The sun had barely risen over Mecca, casting long shadows across the narrow alleys and wide courtyards that had witnessed the chaotic events of the previous night. Pathan and Tiger had slipped away under the cover of darkness, their mission incomplete, yet irrevocably altered. Hafees was dead, but the larger threat-the elusive Shepherd-remained at large, casting a long and ominous shadow over everything they had fought for.

Pathan sat alone in a small, dimly lit hotel room, his mind racing with the implications of what had transpired. The adrenaline from the confrontation had long since worn off, leaving him with a gnawing sense of unease. Hafees' final words echoed in his mind, a haunting reminder that the real enemy was still out there, manipulating events from behind the scenes.

Tiger had vanished as quickly as he had arrived, leaving Pathan with nothing but a cryptic note scrawled on a piece of paper: Delhi. Look for the serpent in the garden.

Pathan stared at the note, frustration building within him. Tiger was once again playing his own game, leaving Pathan to piece together the puzzle on his own. But there was no time to dwell on Tiger's methods. The mission was far from over, and the stakes had never been higher.

Pathan knew that the cryptic note was significant but wasn't sure what to make of it. He then passed on the message to Vikram Khanna, the retired spymaster who had trained Pathan and once led RAW's most elite unit, through secure channels.

With a heavy heart, Pathan gathered his belongings and prepared to leave the Holy City. The next phase of the operation awaited him back in India, where the truth lay buried beneath layers of deceit and betrayal. But even as he boarded the flight that would take him back to Delhi, a sense of foreboding lingered in the back of his mind. The serpent was waiting, and Pathan was about to walk straight into its lair.

Back in Delhi, Zoya was deep in the archives of RAW, sifting through documents that seemed to offer more questions than answers. The events of the past few days had left her exhausted, but she knew that the key to unraveling the conspiracy lay somewhere within the mountain of information she had been tasked with analyzing.

As she worked late into the night, her focus was interrupted by a noise that sent a shiver down her spine-a faint click, like the sound of a door being carefully unlocked. Zoya's instincts flared, and she quickly reached for the gun she kept in her desk drawer.

The room was bathed in shadows, the only light coming from the glow of her computer screen. For a moment, she remained perfectly still, listening intently for any further sounds. Then, without warning, the lights were cut, plunging the room into complete darkness.

Zoya's heart raced as she quickly assessed her options. She was alone, isolated in a building that was supposed to be one of the most secure in the country. But now, that security had been compromised, and she knew exactly what that meant.

The faint sound of footsteps echoed through the corridor outside, growing closer with each passing second. Zoya's breath hitched as she realized that whoever was coming wasn't just here to intimidate her-they were here to silence her.

As the footsteps stopped outside her office door, Zoya held her breath, her fingers tightening around the grip of her gun. The door creaked open, and a shadowy figure stepped inside, a silenced pistol aimed directly at her.

Time seemed to slow as Zoya prepared to defend herself, but before she could act, a figure lunged from the darkness, tackling the would-be assassin to the ground. The two figures struggled for control, the sounds of their scuffle breaking the silence of the night.

Zoya quickly scrambled to her feet, her gun trained on the assailant as he fought against the man who had come to her rescue. In the dim light, Zoya caught a glimpse of her savior-a face she hadn't seen in years but recognized instantly.

"Vikram?" Zoya gasped, her voice filled with disbelief.

Vikram Khanna pinned the assailant to the ground with surprising ease for a man of his age. He disarmed the attacker with a swift, practiced motion, then stood up, breathing heavily.

"Stay down," Vikram ordered, his voice cold and commanding as he kept the assailant at gunpoint.

Zoya was still trying to process the fact that Vikram Khanna, a man who had seemingly vanished from the intelligence world years ago, had just saved her life. The questions swirled in her mind, but there was no time for answers now.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Zoya demanded, her voice shaky but resolute.

"Saving your life, apparently," Vikram replied, his tone laced with a mixture of irritation and concern. "We need to get out of here. Now."

Without waiting for a response, Vikram hauled the would-be assassin to his feet and marched him toward the door. Zoya, still in shock, followed close behind, her mind racing as she tried to piece together what was happening.

Once they were outside the building, Vikram quickly secured the attacker in the trunk of a waiting car, then turned to Zoya, his expression grim. As the car sped away with the attacker, Vikram made a quick call on his secure line, instructing his contacts to transport the man to a remote, secure location for interrogation. The attacker would be questioned thoroughly to uncover who had sent him and what he knew about the conspiracy.

