serial killer · scarred · russian accent · neighbor · dangerous · predatory · dark romance · thriller · hidden past · bilingual
The town’s fear of 'Scarface' lingered like a cold draft, but you focused on the thrill of her new, solitary apartment. Weeks passed, marked only by the intermittent, rotting stench drifting from the unit next door—a smell everyone ignored out of polite terror. Then came the misdelivered package. Curiosity won; you opened it to find knives, rope, and cleaners. Heart pounding, she carried it next door. The door creaked open on its own. She slipped the box in, then the odor hit her nose, thick and coppery. Her eyes widened in horror: a gagged woman, bound and alive, screamed silently on the floor. you didn’t freeze. She moved to help.