2

A tired Laura was returning home. The photoshoot had been a success—as always. She was beautiful, she'd known that for a long time, and her relationship with Marcel had helped her immensely. Not that he'd arranged everything for her, but he'd certainly helped her rise to prominence. If it weren't for him, she'd probably still be just another pretty face among the many around. But she longed for something more, wanted to reach the very top. And she felt she was getting closer. A call from the agency and the offer of this photoshoot reinforced her belief. After this photoshoot, I'd definitely be a star. And I'd get out of here. I'd get to where I truly want to be. And Marcel's proposal and marriage would surely ensure that no one could challenge my position.

Twelve fifty—the taxi driver's cool, professional voice snapped her out of her pleasant reverie.

"Thank you," she said, paying. "

Have a nice day."

The same.

She got out, and the doorman immediately rushed to her aid. "

Welcome home, Miss Marshall.

Hello, hello."

They boarded the elevator, which took them to the 15th floor as quickly and silently as the man with the cage had earlier. "

Have a nice day, Miss Marshall," the doorman said, carrying their suitcases inside. "I hope the session was a success.

Absolutely, Pietro, absolutely. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm tired.

Yes, yes, I understand perfectly. Once again, have a nice day."

The doorman disappeared behind the door, and Laura was finally alone. She closed the door, latching it. At the sight, the man on the other side of the camera smiled with satisfaction. She was his now. There was no escape from this trap. By closing the door, Laura sealed her fate; the lock had been tampered with so that it could no longer be opened from the inside. Laura headed toward the bathroom, removing articles of clothing as she went. She turned on the tap and sat on the edge of the magnificent Jacuzzi tub, idly watching the water flow. She turned back nervously a few times, as if sensing someone's eyes on her. "What a fool I am," she laughed. "There's no one here. It must be just exhaustion."

She slipped into the fragrant water, but she couldn't relax. Something was bothering her. Suddenly, she thought she heard a strange sound, like a gasp or a hiss.

"I must be really exhausted," she muttered to herself. "I'm starting to hallucinate." She stood up and dried herself with a large, warm bath towel, warmed on a specially prepared stove. "Another gift from Marcel. Every time you dry yourself with it, imagine that I'm thinking of you, imagine that it's me drying you," he said, handing her the gift. The memory of those words sent a delicious shiver through her. A few more hours and they'd be together again. I wonder what surprise he had prepared this time?"

She turned around again, increasingly sensing that something, or someone, was watching her. "What's happening to me today?" she thought. "I know perfectly well that no one is here." She put on her bathrobe and went to the bedroom, turning on every possible light along the way. And behind her, slowly, unnoticed, silent as a ghost, was her enemy, her destiny. Laura entered the bedroom, intending to get dressed.

Once again feeling someone's gaze on her—no, she mentally corrected herself, more likely someone's festering eyes—Laura turned and froze in horror. A huge maw hovered on the floor, mere inches from her feet. The snake's red, shimmering eyes stared at her stubbornly, mesmerizing her, drawing her in with incredible force. Its tongue flicked and slid into the animal's open mouth, and from deep within came hisses and strange, ominous growls. "No, this is impossible, I'm dreaming," the terrified woman thought. "I can't see it, there's nothing really here." She wanted to move, to scream, but the eyes were so compelling that she felt paralyzed or hypnotized. She was incapable of the slightest movement. The snake rose even higher, swaying side to side, and slowly, very slowly, as if knowing she had time, as if knowing its prey was no longer able to oppose it, it advanced toward her. With a superhuman effort, Laura tore her gaze away from the beast's red, blazing eyes. Escape, escape, help – screamed in the terrified woman's head. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, she inched closer to the wall. She knew the consequences of even the slightest mistake. The slightest twitch could send the beast leaping – yes, Laura wasn't stupid; she knew how fast and how dangerous snakes were. She couldn't afford the slightest mistake. One small stumble would cost her her life. Delicately, holding her breath, she made her way toward the bedroom door. The snake remained still, as if giving her a chance to escape. The mere fact that the reptile hadn't even moved was puzzling, but Laura had no time to think. One thing was racing through her mind: get out of this room, escape... She did it!!! She slammed the door shut behind her with all her might. She was safe. But how had this creature gotten into her house? And why was it so huge? The snake was enormous, larger than any creature she'd ever seen. It seemed to Laura that its size practically filled her bedroom, which wasn't so tiny after all. Without giving it much thought, she ran to the front door and yanked on the handle, wanting to open it, get out of the apartment, and call for help. But the door wouldn't open. She yanked again, convinced it was simply stuck. Nothing. Absolutely nothing, not even the slightest sign of it giving way. Laura rushed to the phone. She picked up the receiver, wanting to call the guard, to summon someone. Silence. With horror, she realized that her desperate pounding on the receiver was pointless. The windows... But the windows wouldn't open either. There was one last chance left: the fire doors. But even before she got there, Laura knew for sure they were locked. And that there was no way she could open them. Still, she had to try. Nothing, they didn't even budge.

