“Trevor, I know you are in here,” the voice said, the footsteps moving closer to the office door.

Charles reached into his coat pocket and gripped something solid.

My heart pounded so hard I was certain the man in the hallway could hear it.

The footsteps stopped right outside the office door.

A beam of a flashlight cut through the darkness of the doorway, splashing against the filing cabinets.

The light began to sweep across the floor, moving closer to the desk where we hid.

The beam of light sliced through the darkness, stopping inches from my boots.

I held my breath, pressing my shoulder blades hard against the cold metal of the desk.

Beside me, Charles did not move a muscle.

His hand was still inside his heavy wool coat, his fingers locked onto something solid.

Marcus was huddled on the opposite side of the knee-hole, his eyes wide as he stared at the glowing laptop screen.

The progress bar on the screen flickered in the dark.

*Eighty-two percent.*

It was agonizingly slow.

The heavy boots of the intruder took another step into the small office.