the buzz in my pocket was a constant companion a comforting thrum against my thigh texts emails the occasional breaking news notification my phone was the umbilical cord connecting me to the digital world it held my entire life contacts photos work files even that embarrassing karaoke video from college I swore I'd delete but spoiler alert I hadn't so when the familiar weight vanished from my pocket on that rainy Tuesday afternoon Panic clawed its way up my throat my first thought was absent-mindedness maybe I'd left it at the coffee shop while getting my usual latte but as
I retraced my steps a cold dread coiled in my gut the bustling train ride the long meeting my phone had vanished I thought I'll get a new phone tomorrow but something far more Sinister was waiting for me in the morning I found a single sheet of paper on my doorstep did someone leave it last night as I gave it a read I got chills down my spine inside it only two lines resided the first one was a familiar phrase that I once casually mentioned to a friend in a conversation the day before I lost my
phone Sam and Teriyaki for lunch extra seaweed below it scrolled in bold red were the words your phone knows everything and now so do I fear clung to my chest what the hell some creepy stranger has my phone from that day onwards I started getting these anonymous emails every single one of them served a punch to my gut sometimes it was details about a childhood Crush I'd confided in years ago the name of my first pet the embarrassing karaoke song incident and the list goes on it was like the thief was living my life holding
my Secret's hostage I couldn't go to the police how do you explain someone stealing your data and using it to stalk you all I could do was get a new phone and inform all my friends and family about this incident still the threatening emails didn't leave me be it was then I reached out to Leo my techsavvy friend and Resident computer wizard Leo a walking Encyclopedia of tech hacks and troubleshooting understood my predicament immediately they've accessed your data man he confirmed his voice tight with concern but there's a chance we can track him then do
it dude I want to know who this MF making my life miserable days turned into a blur of frantic searches and sleepless nights Leo fueled by gallons of coffee and righteous Fury worked tirelessly he used a combination of forensic software and what he called ethical social engineering to trace the digital Footprints of the stolen data finally after what felt like an eternity he found a lead a ping from a dilapidated apartment Building located on the outskirts the building rre of neglect the air thick with a sense of Despair and loneliness Leo's tracking device showed us
that whoever had my phone was living in the last apartment on the second floor of this building with a pounding heart we stopped right outside the specific apartment and knocked on the door a few minutes later a gaunt man answered the door his eyes wide and bloodshot before he could speak I blurted that's my phone you stole it surprise flickered across his face quickly replaced by a sneer don't be ridiculous he scoffed I I don't know you get lost the man then tried to slam the door on our face but Leo put his foot between
the Gap and stopped him we know what you've been doing we have the proof a flicker of fear turned the man pale he lunged for the door but Leo was faster he shoved his shoulder against it the momentum sending them both stumbling into the dimly lit apartment a struggle ensued a tangle of Limbs and adrenaline I lunged for a heavy book lying on a nearby table and smacked the man on the head almost giving him a concussion he finally gave up when the Sirens of cop cars wailed in the distance a wave of exhaustion washed
over me we found out that the man's name was Arthur he had a perfect life a wife and a young son his wife got addicted to social media and neglected their young son one day the little boy captivated by a flashing light had wandered Into The house's main circuit box and met a tragic end the grief drove his wife to Madness and she left the house in the middle of the night Arthur hasn't seen her since Arthur lost and broken developed a twisted Vendetta against the very technology that had stolen his family he began stealing
phones immersing himself in the digital lives of his victims hoping to terrify them and into disconnecting into cherishing the real world instead of the curated one on the screens after the cops took Arthur away I retrieved my phone but the echo of your phone knows everything hung heavy in the air I checked into the small motel in Kansas exhausted from my work trip the neon sign outside flickered casting an eerie glow over the parking lot room 23 was nothing special a bed a nightstand A Worn Out Chair and a Bible in the drawer I tossed
my bag on the bed and headed to the bathroom the splashing water on my face that's when I saw it a mobile phone lying on the sink it looked like it had been there for a while a bit dusty but otherwise in good condition I couldn't resist my curiosity and plugged it into my charger while I took a dump when I picked it up again the screen lit up and to my surprise it was UNL locked this is weird who leaves their phone behind like this I started flipping through the photo straight away a beautiful
girl with long dark hair appeared in every picture always wearing a golden cross necklace she was smiling in most of them but something seemed off the backgrounds were often blurred and there was a strange shadowy figure in the corners of some images it was getting weird but it jumped to unsettling in the last picture in which she held her tongue out and was almost licking a dead cat which she held in her hands there was a strange symbol drawn with blood on the wall behind her probably a Satanic ritual that is when suddenly a woman's
scream pierced the silence making me jump the phone screen glitched as well my heart pounded as I looked around but there was no one else there what the hell was that I shook off the unease and turned to the phone but it wouldn't start and automatically the bathtub tab turned on but as I approached to close it I felt like I saw a shadow move in the corner I didn't think much of it splashed some water on my face and returned to the room about an hour later I was tucked into bed had my laptop
on and was working on a presentation when I looked up and what I saw made my heart skip a few beats there in the middle of the small motel room I saw a shadow standing and watching me I froze couldn't even scream but the shadow just turned and started walking towards the bathroom I don't know why but I followed heart and my throat and after it disappeared behind the door I pushed it open but nothing the bathroom was empty okay what did they mix in the water I decided to take a break and pulled out
