Chapter 3: A Father's Secrets

The glow of the streetlights outside Julia’s apartment flickered, casting long shadows across the room. Julia sat at her father’s desk, staring at the framed family photo that had always sat in the corner. Her father, Dr. Adam Raufal, had always seemed larger than life—charismatic, brilliant, and endlessly dedicated to his work.

But his final words to her before his death had revealed a side of him she had never seen before: fearful and urgent.

“Julia,” he had said that night over the phone, his voice strained, “you must be careful. There are things I’ve done—things I had to do—that I can’t explain right now. If something happens to me, promise me you’ll protect yourself.”

“What are you talking about, Dad?” Julia had asked, alarmed by his tone.

“I can’t explain,” he had repeated. “Just know this: PRASASTI isn’t what it seems. And stay away from a man named Fendi—no, Sarah. I don’t even know which one anymore.”

Before she could press him further, the call had ended abruptly. Hours later, the police arrived at her door with the news: her father had been found dead in his office at PRASASTI, the apparent victim of a robbery gone wrong.

But Julia didn’t believe that for a second.

Now, sitting in his home office, she sifted through his papers, hoping to find answers. Files were scattered across the desk, and she had yet to find anything that explained his cryptic warnings.

Her fingers brushed against a leather-bound journal buried under a stack of scientific reports. She flipped it open, her breath hitching as she recognized her father’s precise handwriting.

“November 12: Fendi approached me with the prototype today. It’s incredible—far beyond what I thought possible. But Sarah... Sarah is worried. She says the device could be used for control, not healing. She’s right, but Fendi won’t listen. Or maybe it’s the other way around.”

Julia frowned. Who was Sarah? Her father had never mentioned someone by that name.

She continued reading:

“December 3: Kentofes is growing impatient. They want results faster than we can deliver. Fendi thinks we should comply, but Sarah disagrees. I’m caught in the middle, and I fear I’m losing them both.”

The entries became more erratic as the weeks progressed. Dr. Raufal described Fendi and Sarah’s growing tension, their increasingly heated arguments about the ethics of their work. It was as though they were two entirely different people—and then it hit her.

“Sarah is Fendi,” Julia whispered.

Her father’s notes described a fractured mind, a brilliant scientist split between two personas. Fendi, logical and driven, was focused on pushing boundaries. Sarah, compassionate and cautious, was the voice of restraint. Together, they had created something groundbreaking—and dangerous.

A knock at the door startled her, pulling her out of her thoughts.

“Julia?”

She exhaled in relief as her friend Gina peeked inside.

“You scared me,” Julia said, closing the journal.

“Sorry,” Gina replied. “I just thought you might need some company.”

Julia nodded, her mind still racing. “Gina, have you ever heard of something called Dunnorage?”

Gina frowned. “No. Should I have?”

Julia hesitated, then shook her head. “Never mind.”

For now, she decided, she would keep what she had found to herself. But one thing was clear: her father’s death was no random robbery.

It was connected to Fendi—and to Dunnorage.