The Nursery That Wasn't There

The phone rang, shattering the silence of the night. The voice on the other end trembled

with panic. “Check on the kids… we just saw someone run past the nursery on the baby monitor.”

Her chest tightened. She didn’t know why, but an icy knot of fear formed in

her stomach. Heart racing, she dashed up the stairs, each step echoing

unnervingly in the quiet house. When she reached the nursery, she hesitated,

hand on the doorknob. With a deep breath, she swung it open… The room was empty. No cribs,

no toys, no children—just the faint hum of the baby monitor left on the dresser.

Silence. Absolute, suffocating silence. Confused, she glanced at her