Page 16 of Trick or Stalk

I look toward the house again.

Movement inside catches my attention.

It’s a woman.

I can only make out her silhouette at first.

She moves around the room before settling onto what looks like a couch in front of a fireplace.

I should leave.

I've found the source of the barking. Mystery solved.

Instead, I stay where I am.

Something flickers across the windows.

A television.

The woman shifts, and for a moment, I catch a better glimpse of her.

She has long, dark hair. She’s petite. At least from here. A dog sits on her lap.

The same dog I heard barking.

I lean my shoulder against the tree, watching.

The dog suddenly lifts its head, its attention turns toward the window.

Toward me.

Interesting.

I don't move.

The dog goes rigid.

A few seconds later, the woman looks toward the window too.

She says something I can't hear.

The dog continues staring.

So do I.

The woman places the dog on the couch and stands.

My attention sharpens as she walks toward the window.

I could leave. She hasn't seen me yet.

She probably won't. The porch light reaches only so far, and I'm well beyond it, surrounded by trees and darkness.

Still, I step farther behind the trunk. I don't want her to see me.

She reaches the window.

For the first time, I see her clearly.