Before I could click on the security codes, a yellow warning light began to flash at the bottom of the screen.

A silent alarm was tripping at the eastern perimeter gate.

The camera feed next to the warning showed a black sedan idling just outside the fence.

A man got out of the passenger side.

It was Elias, holding a crowbar, walking toward the gate’s control box.

I stared at the screen, my fingers freezing over the keys.

The metal gate sparked as Elias jammed the crowbar into the housing unit.

“Roman,” I whispered to the empty room.

The heavy oak door of the library creaked open behind me.

Roman stood in the doorway, his coat torn, holding a black semi-automatic pistol.

His face was pale, but his eyes were sharp as they locked onto mine.

“He’s at the east gate,” I said, pointing at the flashing yellow light on the monitor.

Roman crossed the room in three long strides, his boots leaving wet, muddy tracks on the rug.

He leaned over my shoulder, his breath warm against my cheek, and stared at the screen.