A slow, mocking applause echoed through the Kashyap living room, each clap like a slap to their faces.
Mihir stepped forward, his crimson eyes glinting with cruel amusement. "Bravo, my dear wife," he drawled, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "A dazzling display of bravery. Saving your precious Sapna... if only it mattered."
Maira's head snapped up, her heart thudding. "What do you mean?"
Mihir's smile widened into something cold and merciless. "She's already under my death curse. In forty-eight hours, your beloved Sapna will die... and nothing, not even that bow, can save her."
A horrified gasp swept through the family. Uma clutched Sapna tighter, Tia began to sob, and Akhil's face twisted in rage.
"Monster!" Akhil shouted. "She's your own family!"
Mihir tilted his head lazily. "Family?" His voice hardened. "This family has spent years chaining my mother, thwarting her freedom, stripping me and Sahir of what is rightfully ours. You are no family of mine. You are my prey."
He turned to Sahir, his smirk returning. "And while Sapna's life ticks away, we will prepare to finish what should have been done long ago-freeing Mohana."
Moti Baa's voice trembled but remained firm. "What... what do you mean?"
Mihir's crimson gaze locked on Teju. "To free Mohana, we must destroy the sacred bond between my brother and his Bishwa-the holy soulmate who keeps his darkness at bay."
Teju's breath caught. "You mean... me?"
Sahir, still cloaked in his Daavansh aura, turned his dark blue eyes on her. His expression was unreadable, but his voice was clear, cold, and absolute. "Yes. That bond will be severed. Permanently."
Teju staggered back as if struck. "Sahir... no... you can't mean this."
He ignored her plea, stepping forward with a commanding presence. "I will marry another. One who strengthens my darkness, not weakens it."
Mihir's voice thundered through the room. "Bring her forth!"
The air grew heavy with magic. A vortex of black smoke swirled into the center of the room, and from it emerged a woman clad in deep crimson robes, her beauty as deadly as a serpent's. Her eyes glowed with a sickly green light, her long hair cascading like a dark river down her back.
Ruby.
The Kashyap family froze. Moti Baa's lips trembled. "Ruby...?"
Uma's voice was barely a whisper. "But... we've known you since you were a little girl... we even... we even fixed your marriage with Sahir before..."
Ruby's lips curled into a sinister smile. "Before he chose Teju?" She laughed-a chilling, musical sound. "Oh, how naïve you all were. I was never the innocent little girl you thought. I have always belonged to the dark. And now, I will have what was always meant to be mine."
She walked toward Sahir, who did not flinch, did not protest, simply took her hand. The sight made Teju's world crumble.
"Sahir!" Teju cried, tears streaking her face. "Fight this! Please... fight this!"
But Sahir only looked at her with cold detachment. "You were never meant for me, Teju. This is who I truly am."
Mihir's laughter filled the room, triumphant and cruel. "Prepare yourselves, Kashyaps. In forty-eight hours, Sapna will die, Teju's bond will be shattered, and Mohana will rise. Your end begins now."
A sharp snap echoed through the hall, followed by a sudden surge of dark energy. The air shimmered like heat on metal as Mihir raised his hand, crimson power crackling around his fingers.
A wall of black energy erupted around the entire mansion, sealing every door, window, and passage. It pulsed ominously, like the heartbeat of some monstrous creature.
"What have you done?!" Akhil roared, rushing toward the main door. But the moment he touched the barrier, a blast of force threw him backward. He crashed into a pillar with a groan, clutching his chest in pain.
Mihir's crimson eyes glowed brighter as he smiled coldly. "This house is now your prison. Step outside, and you die instantly. Try to break it, and you'll wish you hadn't."
Panic rippled through the family. Uma clung to Sapna, who was barely conscious. Tia sobbed uncontrollably. Moti Baa sat rigid, her face pale but her eyes fierce.
Mihir began to slowly circle the room like a predator among prey. "Since you are all so... honored to witness history, you might as well contribute to it."
He stopped in the center of the hall, his voice booming with cruel command. "Prepare for the wedding of my brother Sahir and the true bride of darkness-Ruby Daayan."
A stunned silence followed his words, broken only by Maira's soft, defiant whisper. "Over my dead body."
Mihir's head snapped toward her, a dangerous gleam in his eyes. "Careful, wife. I might just take you up on that offer."
Ruby, standing at Sahir's side, smirked. "Make them prepare, Mihir. Let them decorate their own tomb."
Sahir, still emanating that dark blue aura, gave a single, chilling nod. "Do as my brother commands."
The family stood frozen, trapped between fear and defiance. The mansion felt less like a home and more like a grave, its walls now pulsing with deathly magic.
The air in Sapna's room was heavy with dread. The once warm, bustling home felt like a crypt as the family gathered around her bed. Sapna lay unconscious, her breathing shallow, her skin clammy. Strange black markings-ancient, curling symbols-had begun to crawl across her face, neck, and arm, glowing faintly like embers in the dark.
Uma sat at her side, stroking her hair with trembling hands. Tia clung to Moti Baa's arm, silently sobbing. Even Akhil, who had always been the stoic protector, stood with his fists clenched, unable to hide the helplessness in his eyes.
Maira, standing near the window, held her phone tightly to her ear, her voice breaking. "nani... nani, it's getting worse. The markings... they're spreading."
On the other end of the line, Kailashi's voice was grave, steady but filled with sorrow. "Listen to me carefully, Maira. What you're describing... it's the Mrityu Shraap, the death curse. Once its runes begin to appear on the victim's skin, time is short."
Maira's heart pounded painfully in her chest. "How do I save her, nani? Tell me what to do!"
There was a long pause, and then Kailashi said quietly, "There is no cure... unless the one who cast the curse willingly lifts it."
The words hit Maira like a blow. She turned toward the bed, watching Sapna's frail form as tears filled her eyes. "That means... Mihir has to undo it?"
"Yes," Kailashi replied. "And curses like these are bound to the heart of the caster. He must want to save her. Force will not work."
Maira's voice cracked, despair flooding her. "He'll never do that... nani, he's not the man I married anymore. He's... he's something else. And Sahir-Sahir is completely under his control. It's like Mihir has twisted both of them into... monsters."