Chapter 1
Jenny balanced a steaming cup of coffee in one hand while scrolling through her phone with the other, her apartment bathed in the soft glow of early morning sunlight filtering through the blinds.
At 22, she thrived on the chaos of city life, cracking jokes to her friends about her latest online shopping mishaps and doting on her scruffy terrier, Max, who snored contentedly on the couch beside her.
That Tuesday began like any other. Jenny had just finished her remote work shift as a social media manager and Amazon Reviewer, her fingers still tingling from typing out witty captions all day.
She lived alone in a modest one-bedroom apartment on the fifth floor of a bustling building in downtown Texas, where the hum of traffic and distant sirens provided a constant backdrop to her routines. Family-oriented to her core, she made a point to video call her parents every evening, sharing laughs about her dad's terrible puns or her mom's latest recipe disasters. Max, her faithful companion for the past two years, was the real highlight of her day—his playful antics never failed to lift her spirits after a long haul of virtual meetings.
As she set her coffee down on the kitchen counter, she glanced at the array of packages stacked near the door, a testament to her weakness for online deals. Just the night before, she'd browsed Amazon for kitchen gadgets, saving a sleek pot set for later, but she hadn't pulled the trigger on buying it yet.
The doorbell rang sharply, jolting her from her thoughts. Jenny frowned, wiping her hands on her favorite oversized sweater as she padded over to the door.
She wasn't expecting anything; her last order, a pack of dog treats for Max, had arrived yesterday. Peering through the peephole, she saw only the delivery person’s retreating back, a standard brown box at her feet.
With a shrug, she hauled it inside, slicing through the tape with a pair of scissors. Inside, nestled among packing peanuts, was the exact pot set she'd saved on Amazon—a high-quality stainless steel ensemble with non-stick surfaces and ergonomic handles. Her heart skipped a beat; it was perfect for her small kitchen, and she couldn't help but laugh aloud.
Opps
She must have clicked buy instead of save for later.
“Looks like the shopping gods are smiling on me today, Max," she said, holding up a pot for the dog to sniff, though he merely tilted his head in confusion.
As she unpacked the rest, her amusement faded into bewilderment. Tucked beneath the pots was a small, handwritten note on crisp white paper, the ink a deep, elegant black. “-I saw you admiring this. Thought it might need this for future meals. A Friend-." Jenny stared at it, her smile faltering.
Who even knew about that saved item? She hadn't shared it with anyone, not even on her social media feeds.
She used to always call her momma and bestfriend when she found great deals, but they were not as excited about them.
A prickling sensation crawled up her spine, but she shook it off, attributing it to her overactive imagination fueled by the true-crime podcasts she binged at night. Still, she snapped a photo of the note and the pots, sending it to her best friend with a caption: "Weirdest freebie ever? Feels like I won the lottery, but kinda creepy too lol."
The rest of the day passed in a blur of normalcy. Jenny took Max for a walk through the crowded streets, dodging cyclists and street vendors, her mind wandering back to the mysterious gift. She loved her online shopping sprees—they were her escape, a way to treat herself without leaving the comfort of her apartment—but this felt different, almost invasive.
Back home, she cooked a simple dinner using one of the new pots, the aroma of garlic and herbs filling the air as she chatted with her mom over the phone.
“You won't believe this, Ma," she said, her voice light with forced humor. "Some secret admirer sent me kitchen stuff out of nowhere. Probably a glitch or something." Her mom laughed it off, but Jenny couldn't quite match the levity, a nagging unease settling in her chest.
That evening, as shadows lengthened across the room, Jenny sat on her bed with her laptop, double-checking her Amazon account. Nothing unusual stood out—no purchases, no linked accounts that she could see.
Yet, the more she thought about it, the more the pieces didn't add up.
How had someone accessed her saved items? She wasn't the type to share passwords or post her browsing history, and her privacy settings were always on high. Max whined softly at her feet, sensing her tension, and she stroked his fur to calm herself. "It's nothing, buddy," she murmured, though her words felt hollow. The city outside buzzed with life, but in her apartment, an unfamiliar silence pressed in, making every creak of the floorboards sound ominous.
