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Part 19: Chains of Command
Bhuvanya was just stepping into the secret room when a voice from upstairs cut through the heavy silence:
"Everyone… I'm back, your lovely ones!"
Her pulse jumped. She instinctively moved back toward the doorway, but before she could react, Aarush's hand clamped around her wrist.
"What—?" she gasped, struggling.
"Not a word," Aarush said, his grip iron. He pulled her down the corridor with precise control, every step deliberate. "Don't leave your room before I command it. One wrong move… and you'll be punished."
Bhuvanya froze, fury and fear warring inside her. "What? Aarush, I'm not some… object! I have the right to know what's going on in this house! To know the truth!"
He stopped at her room, his eyes dark, unreadable, yet beneath that coldness flickered something more — possessiveness, a hint of fear. Leaning close, he whispered, low enough for only her to hear, "The truth isn't yours yet. You aren't ready. Not for Rafael. Not for what he's done… or what's coming."
Her stomach twisted. Rafael. The name alone made her blood run cold. "What do you mean? What has he done?"
Aarush didn't answer. He released her wrist — just enough to step back — but the shadow of his control remained, looming over her like a predator waiting to strike. "Stay in your room. Not a single step outside until I say. Or…" His voice trailed, leaving the threat suspended like a blade above her head.
Bhuvanya sank onto the edge of the bed, her mind racing. Rafael. Aarush. Secrets. Lies. The mansion seemed alive with shadows she didn't understand, and yet, whether she wanted it or not, she was being drawn into the web.
And deep beneath the fear, a dangerous resolve took hold: she would uncover the truth — no matter the cost.
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