“Whose number is that?” he asked.

The phone buzzed again, a second vibration that made me jump.

A sequence of twelve digits appeared.

*Type it into the override terminal now,* the second message read.

Mr. Hayes didn’t hesitate.

He stepped around the mahogany table and grabbed the phone from my hand.

His fingers moved quickly over the glowing wall panel by the door.

The red countdown on the main screen paused at one minute and twelve seconds.

Then, the numbers vanished.

The server fans behind the vents hummed, then began to slow down to their normal pitch.

The overhead lights flickered twice and returned to their full, cold brightness.

“The elevator,” I said, my voice barely a whisper. “Is she safe?”

The intercom on the table crackled with static.

“Security here,” the guard’s voice came through, sounding relieved.

“Power is restored to the express shaft.”

“The cab is moving to thirty-one.”

I let out a breath I felt like I had been holding for months.

My knees felt weak, and I had to lean against the back of Nathan’s chair.