Three hours later
Mriga was bored out of her mind. Till now, nothing remotely resembling excitement or intrigue had taken place at the overcrowded fair. Since there were so many people at the ground that it was virtually impossible to find or trace the person whom they were supposed to.
All she could see was, Shaurya's broad back in front of her. Everything else was a near blur. Hunger had started to knock against her stomach's walls but she dared not make a sound about it. The couple of times when Shaurya had turned around to check up on her, he looked pissed.
She could imagine his frustration. It seemed that they were headed for a failed mission tonight.
As was the case always, she was wrong in her assessment! Shaurya was feeling quite at ease. The entire module for today had been drawn by him.
The trainees from the previous batch who were now on 'monitored' active duties had been called for an assessment. They had to escape the scrutiny of the five instructors, including Shaurya in the fair. The current trainees of the Admin department were supposed to tag along their assigned mentors and try to look for these 'spies'. Of course, Mriga and the others had been told that these were the spies from the other countries.
Shaurya had identified not one but two of the previous batch trainees and had managed to keep them in his surveillance for the past hour. She, of course had no idea about it and tried her best to stay alert and keep looking for suspicious activities and persons.
But the poor thing seemed to be overwhelmed by the sheer number of people surrounding them. He could feel a grin forming on his face at the thought of her getting frustrated by the lack of any activity. By now, he had a fair idea about how she thought, what excited her, what ticked her off.
Every time that he had turned to look at her, she had been scowling, looking fearsome in her current get-up. He thought it was a good expression to carry for someone her size. It deterred people from coming any closer.
His thoughts were interrupted by a tug on his kurta. Bending down sideways, he brought his ear closer to Mriga's lips who had arched up to reach him, simultaneously.
"I think I may have found someone who fits the bill of being suspicious," she whispered.
"Without looking in the person's direction or making any sudden wild gestures, describe him to me," he said, draping an arm around her shoulder casually.
To an onlooker, it would seem that he was having a normal conversation with his younger friend or brother.
Mriga had seen this guy pass her a few times despite her limited vision. Initially she hadn't paid much attention to him but after the first two times, it seemed less like a coincidence. The guy was averagely built and non-descript in his appearance. He wasn't doing anything to draw attention to himself except that every time Shaurya's gaze swept in his direction, he ducked or turned away.
Mriga hesitated when she saw it happen the first time because she didn't want to make a fool out of herself by over imagining things but it had just happened few seconds ago again. It seemed as if the guy was stalking Shaurya rather than vice versa.
She took a calming breath and explained his position and description to him. Probably, because he had his arm wrapped around her shoulder, she could feel his body tense up.
"Why don't you turn us towards the direction where you saw him last. Do it casually, no jerky movements," he instructed in a low voice.
Mriga did as she was told and scanned the area for the man.
Spotting him few stalls away, she turned towards Shaurya, "Can you see the guy who is almost your height and age and is standing at the balloons stall. He is in a beige kurta and is wearing a turban, just like us."
Keeping in mind his instructions, she didn't turn or raise her head to check for Shaurya's reaction for a few moments.
Before her curiosity won over her sense, Shaurya gripped her forearm and spoke urgently, "There is a young man in a blue kurta. He is at the shoes stall behind me. He has curly hair and a fake mustache. You can tell its fake because it is starting to droop from one corner. There is a small knife scar on his chin as well. Go to him and tell him that the hunter has killed the tiger. Ask him to drop you to the lodge and then go back and report to his mentor. You know the way to the lodge, so lead the way. Do not get lost. Stay there till I don't come to fetch you. You will not venture out of the lodge or talk to anyone else from now till then. For now, just follow whatever that blue kurta guy says. He is your senior. Understood?"
Shaurya was gone before Mriga could even turn around to ask him anything further. In that moment, her training took over. The first rule which had been taught to her was that she must follow his orders without a question. So despite her eyes itching to scan the area and look for him, she turned in the opposite direction without any jerky movements and made her way to the guy whom she was supposed to report to.
"Should I give away my identity or do I continue pretending to be a guy?" she thought confusedly in that moment.
Due to the heat, her hair which had been tied in a tight bun and stuffed under the thick turban, were itching her terribly. She held onto her fingers really hard lest she succumbs to the urge to scratching it badly.
"Uh, excuse me," she patted the guy's shoulder to gain his attention.