That evening, Kaivan's home looked as warm as ever. Soft sunlight slipped through the windows, casting golden shadows across the room. The faint scent of freshly brewed tea drifted in the air, completing the peaceful atmosphere, yet something felt wrong. The guest that day was no ordinary guest. Behind her smile, Vella carried an unseen storm.
Kaivan's mother sat calmly on the sofa. Her gentle smile did not fade even when she noticed how tense Vella looked. "Alright, I'll speak to Kaivan later," she said softly. "But I want to hear it from him directly. Why would he do something like that?"
Vella's thin smile wavered with hidden bitterness. Kaivan's mother rose from her seat, trying to lighten the mood. "Would you like something to drink? I'll prepare some tea."
But that attempt only ignited Vella further. She felt ignored, treated as if she were insignificant. "KAIVAN TORE UP MY BUSINESS CONTRACT!" she shouted. From inside her bag, her hand tightened around something, the Tome of Omniphilos, glowing faintly, sending tremors through the air.
Kaivan's mother froze. "What do you mean?" she asked, voice trembling. But Vella only smiled, a crooked, chilling smile.
"In that case," she whispered, her tone sharp and cold, "I'll tear apart something important to him too."
In an instant, she compressed the shards of glass on the table into a gleaming blade. The air quivered. The glass shot forward like lightning.
A single heavy sound hit the floor. The warm room fell into a suffocating silence. Blood spread across the wooden floor, blooming like red ink.
From the kitchen, Teh Kira heard the sudden crash. She hurried over with a tray of tea. "Mother, let me, " Her voice stopped. Her body froze.
The tray slipped from her hands. Cups shattered loudly as her gaze fixed on the scene before her. "Mom!!" she screamed, falling to her knees as she pulled her mother's lifeless body into her arms.
Tears flowed without end. Blood stained her hands, soaked into her white clothes until they turned a deep crimson. Vella watched her with a blank stare, but satisfaction flickered in her eyes. "You really are stubborn," she said softly.
With a graceful motion, she pulled nails from the wall, compressing them with the power of the Tome of Omniphilos. The metal floated, then shot forward with a quiet, killing whistle.
Teh Kira tried to shield herself with a metal tray, but the force pierced through it with ease.
Her body sank beside her mother's. Two silhouettes now lay on the floor, surrounded by a widening pool of red. Vella only let out a small sigh. "I just wanted to talk," she murmured coldly. "But look… it always ends like this."
She stepped toward the door. Her shoes pressed into the blood, leaving red footprints behind. At the doorway, she paused and looked back at the silent room. The warm home had turned into a chamber of death.
"After this, Kaivan will definitely come to see me," she said in a thin, satisfied whisper.
Then she stepped out, closing the door gently behind her.
The house that once overflowed with laughter had become a silent witness to tragedy. A place once filled with warmth now felt like a tomb.
Outside, the sunset bled across the sky, as if mourning. Heavy gray clouds gathered, carrying a foreboding Kaivan had yet to understand.
He walked home with Isabel, pulling a large suitcase filled with winter clothes. His simple dream, seeing the aurora borealis with his family, felt so close.
"I can't wait to see Mom and Kira smile when the first snow falls," he said softly. Isabel smiled back, though an unexplainable unease tugged at her chest.
When they reached the front door, Kaivan opened it with a bright grin. "Mom! Kira! I'm home! I brought our luggage! Let's get ready!" he called out cheerfully.
But no laughter welcomed him. No warm aroma.
Instead, the metallic scent of blood filled the air.
Kaivan stopped. In the living room, Kira lay motionless on the floor, her face pale, surrounded by a dark pool of red. Her body was torn and lifeless.
"Kira!" Kaivan shouted, dropping his suitcase as he raced forward. He shook her frantically. "Wake up, Kira… It's me! Kaivan! Please, wake up!" His voice cracked, trembling between rage and disbelief.
But she did not move.
Tears spilled onto her cold cheeks. "We were supposed to see the aurora together, remember? You promised…" he whispered, his voice breaking into silence.
Kaivan's gaze shifted, searching for his mother. In the corner of the room, her body lay broken. Her eyes were open, empty, staring at the ceiling as if still trying to see her son one last time.
"Mom!" Kaivan's scream tore through the room, as if the world around him shattered in an instant. He crawled toward her, hands trembling as he tried to bring the torn halves of her body together, as though doing so could bring her back. "Mom, wake up! I'm right here, Mom... Look at me, please... We're supposed to go together! You said you wanted to see the aurora with us, remember?" His voice broke into sobs. He tried wiping the blood from her face with shaking fingers.
Kaivan pressed his cheek against hers, cold, lifeless, hoping to feel even a trace of the warmth he once knew. "Mom, please... don't leave me alone. I'll be good, I promise. I'll listen to you... just don't go. Don't leave me..." His pleas trembled like fragile threads, the only thing he could offer against the crushing reality.
He held her tightly, arms wrapped around a body that would never move again. Fresh blood seeped from the gaping wounds, spreading across the wooden floor in a dark, heavy pool. His hands shook as he tried again and again to fit the pieces of her together, a desperate, impossible attempt to undo the nightmare.
"Mom... please get up," he whispered through his tears. "Everything's ready. The tickets, the luggage... You were the most excited about seeing the aurora borealis." He stroked her cold cheek, yearning for the warmth she once carried.
Not far behind, Isabel stood frozen, tears streaming down her face. Her hands trembled violently as she clutched her phone. "Livia..." Her voice cracked. "C-call everyone... call the police... an ambulance... It's Kaivan's house. It's an emergency... please, hurry..."
But Kaivan didn't hear anything. Didn't care. All he saw was his mother, and there, beside her, Teh Kira's motionless body.