Chapter 2
I was back in bed again.
The comments: [They were such a perfect match. It's heartbreaking that death tore them apart right before their wedding.]
[There's really no way out. Who could've guessed the killer would lock the stairwell door ahead of time?]
[Even after he got caught, the killer still tried to argue it wasn't him. What a piece of shit. If it wasn't him, who else could it be?]
[My heart hurts for Edwin.]
I took a deep breath, trying to steady my nerves.
No way to fight, no way to run. Hiding was all I could do.
I snatched up my phone, bolted from the bedroom, rushed out to the balcony, locked the door behind me, and squeezed myself into the wardrobe.
This was the old wardrobe I was going to throw away, but I kept putting it off. Who knew it would come in handy at a time like this.
The comments: [She's so quick to react. It's like she's read the script.]
[Like it even matters? She's doomed anyway. The author just had to kill her off and leave Edwin all alone. Ugh, I'm gonna spam the author with angry messages.]
[The killer's here.]
In the darkness, the door was slowly pushed open, and the man headed straight for the bedroom.
"Go to hell!" the killer roared.
He swung his axe at the bed a few times, only to realize there was no one there.
With trembling hands, I grabbed my phone, typed out a text to the cops, and hit send.
I'd locked the balcony door behind me, so at least that would stall him for a while.
Please, I had to survive this.
Just as a flicker of hope sparked in my chest, I glanced down at my phone, and then my heart sank. The screen read: [Message sending failed.]
How could this be?
I'd just topped up my phone, so it couldn't be out of credit. Could it be the signal?
My brain went completely blank. In a panic, I tried calling the cops, but the call wouldn't go through either.
Wasn't the emergency number supposed to work even with no signal?
Why wasn't it working?
The killer had already left the bedroom. I stubbornly kept trying to send the text, but it just wouldn't go through.
Desperately, I clung to a shred of hope and shot a message to Edwin.
Unbelievably, it actually went through.
But why couldn't I reach the police?
I didn't have time to think. Edwin was probably asleep and wouldn't notice my text. I called him, and after what felt like ages, he finally answered.
I hung up immediately and started typing frantically: [There's a killer in my house! Call the cops for me, now!]
Edwin totally panicked and shot back a reply almost instantly.
Edwin: [Erica, don't be scared. I've already called the cops, and I'm on my way.]
Seeing Edwin's message, I finally felt a bit of relief.
Inside the cramped wardrobe, my back was drenched in cold sweat.
The nearest police station was only a five-minute drive from my place. If they really floored it, maybe they could make it in three.
Every second dragged on like forever as I prayed for the police to hurry up and get there.
But three minutes passed, then five, and then eight...
All I could hear was the heavy thud of the killer's footsteps and the frantic pounding of my own heart.
Everything around me, inside and out, was dead silent.
The killer had finally noticed the balcony and was getting ready to break in.
Why weren't the cops here yet?
My hands were shaking uncontrollably, and I quickly texted Edwin again.
He seemed just as anxious.
Edwin: [The cops still aren't there? How could that be? I'll try calling them again. Hang in there, Erica. I'm almost there.]
He sent me a screenshot from a map app, showing he was only 0.3 miles away.
Come on, hurry up. Whether it was the cops or Edwin, just come here, please, faster.
I stared at my phone screen, desperately wishing time would just freeze.
When things got really desperate, people always noticed the tiniest details.
As I stared at the screenshot Edwin sent, I suddenly noticed the Wi-Fi icon in the top right corner.
How could he be on Wi-Fi while he was supposed to be out driving?
A wild thought crashed into my brain, and my heart skipped a beat when I realized the starting point on the map was actually a nearby shop.
If one was not physically at that spot, the map app would show the name of the place as the starting point.
Otherwise, it would just show "My Location."
Therefore, Edwin wasn't really there.
He wasn't actually 0.3 miles away from me.
He was on Wi-Fi. Maybe he hadn't even left home.
When that hit me, I felt my heart sink to rock bottom.
If Edwin was too scared of the killer to come, I could've accepted it if he'd just been honest with me. As long as he called the cops for me, that would've been enough.
But why did he have to lie to me and act like he was rushing over to save me?
Why weren't the cops here yet?
With a loud crash, the killer burst the door open.
"Found you," he said.
His voice, like something out of a nightmare, rang in my ear. The next moment, the wardrobe door was yanked open. In the moonlight, I saw his twisted grin and the axe gleaming coldly in his hand.
The comments: [OMG. This is terrifying.]
[I'm scared to death! I can't even begin to imagine how desperate Erica must be right now.]
Desperate? Of course I was.