Witness Without Being There
1004 Words
The flashing blue and red lights painted the apartment hallway in restless colors.
Nadia stood frozen outside Apartment 305, her breathing uneven as paramedics wheeled Olivia's body toward the elevator. A white sheet covered most of her face, but Nadia had already seen enough.
It was her.
The woman who had pleaded for help.
The woman from the mirror.
A police officer gently guided Nadia away from the apartment.
"Ma'am, I'm going to need you to come with me."
Nadia nodded without speaking.
The building's small meeting room had been turned into a temporary interview space. Two officers sat across from her at a folding table.
One introduced himself.
"I'm Detective Idris Bello."
He appeared to be in his mid-thirties, tall and composed, with observant dark eyes that seemed to notice everything. His voice was calm, but Nadia could tell he was already studying her reactions.
"This is Officer Grace Okeke."
Grace offered a polite smile before opening a notebook.
Idris folded his hands.
"Miss Adebayo, can you tell us why you were outside Apartment 305 tonight?"
Nadia hesitated.
"I... I came to check on someone."
"Someone?"
"A woman."
"What woman?"
Nadia swallowed.
"Olivia."
The detective's expression remained unreadable.
"Did you know Miss Olivia Martins personally?"
"No."
"Then how did you know her name?"
Nadia looked down at her hands.
"I found her profile in the residents' group chat."
"And why were you looking for her profile?"
She knew how impossible it would sound.
"Because I saw her earlier today."
Idris leaned back slightly.
"Where?"
"In the hallway."
"What hallway?"
"The third floor."
Officer Grace frowned.
"Our security cameras don't show anyone leaving Apartment 305 today."
Nadia stared at them.
"What?"
Idris slid a tablet across the table.
"This footage was recorded from eight this morning until the time we received the emergency call."
He pressed play.
The screen displayed the third-floor hallway.
Empty.
Hours passed in fast-forward.
No Olivia.
No visitors.
No Nadia.
The hallway remained deserted.
Nadia's heartbeat quickened.
"That can't be right."
"You said you saw Miss Martins."
"I did."
"You also said you spoke to her."
"Yes."
Idris paused the video.
"The camera says otherwise."
An hour later, the interview continued.
"What made you open her apartment door?" Idris asked.
"I heard someone crying."
"Did you force the door?"
"No. It was already unlocked."
Officer Grace exchanged a glance with Idris.
"That's strange."
"Why?"
"The door was locked from the inside when officers arrived."
Nadia blinked.
"No..."
"It took our team nearly three minutes to force entry."
"That's impossible."
"You tell us."
"I walked inside."
Idris remained silent for several seconds.
Finally he asked,
"What did you see?"
Nadia hesitated.
Should she tell them about the mirror?
Would they believe her?
She decided against it.
"The apartment looked abandoned."
"Anything else?"
She shook her head.
"No."
It was the first lie she'd told.
After nearly two hours, Idris stood.
"For now, you're free to go."
Nadia rose slowly.
"Am I... a suspect?"
He didn't answer immediately.
"You were present before anyone else."
"You knew the victim's name."
"You entered the apartment."
"You claim to have spoken with someone the cameras never recorded."
He met her eyes.
"So yes... you're someone we're interested in."
Outside, dawn was beginning to break.
The streets were quiet.
Nadia wrapped her coat tighter around herself as she walked home.
She couldn't stop thinking about the cameras.
She knew what she'd seen.
Didn't she?
Later that morning, sleep refused to come.
Instead, Nadia sat at her desk reviewing every photograph on her camera again.
Hundreds of images.
Wedding guests.
Flowers.
Decorations.
Nothing unusual.
Until...
She stopped at one photograph she'd somehow missed.
It wasn't from the wedding.
She didn't remember taking it.
The image showed the hallway of her apartment building.
Apartment 305.
The door was open.
Standing inside the doorway...
was Olivia.
She was staring directly into the camera.
Behind her stood a tall figure dressed in black.
Its face was hidden in darkness.
Nadia zoomed in.
The image blurred.
She zoomed again.
This time she noticed something even stranger.
Reflected in the polished floor behind Olivia...
stood Nadia herself.
Holding the camera.
But she had never taken that photograph.
A cold shiver ran through her.
Someone had.
Her phone rang.
Unknown number.
She answered cautiously.
"Hello?"
A woman's voice spoke in a whisper.
"You saw her."
Nadia froze.
"Who is this?"
"You weren't supposed to."
"What do you mean?"
"They know now."
"Who's 'they'?"
The caller's breathing became shaky.
"Don't trust the mirrors."
The line went dead.
Nadia immediately called back.
The number didn't exist.
Across town...
Detective Idris Bello stood inside Apartment 305 with the forensic team.
Most of the evidence was ordinary.
No forced entry.
No signs of robbery.
No fingerprints besides Olivia's.
Then one of the crime scene technicians called him over.
"Detective."
"What is it?"
The technician pointed toward the bedroom mirror.
"We found something."
"What?"
"There are fingerprints."
Idris nodded.
"Run them."
The technician looked uncomfortable.
"We already did."
"And?"
"They belong to..."
He hesitated.
"Nadia Adebayo."
Idris frowned.
"That's impossible."
"There's more."
"The fingerprints aren't on the front of the mirror."
Idris looked closer.
The technician swallowed.
"They're on the inside."
Silence filled the room.
Idris stared at the mirror.
It was impossible.
No one could touch the inside surface of a solid mirror.
Yet the evidence report was clear.
Someone had.
And according to the lab...
That someone was Nadia.
Far away in her apartment, Nadia stood before her bathroom mirror, unable to stop thinking about the anonymous caller's warning.
"Don't trust the mirrors."
She slowly lifted her hand.
Her reflection copied the movement perfectly.
She lowered it again.
The reflection did the same.
For a brief moment, she felt relieved.
Then she turned off the bathroom light and walked toward the door.
As she reached the hallway...
She glanced back.
In the darkness, her reflection was still standing in front of the mirror.
Watching her leave.
And this time...
It did not smile.
It whispered.
"Run."
- Writer
