The phone buzzed once. Just once.
A single vibration that sliced through the silence like a blade through glass.
I wasn’t expecting any calls, and no one had my new number except Valen. But it wasn’t him. The name that blinked across the screen wasn’t a name at all, just three words that didn’t belong together.
Unknown Number. One Message.
I opened it.
You’re next.
That was it. No threats, no explanation. Just those two words. Cold. Final.
My throat went dry. The air seemed to grow heavier, like the walls were leaning in. For a long moment, I just sat there in the dark safehouse, the faint hum of the refrigerator the only sound in the room. Then, as if on instinct, I reached for the pistol Valen had left me, the one wrapped in silk and guilt.
It felt too heavy now. Too real.
He wa
