In the heart of a quiet South Indian neighborhood, a family’s peaceful life was full of blooming roses since their daughter was born,a daughter born after 4 generations in their family.
Kusum and her Husband Neel happiness got no bounds as, the pregnancy journey was full of thorns but finally their bundle of joy Kuhu was born making them forget everything with her innocent toothless smiles.
Kuhu was like a light of hope in their lives full of darkness,the darkness filled with taunts of this society.
when they lost all hopes of being parents,due to Kusum health issues which often depressed her being called barren, even after 11yrs of being married to her childhood love Neel.
Due to the job restraints,the new parents were unwillingly moved to a new place to start a new beginning with their bundle of joy.
Moving to a newplace was not that bad to kusum as she got busy with cleaning,organising their new home while enjoying every bliss of her motherhood with her infant daughter kuhu,who started crawling and bringing joy to their lives with her cute antics.
Neighbourhood was filled with busy yet loving people.
Neel with his friendly,Extrovert nature made friends easily in the neighbourhood,making it easy for his Wife Kusum to survive in new place.
One fine day,Kusum asked her Husband Neel to join her and kuhu,with the old couple from their neighbourhood, to the church near by as its an auspicipous day.
Neel was an atheist,but still relentlessly agreed to make his dear wife happy.
The sun was relentless, beating down on Kusum, her husband Neel, and their ten-month-old daughter, Kuhu.
Their trusted ride—an old car belonging to a kind elderly couple from their neighborhood—had broken down on a lonely street.
The heat was unbearable, and the baby’s cries grew louder.
Nearby stood a sprawling mansion—imposing, silent, and mysterious.
With no other choice, the small family, along with the elderly couple, decided to seek help.
As they reached the mansion’s heavy doors, a middle-aged man greeted them with a tight smile.
His wife lingered behind, her cold eyes piercing and unwelcoming.
“Please, come in,” the man said, stepping aside.
Inside, the mansion was grand but oddly quiet.
Kusum clutched Kuhu tightly, feeling the baby’s crankiness spike.
When the man’s wife demanded to hold Kuhu, Kusum refused, sensing something dark beneath her polite facade.
But,Kusum didnt know her motherly Instincts were right.
But the Lady's husband intervened ,asking if they need anything to drink or eat,while watching Kuhu all the time.
Before,they refused he clapped thrice and few women clad in red sarees emerged from shadows of mansion.
They Immediately brought few refreshments and stood behind the lady of the mansion with their faces emotionless,eyes looking hollow but following every moment of the guests of the mansion.
Their dark red sarees,maroon bangles and everything in the mansion made kusum feel uneasy,making her grip her crying baby hard to her chest,while moving close to her husbamd Neel.
The elderly couple noticed it and decided its better to leave,as the its getting close to sun set.
Suddenly, tension shattered the fragile calm.
The man’s smile twisted into rage.
When the elderly couple suggested they leave, his temper exploded.
He attacked them savagely.
Kusum watched in horror as the elderly woman was dragged into a locked room.
The wife’s psychotic side emerged. “Kuhu is mine now,” she hissed, eyes wild.
Neel tried to shield their daughter, but the kidnappers’ strength was overwhelming.
Panic surged through Kusum, but she refused to surrender and stepped back holding kuhu close to her.
As the captors argued over custody of Kuhu.
Kusum’s gaze fell on a small, almost hidden door behind a heavy curtain.
Her heart raced.
Could this be their way out?
Waiting for the captors to get distracted, Kusum gently soothed Kuhu,making her sleep in safety of her mother's warmth.
Then, with a sudden burst of courage, she whispered to Neel and the elderly man, “Follow me, quietly.”
Step by cautious step, they edged toward the backdoor.
The mansion’s dark corridors seemed endless, shadows dancing in the flickering candlelight.
Each creak of the floorboards made Kusum’s breath catch.
Suddenly, footsteps echoed behind them.
The psychotic wife’s voice rang out, sharp and furious. “Stop them!”
The chase was on.
Dodging through narrow hallways and climbing a hidden staircase, Kusum’s mind raced.
She remembered the psychotic couple mentioning a secret garden behind the mansion,while arguing before.
kusum thought If they could reach it, freedom awaited.
Bursting through a side door, they tumbled into the garden—a tangled maze of overgrown hedges and thorny vines.
The night air was cool against their flushed faces.
But safety was not guaranteed.
From the shadows emerged the group Kusum had seen earlier—women in striking red sarees, their faces twisted in cruel delight.
