"I don't know the true origin of the curse," Diwan began, his voice heavy with pain and his eyes glistening with tears, "but my family and I… we suffered from it about 20 years ago."
He paused, gripping his wife Devi's hand tightly.
"I lost my child and my sister," he went on, his voice trembling. "My entire family was destroyed."
Deep leaned closer, listening intently.
"We used to live in the town of Surhoba, which is close to Old Phek. We didn't know the reality… the darkness that surrounded that place. In Surhoba, I had a thriving business — selling vegetables and wood — and I was doing far better than most people in town. But success breeds jealousy."
Diwan's eyes darkened with old memories.
"Two of my neighbours, Will and Steven, conspired against me. They began stealing wood from the Surhoba community's storage, and when the theft was discovered, they hid the stolen wood in my backyard the night before the community investigation. It was a perfect trap."
He took a deep breath.
"No one believed my innocence. The community decided I was guilty… and they cast my family out. Me, my wife, my young daughter, and my sister — we were beaten by our fellow townspeople and forced to leave. With no other choice, we headed toward Old Phek… it was the nearest place to escape to."
His tone grew more sombre.
"Old Phek is surrounded by hills on all sides. It wasn't easy getting there, but somehow, we managed. At first, it seemed normal enough — ordinary people, busy markets, nothing strange at all."
He looked away for a moment.
"But that was only during the day. As the sun began to set, we needed to find a place to sleep. Dressed in torn clothes, our bodies still aching from the beating, we wandered the streets asking for a room to rent. Not a single person agreed to help us. We were prepared to spend the night under the open sky."
The Ashwin family sat in silent attention, hanging onto his words.
"As the sky darkened," Diwan continued, "I noticed the townsfolk hurrying home, locking their doors, their faces filled with fear. I wondered why… but my family was still too battered and exhausted to notice. I told them, 'Come on, that was just a small part of our life. This is a new beginning.'"
His voice cracked as he remembered what happened next.
"One man, as he shut his door, warned us: 'Leave Phek! You won't survive here — this town is cursed.' His words chilled me. But it was already too late."
He swallowed hard.
"We were sitting on the ground, hopeless, when a little girl approached my daughter. Her eyes were blood-red, and her clothes were ragged. She smiled sweetly and asked, 'Will you play with me?'"
Diwan's fists clenched on his knees.
"My daughter, still sad and injured, said softly, 'No, sorry.' The smile vanished from the girl's face... and in an instant, she lunged forward and bit off my daughter's hand. She was so fast… faster than lightning. My daughter screamed in agony, and that demon girl ran off with the severed hand still in her mouth."
The Ashwins gasped in horror.
"I barely had time to react when another attack came — this time from behind. A tall man with yellowish skin and glowing red eyes struck. His long, claw-like fingers stabbed into my sister's eye socket, pulling out her eyeball, which he began licking like a piece of fruit."
Diwan's face was pale, his voice shaking.
"My daughter and sister screamed in unbearable pain. We tried to run — desperate to escape — but they couldn't keep up. And then… they were taken."
His gaze drifted far away, lost in the memory.
"I don't know what these creatures really are, but they looked monstrous — slim, unnaturally tall, skin like rotting parchment, eyes burning like fire. They were real demons."
He gripped Devi's hand tightly again, as if grounding himself in the present.
Deep spoke quietly, "That must have been unbearable, Diwan ji… I'm so sorry."
"Tell me… can these things harm people outside the town?" Deep asked after a pause.
Diwan shook his head.
"No. Once you cross the boundary of Old Phek and reach the start of the surrounding hills, they can do nothing. That's the only safety."
"I must say… you are a very brave man," Deep said sincerely.
The Ashwins had heard enough to understand the terrible truth of Old Phek.
But now, they all faced the same question in their minds—
Will they still go to Old Phek?