Nayantara sat alone in the living room, her sightless eyes staring into the darkness. She was blind, but her senses were sharp; she could hear the faintest creak in the floorboards, the soft rustle of the wind outside.

Tonight, however, there was an unsettling silence in the air. Dadi and Dada had already retired to their room, and Kavita was resting. But Nayantara, she waited. She waited for Rudraveer to return, for the warmth of his presence that always put her at ease.