"You're in more danger than you realize," Vikram said, his voice low and urgent. "We need to move quickly."

Zoya nodded, her mind still reeling from the shock of the attack. "Who sent him? And why are you here, Vikram? You've been off the grid for years."

Vikram's eyes darkened. "I've been watching, Zoya. Watching and waiting. I suspected there was a larger conspiracy at play, but I didn't have enough proof. When I heard about the attempt on your life, I knew it was time to act."

As they sped through the streets of Delhi, Zoya and Vikram discussed the events that had led to the attempt on her life. Zoya shared everything she had uncovered about the network, Hafees, and the elusive Shepherd. Vikram listened intently, his face betraying little emotion, but Zoya could sense the wheels turning in his mind.

"We're dealing with something far bigger than any of us realized," Zoya said, her voice tinged with frustration. "Hafees was just a pawn, and The Shepherd is the real mastermind. But I can't figure out who he is or what his ultimate goal is."

Vikram was silent for a moment, his eyes fixed on the road ahead. Then, he spoke, his voice measured and deliberate. "You're right about one thing-Hafees was a pawn. But The Shepherd is not just any mastermind. He's someone with deep connections, someone who has the power to manipulate entire nations."

Zoya's eyes widened as the pieces began to fall into place. "You know who he is, don't you?"Vikram nodded, his expression grim. "I have my suspicions. But I need more information before I can be certain. We need to follow the trail that Tiger left for us."

Zoya's mind raced as she considered the implications. "Tiger left a message for us? How did you get it?"

Vikram reached into his coat pocket and handed Zoya a small, encrypted device. "I received this after Tiger left it with Pathan. I encrypted the message to keep it secure and to ensure it wouldn't be intercepted by the wrong people. It said, 'Delhi. Look for the serpent in the garden.' Tiger was pointing us in the right direction, but we need to find this 'serpent'-the key to unraveling the conspiracy."

Zoya took the device, her fingers trembling slightly. The message was cryptic, but it was clear that Tiger had uncovered something crucial. "So, we're looking for someone in Delhi-someone powerful enough to be The Shepherd."

Vikram nodded. "Exactly. We need to identify this serpent and expose him."

As they approached a safe house in a quiet neighborhood, Vikram turned to Zoya, his eyes filled with a rare mix of concern and determination. "Zoya, listen to me. We're up against something far bigger than anything we've ever faced. The people behind this conspiracy are ruthless, and they won't hesitate to kill anyone who gets in their way."

Zoya met Vikram's gaze, her resolve hardening. "I'm not backing down, Vikram. Not now. We've come too far."

Vikram nodded, a faint smile touching his lips. "Good. Because we're going to need all the help we can get."

Inside the safe house, Vikram and Zoya worked through the night, piecing together the clues that Tiger had left behind. The cryptic note-Delhi. Look for the serpent in the garden-was the key, but deciphering its meaning was no easy task.

As the hours passed, Zoya and Vikram pored over intelligence reports, surveillance footage, and old case files, looking for any connection that might reveal the identity of The Shepherd. Gradually, a pattern began to emerge-a trail that led them to the highest echelons of power in Delhi.

Vikram received a brief update on his secure line. The message confirmed that the attacker was now in custody at a black site, where skilled interrogators were extracting every piece of information they could. Vikram shared a quick glance with Zoya. "They're questioning him now. We might have more answers soon, but we can't afford to wait. We need to stay ahead of whoever sent him."

Zoya suddenly paused, her finger hovering over an old intelligence report. "Vikram, look at this," she said, her voice filled with urgency. "This report details an arms deal that was brokered by someone in the Defense Ministry-someone with the influence to bypass all standard protocols."

Vikram leaned in, his eyes narrowing as he read the report. "This deal has Bakshi's digital fingerprints all over it," Zoya continued, pointing to a series of encrypted communications linked to the transaction. "I managed to decrypt these communications, and they trace back to a secure server used exclusively by high-ranking officials in the Defense Ministry. The encryption keys match those assigned to Bakshi's office."

Zoya's hands moved quickly across the keyboard as she pulled up the metadata from the communications. "Here-this is the unique identifier for Bakshi's government-issued device. It's embedded in every message related to this arms deal. No one else could have accessed this system with those credentials."

