Chapter Two – First Knock
Oct 03, 2025
The lights cut without warning, plunging her apartment into darkness. Lena cursed, fumbling for her phone flashlight. The air in the hallway felt heavier, pressing in.
And then she heard it: knock-knock… pause… knock-knock-knock.
From across the hall.
Her light swept over 1409. The door was shut now.
It opened.
The man stepped out, calm as if the outage was expected. Up close, she saw more details: a faint scar just above his left eyebrow, dark circles under his eyes, and a deliberate stillness to the way he moved, like every gesture was measured.
“You okay?” he asked.
“Yeah,” she said quickly. “Power outage, right?”
“Sometimes.” His eyes swept the hall. “Nothing to worry about.”
“Does it happen a lot here?”
“Enough.” He paused, gaze locking on hers. “Stay inside during outages. Safer that way.”
Before she could press, he slipped back inside.
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Across the hall lives Elias D’Ardenne, a man who is equal parts captivating and unsettling. He’s charming in moments, evasive in others, with a past that never quite adds up. Lena's notebook gets stolen—along with receiving cryptic symbols and an anonymous photograph that points straight back to her—she realizes she’s caught in a web much larger than her own broken past.
As paranoia builds and trust grows harder to grasp, Lena is forced to question not only who Elias truly is, but whether the most dangerous secrets are hidden in the building… or inside her own apartment.
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