The door suddenly rattled, jolting me from my panicked thoughts. My grip tightened on the knife, my heart hammering in my chest as I pressed myself against the wall beside the door. The knob twisted, the sound of keys jingling faintly. Someone was coming in.
I held my breath, every muscle in my body tense. I could feel the cold sweat on my back and the clammy dampness of my palms around the rusted knife. The door creaked open, and a shadow fell across the floor. A deep, gravelly voice spoke, low and commanding.
"I know you're in here. Come out quietly, and I might go easy on you."
The air felt heavy, suffocating, like the oxygen was being sucked away just by his presence. I stayed rooted to my spot, every inch of me trembling with a primal fear I couldn’t reason away. He took a step int
