The Light Across the Valley

At exactly 2:17 a.m., Rohan saw the light again.It appeared on the opposite side of the valley, between two dark lines of pine trees.
A small white light.It switched on.Stayed there for approximately ten seconds.Then disappeared.
The first time he’d noticed it, he’d assumed it was a vehicle. The second time, he thought it might be someone hiking with a flashlight.But tonight was different.
There was no road anywhere near that part of the forest.And the light had appeared at exactly the same place.
Rohan had been staying at his uncle’s house in the hills for almost three weeks. He had started waking late at night because the internet connection was better after midnight, when everyone else was asleep.The first night he’d seen the light, he hadn’t thought much about it.
The second night, he’d taken a photograph.It showed nothing.Only darkness.He had almost forgotten about it until the following night, when it appeared again.
2:17.Ten seconds.Gone.After that, he started recording.For six nights, nothing happened.On the seventh night, the light appeared.
Rohan immediately grabbed his phone and began filming.“Come on,” he whispered.The light switched off.He checked the recording.The video showed the valley clearly.
But something was wrong.At 2:17, the light appeared exactly as he’d seen it.Then, three seconds later, another light appeared.Much closer.Rohan stopped the video.
He zoomed in.The second light wasn’t across the valley.It was somewhere below the house.He looked through the window.Nothing.He checked the video again.The second light moved.
Slowly.It travelled along the edge of the forest before disappearing behind the trees.Rohan didn’t sleep that night.The next morning, he mentioned it to his uncle.His uncle didn’t laugh.He simply asked, “What time?”
“2:17.”His uncle put down his tea.“Don’t record it again.”Rohan stared at him.“Why?”His uncle was silent for several seconds.Then he said, “Because three years ago, a man disappeared from that forest.”
Rohan waited.“Was he found?”“No.”“What happened?”His uncle looked toward the valley.“He was staying in a guesthouse nearby. One night, the owner saw him leave around two in the morning. He never came back.”Rohan frowned.“And the police?”“They searched for weeks.”“Did they find anything?”His uncle nodded.“A flashlight.”Rohan felt a chill.

“Where?”His uncle pointed toward the opposite valley.“Exactly where you saw that light.”That evening, Rohan searched the internet for the missing man’s name.
There was an old newspaper article.LOCAL TOURIST MISSING AFTER LEAVING GUESTHOUSE AT NIGHT.The article included one photograph.Rohan stared at it.The man looked familiar.Not because he’d seen him before.
Because the photograph showed him wearing the same jacket Rohan had seen hanging inside his uncle’s house.Rohan slowly turned toward the hallway.
His uncle’s house suddenly felt much quieter.Then his phone buzzed.A new video had appeared in his gallery.He hadn’t recorded it.The timestamp read:2:17 a.m. — tomorrow.
And in the video, someone was standing outside his bedroom window.