“Perhaps,” Elena said, tilting her head.

“But you won’t be around to see it.”

“You are a relic, Adrian.”

My jacket pocket vibrated once, a short, sharp pulse.

It was my secure phone, linked directly to the estate’s panic room door sensors.

I didn’t look down, but I knew what the vibration meant.

The heavy steel door of the panic room had just been opened from the inside.

Nora.

She was supposed to stay inside with Lila.

She was supposed to keep my daughter safe behind four inches of reinforced steel.

But Nora was loyal, and she was smart.

She knew that if I died down here, the panic room would eventually become their tomb.

I had to keep Elena talking.

I had to give Nora whatever time she needed to move through the upper halls.

“The syndicate won’t accept a takeover built on a lie,” I said.

“What lie?” Elena asked, her eyes narrowing slightly.

“Caleb told them I was weak,” I said.

“He told them I was hiding.”

“But he didn’t tell them about the security protocols.”

“He doesn’t have the master codes.”