Wordle has become a viral sensation, and although it was recently purchased by the New York Times (concerning many), its popularity marches ever forward. It’s not uncommon to see people posting their scores, corresponding to how quickly and how successful they were in guessing the correct word. It’s an understandable habit for many, and it’s perhaps due to this viral nature of Wordle that one 80-year-old woman was saved.

As reported by CBS2, USA Today, and other outlets, one 80-year-old woman named Denyse Holt was taken hostage within her own home, and her lack of communication and the fact she didn’t share her Wordle score alerted her family. This occurred last Sunday in Lincolnwood, Illinois, where Holt supposedly woke around 1 AM to a 32-year-old bleeding, shivering, and naked man holding scissors and threatening her. He would reportedly keep her captive within her own home for 20 hours.

During this invasion of her home, the man reportedly got into bed with her, forced her to take a bath with him, locked her in a bathroom in her basement, and didn’t allow her any necessary food or medication. He allegedly took up all the phones in the woman’s house, as well as secured the door to the bathroom with a chair. This suspect, later identified as James H. Davis III, apparently discarded his clothes in the early hours of that Sunday morning as part of a “mental health crisis.”

Holt has two daughters who live on the West Coast, with one growing concerned when her mother didn’t share her Wordle score and the other when her mother didn’t respond to texts. Holt typically shared her Wordle score with her daughter every day, raising concerns when she first missed a day.

“I didn’t send my older daughter a Wordle in the morning, and that was disconcerting to her,” Holt mentioned to CBS2. Because of this, Holt’s children asked the police for a wellness check where they discovered a broken window, managed to free her from the bathroom, and alert the regional SWAT team.

This all occurred around 9:40 PM on Sunday, with Davis being arrested around 3 AM that Monday morning. Davis has been charged with the following crimes: home invasion with a dangerous weapon, aggravated kidnapping while armed with a dangerous weapon, and two counts of aggravated assault against officers.

Most importantly, Holt was determined to be physically unharmed.

Source: CBS2 (Via USA Today)