Chapter 3: The first move
581 Words
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Alina sat curled up on her couch, staring at the steam rising from her cup of tea. The warmth against her palms should have been comforting, yet the unease in her chest refused to fade.
Her mind kept circling back to the sensation she’d felt earlier—the unshakable certainty that someone had been following her.
Her apartment was silent except for the faint hum of the refrigerator. No footsteps. No voices. No shadows creeping in the dim glow of her small bedside lamp.
But she still felt it.
The weight of invisible eyes.
She exhaled sharply, shaking her head. It’s just paranoia.
But even as she tried to convince herself, the unease lingered.
Her phone buzzed against the table. The sudden sound made her jolt, her pulse leaping to her throat.
She reached for it, hesitating as the screen lit up. Unknown Number.
Her heart skipped a beat.
For a moment, she considered ignoring it. But something inside her—maybe curiosity, maybe something else—made her swipe to open the message.
"You were right to be afraid tonight."
Alina’s breath caught in her throat.
Her fingers trembled as she read the words again. Was this a joke? Some cruel prank?
Before she could react, another message came through.
"Be more careful, Alina. You’re not as invisible as you think."
A cold wave of fear crashed over her.
Who was this?
Her pulse thundered in her ears as she quickly typed back, "Who are you?"
She stared at the screen, waiting. Heart pounding. Hands shaking.
Three dots appeared. Then they disappeared.
No response.
She swallowed hard, locking her phone and shoving it onto the couch beside her. Her breathing was shallow, erratic. This wasn’t normal.
This wasn’t okay.
Her apartment suddenly felt too small. Too quiet. Every shadow in the dimly lit room seemed darker, stretching toward her like unseen hands.
She got up abruptly, crossing the room and double-checking the locks on her door. She even pushed a chair against it. It was stupid. A childish reaction. But right now, she needed something—anything—to make her feel safer.
Still, the messages burned in her mind.
Not invisible.
Someone had been watching her.
Had been watching her for a long time.
Somewhere else in the city…
Viktor leaned back in his chair, watching the glow of the screen in front of him. His cold blue eyes traced every expression on her face, the flickers of fear she tried to suppress.
She felt it now.
Good.
He tapped his fingers against the polished wood of his desk, satisfied. She had ignored her instincts for too long, pretending she wasn’t being watched, pretending she was safe.
She wasn’t.
She never had been.
His jaw tightened at the memory of the man who had followed her tonight.
A fool.
A dead fool.
Viktor had made sure of that. The body was already gone, erased from existence. It had been a warning—one she didn’t even know about.
She still thought she was just another girl in this city.
She wasn’t.
She belonged to him.
She just didn’t know it yet.
Viktor sighed, rubbing his temple before reaching for his phone. He hesitated for a second, then sent one more message.
"Go to bed, Alina. You’ll need your rest."
Then he put the phone down and exhaled.
It was only a matter of time.
She would come to him.
She would have no choice.
To be continued…
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- Writer
