“Someone else is draining the accounts.”

The computer screen began to count down, a digital clock ticking away the seconds.

The office door behind us suddenly clicked, the lock turning from the outside.

Dante didn’t flinch.

He kept his eyes on Vanessa while his hand drifted inside his coat.

I kept the gun aimed at her chest, my finger firm on the trigger.

“Who is out there, Vanessa?” I asked, my voice barely a whisper over the steady patter of rain against the window.

She didn’t answer.

She only stared at the blinking red screen as the countdown reached forty seconds.

Dante walked past me toward the heavy mahogany door.

He gripped the brass handle and turned it.

It didn’t budge.

“Marcus,” Dante said, his voice cold and flat.

“He has the master override,” Vanessa said, a tremor running through her shoulders.

“He’s sealing the floor.”

Dante turned back to her desk, ignoring the locked door.

He reached out, grabbed the collar of her silk blouse, and pulled her toward the screen.

“Stop the transfer,” Dante commanded.

“I can’t,” she gasped, clawing at his hand.