The revelation

Author’s POV

The car rolled to a stop in the middle of nowhere. The air was thick with silence, broken only by the distant rustling of leaves and the occasional hoot of an owl. The only structure nearby was an old, abandoned temple, its weathered stone walls standing as a silent witness to time and fate.

The mystery man let out a frustrated sigh, stepping out of the vehicle. "The engine’s dead. We’ll have to wait here until I figure something out," he muttered, slamming the door shut.

Raghav, still basking in his supposed victory, chuckled darkly as he leaned back against the car. The night felt colder, but the warmth of his triumph spread through him like fire.

He turned his gaze toward the man beside him and smirked. "Well, how does it feel?" he asked, amusement lacing his tone. "Your niece is dead now."

The words hung in the air, thick and heavy.

The camera panned slowly toward the mystery man’s face.

And then, in the dim moonlight, his identity became clear.

It was none other than Advika’s uncle.

His expression remained eerily calm, unreadable. The shadows flickered across his face, masking the storm raging within him. He didn’t react to Raghav’s taunt—not immediately. Instead, he reached into his pocket, pulling out a lighter, the small flame illuminating his sharp features.

Raghav let out a low laugh. "Come on, don’t tell me you actually cared for her?" He shook his head, taking a step closer. "Or maybe… you were just waiting for this moment too?"

The uncle finally turned to face him, his eyes cold and calculating. But there was something deeper beneath the surface—something Raghav failed to notice.

"You really think you’ve won, don’t you?" the uncle asked, his voice eerily composed.

Raghav smirked. "Oh, I don’t think. I know." He stepped forward, arrogance dripping from every word. "She played her little revenge game, but in the end, she lost. And I won."

The uncle’s lips curled into something that resembled a smile, but it lacked any warmth. "If you say so," he murmured, pocketing his lighter.

Raghav’s brows furrowed slightly. Something about his reaction didn’t sit right with him.

Before he could dwell on it, a gust of wind howled through the temple ruins, making the old wooden doors creak ominously. The flickering flame in the uncle’s lighter cast long shadows against the cracked stone walls.

And then—

A sudden clang echoed through the darkness.

Raghav snapped his head toward the temple’s entrance, his smirk faltering. The doors had shifted slightly, as if something—or someone—was inside.

His fingers twitched. "What was that?" he muttered.

The uncle’s eyes glimmered in the dim light. "Maybe a ghost?" he said, almost mockingly.

Raghav scoffed, shaking off the unease creeping up his spine. "Don’t tell me you believe in that crap."

The uncle didn’t respond. He simply turned toward the temple, stepping forward.

Raghav hesitated before following. The temple’s entrance loomed before them like the mouth of a beast, dark and yawning. With each step, the air grew heavier, the silence more deafening.

And then—

A whisper.

Soft. Barely audible.

But unmistakable.

"Raghav…"

The blood in his veins ran cold.

Raghav straightened, his brows furrowing. “Who the hell—”

And then he saw her.

Advika.

Alive.

Standing there, in the flesh, her eyes burning with a fire he had never seen before. Dressed in black, her presence was chilling, almost unreal. The faint glow of the temple lights illuminated her face—bruised, but unbroken. She wasn’t a ghost. She wasn’t an illusion. She was here.

And beside her, just a step behind, stood Vivan.

The silence was thick, stretching across the night like an unspoken warning. The temple’s aged walls stood tall, their presence ancient and unmoving, as if witnessing a moment that had been written in fate long before this night. The dim flicker of oil lamps cast long, wavering shadows over the stone floor.

Raghav stood at the temple’s entrance, his breath unsteady, his mind still trying to grasp the impossible. His eyes darted from one face to another—first to Advika’s uncle, then to Vivan, and finally back to the one he never thought he would see again.

Advika.

Alive. Strong. Unshaken.

A step echoed against the stone floor, sharp and deliberate. She was walking toward him.

Raghav instinctively took a step back.

His heart pounded against his ribs, his throat going dry. His mind screamed at him that this wasn’t real, that this was some kind of trick. But the weight of reality crashed down on him. She wasn’t a ghost. She wasn’t a memory. She was here.

