THE MAN WHO NEVER KNOCKED

Chapter three

I read the message three times before I finally lowered my phone Stop asking Daniel questions Forget Claire ever existed Whoever had sent it knew exactly what was happening between Daniel and me. That frightened me more than the message itself. I looked at Daniel, who was still standing a few steps away. Did you send this I asked, holding out my phone He glanced at the screen No How am I supposed to believe  You don’t have to believe me, Amara. But whoever sent that message doesn’t want you asking questions I let out a nervous laugh Funny You’re the one who showed up at my door with a photograph of me. You’re the one who keeps mentioning a woman I have never met. And now someone is threatening me because of questions I didn’t even know I needed to ask Daniel ran a hand through his hair I know how this looks Do you Because from where I’m standing, it looks like you’ve brought trouble straight to my doorstep He looked at me for a moment before speaking. Can we talk somewhere private No Amara Don’t Amara me. I don’t know you Daniel His expression softened I know For a few seconds, neither of us spoke Then he stepped back towards his apartment. Keep your doors locked tonight. Don’t open them for anyone you don’t recognise I folded my arms And what if that person is you A faint smile appeared on his face Especially if it’s me He disappeared into his apartment leaving me alone in the hallway I stood there for several seconds before unlocking my door Something told me this was only the beginning.

I barely touched my dinner that night My mind kept returning to Daniel’s words The last person Claire spoke to before she disappeared was you I sat on the edge of my bed, trying to remember anything from three years ago that could explain his accusation Three years ago, I was twenty-two. I had just started working at a small marketing agency. My life had been ordinary, filled with work, friends and the occasional argument with Ethan Nothing unusual had happened Or so I thought I picked up my phone and opened my gallery. I scrolled through old photographs, searching for anything that might help There were pictures from birthdays, family gatherings, university events and outings with friends Then I stopped A photograph from three years ago caught my attention It was taken outside a restaurant. I was standing beside Ethan, smiling at the camera Behind us stood a young woman wearing a white dress I zoomed in My heart skipped I recognised her Not her face exactly, but something about her I opened the photograph again and stared at it Could this be Clair Before I could think further, my phone rang Olivia I answered immediately Hey Amara what’s wrong with youI frowned What do you mean You’ve been ignoring my messages all day. I know you better than that. I hesitated. Olivia can I ask you something Of course Do you remember a girl I used to know three years ago? Her name might have been Claire There was a brief silence. Claire Yes. Does the name sound familiar Why are you asking I looked at the photograph again. Just answer me, OliviaShe sighed i remember you mentioning someone named Claire once, but I don’t think you were close My heart began beating faster When was that I can’t remember exactly. Why I swallowed Did anything happen to her Olivia was quiet Then she said something unexpected Amara I think you should tell me what’s going on I closed my eyesI’ll explain when I see you Promise Promise After ending the call, I placed my phone beside me For the first time, I wondered whether Daniel’s strange behaviour was not the only thing I should be worried about Perhaps my own memories were hiding something The following morning, I decided to confront him I waited until I heard his apartment door open before stepping outside Daniel was locking his door when he noticed me Good morning he said We need to tall He studied my face About Claire Yes He slipped his keys into his pocket Come in I hesitated Why Because I think it’s time you saw something I followed him into his apartment

