Suddenly the cell phonejolted her with its ring. Veronica hesitated picked it up with her right hand, looked at the face, and pushed in the center button.

Hellohello, she repeated, first to static and then to a voice that was ever so faint. HelloCindyis that you? she asked.

You arenotalone. I am with youalways, a voice declared, but it was ever so muted that Veronica was unsure that she heard it correctly. HelloCindywhat did you sayis that you? she asked again, but a shiver went down her spine as she spoke because she felt that someone was standing behind her. She turned so quickly that the phone fell out of her hand and Irma, distressed by her reaction, leaped from her arms and ran into the living room. Veronicas heart was pounding and her head felt light, so she stood still, took a deep breath, and after exhaling it thought of how silly she was behaving.

Oh, dear, now look at what youve done, she stated, scolding herself. I hope the phone is okay, she continued, rushing to pick it up off the floor and announcing hello again to nothing at the other end. Veronica removed the phone from her ear and looked at it. She was reluctant to try to work any of the buttons on the phone for fear she might do something wrongshe pushed the arrow key and saw an unfamiliar seven-digit number displayed. She pressed the center button and was amazed when she heard the phone make its connection. The moment dissipated quickly, and she let out a scream as a phone began to ring somewhere in the house.

Where is the phone? she asked, but there was no one there to respond. She followed the sound of its ring into the living room, failing to turn on the light. She quickly realized that the ring was coming from the area of the study, but she did not know where the light switch was. She groped in the dark like a blind person, following the sound of the phone as it continued to ring and ring. She knew she needed to get to the phoneit might be an important call for someone to let it ring so many times. She was almost becoming nauseated by the heat within the room, the blackness of it, and the constant ringing of the phone.

Im comingjust give me a chance, she shouted, dropping the cell phone once again as her foot stepped on a lump on the floor and Irma shrieked with pain and anger, tearing into the flesh of her ankle as the cat ran from the room once more.

Irma, Im so sorry but, oh, she cried reaching down for her ankle and knocking down the receiver of the telephone in the process. But, there you are, she declared, groping for the phone and picking it up off the floor, and as she did so pulling the rest of the phone with it. Oh, my goodness, she declared sitting down on the floor with the phone to her ear and hearing only a deadly silence.

HelloHellohellowho is this? I dont think this is funny, she announced but the phone was dead. She couldnt find nor reach the base of it and feared causing more damage in the dark, so she just sat there for a few moments to collect her thoughts. She waited and her eyes began to focus in the dark. She could make out the base of the telephone now and see the wiresshe placed the handset back into its cradle. She slid across the floor and replaced it back on the table where she thought it might have been situated.

Veronica now tried to get herself up, but a force seemed to push against heralmost as if hands had pushed against her shoulders.

Oh, she cried breathlessly and shivered as she looked across and thought she saw the shadow of a person sitting casually nearby. She knew instinctively who it wasit was the same man she had seen in the yard that very day reaching down to pick up the ball for the young boy. But how could this be? When and how did he get in this room? Was this just her vivid imagination at work again? She shivered so strongly that tears began to form in her eyes. She wanted to speak but feared that no sound would come out, so she simply closed her eyes and prayed silently. Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes again, and instinctively knew that now there was nothing to fear. She peered in the dark but could only see the chair upon which the man had sat and the window and drapes behind it. Veronica could feel a trickle of perspiration running down her neck. She had to get out of this room and find some light. She pulled herself up off the floornothingno one pushed her back. She made her way to the living room. Once at the threshold between the living room and the foyer, she found the light switch

The room was empty except for the walls filled with books, several chairs, and the telephone nestled on the table. Veronica viewed the rug on the floorit was rumpled where she had deposited herself, and lying on the disheveled lump was the cell phone where she had dropped it. She picked it up and still saw the same unknown seven-digit number she had called displayed on its screen.

But wait a minuteit must have just been a coincidenceit had to be, she said aloud, trying to explain how the telephone in the study rang at the very moment after she had dialed the cell phone. Veronica reached for the telephone again and tapped the button, but she was unable to obtain a dial tone. Then she recalled her conversation with Cindy.

How could the phone ring? It isnt connected? she asked to the empty room