The woman sat down heavily on the floor and began sobbing desperately. She realized she was trapped. A cunning trap, constructed by someone who was her enemy. But who could it be? She had no enemies. Marcel? No, that was absurd, he had no enemies either. Besides, why would Marcel's enemies harm her? A jealous girlfriend, a former lover? Thoughts raced through the distraught woman's mind like crazy. No, not in their world, not in the City. Such things didn't happen here. Even if someone had experienced disappointment, if someone had hurt someone, it was inappropriate to admit it. Everyone suffered in silence. Such were the rules. Only people from outside the City could afford to show their feelings, and she didn't know anyone from there. Did she? Was she really? Vague memories, pushed into her subconscious, returned with all the force Laura had kept from herself until now. That man... she whispered. "A man she'd once met, a waiter or something in a small restaurant, at whose expense she'd had such a cruel laugh. He was the only person Laura knew who didn't live in the City. And who was capable of such a deed. But how? And why? It had been so long? Who would remember? Besides, no, it was impossible. How could he have gotten in here? The building was heavily guarded; no one unauthorized had the slightest chance of sneaking in unnoticed. And with such a reptile, too. He hadn't entered with it on a leash; it must have had some kind of packaging, a cage, or something. And where had he hidden? Where was he now? The sudden thought that in addition to the beast, there might also be a human in her apartment, an apartment she'd considered the safest place in the world, had a stimulating effect on Laura. She rose from the floor and set out to search the apartment. She looked into every nook and cranny, every possible corner. She found no one, that was a fact. But she also found no tools, knives, or other sharp objects. Someone had deliberately removed everything she could have used to defend herself. The doors leading to the garbage chute and the elevator that carried the dirty dishes were also locked, seemingly welded shut. There was no escape. Someone had devised a truly diabolical plan. The woman realized she was trapped in the bedroom with the terrifying beast, that not only was she nowhere or how to escape, but she also had nothing to defend herself with.

Laura avoided the bedroom door, knowing that the danger lurking beyond had not disappeared on its own, that she would have to do something about it. She just didn't know what...

She couldn't sit there forever, doing nothing, waiting for someone to come rescue her. Marcel knew she was coming back tomorrow; her colleagues at the agency were under strict orders not to reveal that she'd returned the day before. It wasn't that she was hiding anything from her fiancé, but she needed a day to unpack in peace, rest, do some light shopping, and so on... Now she regretted her decision, but it was too late for regrets. The reptile locked in the bedroom posed a danger, real and very close... Laura looked at the bedroom door again, and for a moment, her blood stopped. The door, the same door she'd closed tightly behind her in her panic, was now open. And only a large, shiny mark on the carpet indicated that something had escaped. And now that something was in her house. It could be anywhere. And it was waiting for her, ready to pounce and grab her at any moment. She knew she had no chance in a direct confrontation. She knew snakes were too fast and too agile to outrun them. Her only defense was action, wise, logical action, preceded by thought. She rose from her knees and, with a trembling hand, pushed open the open bedroom door. "I have to get dressed, this is how I have to dress," she muttered to herself. She hurriedly pulled on pants and a blouse, for the first time in her life, ignoring the outfit, type, or color. "What next? What should I do? How can I catch the beast before it catches me? Where could it be now? And why? Why was someone so cruel? Why me? 

The fun has begun," the man muttered, watching Laura thrash around the apartment, desperately searching for an escape, for a rescue that would never come. She didn't know yet, didn't fully realize, that she was doomed to death, that from the moment she crossed the threshold of the apartment and the door closed behind her with a dull thud, she was doomed to death... I'm starting to repeat myself, it's so melodramatic, the man grimaced, opening a can of Coke. Oh Laura, dear Laura, it could have been so beautiful...