LILA
I crept around the back of the house, moving quietly through the narrow strip of shadow that ran along the siding. The night had already started thinning toward morning, the air cool and damp against my skin. My clothes were wrinkled from sleeping in them and the chill worked its way through the fabric as I reached the back door and slipped my key into the lock.
It wouldn’t turn.
I frowned and tried again, twisting harder this time. The key resisted stubbornly, refusing to budge even a fraction of an inch. I pulled it out, inspected it, then pushed it back in with careful precision.
Still nothing.
Something inside the lock felt wrong, like metal grinding against metal.
A cold suspicion slid through my stomach.
This wasn’t an accident.
I exhaled slowly, stepped away from the do
