The alley swallowed Elena whole. Her shoes slapped the wet pavement, echoing between brick walls slick with rain. Behind her, the courtyard erupted in chaos, shouts, sirens, the crack of something electrical. Then a flash of blue light burst over the roofline.
She stumbled to a stop, chest heaving, her back pressed at a dumpster. Smoke drifted across the alley mouth like a ghost.
“Adrian…” she whispered.
No answer.
She peered around the corner. The courtyard was a haze of light and movement — black-clad men swarming, their flashlights cutting through the smoke. The hatch to the tunnel was still open. But Adrian Wells was gone.
Her fingers dug into the flash drive hidden in her palm. The tiny rectangle of metal felt heavier than it should — like a key to a door she didn’t know how to u
