My Lover is a Spy

Chapter 39

(Zia's pov)

The words that Akira had just said kept echoing in my mind. I knew 'Ranawat' to be Akira's last name and had my suspicions for a second there. But what Akira said, confirmed any doubts that I had. But Akira's father had died years ago. At least that's what Akira told me. She never went into any details though. I knew everything there was to know about Akira herself; but I did not know much about her father, except that he was a part of military intelligence of some form. I never probed further into the subject as I didn't want to make her uncomfortable. She never said anything about him at all. And now, all of a sudden, halfway across the world, a complete stranger saying his name was definitely strange. Was this just a coincidence? Could it be just another guy with the same name? But judging by Akira's reaction, I could tell that there was something that she knew, that I did not.

"Okay...that was unexpected. Dev Ranawat being agent Akira's father? The world is a small place after all, huh?" Choi commented.

"Shut up you nitwit! Don't you dare say his name with that filthy mouth of yours!" Akira boomed.

"Akira, calm down. It's probably just a coincidence. How would your father be involved in this mess?" I tried to reason.

"I wish it was a coincidence, Zia. But I don't think it is." She replied gravely.

"I don't understand. You told me your father, Devendra Ranawat, was dead...and....and I never probed further. So you better spill the beans and explain this, Akira. Who was he?" I asked.

She signalled that we take this outside, cause clearly we didn't want Choi to hear this. I made sure that he would be unable to move and the four of us stepped outside the garage.

I could see it was painful for her to talk about this...but I did not have a choice in this case. We couldn't complicate things more than they already were. And right now the best way to find a solution to this mess was for Akira to tell us about her father. "So? Akira?" I looked at her questioningly.

She looked at me and then sighed, "I thought you would have figured it out by now, Zia."

"Figured what out? Stop talking in riddles, Akira." I said getting miffed.

"Agent Dev." She replied with just two words.

"Agent? Your father was a spy too?" Tae questioned as he exchanged glances with Jimin. And that's when it struck me. Akira's father, Dev, was none other than 'agent Dev' of the IIB. He was one of the best agents the agency had ever had! No one could match his physical or mental skills. His marksmanship and combat skills were unsurpassed. He was known to be an exfiltration expert. He had several awards to his credit for code breaking. There were rumours of him having served the country in times of extreme tension including assassinations and emergencies. He was an inspiration to all the rookies at the academy. The guy was a legend!

"Oh my God! Akira! Are you serious? You're the daughter of the agent Dev? This is unbelievable! We could have given anything to meet him back when we were rookies. And to think that he was your father! This is officially the most shocking news I've ever heard!" I said excitedly.

"Um...care to explain?" Jimin asked. I told Jimin and Taehyung all that I knew and as expected, they were pretty surprised too.

"Wow I'm genuinely shocked! Agent Dev was in line to become the next chief; until the agency lost him on his last known mission." I said still excited. A second later I realised exactly what I had said just then.

"Aa..Akira...you told me that he died." I said looking at her with a frown. She hesitated, and then without looking up she spoke, "Technically....he was reported MIA."

"What's MIA?" both the boys asked.

"Missing in action." Akira replied.

My head was reeling at this point. "Then why did you say he passed away, Akira?"

"Because he did." She replied slowly.

I responded, agitatedly, "What makes you say that? You're acting crazy! He could totally be well and alive! And for all we know he could be the one behind all this crap, Akira. It won't be the first time an agent went rogue. And for an agent of his level, anything is achievable...."

"Shut up, Zia! Just shut up! He's dead! I just know he is! Or else....or else there's no way that he wouldn't contact his daughter for five years. No way..." And with that, she fell to her knees with tears rolling down her cheeks. It was the first time that I saw her crying. Five years ago, I never even realised that she went through such distress. All those emotions she should have let out back then were being released today....after five long years. It made me feel like a piece of my heart was breaking. Jimin went and tried to console her as she continued weeping. I instantly realised that what I'd just said was extremely insensitive. I went and hugged her, "I'm sorry, Akira. Oh gosh....I'm so sorry, I don't know what came over me. I did not mean to be this rude. It's just...this is as much of a shock to me as it is to you. And with all that is going on...I just...I'm really sorry...."