The sky above Tokyo was painted in fading hues of orange and pink as the sun set, but Obi Nacchi barely noticed. His feet carried him automatically, mind racing, heart pounding in sync with the beat of his thoughts. Everything around him blurred into insignificance. The image of the couple's lifeless bodies haunted him, the red spider lily stark against the pale skin of the woman's corpse. His mother's signature flower—her silent mark of death—confirmed his worst fear.
Zara Lee was back.
As he approached the house, the memories of his father crept into his mind. His father, who had done everything in his power to shield Obi from the chaos of Zara's twisted life, had provided him with the security he needed after his untimely death. Before the murder, before Zara took his father from him, the man had poured all his money into ensuring that Obi would be taken care of. A trust fund. A home. Enough money to survive without ever having to rely on Zara again.
His father's last act of love and protection.
And yet, no amount of money could ever protect him from her. No walls could be thick enough, no doors could lock tight enough to keep out the ghost that was Zara Lee.
He reached the front door, hand trembling as it closed around the key, when his phone suddenly buzzed. The vibration felt like an electric shock, jolting him out of his thoughts. With shaky hands, he pulled the phone from his pocket, frowning when the caller ID was blocked. A chill ran down his spine, instinctively warning him that something wasn't right.
Hesitating for just a moment, he answered.
"Hello?" he whispered, voice barely steady.
There was a pause. The silence on the other end was suffocating, making the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. And then, a distorted voice spoke.
"Hello, son," the voice said, low and menacing, each word dripping with malice. "Remember our last call?"
Obi's heart stopped. He didn't need to ask who it was. He knew that voice, even through the distortion of the voice changer.
Zara.
His grip on the phone tightened, his breath shallow. He could feel the cold sweat breaking out on his skin.
"You've been busy," the voice continued, a mocking laugh hiding behind the words. "That poor couple... I'm sure you remember them. I did tell you, didn't I? Who do you think is going to die next? Kira? Meriam? I don't know... maybe I'm not evil enough to kill my son's only friends. Or... am I?"
Obi clenched his teeth, the rage building inside him as the voice continued, taunting him with every syllable.
"I love you so much, Obi," Zara purred, the distortion doing nothing to mask the insanity in her tone. "I want you all to myself. Just mine. And those pesky friends of yours... they're getting in my way."
Her laugh rang through the phone, manic and twisted. Obi could hear the glee in her voice as she reveled in his torment.
"Stop it..." Obi whispered, barely able to control the trembling in his voice. "Just stop."
But Zara didn't stop. Instead, the sound of her breathing changed, a low chuckle escaping her before she spoke again.
"Oh, I have a surprise for you," she said, her voice dripping with dark delight. "Say hello to your sister for me."
Obi's stomach twisted in confusion and dread. Sister? His mind raced, struggling to make sense of her words.
And then, he heard another voice. A younger one, feminine but just as unsettling.
"Hello, Obi," the girl said, her voice eerily sweet. "My name is Sarah. Mama adopted me, but she's really my mother by blood, you see."
Obi's blood ran cold.
"She gave me up because I wasn't a boy," Sarah continued, her tone darkening. "But she adopted me back—or should I say kidnapped me—after you left."
The girl's voice turned venomous, a mixture of hate and twisted affection swirling in every word. "Mama told me you were a bad, bad boy. So now I have to make you more obedient."
The sickening realization crashed over Obi like a tidal wave. He had a sister—a sister Zara had kept hidden from him, warped into something just as deranged as she was. His heart raced as the girl's voice lowered to a whisper.
"I hate you," Sarah said, her words trembling with emotion. "But I love you so much, even though I've never met you."
The line went dead, and Obi stood frozen in place, the phone slipping from his grasp. He could barely comprehend what he had just heard. His mind reeled, unable to process the horrific implications of his mother's games.
Zara had another child—one she'd twisted into her image. And now, she was using her to torment him even further.
As the phone hit the pavement with a hollow thud, Obi's body began to betray him. His veins pulsed and throbbed beneath his skin, his head pounding as if something inside was trying to break free. His vision blurred as he stumbled forward, dropping the keys. They clattered uselessly onto the ground.
He clutched his head, gasping for breath, the veins in his forehead pulsating violently as if they were about to burst. Every fiber of his being felt like it was on the verge of imploding under the pressure. He could hear his pulse in his ears, a relentless drumbeat that matched the rising panic inside him.
"No..." he whispered, voice strained as the world around him started to spin. "Not again..."
The darkness threatened to consume him as he stood there, trembling, feeling as though he was teetering on the edge of complete and utter madness. The door to the house remained locked in front of him, just out of reach, but in that moment, the house didn't feel like a safe haven.
It felt like a tomb.
"She's coming back," Obi muttered under his breath, his words ragged and desperate. "She's coming back to take everything again."