The sun starts to set. My eyes grow heavy as the days here take their toll this night. My head nods, and I blink. This invisible hand squeezes tighter on my head every minute I refuse to go to sleep. It presses on my eyelids, trying to keep them shut.

  I can't fall asleep; I will know when I do. The second I drift off, It will make its way inside, and by the time I realize where it is, I will be the fresh coat of red on the walls. My eyes strain as I focus on the monitors. A loud metallic clang surges through the warehouse.

  My eyes widen, and I focus on the monitors. I can't see it as I look at each screen individually. Then, I hear the rats running around. A camera catches the vermin scurrying in the break room and a metal thermos jittering on the ground. Someone must have knocked it off the counter. Well, that's what I tell myself.

  I look back at the other monitors and continue watching. The snow hazes my view as it comes down harder. I can barely see across the street. My eyes catch something- a shadow jumping out of one of the cameras' gaze. The fading red circle around the building is now vibrant. The monitor that shows the outside of the garage door steals my attention.

  Laying in front of the door is a half-eaten white rabbit. From the tears on its body seep the red that paints the white of its fur and the soles of its killer's footprints. A present to remind me that it's waiting outside?

  Conditions are still rough. I can't drive yet. I must stay patient and awake. I walk to the break room in the basement for coffee to keep my eyes open and my mind sharp. Tucked in the top corner of the room is a thin glass window covered by a few inches of snow.

  The scent of the black coffee creeps into my body as the machine brews me a cup. The warmth travels through me as I take a sip. I usually have it with too much cream and sugar, but I need it as bitter as possible.

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  The rats hide in the corner, watching me. Usually, I would kick them out of the warehouse. Had to keep this business reputation up, but not anymore. We have plenty in common. Both just trying to stay warm and survive. Both are unwilling to die, so we horde up in this warehouse, the only thing separating us from the outside.

  I'll let the warmth of the coffee just take over my body for now. It doesn't last long. A feeling of ice rolling down my spine overpowers my senses. It's watching me. I can feel its eyes piercing my chest as the grip from the invisible hands squeezes tighter on my head. I see the snow covering the window has been pushed away, and a hot breath still fogs the glass.

  I rush to the monitor room, and it starts banging on the walls from outside. Its strikes are powerful, and it feels like the sound is coming from inside. It's trying to make its way in, but I know the doors are locked shut, and the gates are down. I make it back and slam the door. My eyes frantically jump from monitor to monitor, trying to find a shadow of where it is. Then one of the monitors turns blue.

  The words "No Signal" appear on the screen, then another, and another. With every passing minute, the room becomes a shade bluer as the monitor starts to show one by one.

  "No Signal."

  The warehouse is silent. The roar from the snowstorm outside seems minuscule to the sound of my heart ramming into my chest. I try to control my breathing, but every exhale is thicker than the last. It leaves me one camera, my only connection to the outside. It's of the rabbit as if to taunt that it has control over what I see now.

  I can't look away from the carcass. The red is already covered up by the snow. I can't stay any longer. I would rather face the storm and risk freezing to death than be toyed by this monster. I turn to grab my coat and check for my keys.

  Another metallic clang sends my nerves on fire. It must have been the rats running around after all the noise it made outside. I look at the monitor one last time before I leave, just to see if I can get a glance at it. The rabbit is gone. There is a new red puddle over the snow.It's a rat. The same frosted chill from earlier runs down my spine. I'm being watched. Come to think of it, I haven't heard the rats running in a while.