1.The Alley of Red Silence
🖊️ Author's POV
Late evenings in the city had their own kind of silence.
Not the peaceful kind — but the kind that made every shadow look suspicious and every gust of wind feel like a whisper.
Sitara Verma had no idea that tonight, her quiet overtime at work would drag her into something darker.
Something bloody.
Something that didn’t belong to her world of codes and logic.
[Sitara’s Office – 8:37 PM]
Sitara Verma (FL)
(typing rapidly)
Come on… just compile properly this time…
Sitara Verma (FL)
(lets out a breath)
Yes! Finally done.
Sitara Verma (FL)
(glancing at the screen clock)
8:37?!
How did it get this late?
Sitara Verma (FL)
(shuts her laptop)
I’m so dead if mom calls now.
Lights dim. The hallway feels colder.
Sitara Verma (FL)
(walking quickly)
Even the cleaning staff left…
Sitara Verma (FL)
(gripping her bag tightly)
Okay. Deep breath. Just get out fast.
Sitara Verma (FL)
(checking her phone)
No cabs…?
Sitara Verma (FL)
(opening a cab app)
‘No rides available in your area’... seriously?
Sitara Verma (FL)
(sighs and looks at the road)
Of course, it had to be today.
Sitara Verma (FL)
(starts walking forward)
Guess I’m walking to the bus stand.
[She adjusts her sling bag, ties her hair back, and starts walking down the footpath]
Sitara Verma (FL)
(thinking)
The bus stand isn’t far. I’ve done this before.
Sitara Verma (FL)
(sees the alley ahead)
Shortcut or main road?
Sitara Verma (FL)
(biting her lip)
Shortcut. Saves fifteen minutes. Let’s go.
🖊️ Author’s POV
The alley between her office and the main road had always given her strange vibes.
It was quiet. Too quiet.
Tonight, it wasn’t just silence that lingered there…
It was danger.
[Sitara steps into the alley – her footsteps echo slightly]
Sitara Verma (FL)
(wrapping arms around herself)
Why does this place always feel like something’s watching?
[A faint groan interrupts the silence]
Sitara Verma (FL)
(pauses)
What was that?
Sitara Verma (FL)
(whispers)
No. Not today. Just walk away.
Takes a few steps... then stops.
Sitara Verma (FL)
(sighs)
But what if someone’s really in trouble?
[She slowly walks toward the sound, squinting into the shadows]
Sitara Verma (FL)
(calling out)
Hello? Is someone hurt?
No response. Just a deeper groan.
🖊️ Author’s POV
She should’ve walked away.
She had every reason to.
But Sitara Verma’s heart had never learned to ignore a cry for help.
Not even in the deadliest places.
[Suddenly her foot hits something—she stumbles]
Sitara Verma (FL)
(startled)
Ahh!
She catches the wall and looks down.
Sitara Verma (FL)
(gasping)
Oh my god…
A man, maybe in his 50s. Bleeding. Barely breathing. Eyes half-shut.
Sitara Verma (FL)
(kneels beside him)
Sir? Can you hear me?
She pulls out her water bottle, sprinkles water on his face.
Unknown
(groaning, regaining consciousness)
W-who…?
Sitara Verma (FL)
(relieved)
You’re alive. Thank god.
Sitara Verma (FL)
(reaching for her phone)
I’m calling the police—
Unknown
(grabs her wrist)
No… no police…
Sitara Verma (FL)
(frowning)
What? Why not?
Author’s POV
She didn’t know it then…
But helping that man —
Was the moment Sitara Verma unknowingly stepped into a world that didn’t forgive.
Not even love.
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