Chapter 13 · Diver Comes Up

Mira's hand slammed the emergency stairwell door so hard the metal rang through Celine's teeth.

Ethan stood one flight below them, one hand on the rail, breathing like he'd run the whole way from the lobby. His shirt was damp at the collar. There was blood on one cuff.

He looked at Mira's face.

Then he said Celine's name.

"Celine."

Mira laughed once. No humor in it. "Wrong woman."

Celine tried to shove forward, tried to grab the muscles in their shared throat and make them answer. The interface gave her nothing but static and a red blink behind her eyes.

PRIMARY MIND: MIRA SOH.

DELETION QUEUE: CELINE ZHAO.

Thirty-four hours, eighteen minutes.

Mira took a step down. "You picked a bad place to lurk, Ethan. Security cameras don't work in this stairwell. That's why people use it for crying and crimes."

"I know." His eyes stayed on her. On them. "That's why I came here."

"Aw. Romantic."

Celine pushed again. Her fingers twitched against the handrail. That was all she got. A tiny jerk of the index finger.

Ethan saw it.

His face changed, just for a second. His jaw locked. "She's in there."

Mira's smile went flat.