Bound shadows

Chapter ten : the test of truth

Chapter Ten – The Test of Truth

The underground chamber shook with silence as Annie stared at her stepmother. Rage boiled inside her chest.

“You?” Annie’s voice cracked, her fists trembling. “You frustrated my life, you broke me, you made me feel unwanted… and now you stand here, acting like a savior? For me?!”

Mrs. Kalie’s eyes hardened. “Yes, Annie. For you. If I had not done all I did, you would never have survived long enough to stand here. You think I hated you, but I was protecting you in the only way I could.”

“Protecting me?!” Annie screamed, tears blinding her vision.

Kalie stepped closer, her voice lowering like a blade against Annie’s heart.

“Your father is not who you think he is.”

“I know what you’re about to say!” Annie shot back bitterly. “He tried to save my mum’s life with mine, and then he wanted to trade his for me!”

But Mrs. Kalie shook her head.

“No, Annie. The truth is far darker. Your father was ready to awaken the Dark One just to save you. He wasn’t offering his life he was offering the world’s.”

Daniel’s breath caught. “What?!”

Annie staggered backward. Her whole body felt like it was splitting open.

Kalie’s voice grew heavier. “The black box I brought into the house do you remember it? That was no ordinary chest. It was Torrion, an ancient device, filled with a power strong enough to trap shadows. But Torrion must be fed to keep working. I fed it your dog… your cat… and when even that wasn’t enough, I gave it my own blood.”

Annie gasped, her knees buckling. “No…”

“But when you broke the Kamalar’s bottle,” Kalie hissed, “the one the last Kamalar used to seal the Dark One decades ago you weakened the Torrion. It couldn’t hold anymore.”

Annie’s heart shattered. She sobbed violently. “John told me to do it! He said it was the only way!”

Mrs. Kalie’s eyes blazed. “It wasn’t John. That was Mr. Jason. He took John’s form to deceive you. He works for the Dark One now. His mind is corrupted. The fall down the stairs, every moment of weakness all of it was a trick, to make you talk about the bottle.”

Annie screamed, clutching her head as guilt crushed her chest.

Kalie’s voice softened, breaking for the first time. “I lost my daughter to death I won’t lose you too.”

Even Daniel was crying now, his arms wrapped tightly around Annie.

Then Mrs. Kalie pulled out a strange device glowing with lines of silver and blue. With a flick of her hand, it whirred to life, projecting a shimmering hologram.

Annie froze. Her mother’s face appeared before her soft, glowing, filled with love.

“My Annie,” the hologram whispered, her voice trembling with warmth. “If you see this… it means the shadows have grown stronger. The dark force is not just power it is hunger. It will never stop until it consumes everything. But you, Annie… you are its end. The Kamalar. My daughter.”

Tears streamed down Annie’s face. “Mum…”

The hologram smiled sadly. “Trust Mrs. Kalie, no matter how hard it is. She carries more scars than you know. And Annie… go to Ortápion, the City of Heaven. There, your power will awaken. Only then can you fight what is coming.”

The image flickered.

“One more thing… Annie, your father is not who you think he is. Be ready for the truth. I love you, with everything I am. Always.”

And then the hologram vanished, leaving silence, tears, and the weight of destiny pressing down harder than ever.