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7. THE ONGOING CHARADE
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2026-04-20 21:26:01In the days that followed, Gavin’s father and I worked together in complete secrecy. We gathered all the necessary evidence, contacted potential witnesses, and devised a plan to expose every crime Gavin and Selina had committed.
Meanwhile, I continued living my life as usual. I went to work, met up with friends, and did my best to appear happy in front of others. I knew Gavin and Selina were almost certainly still keeping an eye on me, so I had to make sure they didn’t grow suspicious of what I was doing. One day, while I was at the office, I received a message from Gavin. He asked me to meet him at a luxury restaurant in the city center. "Aria, we need to talk. There are things I want to tell you. It’s important. Come alone." I stared at the message with deep suspicion. What did he actually want? Did he already know I was working with his father? Or was he just trying to use me again? After thinking it over for a moment, I decided to go. I wanted to know what was going through his mind. And I also wanted to see just how well he could act in front of me. When I arrived at the restaurant, Gavin was already waiting for me at a table in the corner. He looked worse than the last time I had seen him. His eyes looked tired, and there were lines on his forehead that hadn’t been there before. "Aria, thank you for coming," he said as I sat down across from him. His voice was soft, as if he were speaking to someone he loved dearly. "What do you want, Gavin? Just say it straight," I replied in a cold tone. I refused to get caught up in his act again. Gavin lowered his head, as if he were overwhelmed with guilt. "Aria, I know I have made terrible mistakes against you. I hurt you, I lied to you, and I cast you aside as if you meant nothing. I regret everything I did. I regret it more than you can imagine." He looked up at me with teary eyes. "Ever since you left me, I have felt so empty. I realized that you were the best thing I ever had. I realized that I threw away the only person who ever loved me genuinely. Aria, can you forgive me? Can we start all over again?" I looked at him with pure disgust. "Do you really think I would believe all those sweet words of yours? Do you think I would ever come back to you after everything you’ve done? You’re wrong, Gavin. So very wrong." Gavin fell silent for a moment, then gave a faint smile. "I know you’re still angry with me. I know you’re still hurting. But I will do everything in my power to earn back your trust. I will do anything to make you happy again." He took a small box out of his pocket and placed it on the table. "This is a diamond ring I bought especially for you. I want you to accept it as a sign of my remorse. I want us to be together again." I looked at the box, then back at Gavin. I knew this was all part of his plan. He must have had a specific reason for wanting me back. Maybe he needed something from me, or perhaps he was afraid I would expose all his crimes. I gave a faint smile. "Thank you for the offer, Gavin. But I don’t need that ring. And I will never come back to you. You can keep it for yourself, or give it to Selina." Gavin’s expression changed instantly. His smile vanished, replaced by a cold, furious glare. "Don’t get too arrogant, Aria. Do you think you can live without me? Do you think you could ever be successful without my help? You will regret turning down this offer." He stood up and walked away from me. Before leaving the restaurant, he turned back and said in a low voice, "We aren’t finished yet, Aria. Not by a long shot."
Bab terbaru
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The bedroom was filled with the scent of cardboard boxes and packing tape, the universal aroma of a life about to shift. But amidst the standard chaos of a high school graduate preparing for university, one wall remained a sanctuary of obsession. It was a mosaic of shadows: hundreds of newspaper clippings, some yellowed by time, others crisp and freshly printed.Every headline bore the same name. Budi Cahyadi.Lina stood before the collage, her eyes tracking the trajectory of a monster. There he was in his fifties, shaking hands with ministers; there he was in his sixties, receiving a "Man of the Year" award. In the most recent photo, he was an aging lion, silver-haired and sharp-eyed, his face a mask of impenetrable arrogance."The scholarship letters arrived today," a voice said from the doorway.Lina didn’t turn. She knew the sound of Maria’s footsteps—they had grown heavier over the years, weary with the burden of what she knew her daughter was becoming."I know, Ibu. Faculty of L
BENEATH THE SAME SKY 50. The Truth in the Shadows
The atmosphere in Lina’s bedroom was suffocating, thick with the dust of unearthed secrets. Maria sat on the edge of the mattress, her frame appearing smaller, more fragile than Lina had ever seen. Between them lay the note—that yellowed, tear-stained scrap of paper—pulsing with the energy of a live wire."Sit down, Lina," Maria said, her voice weighted with a decade of suppressed truth. "Please. My legs can no longer carry the height of this lie."Lina sat, though her body remained as rigid as stone. Her eyes were fixed on the word. "Tell me everything, Ibu. No more metaphors about wind and seeds. I want the truth. Plain and cold."Maria took a shuddering breath, her fingers twisting the hem of her apron. "I don't know her name, Lina. I don't know where she came from or where the wind took her after that night. All I saw was a shadow. A woman standing in the mouth of the alleyway, drenched to the bone, watching me take you inside. She looked like a ghost that had forgotten how to hau
BENEATH THE SAME SKY 49. The Locked Drawer
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BENEATH THE SAME SKY 48. The Garden of Secrets
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BENEATH THE SAME SKY 47. The Name on the Note
The rain had retreated to a rhythmic dripping from the roof gutters, but the air inside the kitchen remained charged with the electricity of the storm. Maria hadn’t slept. She sat at the wooden table, her hands wrapped around a ceramic mug of coffee that had long since gone cold.Her eyes, however, were fixed on the plastic laundry basket resting on the counter. It was lined with three layers of her softest yellow towels. Inside, the infant lay as still as a doll, her chest rising and falling in the deep, heavy sleep of the exhausted.Beside the mug lay the scrap of paper. The ink was jagged, bleeding into the fibers where droplets—too thick to be mere rain—had smeared the letters."Lina," Maria whispered. The name felt strange on her tongue, yet it carried a weight that seemed to anchor the room. "Lina. You have a name. You aren't just a ghost."The floorboards groaned in the hallway. Hendra walked in, his sarong tied loosely at his waist, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He stopped
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The mansion on the outskirts of Jakarta was a monument to excess. Marble floors polished to a mirror finish reflected the crystal chandeliers above, but the grandeur felt hollow. The air was heavy, thick with the cloying scent of expensive jasmine and an underlying, sharp note of cold terror.Insid
BENEATH THE SAME SKY 41
Years passed with a rhythm that was quieter, yet far more profound. The Cahaya Sari Foundation had grown from a small office in a corner of Jakarta into a national movement. However, for Lina, the greatest success was not the number of branches opened, but every single life saved from the darkness
BENEATH THE SAME SKY 2. THE BETRAYING FRIEND
Days passed, but the pain in my chest never faded, not even for a single second. That night, I did not sleep a wink. I chose to spend the night in the guest room, leaving Gavin alone in our master bedroom with all his dirty secrets. My eyes were swollen, my throat was dry, and my entire body felt h
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