Song of the chapter is Ashes by Stellar

-66-

-Kartik Malhotra-
-Present-

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St. Maud Theatre
22 December, 2030
2:20 am

"Isn't this just perfect?"

Zoya's fake chirpiness wasn't enough to soothe the tension that Alishka's game had unraveled in that very room.

My heart raced as I scanned the dimly lit parlor, filled with faces I had known for years. Tonight, they all seemed like strangers. The air was thick with tension, and the soft murmur of conversation had turned into hushed whispers.

The tension in the room was palpable, like a heavy cloud hanging over us all. The soft, flickering light cast eerie shadows on the walls, adding to the unsettling atmosphere. The shrine had transformed into a battleground of suspicions.

Every movement, every word spoken, was weighed carefully.

The creaking of the old wooden floorboards seemed to echo like accusations in the stillness, making everyone startle at the slightest noise. The room felt like a trap, each corner concealing secrets we were desperate to uncover.

A cold shiver ran down my spine as I watched the people I had trusted for years exchange wary looks. The suspicion in the air was suffocating, making it hard to breathe. It was as though an invisible barrier had formed, separating us into factions of those who were suspected and those who did the suspecting.

"Guys...." I began, doubt creeping up my mind. "What do we do?"

Himanshu's gaze flickered over to something behind me and I followed his line of sight to see what he was looking at.

And right above the stage, a digital stopwatch started counting down from 10 minutes.

"So we have ten minutes to decide which one of us is the killer's helper?" Siya asked.

"Seems so." I muttered under my breath as I heaved a sigh. The wound on my arm started throbbing like a bitch.

An uncomfortable silence prevailed for a while before Zoya turned towards the new additions to the group.

"Well it obviously has to be one of you."

"What? Who said that?" Zayn protested.

"We've known each other for years. We don't know any of you." Saina affirmed.

"That doesn't make any sense!" Dhrashti yelled. "I was Himanshu's fiance for fuck sake! He knows me."

She turned towards me and gave him the doe eyes. "Tell them, Himanshu!"

Himanshu avoided eye contact and said, "None of that stands right now."

Dhrashti scoffed in her place, feigning hurt. "I can't believe this."

"Look... we've played this game before and if it has taught us one thing is that you can't trust anyone." Siya explained. "My sister...who I grew up with...turned out to be one of the killers, tormenting me and my friends for so long."

A weighted silence followed as I looked over at her glistening eyes.

"It doesn't matter if you've known someone for years..." She added. "If they wanted to hurt you,....they would."

My chest constricted in its place hearing her feeble voice. I squeezed her hand tighter and she gave me a reassuring nod.

"So no one is off the suspect list." I stated.

"Well what about the two who went away?" Dhrashti questioned.

"I'm sure they'll be here soon." Himanshu affirmed. "In the meantime, let's figure out what we're missing here."

"What do you mean?" Saina asked.

"The way the pattern of these games go... there's usually something at stake for us." He explained. "In the first one, they had you guys captured so we would run against time to save some of you and kill one."

"So you mean there's a hidden catch here?" I asked.

"There has to be."

‘Well, aren't you the smartest, Himanshu?’ The speaker cackled back to life.

"My god! Is this bitch always listening?" Zoya commented, looking up at the source of the sound.

‘I am, Zizi. And Himanshu is absolutely correct. There is something at stake here too.’

"So would you mind telling us what it is?" Saina asked.

‘Only if you let me finish.’ The voice responded. ‘Something or rather someone very dear to you....is currently balancing on a very thin line between life and death.’

Siya and I exchanged horrified looks.

‘And the fun part is.....they don't even know about it!’

"Quit playing riddles, bitch!" Zoya yelled.

‘Do you wanna guess who it is?’ The voice chuckled.

"No, just tell us who it is, alright?" Himanshu said sternly. "We're so over your little games."

‘Uff! You guys are no fun at all.’ The voice expressed, feigning hurt. ‘Fine. I'll tell you who it is. Drumroll please!’

‘It is none other than.....my dear brother, Kartik Malhotra!’

A gasp left Siya's lips. She immediately clung closer to me.

"What do you mean?" I asked with gritted teeth.

‘Well brother....the knife you got stabbed with....was no ordinary knife. It was laced with cyanide. Which means that you have about... 9 minutes before your body starts to shut down, your heart stops and you rest in peace.’

"No!" Siya yelled, holding my arm. "No, you're lying!"

‘If you don't figure out who the mole among you is within the next few minutes, then my dear brother would never get the antidote he so desperately needs. And his blood would be on your hands.’

"What did I ever do to you?" I coughed, feeling a warm sensation on my forehead.

The voice chuckled in response. ‘Time's ticking. Tick-tock... tick-tock...tick-tock...’

And with that, it turned off again.

I clutched my arm, where the knife had pierced my flesh earlier. At first, the pain was bearable, but now it felt like it was spreading like wildfire through my veins. Each heartbeat sent a pulsing wave of agony, and my vision blurred at the edges.

I stumbled backward, trying to make sense of the situation. The room spun around me, and I struggled to keep my balance. My hand was slick with blood, and I could taste the metallic tang on my lips.

"Kartik!" Siya yelled as I collapsed next to her. My friends rushed over to my aide.

"Is it hurting a lot?" Zoya asked. "What are you feeling?"

"Hot."

"Now is not the time for jokes, Malhotra."

"No.... I feel....warm." I managed to blurt out. "It's like a fever."

A cold sweat broke out on my forehead as the poison's insidious grip tightened. My muscles began to twitch, and I gasped for air, as if my lungs are betraying me. Panic set in my wife's eyes.

