The Silent Passenger

Rafiq was a simple man He drove his taxi through the streets of Hyderabad every night picking up passengers and dropping them at their destinations He had seen all kinds of people The talkative ones The quiet ones The ones in a hurry But nothing prepared him for what happened that night

It was past midnight The roads were almost empty except for a few late night travelers Rafiq was about to end his shift when he saw a man standing under a dim streetlight His face was shadowed but he raised his hand signaling for a ride

Rafiq slowed down and stopped The man stepped forward and silently slid into the backseat His movements were smooth almost too smooth He was dressed in a plain white shirt and dark pants His face looked calm almost too calm like someone lost in deep thought

Where to Rafiq asked trying to break the silence

Old City near the abandoned mansion The man spoke in a low quiet voice that sent a strange chill through Rafiq

Rafiq hesitated for a moment That area was known for strange stories but work was work He had driven people to all kinds of places and he was not one to believe in foolish rumors He nodded and started the car The streetlights flickered as he passed through the quieter parts of the city

The man did not say a single word the entire ride Rafiq glanced at the rearview mirror once in a while The passenger just sat there staring out the window His expression was blank as if he was lost in another world The silence felt heavy and strange like an invisible weight pressing down on the car

Finally after what felt like forever Rafiq stopped in front of the mansion The place looked dark and lifeless The windows were broken and the gate was rusted over It had been empty for years Nobody ever went there anymore

Rafiq turned around to ask for payment But the backseat was empty

His heart pounded Harder than it ever had before He had not heard the door open He had not felt the car shift like someone had stepped out

Cold fear crept over him slowly sinking into his bones He turned back to face the mansion The wind blew dust across the road making the scene even more eerie He could feel something watching him but there was no one in sight

Then he noticed something on the seat where the man had been sitting A small folded paper His hands trembled as he reached for it His fingers felt ice cold as they touched the paper

He unfolded it slowly dreading what he might find Inside there was only one sentence written in neat careful handwriting

Thank you for the last ride

Rafiq's breath caught in his throat His hands shook as he dropped the paper onto the seat and gripped the steering wheel tightly He felt the weight of unseen eyes on him a presence lingering in the car with him

Without another thought he stepped on the gas The tires screeched against the empty road as he sped away leaving behind the haunted silence that followed him all the way home

That was the last night Rafiq ever worked the night shift