Chapter One: The Package
The city was unusually quiet that night.
Amara sat alone in her small apartment, scrolling through her phone while the sound of distant traffic drifted through the window. She was about to put her phone away when she heard three loud knocks on her door.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
She froze.
Who could be visiting at this hour?
Amara slowly walked toward the door and looked through the peephole.
Nobody.
She opened the door slightly and looked outside.
The hallway was empty.
But something caught her attention.
A small black box sat directly in front of her door.
Amara frowned.
She stepped outside, picked it up, and examined it. There was no address, no sender’s name—nothing.
Only one thing was written on the top.
AMARA.
Her heart skipped.
“Who sent this?” she whispered.
She quickly carried the box inside and locked the door.
Before she could even put it on the table, another knock came.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Amara turned toward the door.
Her breathing became faster.
She opened it again.
Nothing.
No person.
No footsteps.
Just a small piece of paper lying on the floor.
She picked it up.
Written in bold letters were four words:
OPEN THE BOX, AMARA.
She stared at the message.
For a moment, she considered throwing the box away.
But curiosity won.
She placed the box on the table and slowly began unwrapping it.
Just as her fingers reached for the lid, her phone rang.
It was her best friend, Stella.
Amara answered.
“Hello?”
There was silence on the other end.
“Stella?”
Still nothing.
Then the call suddenly ended.
Amara stared at her phone in confusion.
A second later, another message appeared on her screen.
DON’T OPEN IT.
Her eyes widened.
The message was from Stella.
Amara looked at the black box.
Then back at her phone.
For the first time that night, she wondered if picking up that box had been the biggest mistake of her life.
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