the Bible from the drawer maybe a passage would help calm my nerves I opened it at random and found a highlighted passage which was strange the Lord is my light and my salvation Whom Shall I Fear the Lord is the stronghold of my life of whom shall I be afraid as soon as I read the room began to tremble a woman's scream echoed in the room I dropped the Bible and ran to the bathroom knowing the source of the screams was there this time the sight made my blood run cold the same girl from the
phone was levitating above the bathtub her face Twisted the Golden Cross was around her neck glowing ominously blood poured from her mouth as she screamed filling the tub below I stood Frozen unable to move or look away she plunged into the blood-filled tub and everything went black when I woke up I was lying on the bathroom floor everything seemed normal the bathroom clean and the tub empty I thought maybe it had all been a horrible nightmare but then I saw it the Golden Cross lying in the bathtub no way this could be real I reached
for it the cold metal against my skin a sense of dread washed over me I had to know more about what happened to this girl so I hurried to the motel office the motel manager was an older man I showed him the cross and asked about the girl that belonged to Maria she stayed here a few months ago sweet girl always smiling but something changed she seemed scared like she was running from something one night she just vanished no bags no phone no sign of her but she painted some horrible things in the bathroom I
didn't want no trouble with the police so I got it cleaned up I felt a shiver run down my spine I packed my things and left that very night but along the way I stopped my car dug a hole by the roadside and buried the phone there I thought it was a Satanic ritual which went wrong but I wished her peace and left I still remember the sting which I felt when our teacher announced that Jill had passed away it's been 5 years since she was there one day her Bright Smile lighting up the classroom
and then she was just gone the official report said it was an accident but something in me always felt it wasn't that simple a few days after her passing my friend CLA and I were wandering through the park near Jill's old house that's when we found it a phone half buried in the dirt beneath a large oak tree the screen was cracked but it was powered on and it shook us the wallpaper isn't that Jill's dog I think this is Jill's phone we sat on a bench and went through it we found videos that were
dated the night Jill died my hands trembled as I pressed play the first video was shaky showing Jill in her room she looked scared Whispering frantically if anyone finds this please help me my dad he's angry again the next video showed something more disturbing Jill's father Mr Hart stormed into her room shouting incoherently he grabbed her arm and she struggled pleading with him to stop the look in his eyes was terrifying pure rage we have to show this to someone the final video ended abruptly Jill screaming as the phone hit the ground my heart raced
a mix of fear and anger bubbling up inside me foolishly we decided to confront Mr Hart hoping to get answers we reached her house the place seemed more like a haunted mansion than a home I knocked on the door and Mr Hart answered his eyes cold and calculating ah bill and it's Claire isn't it Donna's daughter yes Mr Hart we um wanted to pair condolences he just nodded his head we also found something I think it's Jill's phone his face Twisted in Anger he lunged at me snatching the phone from my hand we know what
you did I have backups of the things that were in her phone he grew pale you have the day to come out with the truth tomorrow we go to the police you kids have no idea what you're meddling with get out before you regret it Claire and I ran fear pushing us forward we knew we needed to be cautious so we shared our live location with each other just in case that night I couldn't sleep my mind kept replaying the videos Jill's terrified face haunting me the next day I was walking home from school when
a van pulled up beside me before I could react Mr Hart jumped out grabbed me and shoved me inside he put a cloth over my face and then I blacked out when I opened my eyes I was tied in the middle of a dense forest you should have stayed out of this boy he tied me to a tree pulling out a knife I struggled but the ropes were too tight you don't have to do this it's the only way the curse it needs blood the shaman said it would lift if I sacrificed the blood of
a virgin but as it turns out Jill was probably impure you've always been a shy kid I bet your blood would lift me from this financial depression what have you gone mad there wolves in the world and you got to protect yourself you killed your own daughter because some Shaman said so don't speak ill of him he speaks to the Wolves don't make this worse Mr Hart don't do this please but he moved ahead with his knife uttering to himself strike to the heart two twists the birdies will LARP Crush misfortunes and Mists he approached
closer while I begged and screamed at the top of my voice for help but who would even know of my presence in the middle of nowhere he touched the cold blade to my neck and just stared at it like a madman looking at where to cut I closed my eyes and yelled for one last time but just as he raised the knife bang bang two shots were fired one hitting the Tree close to my head and the other hitting him in the leg he went down instantly and to my relief I saw policemen emerge from
the woods with urgency followed by Claire and her and my parents I broke down immediately and cried while the police rushed to untie me and arrest Mr Hart this was our plan all along bait Mr Hart I became the victim Claire had seen my location stop moving and called her parents who alerted the authorities he was taken away later during interrogation he confessed everything he believed his family was cursed unable to Achieve Financial Freedom a shaman convinced him that a blood sacrifice of a virgin was the only way to break the curse he never liked
Jill since she was a stepdaughter and while her mother was away to Africa working as a missionary he drowned her in the bathtub and faked it as an accident we never know how many sick people are walking Among Us 5 years on I still think about that day sometimes wishing peace unto Jill's spirit
