The smell reached her before the heat did.
Melissa froze in the narrow hallway of her apartment, fingers still curled around the strap of her bag. At first, she thought it was coming from outside—burning trash, maybe, or a neighbor cooking late. But the scent was wrong. Thick. Bitter. It crawled into her lungs and refused to leave.
Her chest tightened.
She took one careful step forward.
The lights flickered.
Once. Twice.
“Hello?” she called out, though she didn’t know why. She already knew she was alone.
The silence answered her.
Her phone buzzed in her hand, startling her so badly she almost dropped it. Jayden’s name glowed on the screen.
She hesitated.
Something inside her whispered don’t ignore him.
She answered. “I’m inside,” she said before he could speak. “I just came to g
