The morning sun crept into the guest wing, but it brought no warmth to Meira. She had spent the night suspended in a shallow, restless sleep, her mind replaying the metallic groan of the mansion gates. When Seema finally arrived, she was uncharacteristically late.
"I expected you to sleep in, Ma'am," Seema explained softly. To Meira's shock, her belongings had already been unpacked. Every book, every trinket, and every piece of clothing was arranged with haunting precision, mirroring her apartment exactly. It was as if the mansion had swallowed her old life whole. Outside, the muffled roar of media crowds hinted at the storm brewing beyond the stone walls.
Meira dressed quickly, her hands shaking. A sharp, rhythmic knock sounded. Standing in the doorway was Yamini, her grey silk saree shimmering like cold smoke. Meira met her gaze with a neutral mask, refusing to let the woman see her fear.
"Where do you think you're going so early?" Yamini asked, her voice dripping with skepticism.
"Office," Meira replied, her voice small but firm.
"Office!" Yamini let out a jagged laugh. "Do you think you're so important that the world doesn't stop when a Salai dies? All offices are closed in mourning. Or are you just that desperate to go and sit in the CFO's chair at Kiran Inc.?"
The words stung. Meira realized with a jolt that she was no longer just a worker; she was a target. When Meira offered to let her in, Yamini's lip curled. "I don't visit the rooms of middle-class people," she snapped, turning on her heel.
Left with hours of empty silence, Meira asked Seema for a tour. They walked for two hours, passing through gold-leafed halls and portrait galleries. Deep in the opposite wing, Meira stopped before a heavy, locked door. It sat in isolation, far from the rest of the family, much like her own room.
"That is just an old room," Seema said quickly, her eyes darting away. "No one goes there."
As they turned to leave, a girl in a vibrant Anarkali stepped into their path, her bangles chiming musically.
"Hey, you're Meira, right?" the girl asked with a bright, genuine smile. Meira was momentarily breathless; the girl was beautiful, radiating a warmth that didn't belong in this house. "I heard about you from Dad yesterday. Crazy... but I'm glad I met you. I'm Taniya—Yamini and Vivek's daughter."
Taniya's kindness was a shock. She immediately insisted Meira join her for lunch, ignoring Seema's hesitation. Inside Taniya's room, the air felt lighter, filled with the scent of jasmine and the sound of classical music.
"Mom was rude, wasn't she?" Taniya asked as they sat down to eat.
"I think everyone here is... different," Meira managed to say.
Taniya laughed, a melodic, frowning sound. "No, you haven't even met all the Salais yet." She began to list them, her hand resting on Meira's shoulder. There was Sahil (17), Shekar and Mohini's son; Taniya (26) herself and her brother Yuvraj (27); and then the names that made the room turn cold. "Then there are Rudra (25) and Raghav (24), Uncle Devkar and Aunt Divya's sons."
Meira's heart stopped. Two brothers? In all their years, Kiran had never said a word.
"But... they had a daughter, Kiran, right?" Meira asked, her voice trembling.
The bright colour vanished from Taniya's face. The cheerful girl was gone, replaced by a ghost. "How do you know about her?" she whispered.
"Kiran was my childhood friend," Meira said.
After a long, suffocating silence, Taniya leaned in close. "Meira, please... don't tell anyone in this house about your connection to her. Not yet."
They finished the meal in a tense, hushed atmosphere. As Taniya began walking Meira back to her room, a sudden, sharp heat flared in Meira's throat. It wasn't the conversation. Her skin began to itch violently, and a terrifying constriction tightened around her windpipe.
Her breath became a desperate, high-pitched wheeze. Her vision blurred into a kaleidoscope of white and gold.
Meira's body betrayed her. She lost her balance, her knees hitting the marble floor with a sickening thud. She gasped for air that wouldn't come, her hands clutching at her throat as she collapsed.
"Meira!" Taniya's scream echoed through the hallway. "Help! Someone, help!"
As Meira's eyes began to roll back, she saw the blurred shapes of staff running toward them, but the last thing she felt was the cold, unforgiving floor of the mansion that was now her prison.