A CRACK IN THE SILENCE…

Episode 26

Rabaab hadn't slept in days.

Though the mirror was shattered, the sense of being watched never left. At night, whispers curled around her ears—soft, almost gentle… but persistent.

Jawad stayed close. He'd taken leave from college, determined to protect her. But even he couldn't deny that something felt… unfinished.

One evening, while organizing the fragments of the mirror in a sealed box, Rabaab noticed something strange.

One shard still shimmered faintly. It pulsed—not red, not blue—but black, like ink swirling in water.

She leaned closer.

And the shard blinked.

Rabaab stumbled back, heart hammering. The box fell, spilling the shards across the floor.

"Jawad!" she called.

He rushed in, eyes scanning the mess. "What happened?"

"The shard… it moved."

Jawad picked it up carefully, turning it in his hand. It looked ordinary now—just glass. But he saw the fear in Rabaab's eyes. And he trusted her.

"We need to find out where this mirror came from," he said.

Rabaab nodded slowly. "It didn't start with me. It's older. Much older."

In that moment, a knock echoed from the front door.

Three knocks. Then silence.

They glanced at each other.

No one was expected.

And outside, night had just begun to fall.

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