Silent Advance

Silence returned to the sector once the acoustic bombardment ceased. With night settled across the quarters, I crawled out from beneath the dresser's wooden skirt to re-establish forward surveillance. Advancing along the baseboard toward the dark gap under the closet door, the floorboards stayed cold and quiet beneath my boots. Near the trim, I spotted a dropped black steel bobby pin. Clamping its spring steel between both hands, I slid the flat prongs beneath the door seam to gauge the draft and interior clearance. The gap is narrow and pitch-black. I anchored the metal pin against the wood as a tactile sensor to detect any movement from within. Night perimeter secured.