The van jolted over a pothole, snapping Emily out of her frantic prayers. The city lights blurred past, thinning into darker streets, the kind where every shadow looked like it could swallow you whole.
The driver glanced at her phone as she kept refreshing the map. "You're sure about this? This is… not the safest neighborhood."
"I'm sure," Emily said, even though her voice trembled. "Please… just a little further."
They turned down an alley lit by a single flickering street lamp. The air here smelled faintly of smoke and something metallic. Emily's stomach twisted.
The blue dot on her phone stopped moving — but it wasn't because it had reached a destination. She realized with a jolt… it hadn't moved for the last five minutes.
Her chest tightened.
"That's here," the driver muttered, pulling to a stop at the mouth of the alley. "I can't go further in — the road's too narrow. You'll have to walk."
Emily hesitated. She could almost feel the darkness ahead pressing against her. Her instincts screamed danger, but so did every second of delay.
"Thank you," she murmured, jumping out.
Her sneakers slapped against the damp ground as she moved deeper into the alley, guided by the dim glow of her phone screen.
"Ethan?" she called softly, voice shaking. "Ethan, can you hear me?"
No answer. Only the quiet drip of water from a leaky pipe.
She turned a corner — and froze.
There he was.
Slumped against the wall, head tilted to one side, his black shirt soaked with deep, spreading crimson. His breathing was shallow, ragged. One hand rested limply on the ground, his phone still in it, the call timer frozen at 37 minutes.
Emily's knees nearly gave way. "Oh my God…"
She rushed to him, dropping to her knees. "Ethan! Ethan, it's me — wake up!"
His eyelids fluttered, but he didn't open them. His lips curved into the faintest smirk. "Told… you… not to miss me."
And then his head lolled, his body going slack.
Emily's heart lurched. She gripped his hand, her mind racing. Call an ambulance? Drag him out herself? Both would take time he didn't have.
The sound of distant footsteps snapped her head up. Shadows moved at the far end of the alley.
She realized, with a cold rush of fear, that whatever had done this to Ethan… might not be finished.
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