Chapter 34 An Unexpected Visit

• Zara was still basking in the quiet hum of success, a subtle euphoria swirling within her. She had just finished perfecting another mirror selfie a continuation of their strategic "soft launch."
• The image captured her, bathed in the soft glow of her bedroom, her smile a little wider, her eyes a little brighter, hinting at the mysterious figure just out of frame. Her phone was already vibrating with a steady stream of comments, a gratifying shift from the usual vitriol. Many were positive, curious, intrigued. Her digital audience was slowly, surely, warming up to this new personality of Zara confident, untouchable and radiating a quiet, undeniable glow.
• She was making her way to the kitchen, humming a light tune, when a sharp, insistent knock echoed through the quiet of her apartment. It wasn't the tentative tap of a delivery, but a forceful, demanding rap that instantly goy on her nerves.