Chapter 15 – The Unseen Hunter
The night was colder than ever, and silence hung heavy—until it was shattered by Zahira's trembling voice.
"Drive, Aryan! Just drive!"
They sped through the ruined town's outskirts, the echoes of unholy screams still fresh in their ears. The spirit had shown its face. The face of something ancient… and vengeful.
Sajiya lay unconscious in the back seat, her body limp from the brutal slap she had received from the spirit. Elyas kept checking her pulse, whispering her name, his eyes wide with fear. Aryan kept stealing glances at Zahira, his knuckles white around the steering wheel.
"What the hell is happening, Zahira? Where are we now? Why were you in that cursed place?! And that... creature? What the hell was that thing chasing us?"
Zahira turned to him, her voice breaking. "We'll explain everything… just—just get us to the hospital! Now!"
Red and blue lights flashed in the rearview mirror—police cars. The sound of sirens cut through the dark.
"Great," Elyas muttered. "Just what we needed."
At the city hospital, the doctors rushed Sajiya into the emergency ward. Zahira paced back and forth, her hands trembling. Aryan stared at her, eyes filled with unanswered questions.
Before he could speak, uniformed officers entered the corridor. One of them, a tall man with sharp eyes, stepped forward.
"Zahira aryan? Elyas Mirza?" the officer asked. "We're sorry, but we need to question you both. You've been missing for days. Your sudden reappearance—with an unknown entity involved—raises serious concerns. You need to come with us to the station."
Zahira's breath hitched. "Sir, please… we don't have time! We're in danger! He's still out there! He'll kill us if we stay!"
"Who?" the officer frowned.
Aryan stepped between them. "Zahira, calm down. We should cooperate. Let them help."
"You don't understand," Zahira whispered, voice cracking. "He will kill us. And…" She paused, eyes welling up with tears. "He will kill our baby."
Aryan's world froze.
"What... what did you say?"
Zahira turned to him, eyes wide with fear and sorrow. "I'm pregnant, Aryan."
His breath caught. The air thickened with tension.
The officer interrupted sharply, "Sir, this isn't the place. If you can't cooperate, we'll have no choice but to detain you."
Suddenly, zahira reilized Her wound on her hand started bleeding again. Elyas said he's behind your blood if you didn't stop it he will catch us in no time.
"Oh no…" Zahira gasped.
"What now?!" Aryan asked, panicking.
Zahira's voice trembled. "His scent… the blood… it's calling him. He can track us through my wound."
The officer grabbed Zahira's arm. "Enough. You're coming with us."
They were escorted to the police station. Sajiya remained at the hospital under medical supervision. Inside the interrogation room, they were separated and questioned. Elyas was the first to speak.
"We're not mad, sir. We're not making it up. That thing—it followed us. Zahira saw it the first night it entered our world. It took Aryan's form. It tried to deceive us."
The officer leaned back. "An evil spirit in your husband's body? An abandoned church in the woods? This sounds like a horror movie plot."
Zahira raised her voice. "It's the truth! That spirit is a servant of the Jinnad! He needs me—and our unborn child—to become more powerful than any other being. He wants freedom from his masters. He wants to dominate."
The officers exchanged skeptical glances.
Then… a shriek.
A real one.
Outside the station.
A thick coldness seeped into the walls. Lights flickered. Doors creaked. One by one, everyone felt the presence—the air grew suffocating. The screams of people echoed through the halls.
Zahira stood. "He's here."
Aryan looked at the officers. "You wanted proof? There it is."
"We need to run!" Elyas shouted. "NOW!"
They rushed out, driving straight back to the hospital to retrieve Sajiya. She had just regained consciousness, weak and terrified. Zahira embraced her, tears pouring down both their faces.
"We can't stay in the city," Zahira whispered. "We need to go back."
"Back where?" Aryan asked.
"The monastery," Elyas replied. "It's the only place he can't follow. Holy water protects it."
"I'll drive," Elyas added, grabbing the keys. "Hold on."
His hands gripped the wheel like steel. An F1 racer in another life, he maneuvered the car through traffic like a ghost in the wind. The city blurred behind them.
The monastery gates opened slowly, as if welcoming them back.
Father Matthias stood at the entrance.
"You returned," he said solemnly. "And I sense… failure."
Zahira nodded, collapsing to her knees. "The ritual… it didn't work. He's coming. We can't stop him."
Matthias placed a hand on her shoulder. "This place is sacred. He cannot enter."
Sajiya broke down. "Dad why are you not with me I want your help please Help us. He won't stop. He will kill us .
Elyas try to comforting her by saying he is not here we are safe for now .
Aryan turned to father Matthias, eyes burning. "Is there no way to stop him?"
Father Matthias sighed deeply. "You say he was once a servant of the Jinnad? If that is true… then only a jinn can bind or destroy him."
They all turned to Zahira.
"What is it?" Aryan asked.
Zahira's voice was a whisper. "Then we must awaken one."
Their hearts raced. The spirit was no longer a whisper in the dark.
He was a roar, and he was coming.
To be continued…