Chapter 51: The Unseen Visitor
As Kate waited for Rodrick and Jason, her eyes roamed anxiously through the house. She’d checked every room—every corner—except for her bedroom. The killer had done nothing to the other rooms, but her bedroom... that was different. Her pulse quickened at the thought.
Just as she was coming out of the guest room, the doorbell rang, cutting through the tension like a knife. Kate rushed downstairs, practically stumbling to the door. She opened it to find
Jason was standing there, dressed casually in dark blue jeans and a light blue shirt. The casual attire was a stark contrast to the grim situation.
"Hello, Kate," Jason said, stepping inside. His voice was calm, but Kate could hear the edge of concern in it.
"Hey, Jason," Kate replied, trying to steady her breath. She glanced outside quickly, noting the black SUV parked at the curb. It was Rodrick’s car.
She heard footsteps and looked back at the door just as Rodrick appeared, his face drawn with worry.
"Hey, Kate," he said softly, his eyes scanning her face, looking for any sign of injury.
"Are you okay?" His voice was thick with concern. "Did the killer try to harm you?"
Kate shook her head, her hand instinctively clutching the doorframe. "No, not me. The killer came here when I wasn’t home. But when I got back… there was no one."
Rodrick’s eyes narrowed, a dark flicker of frustration passing over his features. He stepped inside, his gaze briefly flicking to Jason. “Oh, Officer Jason. You're here too.”
Jason gave a tight nod, his lips pulling into a small, almost imperceptible smile. "Yeah. She called me in."
Kate quickly explained, "I wanted both of you to see something."
She motioned for them to follow her upstairs, her footsteps quick and unsteady as she led the way to her bedroom. The familiar sound of their footsteps behind her was almost drowned out by the heavy thud of her own heart in her chest.
As they reached the door to her bedroom, Jason paused. He pulled on a pair of disposable gloves, his movements deliberate.
"Kate," he said, his tone now all business, "tell us exactly how you found this paper. And why do you think the killer left it here?"
Kate swallowed hard before speaking, her voice slightly shaky. "I found it a few minutes before I called you. I didn’t touch it, though. Left it exactly where it was. Just... sitting there, like the killer had meant for me to find it."
She stepped aside, pointing toward the bed. The plain white piece of paper sat on the bed, almost innocuous in its simplicity. But Kate knew better.
Rodrick stepped forward, inspecting it carefully, his face unreadable. "Hmm. This looks almost identical to the paper the killer left on the wall last time. Same size, same color."
Kate nodded. “It’s the same. It has to be.”
Jason, still focused on the paper, turned toward her. “Do you still have the first one? The one the killer left on the wall?"
"Yes," Kate replied, her eyes darting toward her study. "It’s in my study."
"Go get it. Bring it here," Jason ordered, his voice firm but not unkind. "And turn off the lights in the room. I need to check this under UV light for fingerprints."
Kate nodded quickly, her stomach tight with nerves as she walked to the wall and switched off the light.
The room fell into darkness, the only illumination coming from Jason’s UV flashlight. He aimed it at the paper, the dim blue glow flickering like the dying embers of a fire. The paper seemed to come alive under the light, its edges glowing faintly.
Kate was on the verge of stepping back into the hallway when something caught her eye. Something that made her blood run cold.
Her breath caught in her throat as she froze.
There, sitting on her pillow—on her pillow—was the creature. The thing she’d only seen in fleeting glimpses in her nightmares.
The goat-headed monster, its eyes glowing a sickly yellow in the dark. It was sitting cross-legged, its posture unnaturally calm, like some twisted monk in meditation. The creature’s black fur glistened in the faint blue light, and its twisted, jagged horns spiraled grotesquely from its skull.
Kate's pulse pounded in her ears as the creature’s gaze locked onto her. Its mouth stretched into a sickening grin, revealing sharp, jagged teeth. A low, guttural laugh bubbled up from somewhere deep within its chest, sending a wave of nausea crashing through Kate’s body.