The next morning, the compound felt strangely hollow. No children running around, no cheerful shouts bouncing off the walls. Even the air seemed to hold its breath, like it was guarding a secret no one wanted to speak about.
Ada stepped outside to sweep the front yard, but she froze halfway.
Mr. Dike stood right in the center of the compound.
In his hand was a small nylon bag packed with sweets.
And he was smiling.
Not the warm, friendly kind everyone expected from a neighbor…
This one was slow. Heavy. A smile that stopped at his lips and never touched his eyes.
"Good morning, Ada," he said, voice soft as a whisper. "Call your friends. I brought something for all of you."
Ada's stomach tightened.
Her gaze flicked to Chidi, who was peeking from behind a pillar.
His eyes were wide. His head shook rapidly — no, no, no.
But the younger children didn't understand the warning. Before Ada could react, two kids from the upstairs flat ran forward, excitement bubbling over their faces.
"Uncle thank you!" they laughed, stretching out their small hands.
Ada's breath hitched.
Memories snapped through her mind like flashes —
the reddish glow under his door,
the whispering sound from inside his room,
and the soft but unsettling tap she heard against the wood.
Every single instinct in her screamed:
Don't let them take it.
Just as Mr. Dike dipped his hand into the bag, Ada stepped forward and shouted:
"Wait! My mummy said nobody should collect anything today. She said everybody should come inside now!"
Her voice shook, but she forced her eyes to meet his.
The compound fell completely silent.
Slowly, Mr. Dike's smile faded.
His eyes narrowed — not in anger, but in something colder.
Something that made Ada's skin tighten, like invisible fingers tracing her spine.
Then he chuckled.
A calm, quiet, unsettling laugh.
"No problem," he said. "There will be other days."
He turned and walked back toward Flat Seven, the nylon bag swinging at his side.
Ada watched him disappear into the room.
And just before the door closed…
She saw it again.
A faint flicker.
A soft glow of deep, unsettling red.
The same light she saw the night before.
Ada's heart thudded hard against her ribs.
Something was wrong inside that flat.
Very wrong.
And by stopping him today… she feared she had just made herself his new target.