It was just after dusk when she arrived my neighbor from two doors down, pale and trembling, asking if she could use my phone. She said someone had been following her, that she heard footsteps behind her all the way home. I let her in without thinking. She dialed a number but never spoke, only listened, nodding slightly as if being given instructions. Then there was a loud knock at the door. One sharp, echoing hit like someone didn’t want to be kept waiting.
She froze. Her eyes widened in terror, and she whispered, “Don’t answer it, no matter what.” I turned back toward her but she was gone. Not out the door. Not hiding. Gone, as if she’d never been there. The phone lay on the floor, screen cracked, still buzzing with an active call. I stood in the silence, heart pounding, while the knocking started again this time softer, more patient. And somehow, I knew it wasn’t going to stop until I opened the door… or something opened it for me. Shutdown123