The pitch black darkness of the subterranean vault was instant, heavy, and absolute.
For two agonizing seconds, the only sound was the metallic, echoing clank of the multi-ton steel door sealing them into the tomb. Then came the sound that made the hairs on Evelyn’s arms stand up a low, mechanical whine as the vacuum pumps in the ceiling reversed.
They weren't just trapped. The mastermind was actively draining the oxygen from the room.
"Edward," Evelyn whispered. In the dark, her voice sounded terrifyingly small, but her breathing was controlled. She had spent three years fighting for air in medical clinics; she wasn't going to panic now.
"I'm here," Edward’s deep baritone cut through the blackness, remarkably calm. A sudden, sharp scratch echoed through the vault, and a tiny, flickeri
