In the real world, the phone in Elias’s pocket began to vibrate.
Three minutes in, a single grain of light appeared in the center of the black void. As the camera (or whatever was recording) moved closer, the light resolved into a room. It was Elias’s own kitchen, but stripped of everything—no fridge, no table, just the bare floorboards. In the center of the room sat a rotary phone, ringing in sync with the rhythmic thrumming. g60047.mp4
He looked down at the screen. The caller ID was blank. He looked back at the monitor; the figure in the video was waiting, receiver pressed to their ear. Elias answered. "Hello?" he whispered. In the real world, the phone in Elias’s