His place was surprisingly different from mine. Everything was neat, expensive and carefully arranged. The furniture was dark, the walls were decorated with simple paintings, and the large windows overlooked the city There was almost nothing personal in the living room No family photographs No souvenirs No signs that anyone actually lived there Sit down he said I remained standing I’ll be more comfortable here He nodded and walked towards a cabinet A few seconds later he returned with a small brown envelope He placed it on the table between us Before you open that, I need you to understand something I looked at him What Three years ago my younger sister disappeared. Her name was Claire I waited She was twenty-three. She was studying architecture and had plans to move abroad. She was funny stubborn and always believed she could solve everyone’s problems His voice became quieter Then one evening, she went out and never came home I looked down at the envelope Was she reported missing Of course. We searched everywhere. The police questioned her friends checked hospitals and investigated her last known location And they found nothing He shook his head Nothing that gave us answers I looked at him again How does that involve me Daniel opened the envelope and removed several photographs He placed them on the table My breath caught They were pictures of me Some showed me walking along a street. Others showed me entering a building and sitting inside a restaurant I picked one up with trembling fingers.Why do you have these Because I was trying to find out what happened to my sister By following me I wasn’t the person taking those photographs Then who was He looked away Someone who was watching both of you I stared at him Both of us He nodded Amara I believe you knew Claire. I also believe you were present during the last few hours before she disappeared I shook my head I don’t remember any of this I know Then why are you so sure He reached into the envelope again and produced a folded piece of paper It looked old and slightly damaged I found this among Claire’s belongings He handed it to me I unfolded it carefully The handwriting was unfamiliar, but the words were clear Amara If anything happens to me, please don’t let them convince you that I left willingly You know what I discovered You promised you would help me Please don’t forget My hands began to shake I read the note again Then I looked at Daniel Where did you get thisFrom her bedroom When Three years ago I stared at the paper I had no memory of receiving such a message. I had no I read the message three times before I finally lowered my phone.

Stop asking Daniel questions Forget Claire ever existed Whoever had sent it knew exactly what was happening between Daniel and me. That frightened me more than the message itself I looked at Daniel, who was still standing a few steps away Did you send this?” I asked, holding out my phone He glanced at the screen No How am I supposed to believe you You don’t have to believe me, Amara. But whoever sent that message doesn’t want you asking questions I let out a nervous laugh Funny. You’re the one who showed up at my door with a photograph of me. You’re the one who keeps mentioning a woman I have never met. And now someone is threatening me because of questions I didn’t even know I needed to ask Daniel ran a hand through his hair I know how this looks Do you Because from where I’m standing, it looks like you’ve brought trouble straight to my doorstep He looked at me for a moment before speaking Can we talk somewhere private No Amara Don’t Amara me. I don’t know you, Daniel His expression softened I know For a few seconds, neither of us spoke Then he stepped back towards his apartment Keep your doors locked tonight. Don’t open them for anyone you don’t recognise I folded my arms And what if that person is you A faint smile appeared on his face Especially if it’s me He disappeared into his apartment, leaving me alone in the hallway I stood there for several seconds before unlocking my door he Something told me this was only the beginning.

I barely touched my dinner that night My mind kept returning to Daniel’s words The last person Claire spoke to before she disappeared was you I sat on the edge of my bed trying to remember anything from three years ago that could explain his accusation Three years ago, I was twenty-two. I had just started working at a small marketing agency. My life had been ordinary, filled with work, friends and the occasional argument with Ethan Nothing unusual had happened Or so I thought I picked up my phone and opened my gallery. I scrolled through old photographs, searching for anything that might help There were pictures from birthdays, family gatherings, university events and outings with friends Then I stopped A photograph from three years ago caught my attention It was taken outside a restaurant. I was standing beside Ethan, smiling at the camera Behind us stood a young woman wearing a white dress I zoomed in My heart skipped I recognised her Not her face exactly, but something about her I opened the photograph again and stared at it Could this be Claira Before I could think further, my phone rang Olivia I answered immediately Hey Amara what’s wrong with you I frowned What do you mean You’ve been ignoring my messages all day. I know you better than that I hesitated Olivia can I ask you something Of course Do you remember a girl I used to know three years ago Her name might have been Claire There was a brief silence Claire Yes. Does the name sound familiar Why are you asking I looked at the photograph again Just answer me Olivia She sighed I remember you mentioning someone named Claire once but I don’t think you were close My heart began beating faster When was that I can’t remember exactly. Why I swallowed Did anything happen to her Olivia was quiet Then she said something unexpected Amara I think you should tell me what’s going on i closed my eyes I’ll explain when I see you Promise Promise After ending the call, I placed my phone beside me For the first time, I wondered whether Daniel’s strange behaviour was not the only thing I should be worried about Perhaps my own memories were hiding something.

