‘That’s strange,’ Shekhar said. ‘These aren’t standard mafia attacks. The mafia is driven by money, and no money is to be made by killing random civilians. From the way they are carrying out their attacks and the type of weapons they are using, these gunmen seem to be trained operatives, with skills to act in an urban milieu with substantial police presence, like in the case of Mumbai. They could be terrorists – but who sent them and what outfit do they belong to? Contact Mumbai’s joint commissioner for law and order and the commissioner of police. Find out the latest from them.’

‘Yes, sir.’

Shekhar hung up, finished his tea and picked up an apple from the dining table. He informed Anjali about an ‘emergency at work’ for which he needed to rush to office.

‘Arrey, how can you? Dinner is ready, Shekhar! You can’t do this every time we plan to spend some time together!’ Anjali was furious. But, a second later, she called out to Shekhar, who was at the door, and said, ‘Take care and try to sleep for some time, whatever the emergency may be.’

As he stood on the porch waiting for his driver to bring around his Honda City, Shekhar caught a glint of streetlight reflecting off the dew-soaked shrubbery in the lawn outside. There was a nip in the air. The fragrance of the slender white Alstonia flowers, which bloom in Delhi’s winter, wafted across to him.

Rathod was on the night shift and in charge of CTC’s control room and technical communications wing, which was located in a Raj-era heritage building in a ten-acre complex on the Delhi–Haryana border.

The control room, often referred to as the operations room, was where tracking of targets, domestic and international, including terrorists, the mafia, wanted Maoists and narcotics traffickers, was done. Commands were issued to the Special Action Team to deal with emergencies, especially tasks requiring speed, use of force and stealth. The compound was outfitted with concealed telecommunication and interception equipment and remote-sensing receivers.

The Honda City cut through the late-night traffic, zipping through the streets. An hour later, Shekhar was standing in the operations room, assessing the frenetic activity going on around him.

Rathod briefed him on the latest from Mumbai. The Mumbai police had initially thought that the firing was the result of an all-out street war between rival underworld gangsters having access to sophisticated weapons, including automatics. Later, however, reports of bursts of AK-47 fire at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST), targeting commuters, and the use of powerful hand grenades at the terminus and at the Cama Hospital a short distance away indicated the involvement of terrorists.

‘According to eyewitness accounts available with the Mumbai police, both AK-47s and hand grenades were used,’ Rathod said.

‘Have the Mumbai police put up resistance anywhere? Is there a plan in place to deal with the carnage happening there?’ Shekhar asked.