Chapter 18: A Shadow In The Moonlight

At one hour past midnight, the silence of Kate's house shattered as the lock clicked open. The door swung inward, revealing a masked man clad in a black jumpsuit with a hood, his face obscured by a dark mask. Gloved hands deftly closed the door behind him.

He proceeded down the corridor opposite the main entrance of the house, opening the door on his left and peering inside. It revealed the living room. Stepping into the room, he surveyed his surroundings.

After a few minutes, he slipped into Kate's room without making a sound, quietly observing her. She lay sleeping on her bed, undisturbed by the coolness of the air conditioner, without a blanket covering her body.

"The investigative journalist, Kate Miller, sleeps here, oblivious to the intruder in her midst," the masked man murmured beneath his breath. He gazed at Kate's closed eyes before approaching the bed where she lay sleeping. Kneeling down, he scrutinized her face closely.

"She is undeniably beautiful... but her inquisitive nature will be her downfall," the masked man murmured as he brushed aside a strand of Kate's hair from her face. Kate lay unconscious, unaware of the intruder in her home.

With a raised hand, the masked man began to gently caress Kate's face and neck. As he did so, he stared into her eyes, repeating softly,

"You are under my control."

"Your body is not yours to control... it belongs to me," the masked man whispered, repeating the words under his breath.

"Your body grows heavier, limp, and lifeless... because I have taken control," he continued to murmur.

Suddenly, Kate felt a presence nearby and her eyes snapped open. She saw a masked man standing close to her, one hand on her neck and the other poised above her face, pointing a finger toward her eyes.

"Look at my finger," the masked man commanded, and Kate obeyed instinctively. As her gaze fixed upon his finger, she felt herself slipping into a hypnotic trance, her body growing limp and unresponsive.

Though aware of the presence of a stranger nearby, Kate found herself unable to move or speak, her mind clouded and numb.

Struggling against the paralysis that gripped her, Kate's eyes suddenly caught sight of a blurred figure standing behind the masked man. The figure bore the head of a goat and the body of a human, resembling one of the symbols drawn on the torn page of the Rubaiyat.

The blurred figure lurked closer, emitting eerie, choking sounds that seemed to constrict Kate's throat. She had never encountered anything like it before, and now, trapped in a hypnotic trance, she was unsure how to escape this monstrous entity and save her own life. Panic surged within her as she frantically searched for a way to break free from its grip and flee to safety.

"So, Kate Miller, I've heard you've been trying to find me... so, I've come to you," the masked man murmured as he gently caressed Kate's cheeks and lips.

"But I know you can't talk or move... I had to ensure your safety. Because I knew that if you saw me, you might do something foolish, and I would have to retaliate. But I don't want to harm you now," he said, his tone tinged with delight as he savored the moment.

"Don't worry, your turn will come, and it will come soon," the masked man taunted, his laughter echoing through the room.

As the masked man laughed, Kate observed the blurred figure behind him, its chilling laughter joining his own. Its pointed teeth became visible, sending a shiver down Kate's spine.

The creepy voice and screams emanating from the blurred figure only intensified, causing Kate's heart to race and her forehead to become drenched in sweat. Panic gripped her as she desperately sought a way to escape the clutches of this nightmarish scene.

Today, she was certain that her fate lay in the hands of the masked man or the sinister creature lurking behind him, ready to claim her life.

“I came here to tell you that you could never find me… but I am closer to you than your imagination and I can kill you any moment I want… so, stop coming after me.” The masked man brought his face near Kate and grunted.

Kate longed to scream for help, to summon anyone who could rescue her from this nightmare. Yet, paralyzed with fear, she found herself incapable of uttering a single sound. Oddly, this inability to act eased her terror, even as her heart pounded relentlessly in her chest.

"I'm leaving for now," the masked man declared, his voice laden with ominous promise. "But I'll return soon. And if you haven't heeded my warning, I'll bring a surprise you'll regret." With a chilling gaze, he pointed a finger at Kate's eyes before swiftly exiting the room, leaving her with a sense of impending dread.

Suddenly snapping out of her trance-like state, Kate bolted upright from the bed, gasping for air as sweat drenched her entire body.

"What was that?" she wondered aloud, her voice trembling with fear.

"Who was the masked man, and what was that terrifying figure lurking behind him?" she muttered to herself, her lips barely forming the words as she grappled with the unsettling experience.

With a lingering fear, Kate cautiously emerged from her room, half-expecting the masked man and his sinister companion to be lurking just beyond the threshold, ready to pounce. She meticulously searched every corner of her house, yet encountered no sign of them. When she reached the main door and found it securely locked, a shiver of confusion ran down her spine.

"If the door is locked," Kate whispered to herself, "then how could he possibly have entered?"

"Was he truly the murderer of the man found dead on somerton beach?" Kate pondered aloud, her mind swirling with questions. Seeking solace in the kitchen, she opened the refrigerator door and grabbed a water bottle. With trembling hands, she twisted off the cap and brought the bottle to her lips, gulping down water as if her throat were parched from traversing a desert. Her body trembled uncontrollably, as if she had just glimpsed death itself.

As Kate moved through the house, the dampness of her sleeveless tank top reminded her of the sweat and spilled water from the bottle. She hurried to her bedroom, intent on retrieving her mobile phone to call Samuel and Rodrick, fearing the return of the masked man and potential harm. But just as she reached for her phone, her eyes fell upon a piece of paper affixed to the wall above the headboard of her bed.

Curiosity and apprehension mingled as Kate approached the wall to inspect the paper. A sketch in blue pen caught her eye, depicting a figure holding a knife above a circle of continuity. Yet, upon closer examination, she realized the circle wasn't ink; it was drawn in blood. Beneath the chilling image, a four-lined paragraph written in a foreign language added to the enigma, sending a shiver down Kate's spine.

Recognizing the Persian language and identifying the quatrain as a Rubaiyat, Kate refrained from touching the paper, mindful of preserving any potential fingerprints left by the killer. She reached for her phone, intent on sharing the unsettling discovery with Samuel. After several rings with no answer, she muttered to herself,

"He must be sleeping or busy at the hospital." Undeterred, she dialed Rodrick's number, and his groggy voice greeted her through the speaker of her mobile phone.

"Hello, Kate."

"Rodrick, please come to my home," Kate blurted out urgently.

"Kate, it's 2:30 AM I'll hear your new theory in the morning," Rodrick replied in a sleepy voice.

"Rodrick, wake up! Someone broke into my house, I think it's the man we've been looking for," Kate exclaimed loudly, her words jolting Rodrick awake and propelling him out of bed, his sleepiness instantly vanishing.

"Kate, are you alright?" Rodrick asked, concern evident in his voice.

"I'm fine, but he didn't try to harm me," Kate reassured him. "You need to come over here; I have something to show you."

"I'm in North Adelaide... I'll leave the hotel now and should reach your place within two hours. Just wait for me, and don't do anything reckless," Rodrick instructed firmly before rising from his bed. He had traveled to North Adelaide for a meeting, but now, with Kate in distress, he couldn't stay any longer. Ever since the passing of Kate's parents, he had taken on the role of her guardian, holding a special place for her in his heart.