Inside Adrian's bedroom, silence filled the cold room long after midnight.
Rain tapped softly against the tall glass windows while dim lights from the city reflected across the dark marble floor. Adrian stood near the mini bar quietly pouring himself another drink, his expression distant and unreadable.
The nightmare still lingered inside his mind.
Blood on marble floors.
A woman crying.
Fear.
His chest tightened slightly.
He swallowed the whiskey slowly, trying to silence the strange pressure building inside his head.
Then the bedroom door opened.
Vanessa stepped inside wearing a black silk robe, her makeup slightly ruined from the party earlier. She looked beautiful as always, but tonight something restless hid beneath her calm expression.
"You left the party without saying anything," she said while removing her diamond earrings.
Adrian did not look at her.
"I was tired."
Vanessa scoffed lightly. "You've been tired for weeks."
No response.
The silence irritated her immediately.
She turned toward him fully now.
"You embarrassed me tonight."
Adrian finally glanced at her calmly.
"You embarrassed yourself."
Vanessa's jaw tightened.
"That servant disrespected me."
"She defended herself."
Vanessa laughed bitterly. "So now you defend servants?"
Adrian's expression remained cold, but there was exhaustion hidden beneath it.
"I'm not arguing with you tonight."
Vanessa watched him carefully.
That was the thing about Adrian.
To strangers, he looked arrogant. Rude. Untouchable.
But people close to him knew the truth.
Adrian was not naturally cruel.
Something inside him had simply become damaged a long time ago.
And lately—
That darkness inside him had been growing worse.
Vanessa slowly looked away.
Because Adrian had started noticing things recently.
Small details.
Tension.
Secrets.
The fear inside her chest tightened briefly.
What if Adrian found out?
No.
She immediately forced herself to stay calm.
That could never happen.
Not now.
Not after everything.
"You've been acting strange lately," she said carefully.
Adrian gave a dry laugh.
"Maybe because everyone inside this mansion is pretending."
Vanessa's fingers tightened slightly around her earrings.
For one dangerous second, panic flashed across her face before disappearing again.
Adrian noticed the expression immediately.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
But Vanessa forced a small smile quickly.
"You're overthinking things again."
Adrian stared at her silently.
That gaze always unsettled her.
Like he could see through lies without even trying.
Like he noticed more than he said.
"You should sleep," he said finally.
Cold.
Dismissive.
Vanessa hated it.
Yet she said nothing more.
She simply turned and walked slowly toward the bedroom door.
But before leaving, she paused briefly.
Her back still facing him.
"Adrian…"
He looked at her quietly.
For a moment, it seemed like she wanted to say something important.
Something honest.
But fear stopped her.
So instead, she whispered softly—
"Don't lose yourself completely."
Then she walked away.
The door closed gently behind her.
Adrian remained standing near the window afterward, staring silently into the rain.
Something about Vanessa felt wrong lately.
Not obvious.
Just enough to make him suspicious.
And Adrian had learned long ago—
The quietest secrets were usually the deadliest ones.
Meanwhile—
Inside the upstairs passageway, Vivian walked slowly through the dim hallway alone.
The mansion had finally become silent.
Only rain echoed softly outside.
Vivian stopped near the staircase, her elegant fingers brushing lightly against the wooden railing.
Then slowly—
Old memories returned again.
Lina.
A faint smile appeared on Vivian's lips.
Beautiful Lina.
Kind Lina.
Foolish Lina.
Vivian remembered that night perfectly.
The rain pouring heavily outside.
Lina standing inside the study with tears in her eyes after discovering everything.
The money laundering.
The illegal accounts.
The hidden transactions.
And worst of all—
Lina discovering Adrian's father once loved her deeply.
Vivian's expression darkened slightly.
She had hated Lina for years.
Hated her beauty.
Hated her kindness.
Hated the way Adrian's father looked at her.
Lina was never supposed to become a threat.
But then she discovered too much.
Vivian could still remember Lina's trembling voice clearly.
"You're destroying this family…"
Vivian smiled coldly at the memory.
"No," she whispered softly into the empty hallway.
"You were the problem."
The gunshot echoed inside her memory again.
Lina collapsing onto the marble floor.
Blood spreading slowly beneath her body.
Vivian closed her eyes briefly as satisfaction curled quietly inside her chest.
Nobody had been there that night.
Nobody.
That was why she remained calm all these years.
Because the secret stayed buried.
And the dead never returned.
Or so she believed.
Downstairs, Elena sat quietly at the edge of her small bed inside the servant quarters.
Her room was silent.
But her mind refused to rest.
The archive room replayed endlessly inside her thoughts.
The hidden files.
The newspaper clipping.
Her mother's name.
Lina.
Elena's chest tightened painfully.
Something terrible had happened inside this mansion years ago.
And somehow—
Her mother was connected to it.
Carefully, Elena stood from the bed.
Her heartbeat quickened immediately.
She knew this was dangerous.
But curiosity burned too deeply now.
Quietly, she opened her room door and stepped into the dark hallway.
The servant quarters were silent.
Everyone else was asleep.
Elena walked carefully through the mansion corridors, trying not to make noise.
The deeper she entered the mansion, the colder the atmosphere became.
Almost like the walls themselves carried secrets.
Finally—
She reached the hallway leading toward the archive room.
The lights above flickered faintly.
Elena slowed her steps.
The archive room door stood quietly at the far end of the corridor.
Locked.
Silent.
But tonight—
Something felt wrong immediately.
A strange heaviness settled over her chest.
Elena glanced behind her carefully.
Nobody.
Still…
That feeling remained.
Like invisible eyes watching her from the darkness.
Then—
A soft footstep echoed somewhere behind her.
Elena froze instantly.
Her heartbeat slammed violently against her ribs.
Slowly…
She turned around.
Nothing.
Only darkness stretched across the hallway.
Her breathing became uneven.
Maybe she imagined it.
Maybe fear was playing tricks on her mind.
Then—
Another footstep.
Closer this time.
Elena's blood ran cold.
Someone was there.
Watching her.
The hallway suddenly felt suffocating.
Elena stepped backward slowly away from the archive room.
Her eyes searched the darkness desperately.
Then she saw it.
A shadow moving briefly near the far corner.
Gone within seconds.
Fear crashed through her body instantly.
Someone had followed her.
Elena quickly turned away and started walking back toward the servant quarters, forcing herself not to run.
But behind her—
The footsteps returned.
Slow.
Careful.
Following.
Elena's breathing quickened.
She did not dare turn around again.
The mansion suddenly felt endless.
Every shadow looked dangerous.
Every hallway felt alive.
The footsteps continued behind her for several terrifying moments.
Then suddenly—
Silence.
Complete silence.
Elena stopped carefully.
Her hands trembled slightly.
Slowly…
She looked behind her again.
Nothing.
The hallway was empty.
But deep inside—
She knew someone had been there.
Watching her.
Waiting.
Elena hurried back toward her room and quickly locked the door behind her.
Her breathing remained uneven as she leaned against the door.
Silence surrounded her once again.
Then—
A soft sound came from outside her window.
Tap.
Elena froze instantly.
Another tap followed.
Slow.
Deliberate.
Her heartbeat nearly stopped.
Carefully…
Very carefully…
She turned toward the small window beside her bed.
And outside—
Beneath the rain—
The same black car still waited beyond the mansion gates.
But this time—
A shadowy figure stood beside it.
Watching her window directly.