Midnight. A storm brews above Karachi's skyline. Arina lies half-awake, the thunder echoing through her apartment walls. The street outside is too quiet.
Arina (whispering): "Lara…? You asleep?"
Lara (half-asleep): "Mhm. Why?"
Arina: "Did you hear that? The street—it's gone silent."
Lara: "It's midnight. People sleep. You should, too."
(A sharp crack—a sound too clean for thunder. Arina freezes.)
Arina: "That wasn't lightning."
(She moves to the window, peeks through the curtain. Two black cars parked opposite. Shadows shifting. A glint of metal.)
Arina (hissing): "Lara, get up. Now."
Lara (panicking): "What's happening?"
Arina: "Get in the back room. Lock the door. Don't open it till I say so."
(Lara obeys. Arina's phone buzzes—a message from Henry.)
Message — Henry: "Don't move. They found you."
(Her breath catches. Then another message.)
Message — Henry: "I'm coming."
Arina (muttering): "Too late."
(Glass shatters. Two masked men kick in the door. Arina grabs a kitchen knife.)
Man #1: "Where's the doctor?"
Arina: "Right here. Leave before I make you regret it."
Man #2 (laughing): "She's brave. Elis will like that."
Arina: "Tell Elis he'll have to send better men next time."
(The men advance. A roar of engines outside. Gunfire explodes—short, precise bursts. The attackers fall. The apartment fills with smoke.)
(Henry storms in, black coat soaked, gun smoking.)
Henry: "You're bleeding."
Arina: "Not mine. It's theirs."
Henry (gritting teeth): "You were supposed to stay inside."
Arina: "I did! They came for me. You were right. Happy now?"
Henry: "No. Furious."
(He checks the apartment, signals to Jordan.)
Jordan: "Two down. More outside. Elis sent a decoy team."
Henry: "Handle them. Quietly."
Jordan: "Already on it."
(Jordan disappears into the night. Henry turns to Arina, voice low but sharp.)
Henry: "You need to come with me. Now."
Arina: "I'm not leaving Lara."
Henry: "She's safe. Jordan will move her."
Arina: "I don't trust you."
Henry: "Then trust the bullets outside. They don't miss."
(Arina hesitates. Henry grabs her wrist—not roughly, but firmly.)
Henry: "Don't fight me on this. I'm the only reason you're still breathing."
Arina: "That doesn't make you my savior."
Henry: "No, it makes me your problem. Let's go."
(They rush downstairs. The rain is heavy. A convoy of black SUVs idles in the alley. Henry opens the door, pushes her inside. She shivers from the cold and adrenaline.)
Arina: "Where are you taking me?"
Henry: "Somewhere safer."
Arina: "Your idea of safe involves guns and secrets."
Henry: "And a heartbeat. You still have one, don't you?"
Arina: "You talk like danger's a love language."
Henry: "Maybe it is."
(The car speeds through wet streets. In the dim light, Henry studies her face—mud streaked, trembling, but defiant.)
Henry: "You shouldn't look that calm after a shootout."
Arina: "I've seen worse."
Henry: "In the ER?"
Arina: "In life."
Henry: "Then you know what happens when people underestimate monsters."
Arina: "Yes. They become one."
(Silence. Only the rain tapping the windows.)
Henry: "You think that's what I am?"
Arina: "I don't think. I observe."
Henry: "Then observe this—I could've left you. I didn't."
Arina: "That's not kindness. That's control."
Henry (quietly): "You make it sound ugly."
Arina: "Because it is."
(He leans back, a bitter smile flickering.)
Henry: "I warned you, Arina. Once you step into my world, there's no leaving it clean."
Arina: "Then maybe I'll dirty it back."
(He stares at her, half shocked, half amused.)
Henry: "You're either fearless or foolish."
Arina: "Both, apparently."
(They arrive at a villa on the city's edge. Security men line the entrance. Henry leads her inside—a blend of luxury and menace. Soft jazz hums in the background.)
Arina: "You live like a king."
Henry: "Kings are born to rule. I built my throne from blood."
Arina: "And you're proud of that?"
Henry: "No. Just honest."
(He pours her water, hands her a towel. Their fingers brush—an electric silence follows.)
Arina: "You could've sent someone else to help. Why come yourself?"
Henry: "Because when it comes to you, I don't delegate."
Arina: "That sounds like obsession."
Henry: "Call it instinct."
Arina: "And if your instincts get me killed?"
Henry: "Then I'll burn the city for it."
(Arina meets his eyes, voice trembling with anger and something else.)
Arina: "You don't get to play hero, Henry. You're the reason danger found me in the first place."
Henry: "You think Elis needed me to find you? He watched you the moment you touched my world. You crossed into it the night you treated my man."
Arina: "Then I'll un-cross. Go back."
Henry: "There's no going back. Not after tonight."
(Thunder shakes the villa. Arina looks toward the window—flashes of headlights outside.)
Jordan (rushing in): "Boss! They're regrouping—five cars on the road here. Elis isn't done."
Henry: "Get everyone on defense. No one gets through."
Jordan: "And her?"
Henry: "Downstairs. Panic room."
Arina: "I'm not hiding while people die outside."
Henry: "This isn't a choice."
Arina: "Then make it look like one."
(He grabs her shoulders, eyes burning.)
Henry: "You want to live? Do as I say."
Arina: "You don't scare me."
Henry: "Then you're the first."
(A gunshot shatters a window. They both flinch. Henry drags her toward the reinforced door. Another blast rocks the walls. Outside, chaos roars.)
Jordan (shouting): "They're inside the gate!"
Henry (to Arina): "Downstairs—now!"
Arina: "Not without you!"
Henry: "I'll follow. Go!"
(She hesitates, then runs. The steel door shuts behind her. Henry reloads, breath steady. Jordan takes cover beside him.)
Jordan: "We're outnumbered."
Henry: "Not outclassed."
(They exchange fire. A grenade clinks across marble. Henry kicks it away, dives for cover. Explosion. Smoke. Shouts.)
(Cut to the panic room. Arina pounds on the door, crying out.)
Arina: "Henry! Answer me!"
(Static crackles from a nearby intercom. His voice filters through—hoarse but alive.)
Henry (over intercom): "Still here, Doctor. Still dangerous."
Arina: "Stop trying to be funny! You could die out there!"
Henry: "Then stay alive for me. That's an order."
(Gunfire fades. Silence follows. Then footsteps. A door creaks. Arina's heart races. The intercom cuts.)
Arina (whispering): "Henry…?"
(The handle turns. The door opens. Henry stands there, covered in smoke and blood—but smiling faintly.)
Henry: "Told you I'd follow."
Arina: "You're insane."
Henry: "You're welcome."
(She glares, then collapses against him. For the first time, she doesn't pull away. He wraps his arms around her, steady and fierce.)
Arina (softly): "You can't keep doing this."
Henry: "Then stop making me care."
(Outside, sirens wail. Inside, time freezes between two people bound by fear, fury, and something dangerously close to love.)