Chapter 3: Seva Begins
By midday, the village had transformed.
The drums were wild now. Fast. Chaotic.
Men filled the streets, faces painted, bodies swaying, shouting and laughing. They danced like something had taken over them.
Like they were no longer themselves.
Amara watched through a tiny crack in the curtain.
Her heart pounded.
This wasn't celebration.
This was something else.
Something dangerous.
Then she heard it—
A scream.
Sharp. Brief. Cut off.
Amara froze.
Her mother began to pray under her breath.