Before I could open it, the heavy glass doors of the bank lobby shattered.

The sound echoed through the marble hallways like a gunshot.

“Where is she?” a harsh voice shouted from the lobby.

It was one of the men from the subway platform.

“Hey! You can’t go back there!” the security guard yelled.

A loud thud followed, then the sound of something heavy hitting the tile floor.

My heart hammered against my ribs.

I shoved the envelope and the notebook into my coat pocket.

The vault assistant gasped, her face turning pale as she looked toward the hallway.

“Is there another way out?” I whispered, grabbing her arm.

“The emergency exit,” she stammered, pointing to a gray metal door at the back of the vault. “It leads to the basement stairs.”

“Lock this gate behind me,” I said.

I pushed the heavy emergency bar on the door.

An alarm began to blare, a high-pitched siren that filled the small room.

I plunged into the concrete stairwell.

It was cold and smelled of old cardboard and wet cement.

I ran down the steps, my boots echoing against the walls.