I Accidentally Summoned a Demon and Named Him Fred

Sobs in the Dark

I didn't sleep at all.

Frank.

Crying.

At first, it was just a series of sharp, needy meows that clawed at the edges of my half-dreams.

Jesus, Frank, I thought, dragging the pillow over my head. You cannot be starving.

But as the nights went on, the sound changed. The cries stretched longer, twisting into strange, mournful notes, dropping into low, throaty groans.

Until they weren't cries anymore.

They were... sobs.

Heavy. Broken. Human.

My eyes snapped open.

The cold hit first, seeping straight into my bones and settling there.

I felt like I was being watched.

Like something else was breathing with me. Not in sync. Just a half-second off, like an echo.

My first thought was to call for my mom, but she was gone.

The familiar stab came instantly, sharp and automatic, like pressing on a bruise just to make sure it still hurt.

And suddenly my thoughts went back to that night—

My mom.

Crying.

Right before she locked herself in her room.

Then a curling cry that sounded nothing like Frank.

I sat up so fast the mattress shrieked under me.

Silence.

The sobbing cut off so abruptly that it left a ringing in my ears. No cat. No crying. Just the heavy, flat hum of the house holding its breath.

I swallowed, my throat dry, and slipped out of bed. My feet barely made a sound on the floor, but every step still felt too loud.

The hallway stretched in front of me, longer and darker than it ever looked during the day, like the house had changed while I was asleep.

Empty.

I wanted to call for Haime but couldn't bring myself to do it.

Only call if there is an emergency, Haime had said. His voice had been firm when he said it. He'd found a job with a very strict boss working at a factory during the night shift. And from what he muttered, his boss was a piece of mierda

So Haime was gone.

And Frank was nowhere to be found.

But across the hall—

My mom's door was open.

Wide open.

No.

Nope.

Absolutely fucken not.

I stared at it a second too long, my chest tightening, skin prickling.

Haime closed that door.

I knew he did.

I stepped back.

Slowly.

Quietly.

Then I shut my own door, like that thin piece of wood could keep whatever was out there... out.

I wasn't stupid.