The Third Rule at 2:17

The house was quiet again, until last night. At exactly 2:17 a.m.,

the baby monitor turned on one last time. No static. Just the boy’s voice,

whispering, “He told me the third rule.” The father asked, “What is it?”

No answer. Then, from the monitor speaker, a different voice,

deeper, calm: “The door opens… when everyone’s asleep.”

The father ran to his son’s room, empty bed, window open. He checked the hallway

camera. It showed the front door slowly opening by itself, and a small hand

reaching out from the darkness. No one’s seen them since 2:17 a.m. “That was the third