Helene

The door slammed shut behind Freya with a deafening bang that echoed through the entire house.

For a second, nobody moved.

Then chaos exploded.

Everyone started rushing toward the exit at once, my mom’s friends scrambling over each other, heels clicking frantically on the marble floor, voices overlapping in panicked whispers. The woman Freya had held at knifepoint was sobbing loudly, clutching her throat as if it was still being cut, her face streaked with tears and mascara. She stumbled out after the others like the devil himself was chasing her.

The living room emptied in seconds.

And then everywhere was quiet once again.

The house felt suddenly, horribly...