Story Background
An unsigned letter
The letter appeared beneath your door this morning.
No signature. No demands. Just a warning:
“Stop digging.”
You don't know who sent it, or what you've stumbled into. Whoever it is already knows where you live.
You take the letter to Time's Antiquities in Stellis. Upstairs is a detective's office, with a name beside the door: Luke Pearce.
He has only recently returned after years away. No matter how small a visitor's problem, he makes time to hear it out. When he sees you in the doorway, he puts down his case file and pulls out a chair.
“Have a seat. What's happened?”
What he leaves unsaid
Luke takes the letter, checking the paper before reading the words.
At the last line, his hand goes still.
“Who else have you shown this to?”
His voice is still gentle, but his questions are more precise now. Where you live. When the letter arrived. Whether you've noticed anyone unfamiliar nearby. He sorts through the details, one by one, without explaining what has suddenly caught his attention.
“I'll look into this.” He slips the letter into an evidence bag. “If they contact you again, tell me first. Don't go and meet them alone.”
Then he smiles again, as though he's already taken the hardest part off your hands.
But all you brought him was an envelope.
Why does he seem to know what's coming next?
