“What Remains”

Episode----10

They buried the last body under rain-heavy vines behind the villa. The grave was shallow, the earth soaked and stubborn.

When it was over, Raian's men melted back into the shadows, leaving only him and Aria standing among the dead leaves.

Aria's hands wouldn't stop shaking. "I've seen blood before," she whispered, voice thin and cracked. "But never like this."

Raian didn't speak. His face, streaked with rain and blood, was as still as stone.

She reached for him, hand hovering over his chest. "What does this do to you?"

He exhaled, slow and ragged. "It takes pieces. Every time. Pieces that don't come back."

"And what if I still choose you?" she asked, tears mixing with rain on her cheeks.

Raian's hand caught hers, pressing it against the fresh wound on his side. "Then you'll lose pieces of yourself, too," he rasped, voice breaking. "And I'll never forgive myself for that."

Aria's breath shuddered. "Maybe you're worth it."

He drew closer, forehead touching hers, the space between them burning and fragile. "Don't say that," he whispered, voice raw. "Because it makes me hope. And hope is the most dangerous thing for someone like me."

Thunder rumbled, rolling through the broken villa.

In the ruins, they stood together — a doctor and a devil, bound by blood, tied by something neither dared to name.

---

Next (Episode 11):

Morning brings an unexpected knock at the villa door —

Aria's best friend Lina enters the shadows… and meets Ayan, Raian's silent right hand.

When light and steel collide, sparks are inevitable.