Ethan Carter burst through the front door of the mansion, his breath ragged and uneven. The cold night air slapped his face as he stumbled onto Raven Street. For a moment, he thought he had escaped.
Behind him, the mansion stood silent again—dark windows staring like empty eyes.
Ethan bent forward, hands on his knees, trying to calm his racing heart.
"That… wasn't real," he whispered to himself. "It can't be."
But even as he said the words, he felt something was wrong.
The wind had returned, but it carried a faint sound—almost like distant whispering.
"…waiting…"
Ethan froze.
"No… no, I'm imagining things," he muttered.
He forced himself to walk away from the house, but every step felt heavier than the last. After a few meters, he stopped and looked back.
The mansion looked exactly the same.
Except for one thing.
A light.
A faint yellow glow flickered in one of the upstairs windows.
Ethan's stomach twisted.
"I didn't leave any light on…"
The whisper came again, drifting through the wind.
"Ethan…"
He turned sharply.
"Who's there?" he shouted.
Only the empty street answered him.
Suddenly, his phone buzzed in his pocket. The sound made him jump.
He pulled it out with trembling hands. The screen lit up.
1 New Message
But the sender had no name.
Just a number he didn't recognize.
Ethan hesitated before opening it.
The message contained only three words.
"Do you remember now?"
A chill ran down his spine.
Remember what?
Before he could think further, another message appeared.
"Look at your arm."
Ethan frowned.
Slowly, he rolled up his sleeve.
His heart nearly stopped.
Scratched into his skin—fresh, red, and painful—were three letters.
R S H
Ethan stared at them in horror.
"I… I didn't do this…"
The wind suddenly howled louder, rattling the broken trees along the street.
Behind him, the mansion door creaked open.
Ethan didn't need to look to know it had.
The whisper returned—closer this time.
"Come back…"
His phone vibrated again.
Another message.
"You can run… but the house remembers."
Ethan's hands shook as he looked back toward the mansion.
The yellow light in the upstairs window had grown brighter.
And for a split second—
He saw a silhouette standing there.
Watching him.
Watching… patiently.
Ethan backed away slowly.
One thought echoed in his mind over and over:
What if the house didn't want him to escape?
What if…
He was meant to come back?
Far above him, inside the mansion, something moved in the darkness.
And somewhere within those silent walls, a voice whispered softly:
"Soon…"