The silence in the room became heavy and suffocating.

He looked from Ryker to me, his chest rising and falling in shallow, rapid gasps.

“You’re lying,” Voss whispered, his voice cracking.

“I don’t lie about my sister,” Ryker said.

Just then, the heavy oak doors of the private office began to rattle violently.

A loud, metallic crash echoed from the reception hallway outside.

The sound of shouting men and heavy footsteps broke the quiet of the executive suite.

Voss stood up so fast his heavy leather chair toppled backward onto the thick carpet.

The brass door handle began to turn.

The double doors burst inward with a sharp splintering sound.

Four armed federal agents in tactical gear surged into the office, their weapons raised.

“Federal agents! Don’t move!”

The lead agent, a tall woman with her hair pulled back in a tight knot, pointed her weapon directly at Voss’s chest.

Voss froze, his hands raised halfway to his shoulders, his face completely white.

Behind the agents, Marco stepped into the room, his expression calm and his posture relaxed.

“The building is secure, Mr. Steel,” Marco said, nodding once to Ryker.