Daphne POV

You know fear’s back when every sound makes you check the locks twice.

By the third night, I stopped pretending the car across the street was random.

Same SUV, Same angle and Same silence.

Its black frame gleamed faintly under the streetlight, like an animal crouched in the dark, waiting for something or someone to move.

At first, I told myself it was nothing, maybe it belonged to a neighbor or a guest.

But when I stepped out to take the trash that night, the engine rumbled quietly ...