Must Be

“I live by the train station on the east side of town.” I said shakily, looking all around me as I tried to breath. “I just saw someone get stabbed outside!”

“I’ll send someone over there right away.” The operator replied calmly, on the other side of the phone. “Did they see you?”

“I don’t think so. As soon as I saw it happen, I ran away.” I turned to make sure my door was locked, then started checking the windows and back door. “I live alone and have no relatives I could stay with.”

“Just stay on the line. I have your address as…” As she listed off my address I nodded, trying to suck air into my aching lungs. “I’ll have the officers come to your residence to make sure no one followed you.”

I was on my way home from work, about a block away, when I heard two men arguing over what sounded like money. I just so happened to look down the alley at the men when the taller man pulled what looked like a dagger and began stabbing the other guy. Terrified, I took off immediately, fumbling with my purse to pull out my keys and cellphone. Even though I was within the safety of my own home, I was still shaking and trying to catch my breath. The operator stayed on the line with me, talking in a soothing voice and did her best to calm me until the police arrived. A knock on the door had me shaking, slightly, pressing myself against the wall across from it.

“Miss Thomas, that is the officers I sent over to you.” The operator replied in my ear, encouragingly. “If you’re wary, take it slow and check.”

And I did just that. I looked through the peephole to see two officers, both holding their badges up with grim expressions on their faces. Slowly, I unlocked the deadbolt and doorknob before opening the door just enough to look through the crack. The men held their hands up, peacefully, with one look at my face. Apparently, I was still shaken and it showed on my face. They showed me their badges again before they shared a look. I was panicked and now I felt confused. Why did they look at each other like that? Just what was going on here?

“Miss Thomas? You can hang up with the operator now.” One officer said, eyes focused on my hand that gripped the doorknob. “My name is Officer Matthews and this is Officer Devlin. We’re with the police department and responded to the area you said you saw the stabbing.”

“When we checked the alley you told the operator, there was nothing there.” Officer Devlin continued as they shared another look. “Are you certain you saw someone get stabbed in that alley?”

“Officer Matthews, Officer Devlin, I am not crazy. I saw two men fighting and one of them pulled a knife.” I replied, lifting my hand from the doorknob to cross my arms over my chest. “I can show you where they were standing, if that helps…but I don’t want to go alone.”

It was already dark out, a sign of winter approaching, I thought, as I grabbed my jacket, made sure my door was locked, and followed the two officers to the alley. I just assumed that since the alley was dark, they would not be able to see, but when I got there with them, my cellphone flashlight aimed at the ground the two men were arguing on, there was nothing. No blood, no bodies, nothing was there. Shocked, I stood there for a moment, staring at what I knew to be impossible. There was no way that, with that many stabs, there would not be any blood left behind on the ground.

A chill made its way down my spine making me shiver to my core. I know for a fact I saw two men fighting, and it sounded like it was over money. I could still hear the sound of a knife going into flesh, and the squelching sound it made when the man pulled it out. I could even remember the flash of silver I saw in the moonlight. Raising my free hand up to my chest, I felt like screaming, like crying, like turning to the officers I knew were still behind me and telling them that I was not crazy again. But that was exactly how it looked.

“I saw two men arguing. One was tall, the other shorter than him, and they were both wearing dark clothes.” I turned to the officers who were staring at me blankly. “I know what I saw.”

“We’ll walk you home and keep an eye out for anything odd for a few hours.” Matthews said, offering a friendly smile. “And we’ll check with some of the other people that live in the area first thing tomorrow to see if they heard anything that would corroborate your story.”

I sighed at this, knowing that the buildings on either side of this particular alley were abandoned. If someone else did not see the incident, it looked like whoever the shorter man was would not get justice. Nodding, I followed the officers out of the alley, but another chill ran down my spine. It felt as though someone was watching me. I looked around, curious as to if I was just being paranoid, but saw nothing. Shaking my head, I made my way home, praying that what I felt back there was just the adrenaline wearing off.

When I got back home, the officers walked me in and made sure I locked up before they returned to their car. I felt a bit more comfortable knowing they were out there, but I was still shaking. What else could I do, especially after a night like tonight? Again, I could see those men arguing, some of their words slipping past their lips in yells. Did today not start out normal? I made my way into my kitchen before sighing. I did not feel like eating, so I went to my bedroom and picked up my cellphone. Maybe I will feel better if I talk to someone.

“Hey Trina.” I said when she picked up. “I’m a little scared to be alone right now. Can we talk for a bit?”

