It was a man in a dark overcoat, his face obscured by the shadow of his hat.

He stopped, holding his phone up to illuminate the stairs ahead of him.

He was holding a small, silver crowbar in his other hand.

“Darrow?” the man called out, his voice echoing in the concrete stairwell.

The voice was unfamiliar to me, but Darrow stiffened under Liam’s grip.

“We know you’re in here, Darrow,” the man said. “Beatrice wants to have a word with you.”

Liam didn’t move.

He kept his hand firmly over Darrow’s mouth, pinning him against the wall.

The man took another step up the stairs.

Then, the silence was shattered by a sharp, electronic vibration.

It wasn’t the man’s phone.

It was coming from my own coat pocket.

The screen of my personal phone lit up, casting a bright blue glow over my face.

The man with the crowbar looked up instantly.

“Who’s there?” he shouted, lunging forward.

Liam didn’t hesitate.

He pushed Darrow behind him and stepped into the path of the oncoming light.

“Run, Audrey!” Liam yelled, shining his heavy flashlight directly into the man’s eyes.