Gauri pushed open the door, her mind still tangled with the memory of the hooded man vanishing into thin air. But the sight before her brought her back to reality—their small room in disarray, books scattered across the floor.
"Charvi?" Gauri called out, her voice tense. She bent down, picking up one of the books. Her chest tightened. "Charvi, where are you?"
The sound of a door creaking made her look up. Gayatri stepped out from the other room, her face heavy with something unspoken.
"Where is Charvi?" Gauri demanded, her heart already pounding.
Gayatri avoided her eyes. "Some men came… and they took her."
The book slipped from Gauri's hands. "W–what are you saying?"
"They were from the brothel," Gayatri said, her voice flat, almost defeated. "They took Charvi with them."
Gauri staggered back, her lips trembling. "Why would they take Charvi? What are you hiding?"
Gayatri's hands fidgeted with the edge of her sari. "I… I borrowed some money from them. A few days ago. For you—to make you perform. I couldn't tell you before."
Gauri's voice broke into a cry. "You sold Charvi?"
Gayatri flinched. "It's not selling! It's—"
"It is!" Gauri cut her off, her words shaking with fury and despair. "How can you be so heartless? You are our mother! But all you ever care about is Adrija. What about us? What about Charvi?"
Her tears spilled freely as her chest heaved. "You knew… you knew she has a hole in her heart. You knew she was fragile. Yet you still let this happen? Why?!"
Gayatri turned her face away, silent.
Gauri clutched the scattered books to her chest, her knees weakening. She cried, her voice breaking, "Charvi… where are you? How are you? Please be safe…"
Her sobs filled the room, drowning in the silence of Gayatri's guilt.
Through her tears, Gauri's voice hardened. "At least… tell me where they took her."
Gayatri finally looked at her, expression unreadable. "The brothel near Shyam Bazaar," she said quietly.
Gauri wiped her face, her body trembling with anger. She stared at her mother as though she were seeing her for the first time. "I didn't expect this from you, Mom. Not you." Her voice cracked, the weight of betrayal crushing every word.
Without another glance, she turned and stormed out of the house, her footsteps echoing against the floorboards before fading into the night.
The silence that followed was broken by the creak of the old sofa as Gayatri lowered herself onto it. Slowly, her lips curved into a smirk, her eyes gleaming with a hidden malice.
"Poor Gauri," she murmured, almost to herself. "Running straight into the snare. You think you're going to save Charvi…" She leaned back, resting her elbows on the armrest, her tone dripping with satisfaction.
"But Charvi is just a pawn. You are the catch. You will perform, you will give them what they want—because to save your sister, you'll have no choice. And in the end, Gauri…"
Her smirk deepened, a dark chuckle escaping her throat. "…you won't escape your fate."
The flickering lamp in the corner cast her shadow long across the wall, twisted and monstrous, as if the truth of her heart had finally revealed itself.
Witch Island
The black waves lapped restlessly against the jagged rocks of the island, as though the sea itself recoiled from the evil that dwelled there. In the center of the barren land, a circle of scorched earth burned faintly with runes, their glow pulsing like a heartbeat.
A ripple of shadow cracked open inside the circle, and the hooded man stumbled out—blood dripping from his wounded arm. His breath came in short, ragged bursts. Nishi rose from her throne of woven serpents, her yellow eyes narrowing.
"What happened to you?" her voice cut through the wind, sharp and cold.
The hooded man staggered, gripping his side. "J–Jalpanchi…" he rasped. "She has arrived. The child fated to drown the darkness… she will awaken soon."
Nishi's braid slithered and hissed like a nest of snakes, her expression twisting with sudden fury. "No," she hissed. "It cannot be. Not her."
Before she could demand more, the hooded man convulsed. His flesh cracked into blackened lines of ash, scattering into the wind. The smell of smoke lingered where he had stood, until nothing remained but dust swirling across the runes.
Nishi's hands curled into claws. "If Jalpanchi awakens," she muttered, pacing across the circle, "then Vihaan will see her… and light will creep into the shadows of his heart." Her voice dropped into a venomous whisper. "And if that happens, it will be impossible to drag him into his true throne."
Her eyes blazed with a yellow inferno, and her voice rose like a curse cast into the sea:
"I vow—Jalpanchi will never enter Vihaan's life. I will burn her fate away before she ever reaches him."
The runes beneath her feet flared, as if sealing the oath in blood.