The archive pulsed around her, stories whispering in the walls, memories unraveling like threads waiting to be woven into something whole. Aarya had spent her life chasing shadows, but now, she stood at the center of them.

She turned to Veer and Rhea, her pulse steady, her thoughts racing.

“You’ve known all along, haven’t you?” she asked, voice quiet but firm.

Veer’s gaze was unreadable, yet something flickered beneath the surface—hesitation, regret, maybe even relief. Rhea, however, simply smiled.

“Yes,” Rhea said. "We’ve always known.”

Aarya clenched her fists. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Veer exhaled slowly. “Because you had to find the truth yourself. That’s the way it was meant to be.”

The words unsettled her, but deep down, she knew he was right.

She turned to the paintings lining the walls, searching for the one that had been calling to her since the trials began. When she found it—a canvas buried in shadows and streaks of silver—she understood.

This was her family’s story.

She pressed her hand against the surface.

The painting trembled, then exploded into movement.

Memories surged forward—her mother laughing, her father whispering secrets into her ear, the warmth of a home that had once felt unbreakable. But then, the images shifted, darkened.

A locked room.

A promise made in blood.

A decision that had torn everything apart.

Aarya’s breath hitched.

Her mother hadn’t just been an artist—she had been a guardian. Of secrets, of stories, of something far more dangerous than mere paintings.

And her father…

Her father hadn’t died in an accident like she had been told.

He had been erased.

The weight of realization slammed into her chest.

Veer stepped forward, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Aarya,” he murmured.

She turned to him, searching his face. “Who are you?”

His gaze softened. “Someone who was meant to protect you.”

Aarya felt her entire world shift. “You knew my parents.”

Veer nodded. “I was bound to them the way I am bound to you. This legacy doesn’t just belong to your mother—it belongs to all of us.”

She looked at Rhea, who watched her carefully. “And you?”

Rhea’s smile was sad. “Your mother was my mentor. I was supposed to help her carry the truth, but I failed.”

The painting pulsed again, revealing its final secret.

Aarya’s mother had hidden something—something that had cost them everything. And now, Aarya was the only one who could finish what had been started.

She inhaled sharply, steadied herself.

Whatever lay ahead, she was ready.

~TO BE CONTINUED...