Silence reigned for a heartbeat.

Then Rajesh raised the poker high, tears streaking down his face. “I’m sorry,” he whispered.

Deepika screamed, lunging forward—but Rohan held her back.

“No!” she cried, “You don’t know what you’re doing!”

But the decision had already been made.

With a sickening sound of metal on flesh, Rajesh brought the fire poker down.

Guna didn’t scream. He looked into Deepika’s eyes—and smiled.

As if he knew.

As if he chose it.

***

The Room Fell Silent

The shadows around them withdrew slowly, as though satisfied. The whispers faded. The flickering candlelight steadied.

For a few moments, there was peace.

Then the house began to laugh.

A dry, hollow, inhuman laugh—echoing from every wall, every floorboard.

Ragini turned pale. “That’s not her. That’s them.”

The five male spirits materialized again, their figures now solidifying, gaining form.

> “Thank you for the offering,” Adil’s voice hissed.

> “She bound us here in death,” muttered Vivek. “But her anchor is gone now.”

> “You freed us,” Samar growled. “Not yourselves.”

They had been tricked.

Nayana had never been the curse.

She had been the seal.

The house began to shake violently, walls bleeding black ichor. The sigils on the basement floor flared to life—then crumbled.

Rajesh dropped the bloodstained poker. “We killed the wrong one.”

Rohan backed against the wall, his voice shaking. “We gave them what they needed.”

Deepika sobbed. “We sacrificed the only soul who tried to save her... and us.”

A black wind burst through the mansion, extinguishing every light. And then—

Everything went dark.

***

Elsewhere – In the Past

Guna blinked.

He was lying on soft grass beneath an endless twilight sky. Birds sang faint songs. In the distance, a lake shimmered, untouched by time.

Beside him, Nayana sat silently. No longer the ghost. No longer broken. Just a girl, wearing white, her eyes calm.

He sat up. “Am I dead?”

She nodded gently.

“But you’re... here?”

She smiled. “You died for me. Again.”

Guna looked down at his hands—no blood, no bruises. Just warmth.

“You didn’t have to. But you did.”

She reached out, taking his hand. “The house will fall now. They are free. But so am I.”

He frowned. “And them? My friends?”

A pause. Her gaze drifted upward, to the sky slowly turning red.

“They made their choice. Now they’ll face the storm.”

She leaned against his shoulder.

“I only hope they remember who paid the price.”

***