The following morning, I decided to confront him I waited until I heard his apartment door open before stepping outside Daniel was locking his door when he noticed me Good morning  he said We need to talk He studied my face About Claire Yes He slipped his keys into his pocket Come in I hesitated Why Because I think it’s time you saw something I followed him into his apartment His place was surprisingly different from mine. Everything was neat, expensive and carefully arranged. The furniture was dark, the walls were decorated with simple paintings, and the large windows overlooked the city There was almost nothing personal in the living room No family photographs No souvenirs No signs that anyone actually lived there Sit down  he said I remained standing I’ll be more comfortable here He nodded and walked towards a cabinet A few seconds later he returned with a small brown envelope He placed it on the table between us Before you open that, I need you to understand something I looked at him What Three years ago my younger sister disappeared Her name was Claire I waited She was twenty-three. She was studying architecture and had plans to move abroad. She was funny, stubborn and always believed she could solve everyone’s problems His voice became quieter Then one evening, she went out and never came home I looked down at the envelope Was she reported missing Of course. We searched everywhere. The police questioned her friends, checked hospitals and investigated her last known location And they found nothing He shook his head Nothing that gave us answers I looked at him again How does that involve me Daniel opened the envelope and removed several photographs He placed them on the table My breath caught They were pictures of me Some showed me walking along a street. Others showed me entering a building and sitting inside a restaurant I picked one up with trembling fingers Why do you have these Because I was trying to find out what happened to my sister By following me I wasn’t the person taking those photographs Then who was He looked away Someone who was watching both of you I stared at him Both of us He nodde Amara i believe you knew Claire. I also believe you were present during the last few hours before she disappeared I shook my head I don’t remember any of this I know Then why are you so sure He reached into the envelope again and produced a folded piece of paper It looked old and slightly damaged i found this among Claire’s belongings He handed it to me I unfolded it carefully The handwriting was unfamiliar but the words were clear Amara If anything happens to me please don’t let them convince you that I left willingly You know what I discovered You promised you would help me Please don’t forget My hands began to shake I read the note again Then I looked at Daniel Where did you get this From her bedroom When Three years ago I stared at the paper I had no memory of receiving such a message. I had no memory of making promises to a woman named Claire But the handwriting was beginning to look familiar I looked at the signature at the bottom There was no name Only a small drawing of a crescent moon Suddenly, something flashed through my mind A dark room Rain against a window A woman’s voice whispering my name Then everything disappeared I stepped backwards Amara  Daniel called I pressed a hand against my forehead I need to go Wait No I need to think I walked towards the door, but before I could open it Daniel spoke again There is something else you should know I turned slowly What now He looked directly at me Claire wasn’t the only person who disappeared that night My stomach tightened Who else Daniel hesitated Then he answered The man who was with her I stared at him, unable to speak Who was he Daniel’s expression changed His name was Ethan Cole The room seemed to tilt Ethan My former boyfriend The same man whose photograph I had just found in my gallery I shook my head That’s impossible Daniel said nothing I looked at him, desperate for an explanation But before he could speak, my phone vibrated Another message from the unknown number This time, it contained a photograph It showed Daniel and Claire standing together outside a restaurant On the back of the photograph, someone had written a sentence.

THE WRONG PERSON IS ASKING THE QUESTIONS i slowly raised my eyes towards Daniel He was no longer looking at me He was staring at the photograph on my phone And for the first time, I wondered whether the man who had been searching for his sister was also hiding something far more dangerous than I had imagined memory of making promises to a woman named Claire But the handwriting was beginning to look familiar I looked at the signature at the bottom There was no name Only a small drawing of a crescent moon Suddenly, something flashed through my mind A dark room Rain against a window A woman’s voice whispering my name Then everything disappeared I stepped backwards Amara Daniel called I pressed a hand against my forehead I need to go Wait No I need to think I walked towards the door, but before I could open it Daniel spoke again There is something else you should know I turned slowly What now He looked directly at me Claire wasn’t the only person who disappeared that night My stomach tightened Who else Daniel hesitated Then he answered The man who was with her i stared at him unable to speak Who was he Daniel’s expression changed His name was Ethan Cole The room seemed to tilt Ethan My former boyfriend The same man whose photograph I had just found in my gallery I shook my head That’s impossible Daniel said nothing I looked at him, desperate for an explanation But before he could speak, my phone vibrated Another message from the unknown number This time it contained a photograph It showed Daniel and Claire standing together outside a restaurant On the back of the photograph, someone had written a sentence.