Back at her desk, Seyla grabbed her purse to leave. It flew sideways, dumping the contents onto the floor. Why hadn't she zipped it closed? Stifling the urge to scream in frustration, she tossed the stuff back in and ran out to her vehicle. At this point, she’d scarcely have time to make it home to grab some yogurt prior to meeting Vanessa at the cat colony.
Twenty minutes later, the tires of Seyla’s SUV crunched down the gravel of one of the sanctuary’s service roads.
Her stomach growled, anticipating the yogurt and cheese stick laying on the passenger seat next to her. She’d have time to eat them if she got there fast enough.
So why was she driving at such a slow pace?
Because something felt off. She felt…watched. Again. Seyla’s skin prickled with awareness, a heavy sense of a malevolent presence solidifying the air. She glanced around while she drove, frequently checking the rearview mirror.
No movement.
Quads roared in the distance, but that wasn’t unusual. The family who owned the adjoining property on the other side of the sanctuary rode them a lot. Was that them? Or someone else?
Maybe she was losing her mind.
Spying movement out of the corner of her eye, Seyla slammed on the brakes. Waited. But she didn’t see anyone. Or anything. Must have been her new air freshener dangling from the rear view mirror that caught her eye.
Dragging a hand down her face, she pressed on the gas and focused on the road ahead of her.
Minutes later, she reached the first large wooden structure the sanctuary built to sustain a local colony of cats. The residents were microchipped, spayed or neutered, ear-tipped to distinguish any newcomers and monitored on a twenty-four-hour basis by video surveillance to prevent trespassers from tampering with the structures or the cats themselves.
Seyla rubbed her eyes. Did something move at the corner of the wall? It couldn’t be a cat. Not at that height. She kept her gaze fixed on the corner. Nothing stirred. Had she imagined it?
And where was Vanessa?
She glanced at her phone and groaned, then switched off “silent mode”. A text from Vanessa said she had a flat tire and would be at least fifteen minutes late. Fantastic.
Seyla called the sanctuary. The call immediately dropped due to the lack of cell reception in the woods.
She couldn’t be late for the meeting with the director. He’d fire her for sure, the way things had been going. However, she’d also get in trouble for not having another person with her. They were supposed to work in pairs at the colony as well for safety reasons.
Wait. She’d texted one of the employees once from the colony and they’d gotten it. Matt was off today. He hadn’t mentioned any plans when she’d talked to him yesterday. Plus, he already knew the way.
She punched the message into her phone and waited to see if it would be delivered. Success!
With a glance around to verify it was safe, she opened the door, hesitated, then got out and approached the first colony shelter.
Bent at the waist in the midst of refilling the food containers, Seyla froze at the sudden snap of twigs behind her. The scoop dropped from her hand. With slow, quiet movements, she stood up, listening for any further sounds.
Was Vanessa here already? Or Matt?
She peered over her shoulder at the service road endpoint. No other cars.
Her eyes scanned the woods for deer or a small animal. No signs of life.
The wind worsened, whipping around her, threatening to knock the ball cap off her head. Maybe it had broken some branches off, too. Holding onto the cap, Seyla ventured further into the shelter, hoping it would block some of the gusts from pelting her.
Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.
Seyla froze.
That wasn’t the wind.
Her heartbeat kicked up, her muscles tensing. She peeked out from behind the wall. A bulky figure in black crouched on the opposite side of her SUV, peering inside. And it wasn’t Matt or Vanessa. Her airway clamped shut. She retreated around to the other side of the building, careful to remain quiet. The threat of danger pressed into her on all sides, making it difficult to think.
The staff building. She’d be safe there.
Seyla sorted through her keys, the instinct to hurry pitted against the need to remain silent. Another crunching sound made her jump, rattling the keys and her bones. She peered around the corner. The figure had vanished. Where were they? Panic warred with nausea. She struggled to find the right key with shaky fingers. If she made it inside, she should be safe until help arrived.