The air in Annabella’s house hung thick and still, a cloying mixture of dust and forgotten things. Sunlight, a rare commodity in the perpetually overcast Northwestern sky, was barred by heavy blinds, creating a perpetual twilight. The silence was never truly silent. It was punctuated by a faint, persistent whisper, a sibilant murmur that seemed to emanate from the grimy air vents. Annabella wasn’t