The figure remained there, motionless, as if it had sprung from the darkness itself.
Jacob did notShe could make out his face, just the silhouette outlined by the
flickering streetlights. Something about his posture, rigid and expectant, sent a
shiver down her spine like ancient ice.
"Jacob," Sara whispered, clinging to his arm. "Do you
see?" He nodded without looking away.
"Don't go near the windows," he said in a tone I didn't recognize as my own.
But before he could process what was happening, the figure took a step forward. It
was a slow, almost graceful movement, and so silent that Jacob didn't even hear
the pavement crunch. A lamppost illuminated its face for a fleeting moment.
Jacob froze.It was
Robert.
His own brother.
However, something was off. His expression was empty, too empty. There was no
mockery, no arrogance, none of that sharp glint of superiority that usually
characterized him. Onlya dark emptiness, as if her soul had departed and her body
had been left like an empty vessel.
Robert raised his hand in a stiff salute.
"What's he doing here?" Sara asked, terrified. "It's not normal... it's not him."
"I don't know," Jacob murmured, "but I'm going to
find out." Sara held him tightly.
—Don't go out! Jacob, don't go out! Something's wrong with him… something
terrible!
But Jacob was already walking toward the door. His breathing was becoming
faster.With each step, the air around him seemed to thicken. It was his brother, his
blood, the only family he had left besides his wife and children. And although their
relationship had always been strained, Jacob had never seen it that way.
He opened the door.An icy wind hit him, even though the night was mild. Robert was still there,
aboutmeters, smiling with an expression that did not belong to him.
—Hello, Jacob—she said in a voice that was too calm, almost a whisper.
—Robert… what are you doing here at this hour?
Robert bowed his head, as if reflecting.
—I just wanted to see you. It's funny… I've been thinking about you all day.
Jacob felt a pang of alarm. Robert never thought about him, not like that. He had
always lived in his world of luxury, parties, and shady dealings disguised ashonest
success.
Are you okay, Robert? Is something wrong?
Robert's smile widened, but his eyes remained dead, without any shine.
—I'm… better than ever.
Jacob took a step back. That smile wasn't human. It was a forced, rigid grimace, as
if someone had drawn it on his face without fully understanding how men smile.
—Listen, come back tomorrow. It's late now. The children are asleep.
"The children…?" Robert blinked slowly. "Oh, yes. Daniel and Rebecca. Your
precious
Family. How much you love them.
Jacob felt a knot in his stomach.
—What do you mean by that?
Robert stared at him. Too intently.
—Nothing. Just… enjoy them while you can.
Jacob took another step back.
—Robert, are you threatening my family?
A heavy silence fell between them. Robert seemed to be analyzing the question, as
ifIt will take time to understand the words.
Finally he said:
—Not me.And in the blink of an eye, the expression on her face changed. The smile vanished.
Her eyesThey recovered, for a moment, a glimmer of humanity.
A desperate glimmer.
"Jacob…" she whispered, her voice no longer icy. "Help me…"
—Robert! What's happening to you?
But the flash faded as quickly as it had appeared. Robert brought his hand to his
forehead, as if feeling an indescribable pain. Then he took a step back… and
another… andAnother, walking backwards without turning around, without losing
eye contact, like an inverted puppet.
"We'll see each other soon," he said, his voice hollow again. "Very
soon." And he walked into the darkness until he disappeared
completely.
It took Jacob several seconds to catch his breath. He entered the house still
trembling.locking the door.
Sara waited for him with tears in her eyes.
"What did he say? What did
he want?" Jacob slumped
down on the couch.
"I don't know..." she whispered, "but something is using my brother."
The next morning, Rebecca seemed physically recovered, but she remained
strangely silent. She simply observed everything around her with a
seriousnessunbecoming of a twelve-year-old girl. Sara insisted on taking her to the
doctor, but the tests showed nothing abnormal.
"She's physically fine," the doctor said. "Perhaps it was an isolated neurological
episode."
Jacob knew it wasn't true. The voice that spoke through his daughter was neither
human nor medical.
It was something
older.More powerful.
In the afternoon, Rick arrived unannounced. He practically ran into the house."Jacob," she said, her breath ragged. "I need to talk to you. Something's
happening."in the city.
"What now?"
Rick swallowed.
—Last night… many people saw figures in front of their houses. Not just you. And
in several places, they describe that these figures… resembled family members,
but didn't act like them.
Sara covered her mouth with her hand.
—How… do you copy?
"I don't know," Rick replied. "But they all describe the same thing: empty
eyes, strange movements, rigid smiles. Some even said the figures repeated
nonsensical phrases, as if they were learning to speak. Others heard their
names whispered from the darkness."
Jacob felt a chill.
—And my brother? Have you heard anything from him?
"Yes," Rick said quietly. "There's a rumor… they say he was seen in a
building…"offices this morning. He was walking aimlessly, saying incoherent things.
That he was talking to someone who wasn't there. That he was responding to
invisible voices.
Sara shuddered.
"This isn't normal," Rick murmured. "It's not human. I feel... I feel like he's..."
Opening a door. And whatever is on the other side has already begun to cross.
Jacob stood up slowly. His heart was pounding, but now there was moreclarity
that fear in her gaze.
"My brother is trapped," he said. "I can't abandon him." Rick
took him by the shoulders.
—Jacob… last night I saw something. Something I didn't tell you. When I dreamt
about your brother… I heard
A name. An old name.
-Which?
Rick took a deep breath.—The Adversary.
A chilling silence fell over the room.
Sara brought Rebecca closer, who was observing everything with large, dark eyes.
"Dad..." the girl whispered for the first time since her episode, "the faceless man is
near."
Jacob felt like the world was stopping.
And he knew that the test had only just begun.