The Dark Side: Anthology of Short Stories exploring the dark side

The White Villa of Alibaug

Roshni and her friends had been looking forward to this long weekend in Alibaug for months. After hectic city life, a serene escape at a lavish villa was exactly what they needed. When they stumbled upon the listing for a pristine, all-white mansion, it seemed almost too good to be true. A villa, boasting grand halls, immaculate marble floors, pristine white furniture, and endless luxury, all for an unbelievably affordable price.

They booked it without a second thought.

As Roshni and her group of sixteen friends arrived at the villa, it was as breathtaking as they had imagined. Everything gleamed, pure and white, untouched by the chaos of the world. The mansion stood like a beacon of serenity, a peaceful haven far from the bustle of life.

But something was unsettling about the whiteness - an eerie sterility like the life had been drained from everything around them. The villa's atmosphere hung heavy, despite its welcoming façade.

The first night passed uneventfully, but there was a chill in the air that none of them could shake. Roshni found herself drawn to the large mirror in her bedroom. It was ornate, framed in intricate white carvings, standing tall and ominous against one of the walls. When she looked into it, she felt something shift - an echo, almost like a second presence. The room seemed to ripple behind her, just for a moment. She brushed it off, attributing it to exhaustion from the drive.

The next night, the haunting began.

One of her friends, Saanvi, woke up screaming in the middle of the night, her skin ice-cold, eyes wide with terror. She babbled incoherently about her reflection coming alive, about something inside the mirror. The others tried to calm her down, dismissing it as a nightmare. But Saanvi wouldn't stop shaking. Hours later, she was found dead in her room, her neck snapped as though by an invisible hand.

Panic set in. But the villa was isolated, miles away from the nearest help. Phones didn't work. The pristine white of the mansion began to feel claustrophobic like the walls were closing in on them. And then, the mirror... it started calling to them. Each one of Roshni's friends would catch a glimpse of something in its reflection - shadows moving, faces that weren't their own.

Each night, more of them disappeared. Dev, one of Roshni's closest friends, was found hanging from the ceiling fan in the living room, his eyes gouged out, and his mouth twisted in a silent scream. The next night, Priya's lifeless body was discovered sprawled in the bathtub, her wrists slit, but there was no blood. Only pristine white water.

They tried everything to escape - but the front door wouldn't open, the windows were sealed, and every attempt to break them ended in futility. The villa had become their prison.

Roshni realized, too late, that the mirror was the source of their torment. The Qareen - an ancient jinn bound to the reflection - was playing with them, feeding off their fear. One by one, it took them all. Vikram's body was found mutilated, his limbs twisted at impossible angles, while Nisha's body lay motionless, her face frozen in sheer terror. Each death was more gruesome than the last.

The killings became a grotesque display of the Qareen's power. Ankita was suffocated by her reflection until her lungs collapsed. Jatin, who tried to shatter the mirror, was dragged into it, his body never to be found, his scream echoing through the mansion as he was swallowed by the glass.

By the fourth night, only Roshni was left.

Desperate and terrified, she stared into the mirror, finally seeing it for what it was. The white mansion, the perfect villa - it was all an illusion, a mirage created by the Qareen to lure them in. In reality, they had been trapped in a decaying, haunted ruin all along.

The Qareen appeared before her - a shadowy figure with eyes that glowed like embers. It told her that her friends had been mere sacrifices, pawns in its twisted game. But Roshni was different. She was chosen.

The Qareen didn't want her dead. It wanted her to live.

But there was a price.

In exchange for her life, she would serve the Qareen as its slave, doing its bidding, and carrying out its dark desires in the human world. If she refused, it would consume her soul, just like it had done to her friends.

With no choice left, Roshni submitted. She became the jinn's puppet, bound to the cursed mirror, sent out into the world to kill when the Qareen commanded. Each time, it forced her to lure in new victims, choosing them at random, their fate sealed the moment they crossed her path.

Now, Roshni is a murderer - responsible for the deaths of seventeen people, their blood forever on her hands. The innocent girl who once laughed with friends in the sun-drenched villa is gone. In her place stands a hollow shell, a slave to a malevolent force, cursed to do its bidding for eternity.

The Qareen watches her from the mirror, ever-present, whispering its next target in her ear.

Beware, dear reader. Roshni could be closer than you realize. Perhaps she's already watching you, her eyes tracing your every move, waiting for the jinn's command. You won't see it coming-until it's far too late.

Because now, the Lady Killer is out there. And the next knock on your door... might be her.