His voice, hoarse and barely above a whisper, broke the silence. “You’re dead.”

Advika’s lips curved, but it wasn’t a smile. It was a warning.

"Disappointed?" she asked, her voice smooth yet laced with something unspoken—something dark.

Raghav swallowed hard. His hands curled into fists at his sides, as if holding onto whatever control he had left. “How?” His breath was shallow. "How the hell—"

"You thought you won," Advika interrupted, stepping closer. "You thought you destroyed me. That I was out of your way. But you forgot one thing, Raghav—"

She stopped just a breath away, her piercing gaze locking onto his.

"I don’t lose."

Raghav’s body went rigid as he stumbled back, his breath uneven, his mind racing. His instincts screamed at him to find an escape, a way out. He turned, his eyes searching for the one person he had always counted on—the man who had been his shield in the shadows.

Advika’s uncle.

With desperation clawing at his throat, Raghav reached out, grabbing his arm like a drowning man grasping for air. “Help me,” he hissed, his voice barely steady. “We’ve always been on the same side—”

But the moment he felt the grip loosen, his blood ran cold.

Advika’s uncle pulled his hand away. Refusing. Rejecting. Turning away.

For the first time, Raghav saw something different in his eyes—resolve. Unshaken, immovable resolve.

“I was never on your side,” Advika’s uncle said, his voice calm but firm, each word landing like a blow. “I stayed silent. I watched. I let you do what you did, hoping one day you'd stop.”

Raghav’s breathing grew shallow. “You—”

“But not anymore.” His voice hardened. "This time, I’m going to protect my family."

Raghav took a step back, stunned. Betrayed.

This wasn’t happening. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.

“You’re making a mistake,” Raghav warned, his voice laced with growing panic. “You don’t understand—”

“I understand perfectly.” Advika’s uncle met his gaze, unflinching. “I understand that I should have done this long ago.”

And then, without another word, he stepped back.

Away from Raghav. Away from the man he had once protected.

Leaving him alone.

Completely. Alone.

And that was when Raghav realized—he had no one left.

The walls were closing in. The shadows were shifting.

And this time, he was the one trapped.

Raghav’s breath hitched as he stared at the man in front of him, disbelief flashing in his eyes. Advika’s uncle. The man who had always been his silent ally, the one who had never questioned his ways, was now standing against him.

For the first time, there was no hesitation, no guilt—only conviction.

“You—” Raghav started, his voice hoarse. “You can’t just—”

“I can,” Advika’s uncle cut him off, his tone unwavering. His hands clenched into fists, his gaze dark with something Raghav had never seen before—remorse.

“I killed my own brother and my sister-in-law for money,” he confessed, his voice steady but heavy with guilt. “I let greed take over, let it blind me. And for years, I lived with that blood on my hands, thinking I could escape it.”

Raghav’s heartbeat pounded in his ears. He hadn’t expected this. Not from him.

“But no more.” Advika’s uncle took a step forward, and for the first time, Raghav took a step back.

“I’m done being your pawn. Done watching from the sidelines as you try to destroy the only family I have left.” His voice cracked slightly, but his stance remained firm. “Maybe this is my redemption, Raghav. Maybe this is the only way I can face myself.”

Raghav’s jaw tightened. He had never seen this man waver before, never seen him with regret in his eyes.

“You think turning against me will change the past?” Raghav scoffed, masking his unease with anger. “You think it’ll wash away what you did?”

“No,” Advika’s uncle admitted, his voice quieter now. “Nothing will change the past. Nothing will bring my brother and his wife back. But I can choose who I stand with now.”

And then, he stepped away.

Just like that.

Turning his back on Raghav.

Choosing her.

Choosing Advika.

Raghav stood frozen, his world shifting beneath him. For the first time, he had truly lost.

Advika took another step closer, closing the distance between her and Raghav. “You thought you could end my story,” she said, voice laced with quiet fury. “But you forgot one thing, Raghav.”

Raghav inhaled sharply, his fists shaking.

