The next morning, Dev woke to the faint hum of the city outside, but sleep hadn't come easy. His mind kept returning to the wooden piece and the strange chaos in Singh's room. Something about it didn't feel right.
Shubham was already at the small table in the living room, sorting through a pile of Professor Singh's notes. "Morning, Dev," he said without looking up. "I stayed up late last night. There's… more here than we thought."
Laxmi appeared at the doorway, umbrella still in hand. "You two look like you've seen a ghost. What's going on?" she asked, concern softening her usual teasing tone.
Dev held up the wooden piece. "This. And everything else Singh left behind. Something's… not right."
Shubham nodded, spreading open an old sketchbook. "Look at these symbols. See the patterns? This wooden piece fits exactly into one of these diagrams. But I can't figure out what it's for."
Dev leaned over, tracing the faint lines with his finger. "It's like a puzzle… something Singh was protecting. Maybe I'm just imagining things… I've been losing sleep over all of this," he muttered, rubbing his eyes. The weight of the past few days pressed down on him, and every shadow in the room seemed to stretch a little longer, every creak a little louder. Laxmi and Shubham exchanged a glance, silently understanding that Dev was on edge—but they didn't say anything.
Shubham examined a loose floorboard and found a hidden compartment. Inside lay a folded piece of parchment, brittle with age. Unfolding it, he read aloud:"Some things are better left buried. Curiosity can awaken what should sleep."
Laxmi swallowed hard. "That sounds… ominous."
Dev clenched the wooden piece in his hand. "Singh knew something. He knew it was dangerous. And now it's on us."
The three of them fell silent, listening to the faint noises of the city outside. Even without a real threat, the tension hung heavy in the room. Dev's thoughts raced — was he truly imagining danger, or was there more to Singh's research than he realized?
"If Singh was protecting me… I have to find out why, before it's too late."
And with that, the unease settled over the house like a thick fog, leaving them with nothing but questions—and the sense that secrets from the past were waiting to be uncovered.