Chapter 6 - The Midnight IntruderIt was 3:14 AM.
The hospital hallway outside Room 412 was dead silent, save for the occasional squeak of a rubber-soled sneaker or the distant chime of an elevator bell. I sat in the armchair beside Chloe’s bed, my eyes burning from exhaustion, refusing to close them even for a second.
Outside the door, the two police officers assigned to guard the room were supposed to be stationed in the corridor. But twenty minutes ago, I heard a muffled thump, followed by complete silence.
I stood up slowly, my joints aching, and crept toward the heavy wooden door. I peered through the small glass window set into the panels.
The hallway was pitch black. The overhead fluorescent tubes had been switched off, plunging the corridor into deep shadow.
"Officer?" I whispered against the glass.
No response.
Panic, cold and sharp, spiked through my chest. I reached out and slowly turned the brass handle of the door. It clicked open with an agonizingly loud snap.
I stepped out into the hallway. The air smelled faintly of burnt copper and sweet, artificial lavender—a scent that didn't belong in a hospital.
A few feet down the corridor, both guards were slumped against the wall, unconscious, their breathing heavy and irregular.
"Oh, God," I breathed, covering my mouth with my hand.
Suddenly, a heavy hand clamped over my mouth from behind, and a strong arm wrapped around my waist, lifting my feet off the floor. I thrashed wildly, kicking backward, but a harsh whisper hissed in my ear:
"Make a sound and the girl dies right now."
May you like
It wasn't Julian. It was a voice I had never heard before—rough, foreign, and laced with absolute malice.
I was dragged backward into the darkness of an empty supply closet. The door clicked shut behind us with a muffled click, plunging us into absolute blackness.
