Aroohi stood in the ruins of the old courtyard, rain crashing around her. Her heart was pounding like war drums.She knew the truth was close — closer than ever before.
Suddenly a shadow appeared.
"Miss Malik."
Ahil's voice was cold, serious. But there was something else… tension.
Aroohi didn't flinch.
"We found something," Ahil said, holding out a small sealed envelope.It was old — stained with blood.
She opened it.
Her breath froze.
Inside… was her father's handwriting.
A single line:
"Trust no one — especially not the one you love."
Her blood ran cold.
"Where did you get this?" she demanded.
Ahil didn't answer — but his eyes were different — softer, yet heavier with meaning.
Before she could react, footsteps echoed.
Zain appeared — soaked, eyes burning like embers.
"Looking for this?" he said, sliding a bloody cloth onto the stone floor.
Aroohi's eyes widened.
"That was on the night of the murder," Zain whispered."And I found it near where her father died."
Ahil stepped forward.
"So he wasn't killed there by accident," Ahil said."We were lied to."
Aroohi looked from one man to the other…And she realized the ground beneath her was shaking.
Not from rain.From truth.
Her father had left a message…but it wasn't a warning.
It was a direction.
"Trust no one you love," she whispered.
Zain's jaw tightened.
"Maybe he meant me," he said in a low voice, eyes locked on hers.
Aroohi's heart thudded.
But before she could reply…
A shot rang out.
Aroohi staggered forward as the bullet grazed her shoulder.
Everything slowed — rain, thunder, her pulse, his face.
Zain lunged.
Between them now was fire.
His palm pressed above her wound — pure instinct.
"Don't move," he growled.
She didn't move.
Even though her world was twisting — no, tearing apart.
Because at that moment she realized something:
She wasn't safe.Not from Ahil, not from fate…
And not even from Zain.
Their eyes met —dark, wild, impossible…
And beneath the storm…
A spark ignited.
A spark that was never supposed to exist.