A month later, after visiting the alley once more, in the daytime, I confirmed that it must have been my imagination that night. So too, must the eyes I felt on me when I was with the officers. I had not felt anything like it since, so maybe I was just tired. The truth was, I had not been sleeping well at that point in time. I made sure to get proper sleep from then on. I looked up from my desk at work to accidently lock eyes with Josh, my coworker. We talked often, usually about work, but he was always telling me something funny.

“Do you have the files ready?” Trina asked, her eyes on her own desk. “I have to submit the final copy in twenty minutes.”

“Yes, I’ll send it to the printer for you now.” I replied, turning my gaze back to my computer. “There.”

“Hey, Kristie,” It was Josh’s voice, causing me to look up at him. “Want to grab lunch?”

“Sure, it is about that time.” I replied with a friendly smile, turning my gaze back down to my computer. “I am feeling a little peckish.”

“Awesome! I was nervous for nothing.” Confused I tilted my head back up, but he was already headed back to his desk.

Was it supposed to be like a date? Shaking my head, I finished up, let Trina know I was headed to lunch without her, and met Josh just outside the office. As we walked side by side, my head tilted slightly and my mind wandered back to that scene I watched happen a month ago. At the time, it had seemed so real, but the police found nothing, and on my daytime visit, I found nothing. If there was nothing, how could it have happened? Walking into our usual lunch spot, I followed him to a booth in the back. I smiled as I sank into the seat across from him and looked down at the menu.

“I love coming here.” I said, think about the fact that usually Trina was with us, but it is not bad to be with Josh alone this time. “This place has the best burgers.”

“I agree. This is the least tired-looking I’ve seen you in a month.” He said, and when I looked up at him suspiciously, his eyes were on his own menu. “Have you been eating and sleeping better since those all-nighters we did?”

Oh. That is what he was talking about. Shaking my head, I tried to ignore my crazy imagination. There was no way he could know about that night. He was still at the office when I left. I looked back down at my menu, considering my answer. Josh often asked after my well-being, and there was nothing suspicious about that. Placing our order with the waitress, I looked over at him with a smile. No, I definitely had been getting more sleep, and eating better, because I did not want my imagination pulling a trick like that again. It had been horrifying.

“Yes, I’ve been getting plenty of sleep at night, and eating better. I feel much more energized.” I replied with a bright smile. “Thanks for asking, Josh.”

“Nah, it’s just…” He hesitated, before smiling slightly. “I’ve been worried about you.”

“Oh…” This knowledge made me feel a little embarrassed. “Well, I’m fine. So, is it my turn to pay, or yours?”

“I hope you’ll let me pay and not argue with me about it.” He said with a smirk, before looking around the table at the other patrons. “Or, are you going to call the cops this time?”

I froze, eyes wide as I watched him. What…did he just say? Everything stopped at that moment. Literally stopped. People stopped eating, the ticks on the clock froze and I looked around our usual café wondering just what the heck was going on. Then, I felt an ice-cold hand wrap around my own, and my eyes ventured back to him. Instead of the normal brown of Josh’s gaze, I was met with dark red eyes. A longer canine than I was used seeing to poked out of his mouth to press against his own lip, drawing blood. I wanted to run, but I felt frozen to the spot, terrified and my blood ran as cold as his hand.

“I doubt you will believe me, but you will forget any of this happened anyways.” He whispered; eyes narrowed as he looked at me. “This, and that night did not happen. You walked home that evening and it was just another night. Today, you and I had lunch together and we had fun like always. Isn’t that right, Kristie?”

“Oh, right, yeah, I always have fun with you too.” I replied, shaking my head and wondering why I was distracted. “Sorry about that, I have no idea where I went there.”

Why did it feel like I had forgotten something? I smiled up at him and continued our conversation about our favorite foods. It had been a while since we really had the opportunity to talk, and Josh always had something new to share. I looked up to meet his pretty brown eyes with a giggle. He could be so much fun at times like these. I wish Trina could have come. It was nice to have good friends to hang out with! When we got back to the office, I walked over to my desk and sat back down next to Trina.

“So, did you ever figure out what happened that night?” I heard her ask next to me, so I turned to her and blinked in confusion. “You know, with those two guys that were arguing?”

“What are you talking about, Trina? Everything’s been normal lately, except for all the overtime we’ve been doing.” I replied with a chuckle. “Are you getting enough sleep lately?”

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