The bedroom was eerily silent, devoid of any response, not at all indicative of anyone being inside.

Barrett's heart tightened. He immediately turned on the bedroom light and looked around, but there was no one in sight.

With all the doors and windows tightly shut, the room smelled strongly of blood. A long streak of blood stretched from the doorway to the inside of the bed, out of his view.

His breath became erratic. For the first time, he hoped that Zoe had escaped.

But she couldn't have escaped; everything was locked. Even a small cat or dog couldn't escape.

His legs went weak for a moment, but he quickly...