Advika leaned in just slightly, her next words a whisper that cut through the silence like a blade.

“I decide when it ends.”

Raghav’s expression twisted, disbelief and anger fighting for control. "Why the hell did you fake your death?" he spat, his voice hoarse with confusion. "You had the perfect opportunity to kill me in the warehouse when your husband had me captured. Why drag it out?"

Advika’s gaze burned with unshakable determination as she stepped closer, her voice cold, each word carrying the weight of her vengeance. "Because, Raghav, it's only fair that you pay for your sins where you committed them."

The words hit him like a blow, and Raghav's eyes flickered around the temple, the sense of impending doom creeping in. His breath caught, panic rising in his chest.

This place… He knew. He knew exactly where she was going with this.

"This is where you killed my parents, isn't it?" Advika’s voice rang out, cutting through the tense silence. "This holy temple. The place where you and your friends took their lives and staged it as a car accident."

Raghav froze, the air around him growing heavy. The walls seemed to close in as he stumbled back, his body tense with dread. He tried to maintain his composure, but the truth was undeniable. This was the place where it had all started, where he had thought his darkest secrets were buried.

"No..." His voice faltered as he looked at Advika, his mind scrambling for an escape, for anything that could save him. But there was nothing left. "You can't—"

"I know everything, Raghav," Advika interrupted, her voice hard, unyielding. "How you and your friends murdered my parents in cold blood. How you thought you could bury it all, but you didn’t account for me. You didn’t account for my revenge."

Raghav’s legs went weak. His heart hammered in his chest. He looked desperately to Advika’s uncle, but the man’s eyes were filled with cold resolution, standing resolutely at her side.

"I killed your friends, Raghav," Advika continued, her voice growing quieter but no less deadly. "Each of them, one by one. They were a part of what happened to my parents. And now… now it’s your turn."

Raghav's mind spun as the weight of her words crushed him. The betrayal of his closest allies. The loss of his power. He looked into Advika’s eyes—there was no mercy in them. She wasn’t here for a game. She was here for justice. For revenge.

"You can’t be serious," Raghav whispered, his voice cracking. He had always been the one in control. The one who dictated the terms. But now, he saw his empire crumbling around him.

Advika’s eyes glinted with resolve. "You took everything from me, Raghav. And now it’s time for you to pay the price." Her gaze flicked to her uncle, who stepped forward, an unspoken bond between them.

"You’ve always been a coward," she said coldly. "Hiding behind others, thinking you could get away with murder. But now, there’s no one left to save you."

Raghav took a step back, his mind racing for an escape, but there was none. Advika’s uncle had already turned his back on him. He was alone. Trapped in the very place where it all began.

"You don’t understand," Raghav gasped, his voice breaking. "I—I did it for power. For control."

Advika’s lips curled into a cruel smile, but there was no warmth in it. "Power built on blood, Raghav. And that’s exactly what you’re going to drown in."

A final, tense silence hung in the air, thick with the weight of their shared history, the bloodshed, and the final reckoning. Advika’s eyes never left him as she took one final step forward.

“I decide when it ends,” she repeated, her voice low and unwavering.

Raghav, standing on the precipice of his own destruction, realized the game was over. This was where it ended—for him.

Advika took another step closer, her expression unyielding. "I had all the proof against you, Raghav. The ACP... he turned against me. The law... it failed me. The government I sought justice from... they failed me too." Her eyes darkened. "But now... after all this time, after everything... finally, you're going to pay."

Raghav’s breath hitched, panic creeping into his chest. He had never seen her like this—so unflinching, so resolute.

Advika said, her voice dripping with cold fury. " There’s no one left to shield you, Raghav. Not anymore."

His face went pale, his chest tightening as the weight of her words sank in.

"All that’s left is me," Advika continued, her voice steady, her gaze fixed on him like a predator closing in on its prey. "And I will make sure you pay for every life you’ve destroyed."

~Ek aakhri baazi hai,

Joh chalni baaki hai!!

Iss kahani ka aakhri padav,

Likhna abhi baaki hai~

Kaisa laga chapter

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