The thought didn’t arrive like a scream. It arrived like a cold sip of water. Calm. Final.

Here is a story called: The party was over, but the body hadn't noticed yet.

And now, Samuel heard footsteps behind him. Heels on marble. A girl’s voice, smoky and bored: “There you are. Did he leave? I need my necklace back.”

“No,” she said quietly, pocketing the phone. “ We killed him. You just did the last part.”