My eyes were wide open, my lips parted. My father... had he poisoned my mother? This was more than my brain could comprehend.
"What... What do you mean?" I whispered, my voice like a trembling leaf. Murat's dark eyes scanned my face with concern.
"Aylin, calm down. I know this is a lot to take in," he said, his voice as smooth as velvet, but I sensed the danger within. "But there's something I need to be sure of. I examined your mother's file. Some things that should have been there were missing. There were signs of poisoning, but it was covered up."
My hand trembled as I brought it to my mouth. In my mind, my mother's pale face, her endless coughs came to life. Those years of pain... My father's cold gaze... It all made sense at once. But why? Why would he poison my mother?
"Why?" I asked, my voice no more than a whisper. "Why would he do such a thing?"
Murat paused for a moment, as if he wasn't sure what to say. "I don't know, Aylin. But we have to find out. And you... you need to be safe."
"Safe?" I wanted to laugh, but it caught in my throat. "My life has been a lie from the beginning. I can't trust anyone."
Murat's hand gently touched my cheek. "You can trust me." In the depths of his eyes, an expression I had never seen before appeared. Protection... Compassion... And desire.
At that moment, the sterile smell of the hospital, the echoing footsteps in the corridor disappeared. There was only Murat's warm hand and the depth of his eyes. My heart began to beat rapidly, as if it would burst out of my chest.
"Why?" I asked, my voice still a whisper. "Why are you helping me?"
"Because..." Murat took a deep breath, his eyes sliding to my lips. "Because I'm worried about you. And... because I want you."
At that moment, we were startled by the sound of the door opening. We both quickly moved away from each other. The person who appeared at the door was Dr. Demir. He was looking at us with his usual smirk on his face.
"Ah, Professor Murat. I knew I'd find you here," said Demir, his voice mocking. "The Rector is waiting for you. There's an urgent meeting."
Murat frowned. "About what?"
"As far as I know, it's about the recent increase in patient deaths," Demir replied. "You know, the reputation of our faculty is at stake."
Something stirred inside me. Patient deaths... Murat's illegal organ trafficking... The pieces were slowly falling into place. But it couldn't be that simple, could it?
The expression on Murat's face hardened. "I'll be right there," he said to Demir. Demir shrugged and disappeared into the corridor.
Murat turned to me. "Aylin, let's talk about this later. I have to go now."
"Murat, wait," I said, with a growing anxiety in my heart. "These patient deaths... Do you have anything to do with it?"
Murat's face shadowed. "Aylin, please. We can't talk about this now."
"Why?" I insisted. "Why are you so afraid to tell me the truth?"
Murat paused for a moment, as if trying to make a decision. Then he took a deep breath and looked into my eyes.
"Aylin, I'll tell you everything. But first, you have to get out of here. You need to be safe."
"Where am I going to go?" I asked, desperately. "Who am I going to trust?"
"Me," Murat said, his voice firm. "I'll help you. But first... first you have to give up your shift tonight."
I frowned. "Why?"
"Because tonight... tonight will be dangerous," Murat said, with a warning tone in his voice. "I didn't hide anything from you Aylin."
As Murat's words echoed in my mind, a seed of doubt sprouted inside me. What was he hiding from me? What was the truth behind these patient deaths? And most importantly... could I really trust Murat?
"I want to trust you," I said, my voice trembling. "But you have to give me a reason."
Murat looked into my eyes for a moment, as if trying to read my soul. Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, antique key.
"This key..." he said, his voice a whisper. "This key belongs to the old laboratory under the faculty. There... you'll find the answers you're looking for."
I reached out and took the key. The coldness of the metal spread to my fingertips. This key... this could be a turning point for me.
"But be careful," Murat said, his voice full of concern. "Dark secrets are hidden in that laboratory..."
That night, I called the on-duty doctor and told him that I was sick and couldn't come. I put the key Murat had given me in my pocket and began to wander the corridors of the faculty. There was both excitement and fear inside me. I was very close to reaching the answers I was looking for.
When I arrived at the door of the old laboratory, my heart was pounding like crazy. I put the key in the lock and turned it. The door creaked open. I took a step inside and the darkness swallowed me.
Cold, damp air hit my face. The smell of mold and rot burned my throat. I groped for the light switch on the wall and clicked it. A faint light illuminated the laboratory.
I was speechless at the sight I saw. Everything was covered in dust and cobwebs. On the shelves were broken bottles, rusty tools, and old notebooks filled with notes. In the middle, there was a rusty operating table.
My heart started beating fast. This place... this wasn't just an old laboratory. Dark things had happened here.
I slowly started to wander around. I examined the notebooks on the shelves. Most of them were unreadable, but some had strange notes and drawings. Schematics of the human body, detailed drawings of organs... And a name: Dr. Fahri Kaya.
Dr. Fahri Kaya... I remembered that name from somewhere. Then it dawned on me. My mother's doctor! The doctor in the file of my mother, whom my father had poisoned... This man... This man was at the center of everything.
Just then, I heard a voice behind me. "Did you find what you were looking for?"
When I turned around, I saw Dr. Demir appearing at the door. He was holding a syringe in his hand. There was a malicious expression on his face that I had never seen before.
"What... What do you want?" I asked, my voice trembling.
Demir smirked. "I just want to... keep some secrets." He raised the syringe in his hand. "And you... you know too much."
At that moment, I thought everything was over. But then...