~CHATPER 6~ THE BLOOD OATH
761 Words
The mansion fell silent.
Not a single sound.
Not even the wind.
Only the masked man remained standing at the top of the grand staircase, watching them with an unsettling smile.His silver mask reflected the dim chandelier light.
His eyes...
Cold.
Empty.
As if he had been waiting for this moment for years.
Aimaara swallowed hard.
"You know me?"The man chuckled.
"Oh, I know much more than you think."
His gaze slowly shifted toward Emmeer.
"And you..."
"...you're getting old."
Emmeer's expression remained unreadable.
"What do you want?"
"The same thing I've always wanted."
The masked man spread his arms.
"The heir."
Aimaara instinctively stepped backward.
"I'm not anyone's heir."
The man laughed louder.
"You've spent your entire life believing that."
"But blood..."
"...never lies."
Emmeer slowly moved in front of Aimaara.
Shielding her.
"Leave."
The masked man's smile disappeared.
"I wasn't talking to you."
"I know."
"I'm giving you one chance."
"Walk away."
For several long seconds...
Neither man moved.
The air between them felt suffocating.
Then..
A loud whistle echoed through the mansion
Masked figures emerged from every corner.
The balcony.
The hallway.
The staircase.
The broken windows.
At least twenty of them.
Every single one carried a weapon.
Aimaara's heart sank.
"We're surrounded."
Emmeer glanced around the room.
One exit.
Too many enemies.
Not enough time.
He leaned closer to Aimaara.
"When I say run..."
"Don't look back."
"What about you?"
"I'll catch up."
"No."
She grabbed his sleeve.
"I'm not leaving you."
For the first time...
Something softened in Emmeer's eyes.
It lasted only a second.
Then it was gone.
The masked leader raised one finger.
"Take the girl."
"Kill anyone who stands in your way."
The men charged.
Everything happened at once.
Aimaara gasped as Emmeer pulled her behind him.
The first attacker swung a metal baton.
Emmeer caught his wrist.
Twisted.
A loud crack echoed through the hall.
The man collapsed.
Another rushed forward with a knife.
Emmeer stepped aside.
The blade missed by inches.
One precise strike.
The attacker hit the floor unconscious.
Aimaara could barely breathe.
He wasn't fighting wildly.
Every movement was controlled.
Calculated.
Almost effortless.
Like someone who had spent years surviving battles much worse than this.
"Run!"
Emmeer shouted.
Aimaara hesitated.
Another attacker appeared behind her.
Before she could react—
A gunshot echoed.
The attacker dropped to the floor.
Aimaara turned.
Rayyan.
Standing at the broken entrance with several armed security officers.
"Move!"
Rayyan yelled.
"We'll hold them off!"
Emmeer didn't waste another second.
He grabbed Aimaara's hand.
They ran through the east corridor.
The mansion seemed endless.
Portraits watched them from cracked walls.
Dust filled the air.
Then...
A little girl's laughter echoed again.
Aimaara froze.
"Did you hear that?"
Emmeer stopped.
This time...
He heard it too.
A soft lullaby followed.
The exact melody Aimaara's mother used to sing.
Her breathing became uneven.
"I know this song..."
"No."
Emmeer grabbed her wrist.
"Don't follow the sound."
"But—"
"It's not your mother."
The lights flickered.
The laughter stopped.
Then...
A small wooden door slowly opened by itself.
Behind it...
A hidden room.
Covered in dust.
Aimaara stared inside.
Shelves.
Old furniture.
Children's toys.
And...
A music box.
Still playing.
She walked toward it as if something was pulling her closer.
Emmeer reached for her.
"Aimaara!"
Too late.
She opened the music box.
Click.
The melody stopped.
Silence.
Then...
The wall behind the bookshelf began to move.
Grinding slowly.
Stone against stone.
A hidden chamber revealed itself.
Inside...
Hundreds of old files.
Family records.
Ancient photographs.
And one enormous portrait hanging at the center.
Aimaara stepped closer.
Her heart stopped.
The portrait showed a young couple holding a baby girl.
The woman...
Was her mother.
The baby...
Wore a silver bracelet engraved with one word.
AIMAARA.
"No..."
She whispered.
Her eyes moved to the man standing beside her mother.
She had never seen him before.
Yet...
Something about his face felt familiar.
Very familiar.
Before she could understand why—
A gunshot shattered the silence.
The bullet pierced the portrait.
Straight through the man's face.
Pieces of canvas fell to the floor.
The masked leader stood at the entrance.
Smiling.
"No one remembers the past."
He slowly raised his pistol again.
"And no one leaves this house alive."
****
Emmeer stepped in front of Aimaara.
The masked leader pulled the trigger.
Bang!
Aimaara screamed.
Time seemed to stop.
Emmeer staggered backward.
A dark stain slowly spread across his white shirt.
Blood.
He looked down at the wound...
...then back at Aimaara.
And smiled.
"Run."
To Be Continued...
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