"Kartik! Talk to me please." She whispered, her face a mess. "Please just try to hold on, okay?"

I opened my mouth to say words but couldn't utter anything. So I simply resorted to nodding.

"We're running out of time! We need to figure out who the helper is right now!" Siya yelled at Himanshu.

"This is so fucked up! Oh my god-" From my peripheral vision, I watched as Dhrashti paced back and forth.

"Okay,...whichever one of you is the helper, needs to come out now!" Zoya rushed in front of them.

"What?! I'm not the helper!" Dhrashti protested.

"Neither am I!" Zayn yelled along.

"It has to be one of you." Saina reasoned. "None of us would ever want anything to happen to our friend."

"Isn't it obvious?! He was the one stalking you guys for god's sake! It has to be him!" Dhrashti pointed at Zayn.

"Fuck you, lady! I'm not a fucking killer!" Zayn retorted.

"Yeah?! Is that what you yelled when you killed your fucking girlfriend?" Dhrashti questioned.

"For the last time, I did not kill Shefali!"

"Stop it!" Himanshu intervened. The room fell silent for a whole second.

"This is exactly what she wants! She wants us to fight amongst ourselves and doubt each other." He reasoned. "We need to come to a rational conclusion-"

Before he could finish his sentence, Siya got up from beside me and grabbed the gun from the glass safe and aimed it at the two.

"Siya!" I managed to yell.

"Which one of you is the killer?" She questioned, looking at Dhrashti and Zayn who stood with fear in their eyes.

"Siya, calm down." Himanshu tried to intervene.

"No! Don't tell me to calm down, Himanshu." Siya glanced at him. "Not when Kartik's life is at stake."

"Siya...this isn't the solution-" I whispered, barely managing words out of my lips.

"I don't care if it's not." She glanced back at me. "I will not lose you. I refuse to."

As our eyes locked, I saw the gleaming terror in her eyes and for a moment, it scared me. It scared me to know how far she could go to protect me.

Even if it meant going against everything she once believed in.

"Siya... don't do this." Saina cried, reaching out to take the gun away but Siya remained determined.

"Don't stop me, Saina." She aimed the gun higher. "Not tonight."

The air hung heavy with uncertainty, and a faint, acrid scent of fear seemed to permeate every corner.

Siya's voice, usually so soft and comforting, had transformed into a weapon of its own, quivering with raw emotion. Her finger rested on the trigger of the gun, a menacing presence in the room, its cold steel glinting ominously.

Dhrashti and Zayn were frozen in place, their expressions a mixture of disbelief and dread. Their wide eyes darted between Siya and each other, their faces drained of color. Every move they made seemed calculated, as if a wrong step might set off a chain reaction none of us could control.

The silence was deafening, broken only by the shallow, uneven breaths we all took. Even the softest rustle of fabric or the creak of the wooden floorboards seemed magnified, amplifying the tension to unbearable levels. It was as though the very walls of the room were closing in, closing off any escape from the truth that hung in the balance.

Siya's hands shook, not only from the weight of the gun but from the emotional turmoil within her.

I just hoped she wouldn't do anything she could never undo.

"Time's nearing to an end." Zoya panicked.

"Who is it?!" Siya yelled.

"It has to be him!" Dhrashti yelled again.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry about what I did to you, okay? But I swear, Siya.... I'm not the killer." Zayn apologized.

"Then why don't I believe you?" She tilted her head, tears brimming down her cheeks.

"Please just let me explain-" Zayn said nearing closer to her, hoping to get her to lower the gun or take it away from her.

"Get away from me!" Siya yelled, taking steps back.

"Okay,....okay.... I won't." He whispered, his arms lowering as he took steps back. "Just please put the gun down."

Looking at her unconvinced expression, I pushed my body up using one arm and mumbled, "Siya. Look at me."

Her fingers trembled as she slowly turned to look at me. As her eyes met mine, I inhaled a shaky breath.

"Don't do this."

Her face crumpled further as she looked away, tears streaming down her throat.

"If you do this....then we won't be any different....from her."

She pursued her lips. "But-"

"If I...had to live with the fact....that you killed someone....just so....that I could live....then I won't be able to ever....forgive myself."

Slowly and gradually, she lowered the gun as the realisation of my words dawned in. The clock still ticked but I no longer felt the fear of dying in my heart.

Seizing the advantage of that vulnerable moment, Dhrashti moved with lightning speed. In one swift motion, she wrestled the gun from Siya's trembling hand and before any of us could react, she aimed it at Zayn.

Time seemed to slow to a crawl as I sat there, paralyzed by the sudden turn of events. The air in the room grew even heavier, the tension more suffocating, if that was even possible. The sound of my own heartbeat thudded in my ears, drowning out all other noise.

Dhrashti's face, once marked by uncertainty, had now transformed into a mask of evil. Her eyes, filled with a strange mix of arrogance and conceit, locked onto Zayn, who stood frozen and defenseless.

Then, the deafening crack of the gunshot shattered the silence. My heart clenched in my chest as I witnessed the horrific scene unfold before me. Zayn's body jerked, and he crumpled to the ground, a look of shock and pain contorting his features.

Everything seemed to spin out of control as chaos erupted in the room. Siya's anguished cry pierced the air, and I finally snapped out of my stunned state. Himanshu rushed towards Zayn, but it was too late.

The damage had been done.

"Gosh! You guys are such pussies." Came her comment as she now aimed the gun at us.

"It was...you." Himanshu's face crumpled as he looked up, his eyes filled with betrayal and anguish.

She smiled a similiar cocky smile like Alishka and said,

"Welcome to Act 3."

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