Ripple Effect by N.A. Cooper

Author:N.A. Cooper [Cooper, N.A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bloodhound Books
Published: 2022-01-31T00:00:00+00:00

My side aches as I arrive home and the beginning of a headache is forming, pulsating behind my right eye. I go straight into the kitchen to find the painkillers, swallowing two with a glass of water. As I put the glass back next to the sink I hear a knock at the door, short and sharp. I check my watch: almost six. My first thought is John – has he forgotten his keys? – but I quickly dismiss the idea, it’s too early.

I sidestep over to the kitchen window and push aside the blinds slightly, looking to see whether there are any additional cars on the drive, but I already know I would have heard an engine – it’s a quiet street. The security light is on but, as I suspected, there are no strange cars and nothing to account for the noise.

I let the blinds fall back into place and walk slowly into the hall. I listen intently, holding my breath, but there’s nothing; no voices, no footsteps, no second knock. I move closer to the door until I’m brushing up against it. I rest my ear lightly to the wood, my hand resting on the thudding of my heart.

I don’t know how long I stay there – I’m in a state of limbo, my ability to decide what to do caught up in the panic. My jaw throbs by the time I move away, the clenching and grinding of teeth leaving a lasting ache. My mouth’s dry and my headache has worsened, the pain now spreading to my shoulders and neck. I step back, take a few deep breaths and unlock the door. I don’t know what I’m expecting to find, the scale of my imagination is so vast and varied that I have considered just about every possibility.

At first, there is nothing but the night. The security lights have relented, the driveway is just as I left it. Across the road, I notice Pete’s lights are on but his curtains are drawn and it occurs to me that it could have been him visiting quite innocently to check I have addressed the security – which of course I haven’t. I make a mental note to do it tomorrow.

As I’m about to close the door I notice a small white envelope on the floor outside. There is a rock sat on top of it, stopping the wind from carrying it away. I take another look around, suddenly distrusting of my previous assessment that I’m alone. Evidence doesn’t lie. This time I walk to the end of the drive, barefoot and struggling against the pain and growing disorientation of a migraine. Everywhere is quiet, the only noise coming from the distant sounds of an occasional car passing beyond the crescent.

I head back inside, picking up the envelope as I go.

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