“Block the elevators,” Nathan said into the phone.

“Do not let anyone from the executive suite leave the floor.”

He hung up.

Richard stood frozen by the table, his mouth slightly open.

“What did he say?” Richard asked.

“What did Hayes say?”

Nathan did not answer him.

He took my elbow, his grip firm and steady.

“Let’s go, Emily,” he said.

We walked toward the heavy steel door of the vault.

The security guards stepped aside, their eyes lowered.

As we reached the threshold, the overhead lights in the corridor outside began to flicker.

A sharp, high-pitched alarm began to sound from the elevator lobby down the hall.

It was not a fire alarm.

It was the building’s security lockout.

Nathan pulled his phone from his pocket again as it vibrated against his palm.

A new document notification appeared on the screen, stamped with the seal of the New York State Supreme Court.

My heart began to hammer against my ribs.

“What is it, Nathan?” I whispered.

He stopped, his eyes scanning the legal text on the glass screen.

“Hayes worked faster than I thought,” Nathan said.