The train rattled. It rattled hard. The glass shook in its frame. Mabel sat by the window. Her hands were still. They held a coat. It was blue. Faded blue. The wool was thin. It wore thin. She had worn it for years. The train went north. The city was south. The city was gone. Or so she thought. The sky was gray. It was a heavy gray. It pressed down on the fields. The fields were brown. The crops were dead. The air smelled of dust. And iron. Mabel looked at the coat. She touched the sleeve. The fabric was rough. It was familiar. It was safe. She breathed in. She breathed out. The rhythm was steady. The train stopped. The doors opened. The air rushed in. It was cold. It was sharp. Mabel stood up. She kept the coat. She held it tight. She stepped onto the platform. The platform was wet. The concrete was cracked. She walked. Her heels clicked. Click. Click. Click. The sound was loud. The sound was clear. She walked to the door. The door was black. The door was iron. It had a handle. It was cold. She turned the handle. It did not move. She pushed. It did not move. She pulled. It did not move. She stood there. The door stared back. The metal was dull. It reflected nothing. It reflected no one. She looked at the coat. The coat looked back. The blue was dark. It was almost black. She thought of the house. The house was waiting. The house was watching. She turned back to the door. She tried again. The handle turned. The door opened. The air inside was stale. It was thick. It smelled of dust. And old paper. And fear. Mabel stepped inside. The hallway was long. The floor was creaky. The floorboards groaned. She walked to the stairs. The stairs were steep. She climbed. One step. Two steps. Three steps. Her heart beat. Thump. Thump. Thump. The door at the top was closed. She knocked. No one answered. She knocked again. No one answered. She turned the knob. The door opened. The room was dark. The light was dim. The light was yellow. It came from a lamp. The lamp was on the table. The table was empty. The chair was empty. The bed was empty. Mabel walked to the center of the room. She stood still. She looked around. The walls were white. The walls were bare. There were no pictures. There were no mirrors. There was only the lamp. And the table. And the bed. She looked at the coat. The coat was still in her hands. It was heavy. It was warm. She hung it on the chair. The chair creaked. The coat settled. It looked like a person. It looked like a shadow. Mabel sat down. She sat on the edge of the bed. The mattress was soft. It was old. She closed her eyes. She listened. The silence was loud. The silence was heavy. It pressed on her ears. It pressed on her mind. She heard a sound. A soft sound. A scratch. A scrape. It came from the corner. The corner was dark. The darkness moved. The darkness shifted. Mabel opened her eyes. She looked at the corner. Nothing was there. Only the wall. Only the shadow. She looked at the coat. The coat hung still. It did not move. It did not breathe. She looked at the door. The door was closed. The door was locked. She knew it was locked. She did not know how. She knew it. She looked at the lamp. The flame flickered. The flame danced. The flame died. The room went dark. Total dark. Absolute dark. Mabel sat in the dark. She held her breath. She waited. The dark was alive. The dark was breathing. The dark was watching. She felt the coat. She reached for it. Her hand found the wool. It was warm. It was alive. She pulled it to her. She wrapped it around her. It smelled of her. It smelled of time. It smelled of memory. The dark spoke. It spoke with a voice. The voice was hers. The voice was soft. The voice was kind. The voice said, “Mabel.” She did not answer. The voice said, “Mabel.” She did not answer. The voice said, “You know.” She knew. She knew what she knew. She knew the truth. The truth was heavy. The truth was cold. The truth was here. The coat moved. The coat shifted. It wrapped tighter. It held her. It held her tight. The dark faded. The light returned. The lamp was on. The room was light. The room was bright. Mabel looked down. The coat was gone. The chair was empty. The room was empty. She stood up. Her legs were weak. Her knees shook. She walked to the door. The door was open. The hallway was empty. The stairs were empty. The platform was empty. The train was gone. The tracks were gone. The world was gone. The world was still. The world was quiet. She looked at her hands. Her hands were bare. Her hands were clean. Her hands were free. She looked at the ground. The ground was solid. The ground was real. She took a step. Her foot hit the ground. The ground held. She took another step. The ground held. She walked. She walked out. She walked into the light. The light was bright. The light was white. The light was cold. She walked into the light. She walked into the dark. She walked into the night. She walked into the unknown. She walked into the future. The future was here. The future was now. The future was hers. She stopped. She turned. She looked back. The house was there. The house was black. The house was silent. The house was waiting. She walked away. She did not look back. She did not turn. She walked. She walked fast. She walked hard. The wind blew. The wind was cold. The wind was sharp. The wind cut her face. The wind cut her soul. She did not stop. She did not slow. She walked. She walked to the end. The end was near. The end was close. The end was here. She stood still. She looked at the sky. The sky was black. The stars were out. The stars were bright. The stars were far. The stars were cold. The stars were dead. She looked at the ground. The ground was dark. The ground was wet. The ground was cold. The ground was real. She looked at her hands. Her hands were empty. Her hands were free. Her hands were hers. She closed her eyes. She opened her eyes. She saw the world. The world was broken. The world was bent. The world was wrong. The world was her. The world was them. The world was us. The world was one. The world was whole. The world was here. She smiled. The smile was small. The smile was sad. The smile was true. She walked on. She walked into the dark. She walked into the light. She walked into the life. She walked into the death. She walked into the end. The end was here. The end was now. The end was hers.