Brynn's eyes snapped open, her heart instantly racing. The shrill beeping pierced the darkness of her tiny bedroom. She fumbled for her phone on the nightstand, squinting at the bright screen. 3:17 AM. What the hell?

She silenced the alarm with trembling fingers, then froze. A muffled thud from the living room. The creak of a floorboard.

Someone was in the apartment.

Brynn's mind raced. The alarm. It wasn't an accident - it was a warning. But from who? And why?

She slid silently out of bed, grabbing the baseball bat she kept nearby. The cool metal was reassuring in her sweaty grip as she crept towards her bedroom door. Another soft footstep from beyond. Brynn took a deep breath, tightened her grip on the bat, and reached for the door handle. Her fingers brushed the cool metal, hesitating for a split second before she turned it slowly, wincing at the faint click as the latch disengaged.

Heart pounding in her ears, Brynn eased the door open a crack. Darkness greeted her, the familiar shapes of her furniture barely visible in the gloom. She strained her ears, listening for any sign of movement.

Nothing.

Taking a steadying breath, she inched the door wider, bat raised and ready. The living room came into view, bathed in the faint glow of streetlights filtering through the curtains. Everything seemed in place, undisturbed.

Had she imagined the noises?

Heart pounding, she eased the door open just wide enough to slip through. The hallway beyond was dark, lit only by the faint glow of emergency lights. She paused, straining her ears for any sign of movement or voices. Nothing but silence. Brynn took a tentative step into the room, her bare feet silent on the hardwood floor. She swept her gaze around, searching for anything out of place. The couch, the coffee table, the mug. Anything. But nothing was different.

Taking a deep breath, she stepped back into the corridor, careful to avoid the creaky floorboard she knew was just to the left of the threshold. The carpet muffled her footsteps as she crept forward, one hand trailing along the wall for guidance.

At the end of the hall, a sliver of light spilled from beneath a closed door. That was her destination. But as she drew closer, a muffled voice drifted out. She froze, pulse racing. Brynn strained to make out the words, but they were too faint. Male or female? Friend or foe? She couldn't tell. Sweat beaded on her forehead as she inched closer, bat raised. The voice grew clearer, and she realized with a start that it was coming from her laptop. Had she left it on?

Suddenly, the door swung open. Brynn gasped, stumbling backward as light flooded the hallway. A figure stood silhouetted in the doorway, tall and imposing. She raised the bat, ready to swing.

"Brynn! It's me!" The familiar voice cut through her panic. "Don't hit me!"

She blinked, lowering the bat slightly. "Dad? What are you doing here?"

Her father stepped forward, hands raised placatingly. "I'm sorry, honey. I didn't mean to scare you. But we need to go. Now."

Brynn's mind reeled. "Go? What are you talking about? How did you even get in here?"

Her father glanced nervously over his shoulder. "There's no time to explain. Pack a bag, quickly. Essentials only. We have to leave in five minutes."

The urgency in his voice sent a chill down Brynn's spine. She'd never seen her father like this - his face was pale, his eyes wide with barely concealed fear. "Dad, you're scaring me. What's going on?"

He gripped her shoulders, his gaze intense. "Brynn, listen to me. Remember that project I've been working on? The one I couldn't talk about? Well, something's gone wrong. Very wrong. And now we're all in danger."

A cold dread settled in Brynn's stomach. What had he done?