He was losing too much blood.

“Roman, stay with me,” I pleaded, pressing a clean cushion from the sofa against his shoulder.

His chest rose and fell in shallow, rapid breaths.

“Lena…” he murmured, his eyes half-open.

“I’m here,” I said, leaning close to his face.

“The gate codes,” he whispered, his lips dry and cracked. “You have to change them. Elias knows the old ones.”

“How do I do that?” I asked, my heart hammering against my ribs.

“The terminal… in the library,” he said. “The password is… your mother’s middle name.”

His eyes closed completely, his breathing growing even shallower.

“Roman?” I shook him gently, but he didn’t respond.

Mara entered the room, carrying a basin of warm water and clean towels.

“Dr. Patel is on his way,” she said, setting the basin on the coffee table. “But the roads are flooded near the creek. It might take him longer.”

I looked down at my bloody hands, then at Roman’s pale, motionless face.

The estate felt suddenly very large, very empty, and very unprotected.

Elias was out there, and he knew the security codes.