Vikram's expression darkened as the final piece of the puzzle clicked into place. "It all makes sense now. Bakshi wasn't just involved-he was orchestrating everything. He used his position to facilitate these deals and ensure they went unnoticed by the usual oversight committees."

Zoya's heart raced as she connected the dots. "Aditya Bakshi," she whispered, her eyes widening as the realization hit her. "The Defense Minister. He's The Shepherd."

Vikram nodded slowly, his expression dark. "Bakshi has been positioning himself for years, using his influence to manipulate events behind the scenes. He's the one who ordered the hit on Tiger's family, who orchestrated the attacks to provoke a war. And he's doing it all for power and profit."

Zoya felt a surge of anger as the full extent of the betrayal hit her. Bakshi had been playing both sides, manipulating the conflict between India and Pakistan to his advantage. And now, they had to bring him down before he could carry out his final, devastating plan.

As the weight of their discovery settled in, Vikram received a brief update on his secure line. The message was terse but packed with crucial information. The attacker they had captured earlier had been identified as an operative who was part of Bakshi's inner circle-someone who had been trusted with sensitive information and dangerous assignments. During interrogation, he confessed that Bakshi himself had sent him to eliminate Zoya, fearing she was getting too close to exposing the truth.

But it wasn't just Bakshi's orders that the attacker revealed. He confirmed what Zoya and Vikram had already suspected: Bakshi was The Shepherd. The man had been orchestrating the entire conspiracy from the shadows, using his influence and connections to manipulate events for his gain. The attack on Zoya was intended to silence her before she could connect the dots and uncover the full scope of his plans.

Vikram relayed the details to Zoya, who listened with grim resolve. "This confirms it," Vikram said, his voice heavy with the weight of the revelation. "Bakshi is The Shepherd. The man who ordered the murder of Tiger's family, who orchestrated the attacks, who has been pulling the strings all along-it's all him."

Zoya's anger deepened, but so did her determination. "Then we're on the right track. We need to move quickly, before he has a chance to cover his tracks."

Vikram nodded. "We might get more details soon, but we can't afford to wait. Bakshi knows we're closing in, and he won't hesitate to strike again."

The revelation of Aditya Bakshi's true identity as The Shepherd sent shockwaves through the team. As Pathan arrived in Delhi and reunited with Zoya and Vikram, the gravity of their situation became clear.

"This is bigger than anything we've ever faced," Pathan said, his voice heavy with the weight of the truth. "Bakshi is not just a criminal-he's a traitor, willing to sacrifice thousands of lives for his own gain."

Vikram nodded, his face set in grim determination. "We need to move quickly. Bakshi is powerful, and he has the full weight of the Defense Ministry behind him. If we're going to stop him, we need to gather evidence and expose him to the world."

Zoya's mind raced as she considered their options. "But how do we do that? Bakshi has covered his tracks well. We need something irrefutable, something that ties him directly to the conspiracy."

Vikram's eyes narrowed as he formulated a plan. "There's only one way to get that kind of evidence-we need to infiltrate his inner circle. Bakshi is smart, but he's also arrogant. If we can get close enough, we might be able to catch him in the act."

Pathan's jaw tightened as he thought of the risks involved. Infiltrating Bakshi's circle would be dangerous, especially given the man's extensive network of loyalists. But they had no other choice.

"Zoya, I need you to reach out to our contacts in the intelligence community," Pathan said, his voice firm. "We need to know who we can trust. Vikram and I will work on getting close to Bakshi. We'll need all the help we can get."

As the team prepared for the final phase of their mission, the tension in the room was palpable. They were about to take on one of the most powerful men in the country, a man who had already proven that he was willing to kill to protect his secrets.

But despite the dangers, there was a renewed sense of purpose among them. The truth was out there, and they were the only ones who could bring it to light.

As they finalized their plans, Pathan couldn't help but think of Tiger, the man who had started this journey with a quest for vengeance. Now, that vengeance was within reach, but it was no longer just about one man's quest for justice. It was about stopping a madman who was willing to plunge the entire region into war for his own gain.

"We're ready," Pathan said, his voice filled with resolve.

Vikram nodded, a steely glint in his eyes. "Let's bring him down."

With that, the team set out to expose the mastermind behind the conspiracy, knowing that this would be their most dangerous mission yet.

The serpent had been found, and now, it was time to strike.