The scrolling stopped instantly. A single line of text remained at the bottom: CAUTION: DATA ARCHIVE UNLOCKED. SUBJECT: ELIAS THORNE.

Elias opened it. The image showed the back of a man’s head, illuminated by the blue light of a computer monitor. In the reflection of the monitor within the photo, he could see a dark shape standing in the corner of the room—the corner directly behind him.

The file was just a string of characters on a glowing screen, but to Elias, it was a ghost story waiting to be told.

Elias didn't turn around. He didn't have to. The zip file hadn't just been a download; it was a door. And on his screen, a new line of text appeared in the terminal: Extraction complete. We’re in.