The Seventh Name
376 Words
Mira sat frozen behind the steering wheel.
The words on her phone refused to leave her mind.
They’ve started lying to you.
Who were “they”?
The strangers chasing her?
The hooded man?
Or the anonymous caller who had guided her since the nightmare began?
For the first time, she wondered if the voice on the phone had been manipulating her all along.
A sharp knock on her driver’s window made her jump.
An elderly police officer stood outside, his flashlight cutting through the darkness.
“Ma’am, are you all right?” he asked.
Mira lowered the window just enough to speak.
“I… I think someone is following me.”
The officer glanced up and down the empty road.
“I don’t see anyone.”
She looked in the mirror.
The black SUV was gone.
Had she imagined it?
“Can I see your license?” the officer asked politely.
As Mira reached into her bag, his expression changed.
His eyes locked onto the brass key lying inside.
For a split second, his face turned pale.
“You…” he whispered.
“You have it.”
Before Mira could respond, the officer quickly stepped away from the car.
His radio crackled.
A voice came through, distorted by static.
“Unit Twelve… stand down.”
The officer stared at the radio in disbelief.
Then he looked back at Mira.
His voice dropped to a whisper.
“Drive.”
“What?”
“Drive now. Don’t stop for anyone.”
“But—”
“Go!”
His desperate shout snapped her into action.
Mira sped away, leaving the officer standing alone beneath the streetlight.
A mile later, her phone buzzed.
An email had arrived from an address with no sender’s name.
There was no message.
Only a scanned document.
Across the top, in faded typewritten letters, were the words:
PROJECT ECHO
Below was a list of six names.
Every one of them was marked DECEASED.
At the bottom of the page was a blank seventh line.
As Mira stared at it, new letters slowly appeared on the screen, as if someone were typing in real time.
7. Mira Lawson
Her breath caught.
Then one final line appeared beneath her name.
Status: ACTIVE… FOR NOW.
- Writer
