni out of sight for her safety, they changed the house to suit Munni's preferences so she could live comfortably.

Raja spoke, "Okay, now you should go to sleep. It's already late."

Munni said, "No, you should eat first, then I will go to sleep."

Raja replied, "I've already eaten. Now let's get you to bed. I'm not listening to anything."

After Munni finally fell asleep, Raja and Veer stepped outside the house, a little distance away but still close enough to see the door. The house had only one door, one room, and a small attached kitchen.

"I got into the team," Raja began. "Apparently, they were short on men, so they decided to take me in. Also, thanks to you for telling me how to transport the stolen stuff in large batches without getting caught—that caught Dilip's attention. It was kind of good and bad too, but he sees potential in me, so he's being decent."

Veer spoke, "Do we have the detailed plan?"

"Yes, we have a window—just one time only. We're going to act one week from now, during a government rally at Maharaj Circle. The rally and the truck will be there at the same time, in heavy traffic, which is the only way to reach the warehouse."

Veer asked, "Why did they decide to take that day and not another?"

"Well, there are two reasons. One, the warehouse is going to be raided by the police for drugs, and when they find nothing, it'll be safer than any other warehouse. And two, at that time, no extra police will be at the other checkpoints. They'll be too busy to inspect all vehicles."

"You're right. They've planned it really well."

Veer asked again, "Did you get through to Arjun?"

"Yes."

Veer had planned to add Arjun into the mix too. He was reluctant about this guy, as he'd gotten more info about him through Raja—and all of it was worse than what Dilip had ever done. Arjun was half Dilip's age but twice as ruthless.

"Yes, Veer. I called him anonymously, just like you said. I gave him tips about Dilip's and the other gang members' goods and money they keep hidden. Arjun is very ruthless—he's taking over everything as if he owns their money. I also let Dilip know that we're about to get exposed by Arjun, based on a tip I 'got.' It worked in my favor and helped me gain Dilip's trust."

"Okay," Veer said. "So only one player left in the game, and then we're ready."

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