They blocked the garden’s exit, their laughter cold and menacing.
Cornered, Kusum hugged Kuhu tightly.
But then, a sudden sound—a whistle—pierced the night.
From behind a thick bush,Neel pulled out a small flare.
He lit it, throwing a burst of bright red light into the faces of their pursuers.
Blinded and startled, the group hesitated just long enough for Kusum to sprint past them, Neel and the elderly man close behind.
They ran through the winding streets, hearts pounding, until the distant wail of sirens announced help was near.
Safe, but forever changed, Kusum looked back one last time.
The mansion stood dark and silent, its secrets hidden beneath the night.
But Kusum knew this was only the beginning.
The police arrived swiftly, alerted by the flare and the frantic calls Neel managed to make during their escape.
Kusum clung to Kuhu, her tiny daughter’s soft breaths grounding her amid the chaos.
The elderlyman was shaken but alive, his gratitude mixed with worry for his wife.
Inspector Arjun, a calm yet sharp-eyed man, took charge.
“You’re safe now,” he assured them.
“We’ll investigate this matter and bring whoever did this to justice.”
But Kusum’s instincts told her otherwise.
The red-clad women, the psychotic wife in green silk, the eerie laughter—they were not just locals or random criminals.
There was something deeper, darker at play.
Back at their home, Kusum found no comfort.
Every creak of the door, every shadow flickering in the corner of her eye, reminded her of that night.
Sleep was elusive, and the nightmares relentless.
A week passed.
One evening, as Kusum rocked Kuhu to sleep, her phone buzzed.
An unknown number.
Heart pounding, she answered.
A distorted voice whispered, “You can run, Kusum, but you can’t hide. The shadows are watching.”
The line went dead.
Determined not to be a victim, Kusum began her own investigation.
She revisited the church they attended, hoping the elderly priest could reveal more about the mansion and its owners.
The old priest hesitated but finally shared a chilling story after Kusum's relentless efforts to save that old lady.
The mansion had belonged to a powerful family rumored to practice dark rituals, their influence hidden beneath layers of respectability.
“They say the women in red sarees are part of a secret society,” the elderly priest whispered.
“They believe in controlling fate through sacrifice and fear.”
Kusum’s blood ran cold.
Armed with this knowledge, Kusum collaborated with Inspector Arjun.
They planned a sting operation to expose the cult and rescue the old lady any other victims.
On the night of the operation, Kusum returned to the mansion—this time not as a victim, but as a hunter.
Hidden cameras and backup police officers surrounded the estate.
Inside, the red-saree women began their sinister gathering.
Kusum’s heart pounded as the same psychotic woman in green silk,made her grand entrance, eyes locking briefly with Kusum’s—a silent promise of reckoning.
With a smirk on her lips,the lady directly refused to release the elderly lady until and unless Kusum gives her daughter kuhu to her.
Kusum blood ran cold.
The thought of her daughter taken away from her made her stand like a statue ,shaken with worry.
The lady signalled her army of red women to bring the elderly lady,to make kusum frighten even more.
Watching all this from the camera fixed to the butyons of kusum dress,made Neel's blood boiled.
His hold on kuhu got tightened,making the littleone stop from chewing his tshirt.
Inspector Arjun thought this is the best time as the lady and her red silk clad women are distracted,he signalled his team to start the operation the planned ahead.
Suddenly, alarms blared.
Everyone in mansion was stopped in their tracks,noticing the change in environment.
The police stormed in.
Chaos erupted.
The master of the mansion,who is busy in a room chanting mantras stopped abrutly and came out with rage,as his precious and sacred pooja got disturbed.
Kusum pushed through the crowd, her focus on the locked room where the elderly woman had been held captive.
She found the door ajar, and inside, several frightened children and women huddled together.
Tears of relief and fear mingled as Kusum embraced them.
Months later, Kusum stood outside the mansion, now a sealed crime scene.
The cult had been dismantled, its leaders behind bars.
Kuhu laughed in her arms, a sound that filled Kusum with hope.
Though scars remained, so did her strength.
The shadows of that night lingered, but Kusum had reclaimed her life—and her family’s future.
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Kusum’s story is a haunting reminder that evil can lurk behind the most beautiful facades, and strength often rises from the darkest moments.
In many South Indian villages and towns, the warmth of community and faith can sometimes be a veil, hiding secrets better left uncovered—yet courage and love always find a way to break through.
May Kusum’s journey inspire us to trust our instincts, protect those we love fiercely, and never lose hope, even when shadows surround us.
By,
Shaina....
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