As the syringe's needle neared my skin, my breath caught in my throat. The madness in Demir's eyes surpassed even my father's. "Your father can't save you, Aylin," he hissed. "It's too late now."
A guttural sound escaped my throat. "What... What are you doing?"
"I'm doing you a favor," Demir said cruelly. "Like your mother, you'll be freed from this world."
My eyes widened in horror as Murat's voice echoed, "Demir! What the hell are you doing?"
Demir turned around, a devilish grin spreading across his face. "I guess I have a little guest." He raised the syringe in the air. "Or would you like to join in, Murat?"
Murat's face darkened with rage. "Put that syringe down, Demir."
"Why should I? Maybe you don't want me to tell Aylin the truth?"
"What truth?" I whispered. My heart was pounding like a drum.
Demir laughed. "Don't you want to know why your mother died? Your father's dirty secrets?"
Murat lunged at Demir in an instant. The syringe fell to the ground, the liquid spreading on the carpet. As the two began to struggle, I stood frozen in place.
*What's happening? What secrets does my father have? And my mother...*
"Run, Aylin!" Murat shouted, throwing Demir to the ground. "Get out of here!"
My legs obeyed. I ran out of the lab, crushed by the weight of the chaos I left behind. My footsteps echoing in the corridor couldn't drown out the noise of the questions in my mind.
*My mother's death wasn't an accident, was it? My father... Did he do it?*
As I stepped outside, the cold air hit my face. Shivering, I walked towards the faculty building. I needed to go to my room. Calm down and think. Maybe it was all just a misunderstanding. Maybe Demir was just crazy and Murat was trying to protect me.
When I opened my room door, I saw an envelope on my bed. My name was written on it: Aylin Şahin.
My heart skipped a beat. Who had left this here?
My hands trembling, I opened the envelope. Inside was a photograph and a note. In the photo, there was my mother. But this wasn't a photo I had ever seen before. My mother was lying on an operating table, surrounded by masked people. And the note had only one sentence: *You must dig deeper to learn the truth.*
*What does this mean?*
I looked more closely at the photo. The operating room... Could this be the old lab under the faculty?
My stomach churned. Apparently, my mother's death wasn't just a doctor's mistake. Apparently, there were much darker things involved... And I had unwittingly fallen right into the middle of this darkness.
I had to find Murat as soon as possible. If he knew something about my mother, he had to tell me. But a voice inside me was saying that Murat might be a part of this too.
I picked up my phone and called Murat. It rang, rang, and rang... But he didn't answer.
***
That evening, I sat in my dorm room, continuing to examine the photo. It was raining outside, the droplets trickling down the window like my tears.
There was a knock on my door.
"Who is it?" I called out.
"It's me, Leyla."
I took a deep breath and opened the door. Leyla was looking at me with worried eyes.
"Aylin, are you okay? I've been worried about you all day."
"I'm fine," I mumbled. "Just a little tired."
Leyla came inside and sat on the edge of my bed. "I know something's wrong. Do you want to tell me about it?"
I wanted to tell her everything. What I had learned about my mother, my father's secrets, my complicated relationship with Murat... But something was stopping me. It was as if someone was watching me constantly.
"Just... Just having some family problems," I said.
Leyla took my hand. "No matter what, I'm here for you. Don't forget that."
I smiled. Leyla was my best friend. I could trust her. But I wasn't ready to tell her this secret yet.
We sat in silence for a while. Then Leyla said, "By the way, I heard something happened at the faculty today. There was a fight in the lab."
My heart quickened. "What fight?"
"I don't know exactly. But they said Dr. Demir was involved. And... And I think Dr. Aslan was there too."
I averted my eyes. "Maybe it's just a misunderstanding."
Leyla looked at me skeptically. "I hope so."
After Leyla left, I was alone again. There were a thousand questions in my mind. The fight in the lab... My mother's photo... Murat's silence... All of this together meant only one thing: I was in great danger.
Suddenly my phone rang. An unknown number was on the screen.
Hesitantly, I answered the phone. "Hello?"
"Aylin," whispered a voice. "You're in danger. Trust no one."
"Who is this?" I asked. But I didn't get an answer. The phone hung up.
I stood there with the phone in my hand. Who was that? And why was he warning me?
I was sure now. I had made a big mistake by chasing this secret. But there was no turning back now. I had to learn the truth. I had to find my mother's killers.
When I lay down in bed that night, I couldn't sleep. My mother's photo was constantly running through my mind. When I closed my eyes, the image of my mother lying helplessly on the operating table appeared.
And at that moment, I made a decision. No matter what, I was going to see this through to the end. I was going to uncover the truth.
But I wasn't going to be alone while doing this.
The first thing I did the next morning was call the person I trusted most.
"Leyla," I said on the phone. "I need you to help me."