The sirens faded behind them as Reyan's car climbed the empty highway.Aarvi sat beside him, silent, her eyes fixed on the city lights shrinking in the mirror.Rain streaked across the windshield, the same rhythm that had followed them since the night began.
"Hold this," he said quietly, handing her a towel from the back seat.She pressed it against the bruise on her arm without a word.
For a moment neither of them spoke. Only the low hum of the engine filled the silence.
Reyan's thoughts were a storm.Five years—five long years—and the first night she returns, someone attacks her?No coincidence. No way.
He tightened his grip on the wheel. "You should have told me you were in danger."
Aarvi's tone was soft but steady. "And would you have believed me?"
He glanced at her. The question cut deeper than he expected.
The car pulled into the underground garage of his penthouse. He parked, stepped out, and came around to her side. She hesitated before taking his hand. Her fingers were cold.
Inside, the elevator ride felt endless. The mirrored walls reflected faces that looked older, heavier with history neither of them could erase.
When the doors opened, his apartment greeted them with silence—warm light, glass walls, the soft scent of coffee that had long gone cold.He motioned her toward the couch.
"I'll get the first-aid kit."
She watched him move, eyes following every step like she was memorizing him again.
When he returned, she spoke before he could."You didn't change this place."
"Didn't need to," he said. "The person who left took enough with her."
Her gaze lowered. "You still hold grudges like trophies."
"Only the ones that deserve them."
He knelt beside her, cleaning the scrape on her hand. The touch made her flinch, not from pain but from memory.
He looked up. "Who were they, Aarvi?"
"I don't know," she said too quickly. "Maybe thieves—"
"Thieves don't leave messages." He pulled out his phone, showing her the text from the unknown number.Her expression shifted; she looked genuinely surprised.
"You got one too?" she whispered.
"So you've been getting these?"
She nodded slowly. "For weeks. Always the same warning: don't go back."
"And yet you came."
Her eyes met his, unguarded for the first time that night. "Because I had to."
He waited, but she didn't elaborate.
The air between them thickened with everything unsaid.
Finally he leaned back. "You disappear for five years, reappear with danger on your heels, and all you can say is you had to?"
"Would you prefer I lie?"
He laughed once, without humor. "At least that would make sense."
Aarvi stood, pacing to the window. "You think this is easy for me? Coming here? Seeing you?"
He rose slowly. "Then why do it?"
She turned, eyes shining though she tried to hide it. "Because someone from your world made sure I could never run again."
Reyan froze. "My world?"
She nodded. "The night I left… it wasn't because I wanted to. Someone gave me a choice—disappear or watch you lose everything."
For a second, his mind refused to believe it. Then all the broken nights, the unanswered calls, the silence—it all began to rearrange itself into something crueler than betrayal.
"Who?" he demanded.
Before she could answer, her phone buzzed on the table. Unknown number again.Reyan snatched it before she could. The message was short:
You shouldn't have gone back to him.
His chest tightened. The timestamp showed it was sent only a minute ago—meaning whoever it was, they knew exactly where she was.
He looked toward the dark windows, half expecting a shadow to move.
Aarvi's voice trembled. "It's not safe here."
"It's safer than outside."
"No, Reyan. You don't understand. They're not after me anymore."
"Then who?"
She looked at him, fear softening her words. "You."
Reyan stared at her, the words echoing in his mind.They're after you.
For the first time in years, he felt something close to fear — not for himself, but for her.
"How long have you known this?" he asked quietly.
"Since the first message," she whispered. "They said if I ever came near you, they'd finish what they started."
He took a slow breath. "And you still came."
Aarvi's eyes glistened. "I couldn't keep running forever. And if they want you, then I need to stop them before—"
Before she could finish, a sudden beep came from the security panel near the door.A red light blinked. Someone had used the private elevator code.
Reyan's body tensed. "No one else has that access."
Aarvi froze. "Then it's them."
He moved fast, crossing to the control screen. A name flashed on the panel: K. Desai — Authorized Entry.
Reyan frowned. "It's Kiran. My head of security."
The elevator doors slid open a second later, revealing a tall man in a dark coat."Kiran," Reyan started, relief touching his voice. "You shouldn't barge in like—"
"Sir," Kiran interrupted, stepping forward, "you need to come with me. Now."
Reyan's relief vanished. The man's eyes didn't meet his, and his hand rested a little too casually inside his coat pocket.
Aarvi's voice was tight. "Reyan…"
He noticed the same thing she did — the faint metallic glint beneath Kiran's sleeve.
"Put it down," Reyan said evenly.
Kiran hesitated, then slowly withdrew not a weapon but a small flash drive."This," he said, "was left at your office door an hour ago. The guards didn't see who dropped it."
Reyan took it, glancing at Aarvi before plugging it into the nearest laptop.A single video file loaded.
Static. Then a distorted voice.
"Five years ago, she ran to save you. Now she's back to end you."
Aarvi's face went pale.
Reyan slammed the laptop shut. "Who sent this?"
Kiran shook his head. "No trace. The footage deletes itself after playback. I copied the timestamp — it was recorded tonight."
"Get every camera on this building checked. Now."
Kiran nodded and left, tension thick enough to choke the room.
When they were alone again, Aarvi whispered, "Now do you believe me?"
Reyan's expression softened for the first time. "I never stopped believing you, Aarvi. I just stopped believing in us."
She looked away. "Maybe that's the same thing."
He stepped closer. The storm outside had slowed, leaving the room drenched in the city's glow.
"You said they forced you to disappear," he said. "Who were they working for?"
Her voice was barely a breath. "Someone inside your company. Someone who wanted your project buried — and me gone."
He frowned. "Which project?"
"The one you called Project Helios."
Reyan felt the blood drain from his face. Helios was the code name for his first major deal — the one that had launched his empire. Only five people had ever known the details.
"I thought that project was clean," he said slowly.
"It wasn't," Aarvi replied. "They used your name to move money — illegal money. When I found out, they came after me. I was told if I stayed quiet and left the country, they'd keep you safe."
Reyan rubbed his temples. "Who told you?"
"I never saw their face. Only a voice. They called themselves 'Eclipse.'"
The word hung in the air like a curse.
He looked at her again, seeing not just the woman who left him, but someone who'd been fighting a war alone."You should have told me."
"I wanted to," she said, tears catching in her voice, "but every time I tried, another threat came. I thought distance would save you."
He reached out, hesitated, then let his hand rest lightly on hers."Distance never saves anyone," he said quietly. "It just hurts longer."
Aarvi blinked back tears. "So what now?"
"Now," he said, his tone steady, "we find who's behind this. Together."
A faint smile touched her lips — the first real one all night."Still trying to fix everything yourself?"
"Old habits," he said.
Before she could reply, the lights flickered. Once. Twice. Then went dark.
Reyan's instincts kicked in. He grabbed her wrist, pulling her behind the couch.A faint beep sounded from the laptop. Its screen glowed with a single line of text:
HELLO AGAIN, MR. KADE.
Another line appeared.
CHECK YOUR PHONE.
Reyan looked at his phone. A new message — no number, just coordinates and a timer counting down from 10 minutes.
"What is this?" Aarvi whispered.
"I don't know," he said, voice low, "but it's happening inside this building."
He opened the security feed on his tablet. All cameras showed static — except one.Basement Level 2.
On the screen, a small box blinked with a red light.
Aarvi gasped. "That's a detonator."
Reyan's pulse surged. "Get out, now."
"No! You won't make it in time—"
He turned to her, eyes fierce. "Then help me stop it."
They ran to the elevator, heartbeats matching the timer ticking in his mind.
As the doors closed, the timer hit 8:47.