The caller ID displayed a number I didn’t recognize.

The ringing of the phone seemed to echo off the cold hardwood floor.

Nathan took one slow step down from the final stair.

“Who is calling you, Claire?” he asked, his voice low and flat.

I didn’t answer him.

My finger swiped the green icon on the screen and pressed the speaker button.

“This is SafeShield Security,” a sharp, automated voice announced through the speaker. “An incorrect code was entered at your keypad. Please state your safe word to cancel police dispatch.”

Nathan lunged forward, his arm outstretched to grab the phone.

I pulled my arm back and screamed into the microphone.

“Redwood!” I yelled. “No, cancel that! Send the police! Send them now!”

Nathan’s fingers brushed the sleeve of my sweater.

I twisted my body away from him, dropping the phone onto the floor.

The device slid across the polished wood, the speaker still crackling with the operator’s voice.

“Ma’am? Please confirm your address. Ma’am?”

Nathan didn’t look at the phone; his eyes were fixed on me.

“You’re making a terrible mistake, Claire,” he said, stepping between me and the front door.