December 17th
Chapter 17 — Static
Kateryna had barely slept. When she did, it was thin and dreamless, punctured by Mace’s boots in the hall, his voice barking orders, doors slamming like gunshots.
By breakfast, the atmosphere had curdled. Girls whispered behind cupped hands. Some refused to speak at all. Even the usual bravado of the long-timers had faded. A new fear clung to the walls — one without a name.
Mace hadn’t left the building. He stalked the corridors like a hound, eyes bloodshot and teeth grinding. Twice, Kateryna saw him with his phone to his ear, listening, but never speaking.
He slapped one of the newer girls for refusing to do something extreme that one of the punters requested. She cried. No one intervened.
Upstairs in the apartment, Kateryna sat beside Alina, who dabbed concealer over her split lip with slow, trembling fingers.
“What’s wrong with him?” Kateryna whispered.
Alina gave a tiny shrug, her eyes darting. “Something’s happened. He’s on edge. Paranoid.”
“You think he suspects?”
Alina hesitated. “He hasn’t said anything. But he’s watching everyone. Especially you.”
Kateryna’s hands were cold. She couldn’t tell if it was fear or certainty. There was no going back now. Whatever Michael had found on that USB — it had started something.
She glanced towards the hall.
What if Michael had been caught? Or killed?
That night, she lay awake as the girls around her settled into restless sleep. At some point, exhaustion overtook her.
She dreamed she was back in the club’s bathroom, the hum of the extractor fan loud and steady. The cistern lid was already off, the phone gone.
She turned — and saw Michael on the floor.
Dead.
His eyes were wide, glassy. His neck bent at a wrong angle. Blood pooled around his head. One of his hands was open, fingers curled, as if he’d tried to hold on to something — or someone.
Behind him stood Mace. Smiling. Calm.
He reached into his pocket and held up the USB stick.
“You really thought this would save you?” he said.
Kateryna woke with a gasp, her sheets damp with sweat.
She sat up, heart hammering, the dream still vivid behind her eyes. For a moment, she almost believed it had happened.
She pulled her knees to her chest and rocked slightly, listening to the silence.
There was still no message.
And no sign of Michael.
***
