Elena's POV
The research facility smells like bleach and fear. My footsteps echo through the empty corridors, each sound making me jump like a damn nervous cat. The emergency lighting casts weird shadows that turn every corner into a potential threat. Perfect. Just f*****g perfect.
"Come on, Elena," I whisper to myself, clutching the access card I'd stolen from the unconscious guard. "You've got this."
Except I don't got this. Not even close. My hands are shaking so bad I can barely swipe the card at the main lab door. The reader beeps green, and I slip inside what looks like a mad scientist's wet dream.
Computer screens everywhere. Chemical equipment that probably costs more than most people's houses. And the smell – God, the smell of whatever they've been cooking up in here makes my
