Episode--- 7
Morning crept in, heavy with mist and the scent of wet stone.
Aria stirred awake on the faded cot, the old walls around her whispering secrets of years gone by. The silence felt different today — sharper, edged with something cold.
Raian was gone.
Panic sparked in her chest before reason caught up. She pushed open the creaking door, following faint voices and the distant crunch of footsteps on gravel.
In the overgrown courtyard, ivy clung to broken columns, and weeds pushed through cracked tiles. Amidst it stood Raian — black shirt sleeves rolled, his gaze fixed and unblinking. Before him, two men knelt, mud on their trousers, fear in their eyes. Raian's men flanked them, silent and watchful.
One man tried to speak, his voice cracking. "Boss, please… we didn't know they'd track her—"
Raian's hand twitched, silencing him instantly. His eyes — those storm-grey eyes Aria had watched soften, just last night — were flat and merciless now.
"You failed," Raian said, his tone almost bored. "And because of that, she became a target."
Aria felt the words strike something deep inside her chest. Me. He's talking about me.
The second man began to sob. "It won't happen again, Raian-bhai, we swear—"
"No," Raian said, voice low as thunder, "it won't."
He nodded once.
Before Aria could blink, Raian's men stepped forward — a sharp crack of impact, a strangled gasp — then stillness. Blood pooled dark and fast on moss-covered stone.
Aria's breath caught, cold and sharp. The courtyard felt too small, the air too thick.
Raian turned, his gaze falling on her. The hardness in his eyes flickered, almost shattered — but didn't.
"You shouldn't have come out," he said quietly.
Her voice trembled. "And you… shouldn't have had to do this."
Raian's jaw clenched. "In my world, mercy is weakness. And weakness costs lives — yours first."
Aria swallowed, fear and sorrow tangling in her chest. "Then why does it look like it hurts you, too?"
He stepped closer, the faint smell of rain and iron clinging to him. "Because it does," he whispered, raw and ragged. "But I'd rather damn myself a thousand times than let them touch you."
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Stay tuned for next episode ....