At first, Alexander and Emily chose not to worry.
Children saw monsters in corners, faces in curtains, shapes in moonlight. A three-year-old's imagination was boundless. Leo was adored and protected, surrounded by caretakers who loved him like their own. The idea that a shadow woman was watching him was unsettling, but childhood was made of fleeting fears.
So they dismissed it with gentle laughter, warm reassurance, and an extra night-light glowing gold beside Leo's bed.
For a while, that seemed enough.
Leo stopped mentioning the shadow lady. He slept peacefully again, waking with giggles rather than nightmares. Emily watched him one morning as he smeared jam across toast with the solemn concentration of a scientist in a lab. Alexander sat beside him, pretending not to notice as Leo "accidentally" placed a sticky hand on his sleeve.
Peace remained whole — until the cameras began to glitch.
