Kevin was in a cab, heading back home. His meeting with the principal didn’t turn out as he’d hoped. He’d ended up getting himself expelled instead. At the moment, he wasn’t sure what to believe anymore. How did a photograph that had been taken privately at the college he recently enrolled in end up in a random building—a killer’s den? There has to be some explanation. Just then, his phone rang. Alex. “Hello, Kevin.”“Alex?” his forehead creased. “It’s 9 pm. You never call this late. Is something wrong?”“There are some things I need to tell you. It’s about…” “And it can’t wait until tomorrow morning?” he interrupted. “No, it can’t,” he answered. “Where are you right now?”Kevin picked up a slight tone of distress in his voice. “I am headed home. Why?&rdquo

Kevin trembled from his knee as he looked up at its mask. Its dark, hallow eyes sent a cold shiver racing down the length of his spine. Only an inch separated him from the masked figure, who stood still with its arms folded and eyes fixed on him.Kevin shuffled away from him. The figure, who seemed almost inanimate, remained unmoved, and he wondered why. With his hands still pressed on its chest, he doubted if really the masked man was there with him. A sudden curiosity grew within him that left him wondering whose face was behind that mask. Was this really the same figure that kidnaped him a year ago, or was someone pulling a prank on him?Kevin started towards him, raising a hand to his face—to take off his mask. Only an inch close, he spread out his finger to pull off the mask, but then, much to his horror, the figure clutched his arm, pulling it away.Gasping, Kevin fell back and scrambled away quickly, pulling back his wrist. And when he turned to loo

William followed her out, and Catherina led him to where she’d asked the visitor to wait. He blinked in surprise when he saw Derik.Derik nodded at Catherina as she returned to her computer, then walked toward William, struggling with the many files he huddled in his crossed arms. “It was a complete blood bath yesternight, sir. I watched our men die like flies as they fought off something impossible. We weren’t prepared for the horrors we met.”William’s face suddenly twisted in a frown. “How many men survived?”“None sir. We’ve lost all our men.”“Eighty highly trained TCU officers lost their lives in just one night?” William uttered in total disbelief. Then he glanced behind him. “Where is Sergeant Scott?”“He is dead, sir. Was the first to go down.” Derik’s shoulder slumped. “We had walked into a trap and ten of our best men were lost in a

It was a hot afternoon when Kevin returned to the prison. The environment was deadly still. He observed that all the prison workers were all gone. He walked cautiously to the door and found that it was locked. Kevin looked around suspiciously. And when he was certain that no one was watching, he returned his gaze back to the locks. His right hand grew larger, setting his body at an unequal proportion. Fur grew from his enlarged arm. With his unusually large arm, he crushed the locks on the door and forcefully kicked the door open. Then his arms returned to normal as he entered the building. The room inside was dark and stuffy. Kevin took out his phone and turned the light on. His torch fell on the faces of several prisoners reaching out to him through the bars, begging to be set free.  He ignored them all, peering through the darkness as he searched the cages for where they had put Ashley. Hi

William drove up the driveway and under the carport alongside the large apartment. The rain was gentle and calm, sputtering across his windshield. The car engine died out. William let out a heavy sigh, dropping his forehead to his forearms on the steering wheel, his eyes wet with tears. Climbing down from the car, he took out an umbrella to shield himself from the rain as he staggered towards the front door of his apartment.  Struggling with the locks, he finally got the door to open. He entered the house and threw himself on the couch. His clothes were dripping wet. He’d never felt this devastated in his entire life. Felt as though a bigger part of him had been taken away by Elena’s death. He resented everyone around him, especially Derik. He couldn’t quite understand where all this anger and sudden hatred for Derik was coming from. In his heart, he blamed him entirely for his wife’s death. The noise from t