Chapter - 29 #2
A man's voice suddenly appeared in the background.
Niran.
Calm.
Cold.
"You don't have another choice."
Nani's face went pale.
His father's voice shook.
"You promised."
Niran laughed.
"I promised nothing."
Alisha whispered,
"Monster."
The tape crackled.
Then Niran spoke again.
"When he turns twenty-one, the agreement becomes enforceable."
Nani's eyes widened.
Twenty-one.
The wedding.
The sudden pressure.
Niran's obsession.
Everything clicked.
"He was waiting."
Sky's hands curled into fists.
"For years."
Nani looked at him.
"He was waiting for me to turn twenty-one."
Sky nodded.
"He planned the marriage."
The tape continued.
Then came another voice.
Adrian.
"The papers are ready."
Niran replied,
"Good."
Nani stared at the player.
Adrian wasn't the mastermind.
He was helping Niran.
Then came the part that changed everything.
Niran's voice lowered.
"And make sure Sky's people leave before I finish."
Sky's expression changed.
"What?"
Tee looked at him.
"Boss..."
Nani stared at the cassette.
The recording continued.
"I want the boy to remember Sky."
A pause.
Then Niran laughed.
"If he sees Sky standing over his father while everything falls apart, he'll remember the wrong face."
Silence.
Nani slowly turned toward Sky.
Sky looked like he'd been punched.
"He used me."
Nani whispered,
"To make me afraid of you."
Sky's voice was low.
"Yes."
The tape continued.
Niran's voice became clearer.
"Let him think Sky was the monster."
Nani covered his mouth.
Tears filled his eyes.
Sky didn't move.
For years...
Nani had carried fragments of that night.
Blood.
Fear.
Sky's men.
His father's terror.
And somehow—
Sky had become part of the nightmare.
But now they knew why.
Niran had designed it.
---
The cassette suddenly clicked.
Then another recording started.
Nani's father's voice.
Quieter.
Almost a whisper.
"If Nani ever hears this..."
Nani stepped closer.
His father continued.
"I'm sorry."
Nani's lips trembled.
"None of this was his fault."
A pause.
"And Sky didn't know."
Nani's eyes filled completely.
His father continued.
"If you ever meet Sky again..."
The recording crackled.
"...don't hate him for what Niran made you believe."
The tape stopped.
Nobody spoke.
Nani stood frozen.
Then he turned toward Sky.
Sky looked at him.
Neither said anything.
Nani walked forward.
One step.
Then another.
He stopped directly in front of Sky.
"You really didn't know."
Sky shook his head.
"No."
Nani's eyes filled with tears.
"You didn't know he was using you."
"No."
"You didn't know about me."
"No."
Nani's voice broke.
"Then all those years..."
Sky looked down.
"I wish I'd known."
Nani swallowed.
"You would've helped?"
Sky didn't hesitate.
"I would've burned the entire arrangement to the ground."
Nani's lips trembled.
A tiny, broken laugh escaped him.
"That's such a Sky answer."
Sky almost smiled.
Then Nani suddenly stepped forward and hugged him.
Sky froze.
For one second—
he didn't breathe.
Then his arms wrapped around Nani.
Tight.
Protective.
Almost desperate.
"I'm sorry," Sky whispered.
Nani buried his face against his chest.
"You didn't do it."
"I know."
"But I still hated you."
"I know."
"I thought you were part of it."
"I know."
Sky lowered his head.
"You can hate me for the things I actually did."
Nani tightened his grip.
"You're still an asshole."
A faint laugh escaped Sky.
"Fair."
---
Tee suddenly cleared his throat.
"Not to ruin the emotional breakthrough..."
Everyone looked at him.
"...but there's one more thing."
He held up a folder.
Sky's expression hardened.
"What?"
Tee opened it.
"The original agreement."
Nani stared.
"Didn't we already find that?"
"This is different."
He turned the final page around.
"There was an additional clause hidden underneath the seal."
Nani stepped closer.
"What clause?"
Tee read it.
His face changed.
"It says Niran wasn't simply promised the marriage."
Nani's heart sank.
"Then what?"
Tee looked at him.
"Your father's entire debt was transferred to Niran."
Sky frowned.
"Meaning?"
Tee swallowed.
"Niran paid the debt."
Nani went silent.
Sky's eyes narrowed.
"Why would he?"
Alisha whispered,
"Because the debt wasn't what he wanted."
She looked at Nani.
"He wanted the contract."
Nani stared at the paper.
And suddenly—
everything became even uglier.
Niran hadn't been trying to collect a debt.
He had bought control.
And he'd been waiting for years to collect what he believed belonged to him.
Nani's fingers tightened around Sky's hand.
Sky looked at him.
"Whatever happens next..."
He squeezed his hand.
"...you aren't facing it alone."
Nani looked up at him.
"For once..."
He took a shaky breath.
"I believe you."
Outside the house—
a phone vibrated.
Nani looked down.
A message from Niran.
I know you found the recording.
Another appeared.
Now you finally understand why I never gave up on you.
Then the last one.
Come home, Nani.
Your real nightmare hasn't even started.