Cursed

This Thing Between Us by Gus Moreno is a creepy story. It begins with Thiago at his wife Vera’s funeral before flashing back to the events leading up to her death.

Strange events started happening shortly after they moved into their apartment. Itza is the equivalent of an Alexa, and it is one source of some odd occurrences. It makes random comments, song choices and delivery of odd items that nobody ordered. In addition to this are the strange scratching noises and Thiago’s odd nighttime wake ups in which he sees a glowing door. Vera’s death is blamed on an illegal immigrant who ran by and knocked her down a flight of stairs (of course, there’s more revealed about this moment as the story progresses).

Thiago decides to leave all of the attention behind, and moves far away from neighbors and concerned “friends.” Unfortunately, strange events keep happening, and they seem to be increasing their intensity. With moments reminiscent of “Pet Sematary” and other classic horror films, Thiago must face an otherworldly entity which seems intent on driving him to his own death. There are several uncertainties in the story, such as the origin of this entity (my daughter and I had different understandings), but it all contributes to a chilling read.