Chapter 14 · Vivian's Locked Room

I don't wait for the stranger to get closer.

I step back into the elevator and slam the button. Lucien's already moving, his hand on my arm, pulling me the other direction down the hall. The doors start closing. The guy doesn't follow. He just stands there, hands in his pockets, watching us with that same smile.

The elevator dings shut.

"Who was that?" I'm breathing too fast.

Lucien doesn't answer. He's walking fast, almost dragging me past the executive floor offices. Everything's dark except the emergency lights. It's past midnight. No one else is here.

"Lucien."

"Not here."

"She said don't let you mark me twice. What does that mean?"

He stops in front of a door I've never noticed before. No nameplate. Just a card reader with a red light. He pulls out a key. An actual metal key.

"Vivian's room," he says.

My stomach drops. "You kept it locked?"

"I kept it sealed." He turns the key. The lock clicks three times, heavy, like a safe. "No one's been inside since she left."

"Left or disappeared?"

He pushes the door open. Cold air rolls out. It smells like dust and something else.