Chapter 16 - Rani And Lila both are yours baby

The villa was a living thing, its walls groaning under the weight of secrets. Rajan's vision cleared, the searing pain of Lila's past—her screams, Arjun's betrayal, the blood staining Room 13's floor—fading like embers in a dying fire. But the air was wrong, thick with jasmine and a hum that vibrated in his bones. He wasn't in the lounge anymore. He stood in Room 13, the moonlight slicing through the balcony's open doors, casting jagged shadows across the floor. The number 13 on the door pulsed faintly, as if carved by an unseen hand. And there, by the balcony, stood Rani—or Lila—her silhouette framed against the mountains.She wore a crimson saree, its gold threads catching the light like veins of fire, the fabric draping her with an elegance that felt stolen from another time. Her hair, unbound, flowed like a river of ink, and when she turned, her eyes were gray, glowing with a hunger that wasn't Rani's. Lila. Her smile was both tender and ancient, a curve of lips that had waited centuries for something true. "Rajan," she said, her voice a melody woven from sorrow and desire. "You saw me. You know my pain. Why do you fight me?"Rajan's heart thudded, his palms damp. The vision of Lila's past—Arjun's violence, her broken body, the silver ring clutched in her lifeless hand—clung to him like damp earth. He stepped forward, the floorboards creaking under his weight, and met her gaze. "Lila," he said, his voice steady despite the chill snaking up his spine. "You don't belong in her. Let Rani go. She's not yours to keep."Lila's laugh was soft, like wind through a forgotten garden. She glided closer, the saree whispering against the floor, her cold fingers brushing his wrist. "You're wrong," she said. "Rani wants you too. I feel it in her heart, her warmth for you. It's why I chose her." Her eyes flickered, a flash of brown breaking through—Rani, fighting, her presence a spark in the gray. "She's still here," Lila admitted, her voice softening. "But she's fading. Stay with us, Rajan. Your heart… it's the only truth I've found since he broke me."Rajan's chest tightened. He saw Rani in the tilt of her head, the way her fingers trembled, and he knew she was fighting to surface. "Lila, you're stealing her life," he said, his voice raw. "You deserve peace, not this. Let her go." He reached for her hand, hoping to anchor Rani, but Lila's grip tightened, her eyes swirling like storm clouds. "I have nothing else," she whispered. "You're my forever. You and Rani—both of you can be mine."He shook his head, desperation rising. He needed to reach Rani, to break Lila's hold. Acting on instinct, he cupped her face, his thumbs brushing her cheeks, and pressed his lips to hers—a kiss born of hope, not force, a plea to wake Rani and banish the ghost. Her lips were cold, then warm, and for a heartbeat, he felt Rani stir, her breath hitching, a soft gasp that was hers alone. The air shimmered, the room tilting, and Lila's gray eyes flickered with something like surrender.Kabita stood in the doorway, her silhouette rigid, her hand flying to her mouth as she saw the kiss. Her eyes, wide with shock and something deeper—jealousy, guilt—met Rajan's for a fleeting moment. Before she could speak, the door slammed shut with a force that rattled the villa's bones, the lock clicking like a gunshot. The guests outside gasped, their voices a chorus of fear. Avi pounded on the door, shouting, "Rajan! Rani!" but the wood held fast, as if sealed by the mountain itself.From beyond the door, strange sounds filled the hallway—Rani's voice, or Lila's, humming a haunting melody, like a lullaby from a lost century, interwoven with the rhythmic creak of the bedframe, as if the room were alive, swaying to an unseen rhythm. The sounds stretched on, unbroken, for five hours, while the guests waited, their whispers turning to prayers. Kabita sat against the door, her knees drawn up, her face pale. She clutched the small key she'd found in the library, its metal cold against her palm, and fought the ache in her chest—Rajan's kiss, Rani's hum, the villa's unrelenting pulse.Inside Room 13, the moonlight had faded, leaving only the glow of a single lantern. Rajan and Rani lay on the bed, a blanket draped over them, the air heavy with silence. The crimson saree was folded neatly on a chair, its gold threads dull now, as if Lila had retreated. Rajan's heart pounded as Rani stirred, her eyes opening—brown, but flecked with gray, like stars in a twilight sky. She smiled, her hand finding his, her touch warm but tinged with something otherworldly. "Rajan," she called, her voice soft, a blend of Rani's warmth and Lila's longing.He sat up, his throat tight. "Who are you?" he asked, dreading the answer."Both of us," she said, her smile deepening. "We're yours now, baby." Her voice carried a dual cadence, Rani's steadiness woven with Lila's melody, as if two souls spoke as one.In the shadows of Rani's mind, a pact had been forged. It was a dreamlike void, the villa's walls pulsing like a heartbeat, jasmine thick in the air. Rani stood, her cream shawl slipping from her shoulders, facing Lila, who shimmered in her crimson saree, her gray eyes soft with centuries of pain. "He sees us both," Lila said, her voice trembling. "His heart is true, not like Arjun's. He won't betray us."Rani's gaze was steady, her own feelings for Rajan—his quiet kindness, the way he saw her beyond her title—burning bright. "I love him too," she said, her voice firm. "But I won't lose myself to you." Lila's smile was faint, almost human. "Nor I to you. His heart is vast enough for us both. We can share him, Rani—not as rivals, but as one."Rani hesitated, her hand brushing the silver ring that lay between them, its etched promise glinting in the void. She saw Lila's pain—Arjun's violence, her broken trust—and felt her own longing echo it. "We protect him," Rani said. "And each other." Lila nodded, her fingers clasping Rani's, their agreement sealed in a rush of warmth, their souls entwining like threads in the villa's tapestry.Outside, the villa stirred. Three knocks echoed from the heart of Room 13, slow and deliberate, as if the walls mourned the pact—or welcomed it. The guests flinched, Meera clutching the shattered photograph of Lila, its frame now warm to the touch. Vikram whispered of curses, his rosary trembling in his hands. Kabita stood, the key heavy in her palm, her mind racing. She'd seen Rajan's kiss, felt the sting of her own mistakes, but the hum from the room—Rani's, Lila's, or something else—pushed her forward. "We need to get in there," she said, her voice sharp, though her heart wavered.Rajan traced the flecks of gray in Rani's eyes, the book's words haunting him: True love walks the edge of fear. But fear must first knock. He wondered if their pact was love's triumph—or a trap woven by the villa's shadows, waiting to claim them all.