Chapter 9 - The Elevator Under the Ballroom
Sarah refused to leave Maya.
Catherine offered to accompany her.
Sarah did not trust her.
Adrian said the archive might lock permanently if they waited.
Maya touched Sarah’s arm.
“Go.”
“No.”
“Mom, this is why they brought me here.”
“That is exactly why I won’t leave you.”
The female doctor introduced herself as Dr. Helen Ward, an independent trauma surgeon and former Army physician.
She showed Sarah a secure medical credential.
Adrian confirmed Helen had once assisted Blackout.
Sarah placed Maya on a padded bench beside the ballroom wall.
Helen began monitoring her.
Catherine stayed under Sarah’s watch.
Sarah, Adrian, and Jonathan approached the private elevator.
Elias blocked them.
“Nothing below belongs to you.”
Sarah pressed the gala pin against the elevator panel.
The doors opened.
Inside was no floor selector.
Only a biometric scanner and one recessed key slot.
Maya’s key fit.
Adrian placed his palm on the scanner.
The elevator descended.
Jonathan stood against the mirrored wall, breathing too quickly.
“My father said the archive was empty.”
“Your father lies,” Sarah said.
The doors opened into a concrete corridor.
No chandeliers.
No marble.
Only steel doors and climate-controlled vaults.
A camera tracked their movement.
At the far end stood Arthur Sterling.
Seventy-two.
Silver-haired.
Perfect tuxedo.
One hand rested on a cane.
The other held a pistol pointed at Adrian.
Sarah shifted between them.
Arthur smiled.
“Agent Thorne.”
“That name is dead.”
“Apparently not.”
He told Jonathan to step behind him.
Jonathan did not move.
Arthur’s expression hardened.
“You were given one responsibility.”
“You drugged her.”
Arthur did not deny it.
“Maya was never the target.”
Sarah understood.
They wanted her inside the archive.
The gala.
The bribe.
The attack on Maya.
Every step forced Sarah toward this corridor.
Arthur lifted his cane and tapped one steel door.
“Daniel left something that only you can open.”
May you like
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